Question:
Hi in my village we have some paper roads that were supposed to be de mapped a few years ago but they never finalized it. so now people that own lots there are trying to build homes there but the community is against it because we have a lot of beautiful mature trees even eagles nest there. people come to me because i am in the Conservation Advisory Board and the Tree Commission and the question has come up is there any organization or resources that either they as a community or the village can apply for help. Please advice thank you very much
Answer:
You raise an important question: How can a community oppose a change not judged to be in the community's best interests? The Community Tool Box (CTB) offers some guidance for advocating for change that you could apply to your conservation efforts. Several CTB resources maybe particularly helpful:
- Troubleshooting Guide #7. We are facing opposition or conflict. https://ctb.ku.edu/en/facing-opposition-conflict This offers guiding questions to consider (e.g., Do we know who are opponents are and why they oppose us?) and links to supports for taking action (e.g., Identifying Opponents);
- Toolkit #10 Advocating for Change: https://ctb.ku.edu/en/advocating-change This includes guidance for planning an advocacy effort such as your conservation work.
- CTB Chapter 33. Conducting a Direct Action Campaign https://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/advocacy/direct-action
These resources are free, and we encourage you and your community to make good use of them in your important conservation efforts.
Question Date: Lun, 03/25/2024