On December 5th, International Volunteer Day was commemorated by Members of Parliament, at a press conference and in the House of Commons.  The statements and motion presented on this day were the result of Volunteer Canada’s ongoing government relations work with elected officials in delivering our message on the vital importance of volunteering and the impact it can make in creating a civil society.

Playing a role in the decision making process of government is key to an organization’s ability to achieve its mission and to affect change.  Public policy is developed when citizens, government officials and elected officials work together to set an agenda for the common good.  A government relations strategy is the process of becoming engaged as partners with government.

In order for any organization to become effective in building government relations, it is important that there is a clear understanding of its priorities as established by its Board of Directors and the proposed solutions to those issues.  Non-profit organizations can benefit from adopting a clear government relations and public policy strategy, especially when they are able to work collaboratively with similar agencies or, at times, with non-traditional partners.  A non-profit organization finding common ground with a local chamber of commerce or independent business association illustrates its ability to understand the larger context of its issue.

There is also a wide range of ways to deliver a message to government, from meetings with elected officials and staff to direct action.  It is important to evaluate the situation and tailor the way you deliver your message accordingly.

Opportunities for communicating our message to government might include: meeting with Members of  Parliament, Ministers and their senior staff, or key civil servants; establishing relationships with candidates during an election period; coordinating pre-budget meetings and submissions, legislative and standing committee hearings, town hall meetings, and policy round tables; or advocating for change through petitions, demonstrations, letter writing campaigns, elections toolkits posted on websites, media engagement, and op-ed pieces from experts.

Volunteer Canada has recently enjoyed some success in its government relations approach.   When we learned that the federal government was considering eliminating funding for the Canada Survey of Giving, Volunteering and Participating, we joined other national organizations in our approach to government.  We urged other non-profit and volunteer involving agencies to express their concerns to the Minister of Industry that the sole source of comprehensive data that the sector holds describing volunteering and philanthropy in Canada is at risk of elimination.  A subsequent meeting with the Minister’s office revealed that our efforts were having an effect on the decision making process, however, the battle is not over. 

Volunteer Canada continues to urge other organizations who share our concerns to continue delivering this message to government.  We offer a link to our template letter to the Minster as well as a fact sheet outlining some of the key aspects of the Survey – found within Issues and Policy on volunteer.ca. 

Volunteer Canada also offers a training guide on this topic titled:  Advocacy on the Agenda: Preparing voluntary boards for public policy participation. 

This resource provides an overview of the public policy process, divided into two sections:  the first builds an understanding of the role of a board of directors in the public policy process, followed by a ‘how-to’ guide that eases participants into the advocacy arena, including links to numerous hardcopy and electronic resources and tools covering all aspects of policy involvement and advocacy.  It is available by download through our website and can be purchased through Marketplace.  Training on this topic and resource may also be available.