At the AYCC we love pulling off crazy stunts – stunts like a 1000-person flashmob, or introducing the Climate Elephant to the Prime Minister. But our impact is built on more than that.
The key to success is extremely simple: have conversations. Have lots of conversations, with lots of people, in lots of places.
If we can build a movement full of young people talking to their family, friends, and neighbours, we can create lasting change.
But if you’re new to community outreach, striking up conversations with strangers (a.k.a. future climate heros) can be confronting. If you want to try some community engagement, but aren’t sure how to get started, here are some ideas for making it fun, positive and effective.
Café bashing
Much less violent than it sounds, café bashing is one of the most effective and friendly ways to connect with young people. This works especially well on uni campuses in food halls. You can also try trendy café strips, which tend to be full of trendy young people (just like you).
In a small group, split up and work the room in pairs or solo, starting conversations at each table. Make sure you approach them in a friendly, open way to get the conversation going. Great for universities.
Station bashing
The other day the AYCC Hawthorn crew managed to get 200 signatures for our Repower petition in just one hour! How did they do it? Station-bashing!
A spin-off from café- and lecture-bashing, this one involves hanging out at a train station or bus stop where lots of young people are likely to be (e.g. a stop near a big uni or your local station just after school finishes). As people start streaming off the platform, have your group ready to start chatting to them with clipboards and petition sheets.
Street theatre
Community outreach is all about getting out onto the streets and making yourselves visible – if you look fun and friendly, you’ll soon have bystanders approaching you rather than the other way around.
If you’re a dramatic, artsy type, this one might be for you. Hold a performance/stunt, attract a crowd, then tell them about why you’re there. Have some people in the audience, ready to collect sign-ups for your campaign or petition. You could try a dance-off, flashmob, or construct your very own renewable energy plant. Great for universities.
Cake stall
Nothing gets passersby interested like sugar-filled edible goods. Cake stalls are a tried and true AYCC favourite – just get a few friends together, ask them to bring something along, then sell them for a dollar or two each to cover your costs. Make sure you’ve got some pens and petition sheets printed out, and chat to your customers about your campaign as they line up.
If the idea of individually icing 200 cupcakes makes you want to cry and/or quit the climate movement, don’t despair. Try bribing someone in your family to do it for you, and if that fails go for chocolate crackles or honey joys instead. Great for schools and universities.
BBQ
As above, but replacing cupcakes and cookies with sausages and burgers. At the AYCC we tend to go for vegan sausages and veggie burgers – lentil burgers are super cheap to make and have a much better environmental footprint than their beef counterparts!
Remember, the main purpose isn’t just to feed the masses (although that’s a nice by-product) – it’s to get signatures and have conversations. So make sure you’ve got a couple of people working the queue with a clipboard! Great for schools and universities.
Stall
Okay, stalls themselves aren’t a particularly creative form of community outreach. But it’s all about how you use them.
Think about how you can make your stall stand out with music, food, decorations, or AYCC merchandise (email fabia.pryor@youthclimatecoalition.org to get your hands on some).
And the golden rule?
Never stand behind the table – if you want to have conversations, make sure you’re standing out the front, engaging with everyone walking past! Great for schools and universities.
We’ve launched our Repower Australia petition to give young people the opportunity to get active in their local communities, collecting signatures and running creative events in support of moving Australia towards 100% renewable energy. Click here to hold and event and for more information.
