Advocacy Award Winners | Application Forms | Some advocacy ideas

ADVOCACY AWARDS

Advocacy = action and education on public policy

Purpose of CFUW:
 

  • To arouse and sustain among members an intelligent interest in all aspects of public affairs in the political, social, cultural and scientific fields; to encourage an active participation in such affairs by qualified women; and to provide an opportunity for effectual concerted action.
  • To foster a sense of responsibility and encourage women university graduates to place their educational and professional training at the service of the community in local, national and international fields; to be concerned with human rights and at the same time to safeguard and improve the economic, legal and professional status of women in Canada. 

Source www.cfuw.org

To acknowledge this, the Ontario Council of CFUW created the Advocacy Award.

Each year clubs can earn three levels of awards:

  1. the Advocacy Award Certificate for clubs that carry out and document any three activities in each of the categories;
  2. Advocacy Excellence Certificate for clubs that accomplish this plus additional suggestions; and 
  3. the Grand Prize for “The Club Most Active in Advocacy During The Year”. 
    Three Grand Prizes of one free registration for the Ontario Council AGM is given:
      • one for Clubs up to 50 members;
      • one for Clubs with 50 to 149 members; and
      • another for Clubs with 150+ members

 

ADVOCACY AWARD WINNERS

2004-2005:

Grand Prize Winners:

  • up to 50 members                              CFUW/Perth
  • for 50 –149 members                        CFUW/Southport
  • for 150+ members                              CFUW/Burlington

Advocacy Excellence Certificate winners:
   CFUW/Ottawa
   CFUW/Etobicoke
   CFUW/North York
   CFUW/St. Catharines
   CFUW/Aurora-Newmarket
   CFUW/Belleville
   CFUW/London
   CFUW/Windsor
   CFUW/Orillia

2003-2004:

Grand Prize Winner                                        CFUW/Burlington
(the three Grand Prizes was started in 2004-2005)

Advocacy Excellence Certificates:
   CFUW/Etobicoke
   CFUW/Muskoka
   CFUW/North York
   CFUW/Oakville
   CFUW/Orillia
   CFUW/St.Catharines
   CFUW/Southport

Honourable Mention:
   CFUW/Norfolk

 

APPLYING FOR ADVOCACY AWARDS

  • Application forms in .pdf format can be found here.
  • Application forms in Word format can be found here
  • Deadline for applications is June 1st.

 

SOME ADVOCACY IDEAS

People have asked about examples for the Advocacy Award applications– what have other Clubs done? Here are some examples taken from the application forms:

Take Action:

  • Posting or publishing the CFUW Mission Statement is the easy one
  • Letters, emails, briefs, postcards sent to elected officials, newspapers; radio interviews
  • meetings with elected officials by members of the Executive or members of interest groups; also elected officials coming to general meetings or interest groups
  • petitions; community meetings involving elected officials; all-candidates’ meetings
  • setting up Issues Committees; strategic plans for advocacy

Let Members Know About Action:

  • reports in the Club’s newsletter about the work done in “take action” ; also reports about the National and Ontario Council AGMs, Ontario Council Standing Committees meetings
  • preparing information sheets for members on topics of concern
  • sending the information to your RD for Dates & Data
  • creating a website

Learn:

  • public affairs issues presented and/or discussed at general meetings(this can of course include Resolutions Night), also at interest groups
  • book club discussion on public affairs topic
  • visits – CFUW/Etobicoke visited the Algonquin Power plant (an incineration facility in Peel), CFUW/Aurora-Newmarket visited a mosque
  • interest groups such as International Affairs, Investment
  • preparing a resolution and its background (either National or Ontario Council) or a brief; studying some community concern

Community Involvement:

  • involved with other women’s groups, charities and community groups, e.g. Breaking Bread for Afghanistan, International Women’s Week, Meals on Wheels, Community Vigil
  • joining other organizations such as the Council of Women
  • sending members to the meetings of school boards, city councils, other public bodies
  • major projects such as St. Catharines’ Gift of Reading
  • donations to other groups, either monetary or articles

Remember to look at everything that is happening in your Clubs.  One of the interest groups or book clubs could be discussing public affairs topics. 

The Advocacy Award is narrowly limited to advocacy and not to fundraising projects.  But if the fundraiser, like CFUW/Belleville’s cookbook that includes a section on pesticide-free gardening, involves public issues, then it is acceptable.

The most important part is to be involved.