Thank you for taking such a crucial step to form a Greenpeace Action Pod!<\/p>\n\n
Fighting climate change is no easy task, but it\u2019s impossible if you go at it alone. That\u2019s why we\u2019re so excited for you to build long-term people power in your community, your first step is to organize a kickoff meeting.<\/p>\n\n
By organizing a kickoff meeting you\u2019ll learn and practice the most important skill needed for Greenpeace Action Pods \u2013 the ability to bring people together to take action for a common goal.<\/p>\n\n
If this is your first time doing something like this, or you\u2019re nervous, that\u2019s okay and normal! This toolkit will give you everything you need to organize a successful kickoff meeting. And remember, your Greenpeace coach will support you every step of the way.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n In order to kick off your campaign, it is vital to get everyone on the same page and share the goals, strategies and tactics with your volunteer group, with a kickoff meeting. Over the next four weeks you\u2019ll plan, recruit, facilitate, and do a post kickoff meeting follow up.<\/p>\n\n The date should ideally be around 3 weeks from the day you start your planning process.<\/p>\n\n Please note Greenpeace USA\u2019s current guidelines for in-person volunteer events<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n If you need help with creating your event, talk to your coach, or speak to a Greenpeace representative.<\/p>\n\n Start by making a list of people you\u2019d like to invite to your kickoff meeting. This includes friends and family, as well as coworkers, neighbors, classmates, congregants, and pretty much anyone who\u2019s in your local area and you think might be interested! Try to get your list to 10 people (at least!). You can use pen & paper, a note on your phone, or a copy of the Greenpeace recruitment tracker<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n Recommended: You can recruit Greenpeace supporters in your area to your event by filling out <\/em>this request form<\/em><\/strong><\/a>. We\u2019ll make a list of supporters in your area, and text them with an invitation to join!<\/em><\/p>\n\n Start your outreach by connecting with the groups of people and individuals you brainstormed in the previous step. Remember, it\u2019s important to make your recruitment as personal as possible. For close friends and family, we recommend personalizing the recruitment message since you know them well. For coworkers, classmates, and other people you recruit, you can use the template below, but we recommend personalizing that as well.<\/p>\n\n Sample text message (please personalize):<\/strong> \u201cHey [Name]! I\u2019ve started volunteering with Greenpeace to fight climate change, and I\u2019m starting an Action Pod, which is a group that takes action on local and national environmental issues. Our kickoff meeting is on [Date & Time], and I think you\u2019d find it really interesting. Can you make it?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n Make sure to track your recruitment efforts in your personal copy of the kickoff meeting recruitment tracker<\/strong><\/a>, the same place you did your brainstorm of who to invite. <\/p>\n\n The second week of planning your kickoff meeting is all about recruitment and preparing for your meeting. In the previous week you brainstormed who you wanted to ask to attend your meeting and started the outreach process. This week you\u2019ll continue the recruitment process for your event and review the meeting agenda, slide deck, and other meeting logistics.<\/p>\n\n Don\u2019t take it for granted that everyone who signed up will show up! We make sure that the people who RSVP end up joining through the confirmation process. On your events page<\/a>, go through everyone who signed up, and call\/text them, asking if they can still make it. We recommend calling first, then sending a text if they don\u2019t pick up. Below is a sample text to send to your sign-ups:<\/p>\n\n Hey [Their Name], it\u2019s [Your Name] with Greenpeace! I\u2019m so excited to see you at our Action Pod kickoff meeting on [Date & Time], and wanted to make sure you\u2019re still attending. Let me know if you have any questions \ud83d\ude42<\/em><\/p>\n\n This is a great week to ask people who have already agreed to attend your kickoff meeting for help with meeting logics, agenda and leading the meeting \u2014 make sure to ask folks who in their network of friends, family, co-workers, classmates, etc might be interested in attending your meeting as well!<\/p>\n\n If you haven\u2019t finished reaching out to all the personal contacts that you thought about last week, this is the perfect time to do so. Also, if you filled out the request form<\/strong><\/a> to receive Greenpeace supporters in your area, you should now have that list which you can contact!<\/p>\n\n Think about what you want to discuss in your kickoff meeting, and what order you want everything to be in. Add this information to your agenda so that your meeting will have structure. Here is a sample kickoff meeting<\/strong> agenda<\/strong><\/a> to use. To make edits to the agenda, make a copy of the document by clicking on \u201cFile\u201d then \u201cMake a copy\u201d. If you want, you can also use a slide deck<\/strong><\/a> as a visual aid during your meeting. (This can be particularly useful if hosting a virtual meeting!)<\/p>\n\n If you can, take at least one picture during your event and share it with us! Post your videos\/photos in the #event-support<\/strong><\/a> Slack channel too!<\/p>\n\n Congratulations! You held your kickoff meeting! In these next few days, follow up with your guests, and keep them involved with your local organizing.<\/p>\n\n Send out an email the next day<\/a> thanking everyone for coming and include the date & location of your next event. If applicable, be sure to thank any speakers or other notable attendees for coming with a personal email. Finally, thank and reward your members who helped make the event happen. <\/em><\/p>\n\n If you send out a group email on Gmail or an email client that is not Mobilize, it is mandatory that you use BCC in order to protect the information of members. This is critical to protecting volunteers\u2019 privacy. To do this, put your own email into the \u201cTo\u201d section of your email, and add the recipients\u2019 emails into the BCC section.<\/em><\/p>\n\n Retention is a key part of growing your group \u2014 and that\u2019s why following up with event attendees is a critical component you can\u2019t overlook. Send a text to everyone who attended, personally thanking them for joining your meeting, and following up on their commitments.<\/p>\n\n Debriefs are an excellent way to capture learnings and think through the next steps. Make sure to schedule a time to debrief with your Greenpeace coach post-meeting.<\/p>\n\nTimeline<\/h2>\n\n
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Week 1: Recruiting for your meeting<\/h2>\n\n
Goal:<\/strong> Add your kickoff meeting to the Greenpeace events page<\/a>, create a list of 10+ people to recruit, get 5 people to say yes to attending kickoff meeting<\/h3>\n\n
1. Pick a date and time for your kickoff meeting.<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n
2. Decide if your event will be in-person or virtual.<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n
3. Add your kickoff meeting to the Greenpeace events page<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n
4. Begin thinking about who you want to invite to your kickoff meeting and start recruiting!<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n
5. Start recruiting!<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n
Week 2: Plan your meeting and keep recruiting<\/h2>\n\n
Goal: <\/strong>Confirm meeting attendees, recruit 1-2 co-facilitators, recruit more.<\/h3>\n\n
1. Confirm your meeting attendees.<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n
2. Find co-facilitators<\/h4>\n\n
3. Continue recruitment!<\/h4>\n\n
4. Create your meeting agenda.<\/h4>\n\n
Week 3: Hold your kickoff meeting!<\/h2>\n\n
Goals<\/strong>: Get 6 people to attend your meeting.<\/h3>\n\n
1. Final preparations.<\/h4>\n\n
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2. Meeting tips:<\/h4>\n\n
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3. Document your kickoff meeting<\/h4>\n\n
Week 4: Post-meeting follow up<\/h2>\n\n
Goals:<\/strong> Text (or call!) all attendees and RSVPs to follow up with them about the next steps you agreed on together.<\/h3>\n\n
1. Thank everyone.<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n
2. Individual follow-up.<\/h4>\n\n
3. Debrief with your coach.<\/h4>\n\n
Resources<\/h2>\n\n
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