“We’ve become very good at inviting the right people and making them feel good in conversations,” explained U. “But when it comes to taking action, hardly anything happens.”
The European Commission clearly is a difficult beast to change. Together with a group of likeminded officials, U. had hosted a series of events and conversations to focus the culture of the commission back on its purpose: Building a European Union that serves its citizens. The process was always meant as a grassroots effort, but had run into one clear obstacle: How can you inspire the volunteers engaged in those conversations to action?
When U. brought this question to an open space I attended last week, it reminded me of work I had been involved in more than a decade ago.
Lessons from Grassroots Organizing
Right after I left school, I worked for a while with one of the most amazing grassroots activist organisations I know. As part of the protests against nuclear power in Germany, X-tausendmal quer had set out to organise non-violent blockades of the trains transporting nuclear waste to the final disposal site in Gorleben. Just imagine thousands of citizens sitting down on the railway tracks and not leaving until forcibly removed. All of this without a hierarchy that would have repulsed the more anarchistically-inclined amongst us.
How did this happen? It would be naive to think that those countless hours of volunteer enthusiasm could have emerged without a structure. Without a boss, president or chairman to call the shots, we used three main tools:
- Crystal-Clear Purpose Everybody involved had a clear picture in their head how the final event would look like. We also knew the date, or rather: We knew that whenever the next train would arrive, we would be there to greet it. We were determined to be prepared by that time and bring as many people as we could possibly find. The timeline helped us to remain focused on practicalities and not get stuck in an endless pursuit of the perfect solution or the perfect political demand.
- Explicit Structures We used a sophisticated division of labour, documented on a two-page organisational structure. Instead of a hierarchy, it listed functions and responsibilities. Functions normally associated with a chair person were divided amongst many and would rotate often: There was a fire fighter responsible to lead on unforeseen emergencies between meetings, someone to follow up with and support others with their tasks, a facilitator and a volunteer coordinator.
- Planning for Flexibility and Contingency We had frequent open meetings to plan further and revise the structure. New volunteers could thus easily join and check us out. If they wanted, they would take on tasks from the get-go and volunteer for a role that matched their strengths and interests. Wherever possible, we would ask two people to work together in a role. This way, they could support each other and agree on procedures. And if one of them got swamped at work or had to drop out completely, the other was still around to take over.
My tip for our friends at the commission? Once you know what the ultimate objective is, don’t be afraid of asking people to step up and volunteer – and then build support structures and check-ins so that they can do their best work.
P.S. Pssst – very exciting developments around the corner. If you want to join my ultra-secret mailing list and provide feedback, let me know.