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Activism in the Age of Trump

Everyone knows now that Donald Trump is taking his (mostly) conservative, business-friendly agenda to Washington, DC. While there, he will at least be able to start working with a House and Senate controlled by Republicans. I'm not taking a public position on whether this is good news or bad news, but I want to say there are ways for progressive activists to make things happen.

Social Marketing Trumps Politics:

The whole point of social marketing is to get people to make a change that would truly benefit them. Many challenges that Trump appears unlikely to address, or indeed to make worse, can be tackled by direct appeals to individuals.

What do I mean exactly? Consider climate change. Conservatives are never going to support robust climate change policies that interfere with business or with their lifestyles. Many moderates would refuse to play along. Fair enough.

Forget sweeping legislation. Redouble efforts to "sell" behavior changes that can benefit the climate and the individual. This is not a new strategy or a new idea, but the best way to get action on climate change is probably to convince many individuals to step away from the steaks, skip the V-8 SUVs, and buy condos instead of single-family homes.

State and Local Activism:

Sticking with the theme of climate change, the state legislatures and city governments might be more friendly to ideas like spending a little extra to invest in renewable energy or investing in energy efficiency measures.

Renewable energy tax credits and low-interest loans are around, and should probably be more common. Incentives and effective social marketing can drive a huge increase in demand for renewable energy technologies for home and office building. See what you can do in your city or in your state's legislature.

Only Two Possible Approaches:

So, there are two possible approaches to addressing one challenge that a Trump administration might not even acknowledge. Selling new behaviors directly to individuals is the best way to deal with President-elect Trump's likely approach to climate change.
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