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Scientific Activism

This post is just an opportunity to propose a new way to create programs, policies, and social marketing campaigns that (we hope) work better and cost less in terms of both time and money. Scientific activism is just a process for formally organizing our thinking about social change efforts. That's about all. It can help to have a system or a framework for organizing the work needed to start a new program, a new nonprofit, or a new advocacy effort.

I think this scientific activism framework should be based on specific principles:

1. Data orientation - Use of numbers, rates, proportions, and percentages to inform decisions and guide our evaluations, of what to do and what works once we get things going.

2. Leverage - Related to above, we should look for ways to intervene that will produce the most change for a given level of effort (or spending).

3. Targeted innovation - Related to #2, we should champion social and technological innovations that get at the root of social problems. A new sort of food bank might be designed to prevent people from descending to a level of need where they require free food.

4. Formalism - Use some basic organizational principles, and tools like cost-benefit analysis, to track your thinking, research, and progress.

5. Marketing Mindset - You are in the business of selling something, whether you know it or not. Learn to think about how and where to sell your ideas, programs, or projects to those who need them but may not be paying attention.

6. Opportunity Thinking - You and your supporters will soon get tired of hearing about problems that need fixing. Look for ways to partner with other groups, provide new benefits that weren't part of the plan, or acquire new resources.

Well, there is a really short overview of what I want to call scientific activism, as a sort of working title for the system. The next post will expand on these ideas by discussing the activities that make scientific activism a unique approach to social change.
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