Public policy advocacy is often the most direct and effective route to enduring social change for the poor, the disenfranchised and the most vulnerable among us. To meet our goals of achieving lasting change during Atlantic’s limited lifetime, we are increasingly supporting advocacy for new laws, policies and programmes across our four programme areas and in all of the countries where our grantees work.
The reasons are simple. We believe that government has an obligation to ensure that the basic needs of disadvantaged people are met and their rights are protected. We also believe that government is the only level at which systemic problems can be seriously addressed and solved. As an example, the 2009 federal “stimulus” package in the United States was more than 20 times the annual spending of all U.S. foundations put together.
We support advocates that are working to sustain changes for their communities by:
- Seeking stronger and fairer policies and laws to protect civil and human rights and foster economic fairness
- Helping the people who will benefit the most from change to make their voices heard.
For example, in the United States, where nearly 50 million people had been without health insurance, we were the main supporter of Health Care for America Now, a diverse coalition that mobilised grassroots forces and advocated for quality, affordable health coverage for all. Health care reform legislation was successfully enacted in March 2010.
In Viet Nam, where the civil society is emerging, we believe in supporting public health research to inform government policy. Among our grantees’ successes is a law requiring that motorcyclists wear helmets enacted in 2007 and strengthened in 2009 to cover children over age seven. This government action has prevented thousands of deaths and reduced serious brain injuries each year.
For more information on our philosophy about the critical importance of advocacy, read our Atlantic Reports: “Investing in Change: Why Supporting Advocacy Makes Sense for Foundations.”
