Organizing Resources
General Organizing
- Checklist of Basic Principles of Democratic Organizing, from the Association for Union Democracy
- Direct Democracy & Consensus
- The Roles & Responsibilities of Community Organizers
- Activist Skills & Experience Questionnaire, This chart lists 175 skills and 98 experiences typical of seasoned activists. It can be used for self-assessment, goal setting, or progress evaluation, from the Vernal Project
- 20 Rules of Activism
- Elements of Organizational/Movement Culture
- How to Suppress Political Dissent in 10 Easy Steps
- Fire It Up! A Youth Action Manual
- Rising Tide North America Resource Packet, tons of games, information, resources, and ideas for trainers and organizers
- Rainforest Action Network activist resources
Training Agendas
- Community Skills Workshop Notes – conflict resolution, nonviolent communication, stages of group development, and dealing with group conflict
- Conscious Organizing Training – understanding power and oppression, the history of the struggle for liberation, and how change is made
- Organizer Training: Fear & Power, union-oriented
- Training on Strategic Nonviolence in Worldwide Conflict, includes strategic planning
Group Process
- Working in Collective Organizations
- Group Process Techniques
- Group Process Manual, 12 pages
- Guide to Conflict Resolution
- Effective Meeting Checklist
- How to Make Meetings Work in a Culturally Diverse Group
- Getting Stuck: Common Problems in Meetings and Some Solutions, from the Vernal Project
- Constructive Critique, by Starhawk
- Steps to a Learning Community
- Decision Making Structures
- Organizational Structures for Cooperative Groups, from the Vernal Project
- The Tyranny of Structurelesness, by Jo Freeman
- Steps for Dealing with Oppressive Behavior in a Community, from the Common Ground Collective
- How to Organize a Council Circle – a magical approach to consensus-based meetings
- Icebreakers! Great list of icebreakers from the Virginia Organizing Project
Training Agendas
Facilitation
- Tips for Group Facilitators, from Results Through Training
- Flip Charts: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
- Hints for Facilitators: Handling Difficult Behaviors in Meetings
- The 14 Competencies of a Facilitator, by Brian Stanfield
- Visual Facilitation Techniques
- Common Conference Call Problems and Tips for Facilitators
Training Agendas
- Facilitation Training, given by Lisa Fithian at the 2007 National SDS Convention
- Spiked Facilitation Roleplay
Consensus
- What is consensus, where does it come from, and what’s wrong with just voting?
- Consensus is NOT Unanimity: Making Decisions Cooperatively
- The Consensus Process Handbook, by Lauren Ross (7 pages)
- Consensus Process and Tips Sheet
- Checklist for Consensus Process & Facilitation
- On Conflict & Consensus: Handbook for Formal Consensus Decision Making, by C.T. Butler and Amy Rothstein (34 pages)
- Shared Path, Shared Goals: A Handbook on Direct Democracy and the Consensus Decision Making Process
Training Agendas
Campaigns
- Tools for Campaign Planning
- Campaign Planning Worksheet
- Corporate Research Tools
- Researching Corporations
Fundraising
- Beyond the Non-Profit Industrial Complex, by INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence
- Online Fundraising Tips from the Network for Good
- Fundraising Guide for Activists, from Seeds for Change
- Grassroots Institute for Fundraising Training
On Police & State Repression
- How to Suppress Political Dissent in 10 Easy Steps
- Operation Garden Plot, United States Civil Disturbance Plan
- Investigators Dirty Tricks
- Shhhhh The Police are Listening
Other Resources on this website:
- Anti-Oppression Resources & Exercises
- Resources for Ally & Coalition Building
- Strategy & Nonviolence Resources
- Resources for Planning Actions, including strategy, tactics, legal, media, affinity groups, and comms materials, plus comprehensive direct action manuals
- Action Planning Template
- Training Agendas
- Resources in Spanish
Organizing for Power, Organizing for Change 