Our Approach

The Impact Model: A four-pronged approach to gender equality and the empowerment of woman and girls

Advocacy

CHANGE’s policy advocacy aims to influence broad goals and strategies, focus areas, overall funding levels, authorities, and restrictions. Policy advocacy generally takes a political approach and seeks to reach senior leadership.

Through its program advocacy, CHANGE seeks to affect the way in which programs are implemented. Program advocacy is more technical than policy advocacy and is conducted at the working level with officers responsible for program management and administration.

CHANGE’s signature advocacy tool: “The Reverse Co-del”

The “Reverse Co-del” connects advocates from the Global South with policymakers in Washington, D.C. to share experience and expertise on how sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) are key to gender equality and women’s and girls’ empowerment. The term “Reverse Co-del” is a reference to congressional delegations (“Co-dels”), when members of Congress visit countries to learn about issues related to development and U.S. foreign aid. CHANGE reverses this concept with our “Reverse Co-dels,” bringing advocates, experts, and service providers from overseas to educate policymakers in Washington, D.C.

Key advocacy strategies

1

We educate and engage U.S. federal lawmakers and policymakers, including members of Congress and the administration.
2

We educate and engage the U.S. public, through traditional and new media platforms, about the impact of U.S. policies and funding on the lives of women and girls and others who face stigma and discrimination.
3

We engage in the United Nations through our U.S. representatives as well as other multilateral institutions and global partnerships within which the U.S. government plays a key role.
4

We partner with leading advocates and organizations in countries where U.S.-funded programs are implemented to bring perspective to policymakers, coordinate global and regional advocacy strategies, and share information about the U.S. policies and decision-making processes that impact the communities they serve.

Partnerships

CHANGE knows we cannot go it alone. Strategic partnerships are critical to our success.

CHANGE brings together opinion leaders, activists, organizations, and policymakers around issues critical to SRHR. This collaboration takes many forms, including briefings, trainings, and marches. Most significantly, CHANGE works tirelessly to bring together women’s rights and other human rights advocates from the Global South to make their voices heard in policy discourse and decision-making.

CHANGE also convenes government-focused organizations to explore emerging issues, identify common ground, and collaborate on strategies. CHANGE strategically convenes elected officials and agency representatives for briefings on key issues to provide them with needed depth and context on complex and contentious issues.

Research & Policy Analysis

Using detailed research and analysis, CHANGE monitors policy development, funding streams, and program implementation to hold the U.S. government accountable for the impact its policy and funding decisions have on the health and rights of women and girls and others who face stigma and discrimination.

The centerpiece of CHANGE’s research is the Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights Index. The SRHR Index is a comprehensive measurement tool that rates U.S. government performance related to global SRHR for women and girls. The objective of this annual Index is to grade the government on transparency and hold it accountable for its actions, elevate CHANGE’s reputation as a source for policy analysis, and define the scope and content of SRHR in U.S. foreign assistance.

Strategic Communications

This is how we shape discourse and influence key audiences including the media, opinion leaders, policymakers, and colleague organizations and foundations. Our social media and multimedia campaigns target activists who are engaged in global issues around SRHR, gender equality and women’s and girl’s empowerment. We take risks to achieve our objectives, adopting new and innovative communications strategies and tactics including creative activism, education campaigns, and direct action.

See how we’ve put our Impact Model to work

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