Oregon Wild can’t fulfill its mission without the support and help of our supporters speaking up for our wildlands, wildlife, and waters as advocates and informed citizens. Our activist toolkit is designed to help our supporters build advocacy skills, gain confidence, and put their passions into action in the democratic process. Whether you’ve never written a note to your legislator or you’ve already testified at a public hearing - we’ve got the tools and info you need to become a stronger voice for the wildlife and wildlands you hold dear!

Tools & tips for participating in our democracy

• Find your legislators! Do you know who represents you in Oregon? Enter your address into the Legislator Lookup tool and find out.

• Engaging in State government: Review the Oregon Legislature's guide to citizen engagement. And their overview of how a bill becomes a law.

• Know where to most effectively engage: View this presentation that covers how to plug in to effect change on a variety of wild lands and wildlife issues at different levels of government.

• Lobbying 101: The idea of a lobby meeting with an elected official can be intimidating, but remember, your legislators work for you!

  • View a step-by-step guide and best practices for lobbying (developed for Wild Ones in 2018)

  • Here is a helpful guide to preparing for your first visit with a legislator.

Making your voice heard

• Calling, testifying, and speaking to elected officials: View this presentation on calling elected officials, attending town hall meetings and public forums, and testifying at hearings. It aims to give wildlands advocates some key tips and confidence in participating in our representative democracy. (The training was offered at our Eugene Wild Ones program in June 2018.) 

  • Check out our quick guide to giving public testimony.

• Spreading the word about issues is half the battle. View this presentation about using letters to the editor, op-eds, and social media effectively to spread your conservation message far and wide.

  • More tips and contact info for writing and submitting letters to the editor here.

  • A great, in-depth resource for composing opinion pieces.

Getting into the issues

Oregon's Wildlife

• More coming soon!

Public Lands Defense 

• Defending public forest lands means knowing the agencies, laws, and policies that govern public land.

  • Public forest defense 101 presentation (given in Eugene in August 2018) gives an introduction and some of the ways you can help Oregon Wild weigh in and affect decisions made about timber sales and other activities on our forests. 

  • A more advanced forest protection workshop (given in Eugene in October 2018) offers forest advocates more tools for engaging in forest monitoring and influencing logging and other projects. 

  • Want a step-by-step tutorial on how you (the public) can be involved in forest management activities and decisions? We've got it here!

• Timber's link to counties: Check out this presentation (April 2019) on the history and relevance of O&C lands in western Oregon, the Association of O&C Counties, and the threat this organization poses to our public lands. The presentation is focused on efforts in Lane County, but the information is broadly applicable.

Forests & Climate Change  

• More coming soon, but start here.