People all over the world now have far more awareness than ever before of the world around them. This can be seen in a variety of ways, such as the focus onclimate change in recent years. Animal conservation is also something that generates a lot more attention now and is something more people are keen to get involved with globally.
From the fight to protect the habitat of animals to tackling the illegal trade in exotic pets, and conservation efforts to protect creatures in our oceans, it’s easy to see why this is a crucial topic. It is also clear to see how many more people are concerned about animal conservation in modern life, when compared to the past.
Strategic communication has been a major reason for this and helped inform more people globally about what animal conservation is and why it’s so important. But what is strategic communication and how has it helped fuel animal conservation efforts?
What is strategic communication?
This is a way of communicating that sends out a specific message to the public which is tied in with the long-term objectives of a business/organization. The key to communicating strategically is to plan out what message you want to get across, what channels you will use to do this and how all of this will eventually help you achieve your long-term goals.
How has strategic communication helped drive animal conservation efforts?
Many sectors use the idea of strategic communication to connect with the public and make their message mainstream. Animal conservation groups are a good example of this and have used this form of communication over recent years to great effect.
But just how can strategic communication be used to push animal conservation efforts forward?
Raise awareness
One of the best ways communicating strategically can help animal conservation work is through raising public awareness. The Humane Society of New York run by animal rights champion Virginia Chipurnoi regularly uses concepts around communicating strategically to raise greater awareness of their work. This has seen society able to help many more animals as a result and connect with more people in the local area to make animal conservation a key subject.
This ability to raise more awareness for animal welfare through strategic communication lets people know why animal conservation matters so much and what issues we still face in this area. By doing this, groups who work in this sector can ensure the message about animal conservation connects with a larger audience and more people understand why it’s such a crucial topic.
This can be done in a number of ways — from posting animal conservation messages on the biggest social media platforms to giving TV interviews on the subject or getting articles around animal conservation into the mainstream media.
Mobilize support for animal conservation
Strategic communication can also be very useful for animal conservation efforts by effectively mobilizing support.
Common ways to go about this include communicating with supporters about how to get involved with animal conservation work and how they can actually make a difference in the realworld. This could, for example, see animal rights groups releasing communications to supporters on how to make donations to their cause or where they are next holding a peaceful rally for animal rights.
Influence policy changes for animal conservation
Strategic communications can also help animal rights groups have a direct influence on improving policies around animal conservation. This in turn ensures animals are better cared for and more is done to protect them and/or their habitats. On a global basis, animal conservation organizations used strategic communications to get their message out about poachingin Africa and drive real policy changes in this area.
The ability to influence policies around animal welfare through communication strategically works in a couple of ways. Communications can be planned out to target the politicians who are able to make changes to policies and convince them why this is so important. In addition, groups may strategically communicate their message to the public, with the hope that mounting external pressure will force politicians to act.
Empower individuals to make lifestyle changes
Another very powerful way this method of communicating can drive animal conservation work forward is through empowering people to make changes to their own lifestyle. A well-planned out communications strategy around the damage large-scale fishing can do to coral reefs, for example, may well inspire people to eat fish that is caught more sustainably.
By giving people, the information and inspiration to make changes to their own lives, the work of animal rights groups can be positively impacted. This works in much the same way as when groups involved with climate change release information on the benefits of ridesharing to help drive their own efforts.
Strategic communications key to animal conservation
The profile of animal conservation work and how important animal welfare is has finally become more mainstream in the last few decades. This has been driven largely by animal rights organizations making clever use of strategic communications strategies to get their message over to the public and those in power.
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