Making Change Happen
Change happens not just because we know something, but because something about how we feel has shifted. That is why Peer Advocacy is the core of COPE’s public policy work.
COPE trains peer advocates to speak competently about critical advocacy issues in a way that weaves the facts together with their personal experiences of how they are not getting the care they need. Our goal is to convince lawmakers to remove treatment restrictions and access to care, and to increase funding for critical care and support services.
Working alongside our collaborative partners, we strive to advance strategic health policy goals through legislation, letters, petitions, panel discussions, rallies, and town hall meetings. But it is real people with real stories that can shift what we know and how we feel about issues – and move the world.
Please contact us if you would like to join our advocate team.
Peer Advocacy Learning Objectives
1. List and describe the strategies of a public policy advocacy
2. Name and discuss current advocacy issues.
3. Describe the health landscape for chronic health conditions – risk, prevention, screening, access, support, etc.
4. Identify at least one personal experience that relates to and illustrates a current advocacy issue.
5. Communicate your advocacy message through letters, emails, phone calls, and face-to-face meeting presentations.