ACTION PLAYBOOK
Meet with Your Member of Congress: Part 2
Welcome to Part 2!
If you’re here, you’ve officially begun the process of meeting with a member of Congress to advocate for an important climate solution.
You might not finish preparing for your meeting in one sitting, and that’s okay! It’s an ongoing process, and this resource is intended to be used as a checklist between now and your meeting. Didn’t submit a meeting request yet? Head back to Part 1.
How you’re expected to prepare:
Schedule the meeting: You are responsible for scheduling the meeting with the congressional office and sending the staff a calendar invite with a video call link. If you need help with this, contact advocacy@climatechangemakers.org.
Gather a group: You are the primary organizer of your meeting. Post in Slack about your meeting request to start gauging interest from fellow changemakers. Then follow up in Slack with the specific meeting date once you have it. And, invite others from outside Climate Changemakers who might be interested in joining. Try not to exceed 5 people in one meeting.
Draft talking points: Climate Changemakers provides a template, and you do the personalization. Using the resources linked below and your own research, create an outline for what you want to say during the meeting and share it with everyone who plans to join.
Request staff support as needed: See the column on the right for the types of support we offer.
Climate Changemakers support role:
The presence of a Climate Changemakers staff member in your constituent meeting is optional. Climate Changemakers staff will never “lead” the meeting so as not to dilute the impact of constituent voices, but we can serve as a backstop to answer tough questions or just be a source of moral support.
Similarly, if you’d like to do a prep call with staff, have staff review your outline, or need help scheduling a video call, just say the word.
Email advocacy@climatechangemakers.org or message a staff member in Slack.
Staff is always available over email and Slack to answer questions about the process.
☑️ Finish personalizing and preparing your outline
In Part 1 of this action, you duplicated a Google Doc with template run of show. Continue adding to that document.
Helpful resources when researching
District-specific information, including polling data and economic impact modeling, can bolster your case for supporting a given climate priority. Providing congressional staffers with this data keeps your argument relevant after the meeting is over and gives them compelling information to show their boss.
Use as many of the resources below as you need.
NOAA State Climate Summaries: An amazing resource that not only provides state-specific climate impact data but also narratives and key messages that can be integrated into your outreach.
Climate Costs 2040: For coastal districts, calculate how much taxpayers will be on the hook for building seawalls alone.
Yale Climate Opinion Maps: Use the drop-down menu to sort by survey question and the buttons on the left side of the map to see congressional districts. Pay particular attention to the questions “Worried about global warming” and “Congress should do more to address global warming,” and then try to choose a question relevant to the issue you’re advocating for.
Data for Progress: View district- and state-level data on “Support for congressional climate action.” (Make sure it is selected from the drop-down menu on the bottom).
Climate Opportunity Map: Shows projected job creation and cost savings by congressional district.
Key stakeholders (Google search): See if you can generate a list of key stakeholders who support this policy from your state. They could be environmental groups, prominent public officials (e.g. mayors, state reps), business leaders, trade association, religious or community organizations, researchers and academics, etc. You don’t need to exhaust this list during the Hour of Action, but it’s very useful to have going into a meeting.
Oil & Gas Threat Map by state/county
Energy Consumption by type/state from the U.S. Energy Information Administration
Impact of Clean Energy Growth by congressional district, from Clean Energy Progress
2050 Projected Renewable Energy Mix by state, The Solutions Project
Climate Signals map from Climate Nexus: how climate change is affecting your area in real time
States at Risk map
Earnings loss for outdoor workers by state
☑️ Assemble and confirm fellow changemakers
Secure 1–5 people to attend the meeting with you.
Tips for recruitment and collaboration:
Use the Climate Changemakers Slack #action-constituent-meetings and regional channels to organize.
Text friends and neighbors.
Consider using Hours of Action to prep together (the host can create a breakout room if needed!) or schedule time to connect.
Should you decide that you’d like a staff member on the call, email advocacy@climatechangemakers.org or contact a staff member in Slack.
☑️ Optional: Request feedback on your meeting outline
Put the finishing touches on your outline, including the names of the participants, then email advocacy@climatechangemakers.org or contact a staff member in Slack if you’d like feedback. Save this step for after you have a constituent meeting on the books.
☑️ Meet for a dry run
Once your meeting is scheduled, your group is assembled, and your prep and outline is complete, schedule a brief video call with all of your participants. Practice moving through your talking points as a group, following the run of show document. You can even assign someone to play the role of the staffer to make this practice time more realistic. Get comfortable with your talking points and adjust as needed. Then, end the call on a high note – you’re ready!
☑️ On the day of your meeting:
Review the Constituent Meetings Training, which includes meeting etiquette and important action items.
Set up your space: Ensure you have good lighting, a professional background/ Zoom setting, no loud noises etc.
Dress professionally, even if it’s a Zoom call!
Open the prep document and review your notes/speaking roles.
Join 15 minutes before the call time so you and your group can sync up once more.
Remember your goals: persuade the staff member to act on your concerns and find out what might be preventing the congressmember from taking action.
And hey, enjoy the conversation! Prioritize getting to know the staffer. If they seem receptive and warm, don’t be afraid to show your personality while staying professional. Most staffers are as passionate as you are about one policy issue or another, so tap into that shared desire to make the world a better place.
🎉 After your constituent meeting
First up, congratulations! Constituent meetings are the most impactful way to connect with policymakers and to level up your own advocacy.
Here’s what to do after the meeting (this list is also in your meeting outline):
Follow up with the staffer to thank them. Share any resources you haven’t gotten a chance to share.
Now, your job is to keep up a semi-regular cadence with this staffer. Our recommended meeting cadence with the same staffer is once per quarter. Set a reminder in your phone now to schedule another meeting 3 months from now. Any more frequently than that, and you risk that the staffer just hasn’t had the bandwidth to raise your issue with the lawmaker. In that case, you won’t have much to gain from meeting again so soon. (An exception could be if you hear that the bill in question is suddenly moving toward passage in the House or Senate, and your member of Congress is going to have to vote on it imminently).
Monitor the member’s communications channels and share with the community if they post anything about the policy priority or climate more generally.
Treat this staffer relationship like you would any other professional relationship. While you should stay in touch, don’t inundate them with emails, and try to give them adequate time to respond (you wouldn’t believe how busy some congressional staffers are!). Feel free to use them as a resource to ask questions about the member’s support for legislation or the state of ongoing negotiations.
We’re happy to answer all your specific questions about follow-up. Email advocacy@climatechangemakers.org.
And that’s it, playbook complete! Feel accomplished.
Thank you for taking action.
🎉 CUE CONFETTI by clicking COMPLETE! 🎉
Want more action?
Go to the current Action Plan
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