An advocacy letter using the letter outline provided.

Simply, read the case study below, and using your learnings, construct an advocacy letter using the letter outline provided. Be sure to make your letter as compelling and powerful as possible. Using the letter outline below as a guide, construct a one page advocacy letter aimed at raising the awareness of the issue in the case study. Decide first what you think the issue is, then to whom you want to send your letter to (newspaper, politician, neighbourhood organization, etc.), and finally what result you want to achieve.

Case Study:

On a bright, sunny day, I happened to be walking with a couple of friends to our favourite local market. On our way, we passed by beautiful parks and shops that made this section of our neighbourhood pleasant and engaging.

We turned down a street close to the market and noticed a pipe that was trickling foul smelling water on to the street. We had never noticed this before. It was quite disturbing to us, as we often see local children with their pets playing in this area.

We asked a shop keeper who was sweeping the sidewalk nearby, if this had been reported to the authorities. His answer both shocked and angered us.

“We have been complaining about this for a year now,” said the man bitterly. “No one listens and no one cares. We have contacted the local politicians but they just do not seem to care. We are so busy just trying to live our lives, that we have not been able to take this to the next level.”

We discussed the matter at great length with the shopkeeper and asked him if he would consider starting a petition or writing a letter to bring this out into the open. He simply said that his wife was ill and he did not have time to pursue any action. We walked away and proceeded to the market. On the way home, we decided that action must be taken on behalf of this neighbourhood.

Letter Outline:

[Date]:

[Person’s name you are writing to]:

[Organization and department]:

[Address]:

Dear [name],

My name is________________ and I am a concerned citizen writing to express my concern about [list the problem]

[Provide details about the problem including what has happened to date and any relevant research that has been done]

[How you want the problem solved- your recommendations]

Could you please contact me [by a specific period of time] to let me know whether this is possible and what you plan to do about this issue. Can we meet to discuss this?

Thank you for your assistance in resolving this matter and I expect to hear back from you within [a period of time].

Sincerely,

[Your signature]

[Your name]

[Your address]

[Your phone number]