Group Development Coaches - Let’s Get A CCL Chapter In Every District!
By Caillie Roach, Membership Coordinator, Group Development Coaches Action Team Leader
Do you have your eye on a district or area in your state or district that CCL isn’t active in yet? Are you part of an active, stable chapter, but want to support efforts to expand into this targeted area? If so, you sound like a Group Development Coach!
About the Action Team
Getting a chapter launched looks different for every region, state, and city; just like there is no silver bullet climate policy, there is no silver bullet chapter expansion strategy. So, the “recipes” and “ingredients” needed to cook up a chapter or large action vary. However, all successful recipes include some form of gathering and fellowship, an introduction to CCL, community involvement, and a list of people waiting to be engaged.
Each month, on the Group Development Coaches Action Teams calls, we’ll highlight a different recipe. Check out the first addition of the chapter expansion recipe book here, or on the Group Development Coaches ‘files’ tab.
The “original recipe:” hosting a Group Start Workshop (Climate Advocate Training Workshop) and identifying future group leaders in the host committee. Do you see budding leadership skills in a volunteer? Are you interested in getting your state’s At Large chapter off the ground? Do you have the capacity to train and mentor a new group leader? Don Kraus and Mary Legan will be sharing how the Tennessee At Large chapter got started and what strategies you can adopt.
Let’s challenge our traditional approach! What do you do when there just simply aren’t enough interested new volunteers? Are you feeling stuck? Two chapters got creative in Illinois and North Carolina. IL Central IL expanded the idea of a typical chapter radius in order to encompass neighboring counties and NC Fayetteville secured a liaison before finding chapter leaders. Hear Terry Quian, Mike Armstrong, and Ellen Van Velsor share their stories of success.
Starting local chapters may not be realistic… but getting statewide actions going are! Are there rural areas in your state or region where a presentation or Letter to the Editor would garner a lot of attention? Instead of starting a new local chapter, are you looking to get the word out about CCL in these small towns? Hear Mary Mulclaire-Jones from Montana and Jackie Armstrong from Iowa share their county action goals. Learn how to gather a successful and supportive team to do this grassroots outreach. How can I get LTEs published and presentations in every county in my state? Where would I find a network of similarly interested CCLers? Why would I want to do outreach like this instead of drumming up interest for a chapter? — We’ll get these questions answered and more!
Let’s get a chapter closer to you. Are you traveling too far to your chapter meeting? Do you feel more connected to a different area? Going to a big city when you’d rather stay in your small town? Or, do you have a great presentation team set up that can provide a great introduction to a group of potential CCLers? Is this presentation team interested in expanding into an uncovered congressional district? If either of these apply to you — this is the training for you! Alan Anderson, Howard White, and Bob Tebera share their outreach approach in Minnesota. A rockstar presentation team lays the groundwork for a budding new chapter to develop.
Congressional districts where CCL is not actively working
Currently, there are 42 U.S. Congressional districts where there are no active chapters. Check out the list on the Group Development Coaches Action Team home page. Maps of each of the congressional districts can be found here and on the Group Development Coaches Action Team ‘files’ tab.
Even in the midst of an exciting political climate — the prospect of a carbon price in the budget reconciliation bill — we are continuing to grow stronger and adapt to the future of climate change. We’re building something for the longterm. See you soon!
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