CALL Foundation Meetings with Coalition Members in the Philippines

On March 4 and 10, the Center for Advocacy, Livelihood and Learning (CALL) Foundation for the Blind arranged meetings for all coalition members to achieve consensus on the next steps for collaboration under the “Strengthening the Capacity of Advocacy Networks in Southeast Asia” project to advocate for the Enabling Masterplan. The members include Move as One Coalition, Project Inclusion Network, Inc., E-NET (Education Network) and Mindanao Organization for Social and Economic Progress. Dr. Rex Bernardo, CALL Foundation’s lead consultant, explained the key points from the Masterplan relevant to the respective CSOs to help them formulate their joint advocacy strategies. In addition to providing an overview to the coalition members about the project, CALL Foundation helped partner organizations better understand different digital advocacy strategies. Ms. Jennifer Garcia, CALL Foundation’s consultant, discussed social media strategies that can be used to develop CSO advocacy activities for the Enabling Masterplan. She provided tips on using social media for advocacy by explaining inclusive digital advocacy techniques and the recommendations for ethical use. The members of the coalition presented the activities that each organization will conduct. Coalition members were able to get to know each other’s organization better and developed a joint advocacy plan which will be refined and submitted on March 20.