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The Democracy Owner's Manual A Practical Guide to Changing the World

By Jim Shultz

The Democracy Owners' Manual is a unique, hands-on guide for people who want to change public policy at the local, state, national or international level. Based on more than a decade of teaching advocacy to social justice advocates all over the world, the book is a combination of policy and advocacy basics, illustrated with dozens of real-life examples of advocacy in action.

Price: $17.60 (excluding sales tax), a 20% discount off the normal price for Democracy Center Web site visitors, using the ordering link below. 256 pages, 21 b&w illustrations.

"Jim Shultz's manual shows how you can practice democracy and participate in power while enjoying the experiences with your fellow activists."

Ralph Nader

"Jim Shultz's book is a wonderful first step for anyone who wants to be effective at protecting the environment, or fighting for economic and social justice."

Carl Pope,
Executive director, Sierra Club

"For parents and others who want to make a difference . . . The Democracy Owner's Manual lights the way."

Carol Ruley,
Past vice president, National PTA.

Order the Book from Rutgers University Press

Order the Book from Amazon.com

• Table of Contents
• Training Handouts and Newsletter Inserts for Advocacy Groups
• University Teaching Modules Using The Democracy Owners Manual
• About the Author
  
  Table of Contents

• Acknowledgements
  Introduction
  Part One: Five Key Debates That Democracies Decide

  • What Is Government's Job?
  • The Rules of Politics
  • Taxes and Budgets: Following the Money
  • Making Public Rules for Business and the Marketplace
  • Civil Rights and Criminal Wrongs: Society's Rules for Individuals

  Part Two: Tools For Democracy's Activists

  • Developing a Strategy: Advocacy's Roadmap
  • Research and Analysis: Advocacy by Fact, not Fiction
  • Organizing: Bringing People Together to Make Social Change
  • Building and Maintaining Advocacy Coalitions
  • Messages and Media: Democracy's Megaphones
  • Lobbying: The Art of Influencing Public Officials
  • Initiatives: The Power of the Ballot
  • The Internet: Democracy's Newest Tool

  Conclusion
  Resources
  Notes
  Index

  Training Handouts and Newsletter Inserts for Advocacy Groups

  To help groups with their advocacy work, The Democracy Center has prepared a set of free handout materials, based on The Democracy Owners' Manual, ideal for use with training workshops or as newsletter inserts. Click to view and copy those of interest. Our only request is that groups using this material should credit The Democracy Center and provide a link or reference to our Web site at www.democracyctr.org.

• Developing Advocacy Strategy
• Policy Analysis - A Primer
• Effective Organizing - The Key Ingredients
• Building and Maintaining Advocacy Coalitions
• Media Advocacy
• Lobbying - the Basics
• Five Rules of Initiative Politics
• The Internet: Democracy's Newest Tool
• Campaign Financing - Agendas for Reform

"Also available in both Word and Adobe Acrobat formats for easy printing.
Click here."

University Teaching Modules Using The Democracy Owners Manual

The Democracy Owners' Manual was written with students in mind. The author, Jim Shultz, has taught political science, policy analysis, and public administration to both undergraduates and graduate students at San Francisco State University and the book draws from the curricula used in those courses. To aid university instructors in teaching policy and advocacy The Democracy Center has created a set of teaching modules using The Democracy Owners' Manual - from the basic to the more advanced - which can be incorporated into university courses dealing with political science, public health, social work, environmental studies, urban studies and many other areas. Click here to view and download the modules.

About the Author
Jim Shultz, a graduate of UC Berkeley and Harvard University, has served as staff to the California Legislature and as an advocate with California Common Cause and the west coast office of Consumers Union. He has also taught public policy and public administration to undergraduate and graduate students at San Francisco State University. As executive director of The Democracy Center, which he established in 1992, he founded the California Budget Project and has trained and counseled hundreds of public activists throughout the United States, Latin America and in South Africa. In 1996 he authored The Initiative Cookbook - Recipes and Stories from California's Ballot Wars. A contributor to Pacific News Service, his articles on democracy and public affairs have appeared in The Nation, In These Times, the San Jose Mercury News, Sacramento Bee, Minneapolis Star Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, and numerous other publications. In 2001 he won the Project Censored award for top story of the year, for his writing on the Bolivian revolt against water privatization.

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