Advocacy Central
Who is an advocate?
YOU ARE!!! By taking the time to give your well-informed opinion on the wellbeing of men, boys, and their families to friends and to the public, you become an advocate for men’s health.
Men’s Health Policy Center (MHPC) is dedicated to equipping you with the tools, resources, and information to allow you to take action. Our goal is to help you be effective in your advocacy efforts, whether that be speaking with your local elected official, writing letters, engaging media, etc. Together, we can all vastly improve men’s health!
What can you do?
There are many ways in which you can make an impact. Here are just a few of those with which the Men’s Health Policy Center can help:
- Write a letter-to-the-editor of your local newspapers.
- Learn to promote men’s health issues via radio and television. Samples of public service announcements and talking points can be found here.
- Write in an effective and timely fashion to your elected officials – and even be trained to have meaningful advocacy meetings with them. Samples of letters can be found here.
- Organize events in your community to raise awareness. The free on-line MHN HealthZone planner offers guidance. Click here to access the planner.
- Organize and take part in events. Learn how to organize a health event here. We will place your event on the Internet events calendar.
- Help create awareness on the Internet by linking to the Men’s Health Network web site and posting your action items to Internet discussion groups.
- Energize your social networks (friends, church members, etc.) to take action on men’s health issues. Forward fact sheets to them and suggest they arrange feeds from important blogs like this one.
- Speak at fraternal organizations and other social organizations. You can find flyers to distribute here and at the Men’s Health Library (search “flyer”).
Can I really make a difference?
Absolutely! Too often, however, people do not speak loudly enough or with one voice in order to be heard. The Men’s Health Policy Center was created to ensure that your voice is heard!
Where do I start?
Start here by joining. This initial step connects you to the Men’s Health Policy Center and allows us to begin providing you with the latest news and events and action ideas.
A good next step is this page, which provides fact sheets and other helpful information. Click to read the advocacy tips and use the advocacy resources. These simple guidelines give you what you need to get started as a men’s health advocate.
Then make us of these tools (coming soon) that help you write to your Members of Congres and state legislators on issues that the Men's Health Policy Center identifies as of interest.