Welcome to the Baltivist community!

Just by joining, you are showing that you care about the future of the Baltic countries. By participating, you will be making a difference.

How? Together. And through a concept called community-based advocacy. 

Community-based advocacy is the idea that a community can band together to effectively influence government. It is the concept that instead of allowing a few connected individuals to influence government, a community of activists can band together to influence the government. And it uses the same ingredients that most lobbyists use – information and access.

If, as a community, we combine all the ingredients of gathering information on the issues, senators, representatives, and legislative process, then effectively communicate our messages to Congress, we have something beautiful: a Congress that actively supports a free and independent Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.

Information

Take some time to explore the various sections of the website. Schedule a time for yourself to take some time and learn about the issues.

A great place to start exploring is in the gathering intelligence blog. Here, you can learn how actions you can take from home arm yourself and others in the Baltivist community.

Access

A common myth is that the only way to gain access to members of Congress is through money. Sure, money can help, but most, if not all members of Congress are agreeable to Baltic issues.

The most important thing is knowing who to ask. During Baltic Advocacy Day of 2018, all 60 meetings that were requested with staff members were accepted by staff.

To learn about how you can set up a meeting, or other strategies to gain access, please read the gaining access blog. Then as you learn how you were able to receive communication from your members of Congress, please feel free to share it.

So, welcome to Baltivist.com! Have fun exploring, and make sure that when you learn anything from your Baltic activism, please share with the community!