it's not easy bein' green

Elizabeth May, the leader of the federal Green Party of Canada came to the little law school on the prairie today. I went to hear her speak.

Given that she was speaking at the LLSOTP, her talk was mainly about the Kyoto Protocol as an instrument of the law. Ms. May is a lawyer by training, and had some good one-liners about lawyers, and the talk was quite interesting. All of the question period was focused on Kyoto, climate change, and environmental issues.

I think the Green Party may actually have some interesting ideas, but I don't know how they will ever get past being painted as a single-issue party. Yes recent polls have shown that the environment is the new "health care" when it comes to issues, but even if it is the "most important" issue to Canadians, I still don't see a single-issue party being elected in large numbers.

They appear to have a fairly broad program, and I understand that in Europe, the Green Party is seen as more of a conservative focused party, even though here they are seen as left-wing.

Unfortunately, I don't know what they can do to get past the single-issue label. Elizabeth May seems a very smart and capable leader, but given her background with the Sierra Club, people think of her and the environment. As noted earlier, all the questions were on the environment, nothing on the rest of the platform.

I notice on the Green Party web site they are looking for a Director of Communications. In the absence of a communications director, I will offer my advice, based on today's event and from my experience as a communications advisor, in another edition of PR101:

1. Don't always speak about the environment

Yes, dance with the one who brought you, put try to frame your topics in a larger context. Talk about how the environment links to other issues, i.e. health, economy, etc. For example Canada's Green Economy.

2. If asked to speak on the environment, use the question period to introduce other elements of your program.

This is called "bridging". Today, Ms. May was asked what would the Green Party do to meet our Kyoto committments. She talked about a carbon tax. When you raise the carbon tax, use that as a bridge to talk about your economic platform. Ms. May briefly raised the issue of shifting the tax burden, but without much details. A question on GMO foods, bridge to talking about regulation of products, to health to health care. I will give some credit to Ms. May as she did do some bridging but never far enough away from the environment to redirect the conversation.

3. Provide media availability at all presentations.

I watched the news coverage on CBC and there was coverage of her talk but no interview. It's possible there is any number of reasons for this, scheduling, lack of media interest, etc, but this needs to be pushed. The current government does this a lot. Local media is an effective tool, and an interview with a federal leader will create a greater splash in a smaller media environment.

4. Plug, plug, plug.

Never forget to plug your web site. I think Ms. May did this once today, but in snappy short answers you can never cover enough material. Always refer people to your web site for more information once you have given an answer on that topic. People who are really interested will go and look.

5. Short, Snappy Answers

Ms. May's background as a lawyer, policy advisor and activist, and her extensive knowledge of these issues were all obvious today. Her answers were thorough and comprehensive. Unfortunately these answers take up too much time and don't make for good sound bites. Now don't get me wrong, there is a time and place for long answers and explanations, but it works better in smaller groups.

6. Depth, Depth, Depth

Right now the Green Party is seen as a single-issue/one-person party. Talk about the team, the party, that's there's depth to the organization. When doing local presentations, trot out some past or current candidates, riding association officials, even head of the campus club. Show that the party has an organization and depth. Show that a national team is in place. If you're only developing this national team, it's even more important to show this. Also, this provides a local face that people can follow-up with once the leader is gone.

7. Giving votes meaning

Contrary to what many people say, people don't want to throw their votes away. The Green Party needs to give people an idea of what their vote will mean if cast for them. Be realistic, don't expect to convince people you'll form a majority. But what will a vote for the Green Party mean. The NDP and Liberals are saying that a vote for the Green Party is a vote for the conservatives, because it's a vote taken away from these two parties. Don't let your opponents define you. Make clear statements about what Green Party MPs will mean for Canada. For example, how the Green Party can introduce new ideas into debates and committee proceedings; in another minority gov't the Greens could hold the balance of power and influence policy. A vote for the Green party signals a change in Canadian's priorities.