When an advocacy opportunity is shared by an external individual or organization (e.g. an invitation to co-sign a public statement created by another party), or identified within the Alliance community, it is evaluated by the Board for potential action, with input from Council as deemed necessary by the Board. Depending on the nature of the opportunity, this may not directly include the full Board:

Ongoing Issues with Prior Alliance Engagement

If the Alliance is invited to co-sign or otherwise publicly support a position/statement that is consistent with positions/actions the Alliance has previously taken, the Board Chair and Executive Director may confer and move forward with endorsement without deliberation by the full Board. In such cases, prior notice of action should be provided to Board and Council, ideally with a minimum of 48 hours notice. If substantial concern related to the acceptable level of risk of Alliance engagement (as described under “Considerations for Engagement”) is raised by member libraries/institutions, the Board Chair may refer the matter to an electronic vote by the full Board.

Emerging Issues with Short Deadlines

If the Alliance is invited, or otherwise notified, of an emerging advocacy opportunity for which it would be impractical (due to timing) to engage the full Board in developing a response, the Board Chair and Executive Director may confer and move forward if they have reviewed the “Considerations for Engagement” and arrived at a positive assessment of Alliance action. Prior notice of the planned action should be provided to Board and Council, ideally with a minimum of 48 hours notice. If substantial concern is raised related to the acceptable level of risk of Alliance engagement for member libraries/institutions, the Board Chair may refer the matter to an electronic vote by the full Board, with a simple majority vote required to move forward. In all cases, the details of the initial assessment must be shared with the full Board at the next possible opportunity, to give the Board an opportunity to affirm and/or provide feedback on the interpretation of the considerations relative to the specific opportunity.

For both instances above, the Board Chair and Executive Director may not commit Alliance personnel or financial resources as part of a response/endorsement if the full Board and impacted members of Central Staff have not been consulted as to the feasibility of such commitment.

In all other circumstances–including those above in which Alliance engagement could be considered potentially controversial or high-risk, or in which the Board Chair or Executive Director requires a full Board assessment in order to decline an advocacy request–the full Board will evaluate the advocacy opportunity using the “Considerations for Engagement” and determine next steps. A simple majority vote of the Board will be required to move forward.

Once the Board determines that the Alliance should engage in an advocacy activity, it moves forward with developing an advocacy action plan (see Advocacy Action Planning).