engleski

Grassroots campaign as a technique of indirect lobbying

The origins of grassroots campaigns can be found in the US lobbying system. Nowadays, this approach has become a new phenomenon in the Croatian social and political system. The goals of grassroots campaigns can be similar in some aspects, but different in the way they attempt to achieve their goals as in direct lobbying, i.e. influence of government decisions. Grassroots campaigns include promoting, and sensitizing, educating, and organizing citizens, voters, local communities, NGOs and the media about the matters dealt with in grassroots campaigns. These groups use e-mails, letters, phone calls, meetings, lectures, media campaigns, events, and demonstrations as attempts to influence government decisions. With the rapid development of new media and social networks, this form of indirect lobbying has demonstrated its full potential and increasing involvement of interested parties. This paper examines a successful grassroots campaign in Croatia, called NIMBY – “Not-In-My- Backyard”, which was directed against the implementation of the project of constructing a coal-fired thermal power plant in the town of Ploče, Dubrovnik-Neretva County.

grassroots campaign; lobbying; interest groups; Not-In-My-Back-Yard; civil initiatives; consultative referendum; coal-fired thermal power plant; investment

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