Case study: an influence strategy for a pro-nuclear organisation
In a self-imposed influence exercise, I drafted a strategy for a generic pro-nuclear alliance in Brussels, focusing on influencing stakeholders and defending a "green nuclear" position.
As part of a self-imposed exercise in setting up a strategy for a possible organisation in the EU bubble, I decided to draft an influence strategy for a generic pro-nuclear alliance.
Disclaimer: this exercise is strictly self-imposed, and was not commissioned by any organisation, although I would be more than happy if a nuclear energy industry organisation decided to take on my proposal. I must also thank Brett Kobie, Strategy & Creative Director at Bump, for the idea.
Additionally, premium subscribers to The Beubble will receive a full description of how I did this work. So not only the result of the strategy but also the thinking I put into it and the tools I used. Upgrade today to receive the next premium-only email.
With this out of the way, let’s get started.
Identify the problem
the classification of nuclear energy is an important question in today’s debates. Should nuclear energy, a power-generation technology should be considered “green” (it does not emit CO2)?
Alternatively, should it be used as a preferred technology for the transition, such as natural gas? Or should we simply get rid of it, like oil or coal?
In any case, the problem of any pro-nuclear organisation will be to defend nuclear energy as “green”.
That is what this strategy is about.
Clarify the vision
So far, we identified a problem and a position for our example organisation.
What we need now is a clear objective and a vision.
Using the SMART methodology, I identified the following objective: to meet and influence the 25 most important stakeholders with the objective that the Net-Zero Industry Act report put to the plenary refers to nuclear energy as “green”.
Stakeholder identifying and mapping
Identification
Another important exercise is to map the stakeholders our organisation will want to influence.
We have:
Christian Ehler, the rapporteur of the Net-Zero Industry Act, and his shadow rapporteurs:
Christophe Grudler, shadow rapporteur for Renew Europe,
PENKOVA Tsvetelina
CARÊME Damien
BORCHIA Paolo
TOŠENOVSKÝ Evžen
BOTENGA Marc
Cristian-Silviu BUŞOI, chair of the EP’s ITRE committee.
Some of our shadows come from countries of the “Alliance for nuclear energy” spearheaded by France. Therefore, it is a good idea to involve energy ministers.
This list is far from the 25 stakeholders I would recommend listing, but I believe an organisation with the resources to dig deeper and the knowledge about nuclear energy could find a few more without difficulties.
Let’s pin our influencers on a map:
Our organisation will need to focus its efforts on the central part of the diagram. The goal is rather to use its efforts to sway the '“stance-less” policymakers rather than waste them on people who will not move or are already committed.
Yet, people on the top right (the allies) will need to be engaged in promoting this position. Furthermore, our organisation will need to keep an eye on the top-left corner (the adversaries).
The action plan
We have our objective, our mapping, and a few names that we need to influence.
Here below is the plan I would propose to our pro-nuclear organisation, in the form of a retro calendar. You will see that it starts will fact-finding and continues with broad and diffuse influence (through events and media action) and targeted, direct influence (one-to-one meetings).
November: Vote at the EP Plenary
During the plenary week, send a one-pager to all “stance-less” MEPs with your main arguments
The week before the plenary vote, organise a debate between shadow rapporteurs of the files and experts. Invite ITRE Committee members to speak and/or attend.
10 October: two days before the Committee vote, send a two-pager to the members of the ITRE committee with your position and the conclusion of the event on 3 October.
3 October: a week before the committee vote, organise an event/debate with the rapporteurs of the Net-Zero Industry Act, as well as experts, to confront your position with the current text and amendments.
Late September: Visit the remaining stakeholders that you identified in previous steps, and present your arguments and position.
Mid-September: Visit the rapporteur and shadows of the Net-Zero Industry Act, and expose your position.
Early September: Publish a position paper and policy recommendations based on your fact-finding mission and position. Don’t forget to remain factual and address possible issues associated with your position.
August: run a fact-finding mission, collecting data, evidence, research papers, and arguments in favour of your position. Don’t shy away from the issues arising from your position, and find solutions to address them.
Conclusion and Assessment
An important step of the strategy, often overlooked, is the assessment of the results. Did you achieve the expected outcome? What went wrong? What worked well?
It is unlikely that the fate of nuclear energy will be decided by the Net-Zero Industry Act. Therefore, our association will need to continuously campaign for its position, even if it achieves initial success here.
Likewise, a defeat with the Net-Zero Industry Act is not the end, and there will be many occasions to fight again. That is why the assessment part is so important.
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Alexandre Météreau is the author of The Beubble and a specialist in European policies and politics. Discover more about Alexandre at alexandre-metereau.eu.