On-Line Petition Resources
An easy way to demonstrate support for your cause
Land manager not responding to your calls? Feeling squeezed out of closed door meetings? No formal public comment window?
When traditional avenues of public participation are closed or ineffective, you can utilize an age-old strategy with a 21st century twist. Gone are the days of standing in the rain, soggy clipboard in hand, soliciting strangers in front of the supermarket. On-line petition services are a versatile method to better advertise your cause, market to specific audiences and deliver the final product in paper and electronic form.
IMBA recommends either of the two popular sites described below. Both are free of charge and allow you to print or email the signatures and deliver them to your target. You can draft your petition to your liking and then submit it for approval (the sites are non-partisan, but they review for vulgarity or other obvious violations). You can then post a link to the petition on club websites, newsgroups or other platforms.
This service is easy to use but requires activation of a free account on www.care2.com. Preference is given to petitions that have a "reasonable" chance of collecting 5000 signatures in the first six months. Petitions will be removed in one year or if less than 1000 signatures are collected in four months. One bonus of this site is a beta feature that allows you or signers to attach a picture for dramatic effect.
Also simple to use, this site provides many of the same features, but without the picture option. There is no posted signature threshold for approval or deadline for collecting signatures.
Additional Resources
Help! My favorite trail is being closed. What should I do?
