Policy development Essay

In laymans basis, constitution whitethorn be defined as a deliberate plan of action that is utilize to guide decisions and thereby achieve rational outcomes. There is a delusion that policies exclusively apply to political relations. Policies may also apply to private do principal(prenominal) brasss, groups and individuals. Difference between constitution and law To a great extent, laws argon use of goods and servicesd for compelling or prohibiting behaviors. Conversely, policies atomic calculate 18 used to guide actions so that the desired action may be achieved. There various types of policies. These acknowledge public, fiscal and urban policies.Consequently, policies may then be understood as the political, man come onment and administrative mechanisms arranged to reach certain explicit goals. s transfer Various individuals and groups in indian lodge try to shape up insurance by way of advocacy, education and the mobilization of interest groups. The aim of doing so is to sway the policy makers to make decisions that allow be in their favor. It is exclusively about interest at the end of the day. If particular groups in society feel it is in their interest that certain policies be made in their favor, they try as much to advocate for them by way of residence halling. match to Cohen, De la Vega & Watson, in advocacy, certain groups or individuals in society take it upon themselves to educate the public and also the policy makers about the nature of the problems, the variant of legislation required to deal with the said problems including the funding required to return the necessary services and/or conduct research (2001). In my company located in a small town in Pennsylvania, the major(ip) moment of revive is access to blanched pee. irrigate is life so the saying goes. However, in my small alliance, more(prenominal) and more lot atomic number 18 finding it considerably hard to access reliable and full piss. almost of the loca l streams where the majority of the people obtain their piss from ar neat openly polluted ( white-hot Water Action, N. d. ). This makes the piddle an issue of honest concern. As an individual member of our local federation organization, known as, Water is Life, affaire is usually in the following policy beas. The reason I am tortuous in the policy is, unless the issue is addressed sooner instead than later, it may turn disastrous. There is no life without body of urine. Lobbying The aim is to regularize our representatives to institute specifyingful change (Richan, 2006).The local town council which is an arm of the government activity needs to make sure that clean water is availed. The mayors election pledge was that clean water will be provided to the residents of the community as soon as he got into office. It has been six months and the taps are still dry. Consequently, I drop established that the most effective lobby methods to use so as to reach the locals ar e letter writing, surround calls and meetings. This way the residents stay informed on the activities that the organization is involved in. However, the use of e-mails has proved to be much faster and convenient.With the growth of information and confabulation technology, members of the community have access to the internet (Grassroots lobbying techniques, N. d). However, it is non only the resident of the community who have been receiving the letters, emails and phone calls but also the mayor and regulator Rendell. Advocacy Cohen, De la Vega & Watson, define advocacy as the quest of influencing outcomes that in one way or a nonher have an effect on peoples lives (2001). Advocacy is an integral part in policy and mental imagery allocation decision.Advocacy is necessary if the adoption of the Buffer one hundred policy is to become a reality and also if the protection of the streams and provision of clean water is to be realized. Through advocacy, the community organization Wate r is Life, has been able to give a voice to the residents of the community. more(prenominal) over, it has helped to mobilize them towards a common goal. Community mobilization The single most important resourcefulness that a community may use to influence policy is the people. When the people get together, they are better able to provide solutions to their most neighboring(a) problems.As part of the mobilization efforts, I am involved in handling out of pamphlets and organizing village meetings (Handbook, N. d). However, it is important to note that all these endeavors may not be successful without some kind of education. The locals have to be clearly informed on why their participation is important. Accordingly, the community organization (Water is Life), which may be regarded to an interest group pushing for the needs of the community and the policy implementers (the town council, the Office of the Mayor and the Department of Environmental security department (DEP) may be refe rred to as the main actors.They are the main players in this policy issue. The individuals who have mostly been bear upon by the policy are the residents of the community. These actors are involved in different part of the policy tuition process, right from the identification of the problem all through to the evaluations stage. Issue of concern There are many people in the community who are facing the possibility of not being able to access safe water. The residents should unite and support the implementation of the Buffer 100 policy which will protect the Pennsylvania streams from pollution ( blame water Action (N. d. ).Clean water has many uses. For drinking, cooking, washing and cleaning. There is as strain on the accessibility of safe water because the population has increased while water sources have remained constant while some have been destroyed. It is hard to imagine what the military position will be like in a few historic period time with population growth. There wi ll be more postulate for clean drinking water though the supply will be next to none. While the community was able to support a smaller population in the early 1980s comfortable with the water resource given by Mother Nature, it has become considerably hard to go along with the trend.Human activity (pollution), the clearing of forests and other water catchments areas plus the effectuate of global warming are all to blame (Real Estate Futurist, 2009). The Clean Water Act is the chief federal law in the join States used to govern water pollution (Ryan, 2004). The clean water issue is contained within the broader realm of environmental policies. To a great extent, the formulation of water policy heavily relies on input from numerous parties/actors from individuals, groups, communities and policy implementers.Their main duty is to avail critical information and expertise necessary for the instinct and addressing of water provision concerns. Extent to which the issue affects a larg er number of people It has already been established that clean water is an absolute necessity. Without clean water, the existence of life becomes precarious. According to United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on humor change, a massive 2 billion people will not have access to clean drinking water by the socio-economic class 2050. What is even more shocking is that the number may rise to 3.2 billion people by the year 2080 (Associated Press, 2008). For evidence and proof that and so water has become a scarce resource one only needs to open the newspapers and /or watch news for pictures of dry double-dyed(a) lands and animal carcasses under the scorching sun in such parts of the world as Africa. In the US, some regions are at the mold of their fresh water supplies. One major region that is experiencing water paucity is California. It is expected that between the year 2000 and 2015, the population will have two-fold up.Think of the resulting stress on the provision of clean wat er. The lack of water has far reaching consequences. There will be less nutrient production. Think of the West part of America which relies on irrigation to sustain farming (Real Estate Futurist, 2009)? Less food production will then mean that food will become more expensive. In the US, the people who may be most affected by the lack of safe water are the very young and the old. Thus, these include children of school going age and the old people most of who live in retirement homes.More over, people from marginalized communities for instance, the Latin Americans and immigrants from other countries may be affected. In terms of gender, women may be most affected as they are the ones who are mostly charged with the duties of looking for water. More over, they perform most of the activities where water is primal such as cooking and cleaning. Nevertheless, people who are in the lower end of the income bracket will also be more affected. Think of the people in manual/temporary labor who assoil less than one dollar a day.In the event of water shortage, they will not have any money to spare for the secure of water. They may then result to using contaminated water which is a wellness hazard. There is need for the adoption of better policies that will countenance better access to safe water regardless of race or social class. Conclusion Policies are deliberate plan of actions used to not only guide decision but also to achieve a logical and rational outcome in particular issues and activities. Some of forthwiths policy issues are to be found in the environmental, health and education sectors.The availability and provision of safe water is a serious local and global issue in the environmental realm. Individuals and groups alike are involved in advocacy and lobbying as a way of influencing actors involved in policy maturement and implementation such as government representatives to act accordingly. The aim is to voice the concern of the people most affected by the i ssues local communities. Unless, the water issue is addressed now there will be worse things to worry about in future.References.Clean water Action (N. d. ). Retrieved bunt 20, 2009 from http//www.cleanwateraction. org/ Clean Water. (2009). Real Estate Futurist. Retrieved March 20, 2009 from http//www. realestatefuturist. com/re-environmentwater. asp Cohen, D. , De la Vega, R. & Watson, G. (2001). Advocacy for social justice. Bloomfield, CT Kumarian Press Inc. Experts upbraid of severe water shortages by 2080. (2008). Associated Press. Retrieved March 20, 2009 from http//www. msnbc. msn. com/id/27781117/l Gerston, L. (1997). mankind policy making Process and principle. juvenile York M. E. Sharpe. Grass root lobbying techniques. (N. d. ). Retrieved March 20 2009 from http//fsalc.com/root. html Handbook Non-formal adult education facilitators. (N. d. ). Retrieved March 20, 2009 http//www2. unescobkk. org/elib/publications/nonformal/M1. pdf Richan, W. (2006). Lobbying for social ch ange. New York Routledge. Ryan, M. (2004). The Clean Water Act handbook. Chicago American Bar Association. Smith, B. (2003). Public policy and public participation Engaging citizens and community in the development of public policy. Health Canada. Retrieved March 20, 2009 from http//www. phac-aspc. gc. ca/canada/regions/atlantic/pdf/pub_policy_partic_e. pdf