Public Policy Leadership Institute

SMHA's Public Policy Leadership Institute (PPLI) -- an "institute without walls" -- is more of a process than a thing. The goal is to increase civic involvement, particularly among marginalized citizens in economically distressed areas, empowering them to have a greater voice in finding solutions and shaping policies at the local, state, and national levels.

Adventures in Citizenship

SMHA has recently produced an interactive CD-ROM to institutionalize the PPLI process so it can be used in other venues. SMHA is working with schools to use the CD-ROM to teach citizenship, civics, and personal responsibility. It will also be made available to other leadership programs and grassroots organizations in Louisiana and throughout the country.

The interactive CD features animated characters as well as stories of real grass-roots leaders, and the content is organized into three parts which can be explored in any order:

1. What Are Public Policies and How Do They Affect You?

Here "Rappin' Boogie Bobcat" engages the viewer with a "Public Policy Rap" and takes the user on an interactive joy ride where he or she can discover public policy connections at home, at work, at school, at play and in the community.

2. The Saga of Soggy Bottom Swamp

The user has a front-row seat for "The Saga of Soggy Bottom Swamp," where a cast of critters face a life-threatening dilemma and then discover their power and use it to save the swamp.

3. What You Can Do About Public Policies

This part is divided into three sections–"See,""Believe" and "Do." In it users discover the importance of knowing what the current situation or problem is and what they want it to be, how to find and use their power, and what it takes to make change happen. The content in the third section is layered, so users can either get an overview or go deeper in some areas if they like. They can read stories about how real people have used their power to make change happen by clicking on the "people power" scrapbook or they can answer questions that appear in the mirror and make a customized "power certificate."

PPLI is a Process

The PPLI process -- which has been incorporated in all of SMHA's work with communities of homeowners, fishers, farmers, and self-help associations -- is designed to help citizens:

Recognize the connection between public policies and their everyday lives · Understand that they have the power to help create and change public policies · Learn how to do it



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