Having “walks” through town with a drum group are popular events in Northern Plains tribal communities. Take walking for a cause a step further by hosting a “talk” at the end of the walk so people can become educated on tobacco prevention and have a chance to share how they or their family has been impacted by tobacco-related disease.
Planning
- Set a date, time, route, and location for the talk.
- Find speakers for the talk – this can be a public health or healthcare professional or a local community member who has a powerful story to share.
- Request a police escort from law enforcement for traffic safety during the walk.
- Coordinate the walk leaders – consider a drum group in the back of a pickup or on a trailer, and large banners or posters for walkers to carry so on-lookers know what the walk is about.
- Hand out flyers with facts or if it fits in your budget, get give-aways that promote your message.
- Promote the Walk & Talk on social media, newspaper, radio, flyers and by inviting specific groups.
- Invite news reporters to cover the event.
- Day of the event.
- Set up a registration table to track participants and give information, water, and wearables.
- Designate one person to take and share photos or live feed for social media.
- Following the event – If news reporters don’t cover the event, submit a press release and photos to local newspapers. If you have leftover banners or posters, hang them up in a prominent location.
Materials needed
- Something for participants to wear during the walk, like t-shirts, ribbons, or stickers (link to give-a-way section), or encourage them all to wear the same color
- Pre-made posters/banners for walkers to carry or materials for participants to make their own poster
- Water, light snacks and a first aid kit for walkers
- Handouts for participants to read during the talk
- PA system for talk (depends on room size and acoustics)
Hints
- Tribes sometimes offer administrative leave for tribal employees to attend educational or wellness events. This can improve participation!
- Having an open-mic for participants to share their reason for caring about the issue can solicit some very powerful stories.
- If you invite a drum group, plan to give the singers a gift or a donation to the drum.
Čaŋlí Coalition Example
To include cultural lifeways, we… invite the drum group to sing one honor song for all of our tribal members who have suffered or died from a tobacco-related disease, and another honor song and handshake line for all the participants who have successfully quit using tobacco.
