Citizen Lobbying: How Your Skills Can Fix Democracy | Alberto Alemanno | TEDxBrussels

The more society professionalises, the less is taking advantage if its own skills. Indeed, each of us has much more to give to society than what our job descriptions allow us to. How to then mobilize our skills for the greater good? Alberto Alemanno, an engaged academic and civic advocate, argues that besides voting and running for office there is also a third, less known - yet more promising -, way to make society progress: lobbying. Lobbying is no longer a prerogative of well-funded groups with huge memberships and countless political connections. This talk offers you a guide on how to become an effective citizen lobbyist in your daily life by tapping into your own talents, skills and experience.

Alberto Alemanno is an academic, civic advocate and social entrepreneur. He is currently Jean Monnet Professor at HEC Paris and Global Clinical Professor at New York University School of Law. Due to his commitment to bridge the gap between academic research and policy action, Alberto established eLabEurope, a startup committed to improve civic literacy, engagement and participation by lobbying in the public interest.
Alberto is now working on the launch of TheGoodLobby, the first platform aimed at connecting people with expertise with civil society organizations who need them in pursuit of the public interest.Originally from Italy, Alberto is a graduate of Harvard Law School, the College of Europe and holds a PhD from Bocconi University. He regularly publishes Op-Eds in Le Monde, the Huffington Post, IlSole24Ore and his work has been featured in The Economist, The Financial Times, Science and Nature.The World Economic Forum named Alberto Young Global Leader in 2015.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx