Building an Action Plan  

WBW experiences in various countries have shown that better results are achieved and more people are involved when activities are well planned, organized and coordinated. The actions described here can be carried out in your neighborhood, your city, your state or even your country. Where ever you are, it is important to plan ahead! 

The first thing to do is get your group together and identify potential partners in your city or region. This year's WBW theme, for instance, leads us to look for allies among teachers, youth and children; but it is important also to involve your neighborhood association, women's groups, NGOs, government, church groups, etc. Next, choose a person or a group of individuals to coordinate activities. Then, make an inventory of existing and potential resources your group has. Use your creativity to plan activities. 

Finally, get in touch with your state, regional or national coordinator or, even, the international coordinator of WBW, so that your work links in with that of others and results are multiplied. 

This is one of the most important parts of your work. We must make your actions visible, using the mass media. It is essential to appoint a Media Officer who will keep TV, radio, newspapers and magazines informed about your activities and will supply them with statistical data on "breastfeeding and education". 

Often we do excellent work, but few people outside our immediate circle know about it, because we don't write down and disseminate what we do. It is important that you write reports about what you did, with photos, newspaper clippings, etc. and that you send them to the WBW coordinator. Thus we will be able to record the history of the WBW in our city, state or country, and will give new ideas to other groups ALL OVER the world. This is how networking works: Gathering information, reporting, sharing.