On March 23 and 24, EUConsult, the association of high-profile consultants of the European Third Sector, organized a series of meetings in Brussels with the aim of both increasing partnerships with public and private institutions, and broadening the discussion on relationships between consultants and clients. One of the meetings was with Managing Director of The Good Lobby (TGL), Kelsey Beltz.
In this article, our secretary Holger Menze will share with you valuable insights from this meeting. Enjoy reading!
When you work in consultancy, broadening your horizons is essential (which is why I joined EUConsult many months ago), so I was very curious about what Kelsey Beltz, managing director of The Good Lobby (TGL), had to tell. Brussels itself already is a big lobbying bubble, so calling yourself ‘The Good Lobby’ just adds that little twinkle that immediately catches my attention. Kelsey, a very energizing young women, confirmed that the name was chosen on purpose, since it transports disruptive energy that grabs your attention.
But what do they do? On their website it says ‘We democratize lobbying to make our political system more equal’, which indeed is something I never heard of. Scrolling down a bit, it all becomes clear: ‘The Good Lobby supports nonprofits, activists, progressive businesses, and philanthropies to shift public policies through a combination of strategic advocacy advice, training and unconventional alliances.’
I love the concept and also the chutzpa to call it ‘The Good Lobby’. If your goal is to let nonprofits, activists and the likes thrive in the Brussel’ EU bubble and beyond, you need to have a name that sums it all up in its straightforwardness. Lobbying is not knowing people in high places, but it is about building your network, finding allies, building a relevant cause and being able to articulate it precisely. And TGL will help you to achieve all that. Having a huge network themselves, they also will try to connect you and your organization to relevant stakeholders. The concept of The Good Lobby is so spot-on that you can hardly think of a time where they weren’t already there.
Exciting encounters like this remind me of the many benefits of being part of EUConsult, since we’re also a strong European network bringing together European values and best practices. We therefore might contribute and bring forward the idea behind The Good Lobby and also learn from them, too.
They also conduct The Good Lobby Summer Academy 2023 taking place in Bilbao, Spain, 17 – 20 July. I’m tempted …
In any case I certainly want to learn more and will ask Kelsey to broaden on the subject in one of EUConsult’s monthly online Spotlights. Stay tuned if you want to join!
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