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What is NAMI Smarts?
NAMI Smarts for Advocacy is a popular hands-on advocacy training program that helps people living with a mental health condition and their friends and family transform their passion and lived experience into skillful grassroots advocacy.
What are the goals?

NAMI Smarts advocacy training develops the following skills: 
  • Telling a compelling story that is inspiring and makes an “ask” in 90 seconds.
  • Writing an effective email, making an elevator speech and making an impactful phone call.
  • Orchestrating a successful meeting with an elected official.
What will you gain?

​The unique step-by-step, skill-building design of NAMI Smarts is effective with a wide range of participants—from those who are new to advocacy to individuals with more experience. Participants routinely share that they’ve never been able to condense their story or made a clear “ask” and, with NAMI Smarts, they were able to. Lobbyists who represent NAMI State Organizations or mental health coalitions love this program—they see participants come out confident and able to share their story in a way that moves policymakers.