Get Concerned Stratford, the community group that opposed the Xinyi Glass Factory, is the subject of a new book, detailing the history and background of their protest.
A Winning Campaign – Lessons for effective campaign organizing from Get Concerned Stratford, written by Sam Denby and Mike Balkwill, offers insight into the success of the campaign.Â
The book was launched this past Sunday at the Falstaff Family Centre.
Mike Sullivan, a member of Get Concerned Stratford, spoke with MyStratfordNow about what readers can expect from the book.Â
“The book is a combination of history of what happened in Stratford and the lessons that other groups can take from those things, so what did we do, what did we do that worked, what did we do that didn’t work,” said Sullivan.
The campaign was originally to get council to “slow down a bit”, as plans were moving along for a Chinese company to open a glass factory on the outskirts of Stratford.
The two million square foot proposed factory caused an uproar in the city, as opposition said the plant would take a significant amount of water and natural gas.
There were many unanswered questions about the project, and some citizens expressed concerns about a lack of transparency at city hall.
Sullivan said that “all dealings were going on behind closed doors.”
“The details came out and people were angry,” said Sullivan.
Sullivan said it was the opposition created by the Get Concerned Stratford group that led to the glass company deciding not to locate in Stratford.
Balkwill suggested leftover funds raised for the campaign could go towards a book chronicling the campaign’s success and what other protest groups can learn from their “winning campaign:.
Visit getconcernedstratford.org for more information.
