Find out what Rebecca Ogbonna, Campaign Engagement Mobilisation Officer at the Royal British Legion learned from her experience as a rider on SMK’s Campaign Carousel training programme.
I have been visually impaired since birth, and so growing up, I watched my mum push for my needs to be met at school and also at hospital visits. When I started university, I had to advocate for myself, and that sparked my interest in campaigning more broadly.
I work as the Campaign Engagement Mobilisation Officer at the Royal British Legion – an organisation which brings society together to recognise, remember, and support the Armed Forces community.
Over the past three years, I have led the development and growth of RBL’s campaign engagement and mobilisation function – mobilising thousands of supporters to take action through insight-led communications and supporter journeys.
I decided to join the Campaign Carousel to strengthen my theoretical understanding of campaigning best practice, and to explore other areas where I have had little or no experience. For example, the Using the Legal System for Social Change session gave me new insight into how the law can be used in campaigning. The Carousel also allowed me to learn from a wide range of practitioners, share experiences with other campaigners, and reflect on how different approaches can be applied in my own work.
I enjoyed how each session was grounded in theory and gave examples of applying it. I really liked the Evaluating What Matters session, which explored the context for learning and evaluation in campaigning and social change and outlined key data collection methods.
I also enjoyed meeting other campaigners throughout the Carousel. It was a great opportunity to build connections with people working on a wide range of issues and to learn from their experiences. The mix of workshops and online sessions created a supportive space to share ideas, reflect on different campaigning approaches, and gain new perspectives that I can apply in my own work.
One thing I’ll take into my own campaigning is thinking more strategically about how different tactics work together. The Carousel showed me how approaches like legal action, storytelling and coalition-building can all play a role in pushing for change. I also found the campaign planning tools helpful – they made me think more carefully about setting clear goals, understanding who I’m trying to influence, and choosing the right tactics.
I also want to champion accessibility best practices in the campaigning materials I produce, ensuring accessibility is prioritised from the outset rather than treated as an afterthought.
Lastly, I hope to create meaningful and lasting change by working with the people most affected by the issues I campaign on. I believe campaigns are strongest when they are co-produced, and I want to ensure lived experience is genuinely centred in the work I do.