The Changemakers Impact Conference | Review | New York

Teen revolutionizes advocacy: bridging citizens and lawmakers. A 17-year-old launched a tool at the Changemakers Conference in NYC, that had attendees messaging senators live - in minutes. Now that’s impact!
 
The twentieth anniversary of Advertising Week in New York City was energized by technology, techniques, and topics that marketers were anxious to learn. The Marketing Society’s Changemakers Conference track introduced the overarching concept of impact, which, when you get right down to it, is really what we are all striving to achieve.
 
In a unique twist, two 17-year-old Gen Z students took the stage to discuss how their passion and purpose led them to make an impact. I reminded myself that at 17, you are still in High School and likely focused on friends and sports. But these two professional, well-spoken Gen Zers, cut to the chase, and each in roughly 10 minutes, convinced me to take action. 
 
The creator of Policy Playground.org, Emmet O’Sullivan, presented a well-orchestrated and live demonstration of his website that allows you to easily reach elected officials to request their attention and support on specific matters that really matter to him and to society. In under two minutes, roughly 100 people had written their senator’s office. Piece of cake. Snap a QR code, press “make a difference,” put in your zip code, lightly personalize a pre-written form email, and ready, set, send! I was delighted when I received an email of acknowledgment from my senator a couple of days later, making me feel like my voice had been heard.
 
In an interview, Emmet explained, “We can all make a difference by writing to our senators about the issues that matter to us. However, learning about bills and contacting lawmakers is cumbersome and time-consuming. Policy Playground makes it easy.” 
 
For Emmet, healthcare advocacy is deeply personal. “In 2020, I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in a New York emergency room. I’m fortunate to have access to good healthcare to help me manage this chronic disease. I researched many people’s experiences, and it opened my eyes to the difficulties many Americans in need of healthcare face. I decided to build Policy Playground to make it easy for all Americans to learn about bills before Congress and advocate by writing to our senators.”
 
Currently, Policy Playground features a range of government bills related to healthcare. Emmet plans to extend the scope. “I plan to grow the team and expand Policy Playground to feature more healthcare bills and other policy areas,” said Emmet O’Sullivan.
 
So, THIS is impact. Through the use of techniques, technology, and critical topics, a room full of mostly acquaintances had come together and created real IMPACT. Now that’s worth talking about! 

Policy Playground.org is a platform for Americans to learn about bills before the US Congress and write to their senators to urge them to support or oppose specific legislation.

Authored by global sales and marketing executive Stephanie Anderson
Published on 12 November 2024

See the full photos from our New York Changemakers Impact Conference here