I’m going to do a little nitpicking here. Please indulge me. The Rhode Island Rivers Council and the Narrangasset Parks and Recreation Department are teaming up to sponsor “Environmental Awareness Day” on the beach on July 19th. That’s terrific. And they’re inviting other nature protection and pollution control organizations in the area to bring their booths and activities for the public. This is also terrific. Best of all, they expect that 10,000 people will visit the beach that day. That’s awesome!

And because this is generally a recipe for success, I’m going to nitpick the email that annouces this opportunity — there’s  a missing ingredient. And when we forget to include it, we accidentally sabotage our own efforts to make the most of events like this. The email says:

Environmental groups are invited to participate. Groups will be provided with appropriate space to conduct an activity, set up a display or tell people about your organization… This is a great opportunity to tell Rhode Islanders about the important work of our organizations.

Here’s what I object to: It’s the focus on organizations and their important work, rather than on the Rhode Islanders who will be at the event. Although I fully understand the desire for people to like and respect the organizations that we work for, it’s still a mistake to show up at an event like this planning to talk about how great we are.

Because if we accidentally give the impression that you need a science degree or a staff job at a do-gooder organization to save the sound, then everyday Rhode Islanders will probably say “that’s nice, best wishes.” Then they’ll head off for a refreshing swim that will wash everything we told them right out of their heads.

Conservationists should show up planning to talk to their fellow citizens about how the health of Narrangasset Sound affects them and their families. They should come prepared to demonstrate what Rhode Islanders can do about the problems. They should be ready to prove that lots of ordinary Rhode Islanders are already working together to save the sound, and that everyday Rhode Islanders can make a difference even if they don’t know a lot about science, don’t have a lot of money to give, and feel pretty darn busy just raising their kids and making ends meet.

If you can make a connection with people at this level — help them feel good about themselves and the contributions they can make — they will develop positive feelings for the organization you work for. But if you fail to connect at this level, no amount of bragging about your accomplishments will fill that gap.

Good luck with your event, Rhode Islanders. Sounds like a good time.