Ok, you have a research plan, you have specific research questions and you're ready to find answers. The focus is on how to find information that reveals pressure points, organizing handles, power structure analyses and leverage tactics for social justice campaigns.

That's where the DataCenter's campaign research tools come in. Here you'll find hands-on research guides that you can use to do your research. Designed to be useful to seasoned campaign researchers and folks who are just starting out, these research guides provide quick access to tips and sources.

Creating Surveys (2004)
A participatory research toolkit on how to do community surveys to support social justice campaigns. It includes information on all stages of the survey process—from deciding to do a survey to analyzing the information you gather.

Getting Public Records (2003)
Overview on the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and public records laws that can be used to obtain information from federal, state and local agencies. Guide to web sites that show how to file Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and public records requests.

Researching Corporations (2002)
Target research guide, includes how to put together a corporate profile, sample research questions, information sources on the Web, pointers to which government agencies have what corporate information and how to go about getting it. Includes sections on how to investigate a corporation's labor and environmental records, as well as their political influence.

Researching Individuals (2002)
Target research guide, provides an overview of information that is available about a wide range of individuals, and a list of information sources for each type of information. Web resources are linked.

ISSUE-BASED RESEARCH TOOLKITS

High and Dry in the Smoggy Skies...? Overcoming the Challenges in Capturing Air Toxics 411 (2004)
Air pollution research guide. Includes overview on types of air pollution and what data is collected. Describes major air pollution information sources - non-governmental databases, governmental databases, and compliance and enforcement data - with pointers on where to find them, what data they include, and their strengths and weaknesses. Download Toolkit (11 pages, PDF, requires free Adobe Acrobat®Reader).

Challenging the FTAA, NAFTA & the WTO:
A Community Research Toolkit (2003)
Provides resources for locating community-specific information that reflects the ways corporate-led globalization affects us at the local level, including job loss, health impacts, privatization of public services, migration and militarization. Download Toolkit (457kb PDF, requires free Adobe Acrobat®Reader).

It's Your Right to Know: A Research Guide on Juvenile Justice in California (2003)
How to find criminal justice and juvenile justice information and statistics held by state, county and municipal agencies. Topics include police misconduct and funding, prison expansion, incarceration demographics, criminal justice budgets, campaign contributions. A joint project of the DataCenter and Books not Bars.
Download PDF (333 kb, requires free Adobe Acrobat®Reader).