A Guide for Community Action

We need your help to reverse the trend of bottled water in our cities! Thankfully, you’ve already taken the first step. This Guide will give you the tools for moving your local officials to cut city spending on bottled water and to support strong public water systems. Together we are building a movement of mayors and local officials who are Thinking Outside the Bottle!

Download this guide as a pdf.

Think Outside The Bottle Campaign Overview

• Top 10 reasons why your city should switch from the bottle to the tap
• Overview of municipal campaigning on bottled water

Step 1: Reach Out To Your Mayor and School Board

• Sample letter to Local Officials
• Sample letter to send to your mayor or school board to protect water fountains

Step 2. Find Out If Your City/County Has A Bottled Water Contract

• Information gathering checklist
• Tips for effective research

Step 3: Educate, Expose And Build Support

• How to get community groups involved
• Think Outside the Bottle pledge
• Think Outside the Bottle Petition form
• Sample community sign-on letter

Step 4: Get Your Mayor Onboard

• Sample agenda for meeting with your mayor
• Sample letter to your mayor about the Think Outside the Bottle Pledge
• Sample media materials: Letters to the Editor and Press Releases

Step 5: Celebrate Your Victory!

• Present a certificate to your mayor
• Sample congratulations press release

Contract Case Study

•  San Francisco

Fact sheets On Bottled Water

• Bottled Water: A Visible Example of Corporate Control of Water
• Think Outside the Bottle talking points
• 2007 U.S. Conference of Mayors Resolution on Bottled Water
• 2007 San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom’s Executive Order
• 2007 Illinois Procurement Officer’s letter about bottled water

Tell us about your work and share your news via the Municipal Activists Report Form!

For questions, additional resources, or to share good news, contact us at Campaign Headquarters at (617) 695-2525 or activistnetwork@stopcorporateabuse.org.