A literacy specialist contacted one organization at the beginning of the project, and had a meeting with one staff member where a plain language workshop was planned. The workshop did not happen. During the last two months of the project (almost two years later) the agency contacted the literacy specialist and requested an awareness and sensitivity workshop which lead to an audit with two more workshops (plain language and verbal communication) as part of their action plan. This was a great reminder to us to keep a spirit of openness as this was not about whether the agency was interested or not, rather it was about the readiness of the agency to commit to making long term changes in their services.

We encourage you to make contact with service providers and begin talking about literacy. Remember to leave the door open for when they are ready to reconnect with you.

Do - Presentations

We used presentations primarily to introduce the project and increase literacy awareness. Presentations often lead to providing a literacy audit and other workshops:

We emphasized the following in the presentations:

• Nearly half of Canadian and over one third of Alberta adults struggle with reading and writing.
• When it comes to adults, literacy tends to be invisible, it is overlooked in general (not seen as a social issue, no public profile) and well hidden in particular (individuals tend to cover up that they can't read or write well).
• Demystify literacy, move from "us and them" to "we". How we feel about our literacy abilities depends on the situation, such as reading the newspaper at home compared to filling in a healthcare premium form at a government office. In one situation you may feel more relaxed or have more power.
• Understanding how literacy can be a barrier for a person wanting to access services, and how that particular agency can make simple changes to reduce literacy barriers.