Write a letter to the editor

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write a Letter to the Editor (LTE)

why write an LTE

Write an LTE if you want to make your opinion heard in a timely manner. You don’t need a lot of research, and your LTE can be brief and to-the-point - just 150-200 words! When time is of the essence, choose to write an LTE.

expert fact

Once submitted, you can track your letter by doing an internet search of your name and following up with the publication to find out if/when it is getting published.

secret tip

Your letter doesn’t have to be perfect, and you don’t have to be an expert to have an opinion. You simply need to care.

special TB action: turn a landmark red

why light up monuments in red

Be part of the international movement and light Canada up in red in support of World Tuberculosis (TB) Day!

expert fact

For over 9,000 years we have been fighting against tuberculosis (TB). With great efforts, we’ve made progress - TB is now preventable and curable. However, action is needed to expand efforts to prevent and cure it as it remains the world’s deadliest infectious disease with more than 4,000 people dying of TB every day. It’s time we end this epidemic – once and for all.

secret tip

Send your light-up request to landmarks at least 6 weeks in advance

report your actions see all actions taken about this call-to-action

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Call-to-action summary:

From February to April, we will be calling on Canada to advance a future where every child is born to thrive by making a new pledge to the Global Financing Facility (GFF). We are focusing on protecting the world’s children at a moment when global gains are at risk of slipping backward. For the first time this century, child deaths are projected to rise, but we don’t have to accept that outcome. With bold leadership and smart investments in lifesaving mechanisms like the GFF we can transform millions of young lives and give every child the chance to reach their full potential.

read full call-to-action

letter to the editor (LTE)
: a letter written to a newspaper, magazine or other periodical about issues of concern to readers, usually intended to be published in the paper/periodical

Use International Development Week (IDW) as a timely hook to write a letter to the editor (LTE) highlighting Canada’s leadership on child and maternal survival, including through the Global Financing Facility, which Canada helped launch in 2015. All the information is available in our call to action.

IDW offers a natural moment to remind decision-makers and the public that the GFF is an innovative model that maximizes the impact of every dollar Canada invests in international development by mobilizing domestic resources, donor funding, and World Bank financing. More importantly, it supports sustainable, country-owned health systems that ensure mothers survive childbirth and children grow up healthy.

To increase your chances of publication, submit your letter to the editor to local and community newspapers.

follow these step-by-step instructions to write an LTE

Volunteers on average spend 1-2 hours researching and planning, 30 minutes writing their draft, and 15 minutes submitting it to newspapers.

Read our current call-to-action and note the “ask”.
Research the current issue by reading the news or external reliable sources (e.g., the World Health Organization).
Draft your LTE. It doesn’t have to be perfect, and you don’t have to be an expert to have an opinion.
- Create an outline of your letter using the EPIC format.
- Keep it short – 150-200 words. Being clear and concise will increase your chances of getting published. 
- Focus on your perspective and speak from the heart while supporting your opinion with evidence from our call-to-action and/or your research.
- Remember to state the problem early on and include a solution to the issue which is usually the “ask” in the call-to-action.
- Write a catchy title that will draw the reader in.
- Review your draft to make sure you are using respectful and inclusive language – see our anti-oppression best practices.
Decide if you are sending your LTE to one or many newspapers. If you’re emailing multiple newspapers, put their addresses in the BCC field. Use our database of editors’ emails for options.
Press ‘send’ – congratulations! Be sure to let us know you’ve submitted an LTE through our reporting form or tell your Group Leader. If you are not part of a group, contact us at action@resultscanada.ca. If you are not a volunteer yet, join us!
Send your LTE draft to your Member of Parliament (MP) to let them know your opinion.

did you get published?

Do an internet search of your name and a key sentence from your LTE for a few weeks after you submit if the newspaper editor didn’t notify you that they picked up your LTE.
If you got published, complete the “I got published in the media” form.
Share it on social media by tagging @ResultsCda and your Member of Parliament.
Keep submitting LTEs on future calls-to-action and you could become a publishing expert like Adil.

secret tips

Look at our latest learning session on LTEs (15 mins).
Get more traction by connecting your LTE to a newsworthy topic or hook that inspires you - refer to our key dates, hashtags, tags, and keywords.
Respond to a recently published article as a hook for your LTE.
Collaborate with other volunteers. Nothing is stopping you from submitting a co-written LTE!
Speak another language? Send your LTE to community newspapers published in that language.
Consider writing an op-ed if you have lots of research material and 200 words isn’t enough!

see an example of an LTE

Vaccines a light of hope for children

While at times we can feel overwhelmed by all the bad news, there are many candles fighting the darkness. Critical health measures are succeeding around the world — even as the media focuses its attention elsewhere.

Since its inception in 2000, the International Vaccine Alliance Gavi, has helped vaccinate more than half the world’s children, reducing vaccine-preventable deaths by a staggering 70 per cent. In 1980, child mortality for children under five years old was 250 deaths per thousand live births. Today, it’s about 50.

We can keep the good news coming. The next round of funding for Gavi approaches and Canada’s share is $720 million. It’s critical the federal government steps up with its share of funding to vaccinate half a billion children in this next round. A half a billion candles to light the darkness.

Nathaniel Poole, Victoria, B.C.
Nov 16, 2024 in the Regina Leader-Post

See more published volunteer LTEs.

See all our resources to help you write your LTE, along with key dates, hashtags, tags and keywords found on our call-to-action page.

Before volunteering with Results, I was so intimidated to write a letter to the editor but they gave me the tools to write one about immunizations and it ended up getting published! I feel so empowered to continue making a difference.

– Megan, Results Canada volunteer