Winning With Equity: Meet BISC’s Updated Declaration of Equity & Accountability Toolkit
By: Eliana Ramirez-Vaughn, Senior Capacity Building Manager
At BISC, we’ve always believed that how we win matters just as much as winning itself.
That belief is what sparked the creation of the Declaration of Equity & Accountability (DOE) Toolkit, a resource designed to help coalitions run ballot measure campaigns that reflect their values of equity, inclusion, and accountability from start to finish.
First developed between 2019 and 2021 in partnership with more than 100 state, national, and funding leaders, the DOE Toolkit was born out of a simple but powerful question: What would it look like if ballot measure campaigns were built to share power — not just win power?
After years of collaboration, pilot programs, and field testing, the DOE Toolkit officially launched in 2022 and has since become one of BISC’s gold standard tools for building stronger, more values-driven coalitions.
What the DOE Is — and Why It Matters
At its core, the DOE Toolkit helps coalitions interrogate and refine their campaign practices so they can make sure the how of their work matches the why. It guides partners through the process of creating a shared Declaration of Equity and Accountability — a kind of values roadmap — that defines how decisions get made, who holds power, and how coalitions hold themselves accountable throughout the campaign.
It’s flexible enough for any coalition to adapt to fit their needs but grounded in key principles:
- Center the leadership of those most impacted.
- Prioritize transparency and shared decision-making.
- Build long-term capacity, not just short-term wins.
- Define “winning” in a way that strengthens movements beyond the ballot box.
Putting the DOE into Practice
Since its pilot launch in 2022, the DOE Toolkit has been put to the test by coalitions across the country — from democracy and economic justice campaigns to efforts advancing racial and reproductive equity.
In one state, a coalition fighting to end discriminatory sentencing practices used the DOE to design a campaign structure that centered the voices of Black community leaders and people directly impacted by incarceration. Staying true to their values wasn’t always easy, tensions arose as new grassroots leaders balanced their approach with the advice of more traditional consultants. But by grounding every major decision in the DOE framework, the coalition stayed aligned and ultimately achieved a meaningful policy victory.
Elsewhere, reproductive rights advocates used the Declaration of Equity to reset their campaign after early conflicts over decision-making and strategy. By revisiting their shared commitments and reaffirming local leadership, the coalition not only won at the ballot but emerged with stronger relationships and a foundation for long-term advocacy.
And in another state, organizers who used the DOE to guide their minimum wage campaign shared how the tool helped them stay focused on what mattered most: centering workers and building new leaders. One coalition partner summed it up best: “It was so beneficial… without this type of guidance, I don’t know what we would have done.”
With each of these campaigns, the DOE served as more than a planning tool — it became a mirror and a compass, helping coalitions navigate tough conversations, make values-aligned choices, and build trust that outlasted any single campaign.
BISC’s Role in Building the Field
Across our pilot states, one thing was consistent: it was BISC’s deep partnership that made implementation of the Declaration of Equity possible. Coalitions shared that BISC’s strategic guidance and staffing support helped them stay values-aligned, make tough decisions, and push back when external pressures threatened to pull them off course.
As one coalition partner shared, “The DOE helped us hold the line on our values — and BISC helped us hold the space to do it.”
Explore the Updated DOE Toolkit
Now, with lessons learned after years of use by our partners in the field, BISC is excited to share the newly updated Declaration of Equity & Accountability Toolkit.
This version includes expanded examples, refreshed templates, and a more intuitive structure built around the 360 Ballot Measure Lifecycle to take campaigns from Incubation to Implementation. Whether you’re launching a new campaign or strengthening an existing coalition, the DOE is your roadmap to winning in a way that builds lasting power.
👉 Explore the toolkit and facilitator’s guide in BISC’s Resource Library.
By registering, you’ll also gain access to BISC’s full collection of tools, templates, and examples from campaigns that have successfully embedded equity and accountability in their work.
Because when our coalitions reflect the communities we serve — and when we hold ourselves accountable to those values — every win becomes a building block for something bigger.