How AI Can Help You Explain Your Advocacy Project or Charity Idea Clearly
You might see a gap in support, already be helping people informally, or have a spark of an idea for a project or charity. AI can’t tell you what to build — but it can help you describe what you’re building, why it matters, and who it’s for.
Explaining an idea is often harder than having it. When your advocacy or charity concept grows from lived experience, it can feel too big, too complex, or too emotional to fit into tidy boxes. AI can help you organise your ideas and craft clear, respectful language that others can understand — while keeping your values intact.
Why It’s Hard to Explain Your Idea
Projects grounded in lived experience often respond to many issues at once — blending advocacy, education, creativity and care. Systems, however, demand simple boxes. You might ramble because you care deeply, or freeze when someone asks for “a clear purpose.” This doesn’t mean your idea is flawed. It means real life is complex, and AI can help you find language for that complexity.
What AI Is Good At (and What It Isn’t)
AI works best here as a thinking and structuring tool.
- Summarising long notes into shorter, clearer language
- Organising messy ideas into “About Us” sections
- Creating audience-specific versions (for funders, community, professionals)
- Suggesting headings and questions to explore
It cannot decide your legal structure, provide tax or regulatory advice, or replace professional input. Think of it as a friendly whiteboard, not a governing body.
Step 1: Empty Your Head onto the Page
Start by writing freely — who you care about, what you’re already doing, what’s missing, and what values guide you. Don’t edit yet. Bullet points and fragments are perfect. Once you’ve got something down, AI can help you shape it.
Step 2: Ask AI to Help You Describe “Who You Help”
Funders and partners often start with this question: “Who is this for?” You can ask AI:
“Here’s a rough description of who I want to support. Please write three versions of ‘who we help’: one long paragraph, one short paragraph, and one single sentence.”
This helps you create tailored versions for websites, funding applications, and introductions — all consistent but adapted for each context.
Step 3: Clarify “What You Do” (Activities and Approach)
When asked “What do you actually do?”, you can start with a messy list of activities. Then ask AI:
“Here’s a list of things we do or want to do. Please group them under 3–5 headings and write one or two plain-language sentences under each.”
Refine headings and tone until they sound like your project — not a brochure. This becomes your ready-made answer when someone asks what your organisation does.
Step 4: Explain “Why This Matters”
Funders and advisors often need to understand the why. You can tell AI what you’ve seen, what’s missing, and what difference your project aims to make. Then ask:
“Please help me write a short ‘why this matters’ section grounded in lived experience, plain language and a sense of justice, not pity.”
Edit out anything that feels patronising or depersonalised. Keep it authentic, rights-based and inclusive.
Step 5: Experiment with Different “Shapes” for Your Idea
You might be wondering if your idea is a project, collective, charity, or something else. Ask AI:
“Here’s my advocacy project. Please suggest different organisational forms (collective, charity, social enterprise, etc.) with brief pros and cons for each.”
This isn’t legal advice — it’s a thinking tool. Bring AI’s summaries to your advisors to help guide real decisions later.
Step 6: Draft Plain-Language Purpose and Impact Statements
Many forms ask for purpose, objectives and outcomes. AI can help you draft early versions by asking:
“Please help me write one-sentence, short-paragraph and bullet-list versions of our purpose and objectives, using plain language grounded in rights and inclusion.”
Then refine the output so it reflects your project’s values — not generic “charity speak.”
Step 7: Create Different Versions for Different Audiences
Different people need different levels of detail. Ask AI:
“Please write three versions of our project description: one for community members, one for collaborators, and one for professional advisors.”
This helps you prepare text for websites, partner conversations and legal consultations without rewriting from scratch each time.
Step 8: Prepare for Conversations with Advisors and Regulators
When you meet with accountants, lawyers, or charity regulators, it helps to bring short written summaries and clear questions. You can ask AI to:
- Summarise your documents into 1–2 pages
- Suggest key questions about structure, costs and responsibilities
- Draft an introductory email explaining your project and what advice you need
This preparation helps professionals understand your goals quickly and give better guidance.
Things to Be Careful About
Don’t Treat AI Drafts as Legal Documents
AI-generated text is not legal advice. Use it as a draft to clarify your ideas, then check all details with qualified advisors before submitting anything official.
Protect Your Values and Voice
Replace any patronising or ableist phrasing. Keep your own language for community identity, such as “disabled people” or “neurodivergent communities.” Let AI help with clarity — not tone or culture.
Respect Privacy and Boundaries
When describing your project, avoid sharing identifiable stories or full names. Use anonymised examples and focus on systems and needs rather than individuals.
A Gentle Starting Point for Explaining Your Idea with AI
- Spend 10–15 minutes writing your idea in your own words.
- Ask AI to summarise it into one sentence, one paragraph, and one bullet list.
- Edit until the wording sounds true to you.
- Save your drafts as “Project Overview – Working Draft.”
- Use this as a foundation for future conversations with collaborators and advisors.
Your idea exists because you see something in the world that isn’t okay. AI can’t define that belief, but it can help you share it — clearly, confidently, and with purpose.
AI can help you find your words, not your purpose. Your values, community, and lived experience remain the heart of your advocacy — AI simply helps others hear them more clearly.