The landscape assessment is the initial step in advocacy strategy development and implementation. The assessment provides the platform on which to build an advocacy initiative.

The information and evidence collected for a landscape assessment is used to help understand entry points for advocacy and assess the likelihood of influencing policy development. It should suggest where and how advocates can add value to the existing debate and provide insight about key decisionmakers, change-agents, champions, individuals, and organizations that will be needed partners and potential targets of an advocacy strategy. In this way, both the process and the outcome of an assessment can guide the partner toward the most strategic investments of time and resources.