Host a Banana Stand

At the banana stand we give out free bananas to the public, and educate folks on nuclear issues. Setup like a booth at a street market, advocates invite individual engagement with the offer of a tasty snack. The typical interaction is very short, but a small stand can address hundreds of people in a short amount of time at a low cost per contact. 

Purpose

The banana stand can be adapted to nearly any gathering of people, and is especially effective at events which would not normally seem to have a place for nuclear power topics like community festivals, local fairs, or open markets. Bananas as a fruit make a near perfect giveaway as a healthy free treat that requires no food safety precautions. They are also low cost, memeable, and being infamously potassium rich, are naturally radioactive. 

Strategic Advantages

Bananas represent a high value/cost ratio as swag that fit well into many different types of scenarios.

Benefits to the advocate:

• Easy entry, low experience needed. 

• Lots of practice talking about nuclear with low stakes. 

• Many, short convos - can walk away easily if its going poorly

What’s in it for the public:

• Worst case: free banana. 

• Best case: new advocate/ volunteer

• Likely case:  ever slightly larger awareness, move Overton window. 

Materials / Resources

• Individual volunteers (2-4)

• 10x10 Tent

• Standard folding table 

• (Option for a Banana Cart): Replace tent and table with a 4 pneumatic wheeled cart

• Stickers for bananas (Avery 5162 recommended)

  • Print templates HERE (Avery 5162)

• Color printer 

• General Advocacy Swag and informational handouts

• Pro-Nuclear Stickers - (if people don’t like bananas)

• Volunteer Sign-up sheet, with QR code as alternative

• Optional: Large inflatable bananas, or other tropical ambiance.

• Optional attire: Banana themed shirts and hats

• Bulk Bananas (See more in planning section)

Planning

Venue - There are many events that might be a good fit for a banana stand. Look for pre-existing events that attract large groups of people looking to engage with their communities and contact the organizer to see about setting up a vendor booth. The costs for these can range from free to hundreds of dollars, but often have reduced pricing for non-profit or public awareness initiatives. We describe our booth as clean energy education in generic applications, but do not hide our pro-nuclear position. Examples of events where we have had success are: Pride festivals, farmers markets, and other gatherings where the attendees are seeking to engage with their communities already. We have seen less success in being attached to events where there is a main event, and your access to folks is limited to arrivals and departures, like concerts, or sporting events.

Bananas - So here is what we have learned about getting bananas… Bananas go from green to brown in just a few days, and the “perfectly ripe” banana has only about a 24 hour window - so timing of their purchase can be logistically tricky. It’s best to buy bananas the day before an event. Bulk bananas are generally sold in cases of 40 pounds each. Each case contains about 85-100 bananas depending on size. Local vendors that seem to regularly stock bulk quantities of bananas include Aldi and Costco stores. Expect to pay $25-35 per case (~$0.30 per banana).

For especially large orders (10 cases+) consider working with a restaurant that has a produce delivery contract and be prepared to place that order 10 days in advance.

Recommended Engagement Approach:

We have found success in setting up like a market stand, with one or two individuals in front of the stand, approaching or calling out to individuals with the offer of a free banana, and one or two volunteers behind the booth, applying stickers and being available to answer more questions and provide signup and contact details.

The “Banana Sellers” job is to engage with an individual (or group) with the offer of a free banana. Upon giving the banana, ask a brief energy related trivia question as an ice breaker, and then use the opportunity to add more information.  (A sample script is in the works)  It is desirable that these sellers keep their interactions reasonably short, to make sure they can continue to attract more customers. An ideal script allows new folks to jump in at any time to the discussion without the need for a lot of context. It is likely that you will have some individuals who really want to chat more about nuclear energy, and ask a lot of questions… We definitely want to engage with these folks too, but that is where another individual can strike up a convo, or be prepared to step up and play the role of caller to keep booth traffic up. Crowds attract crowds, so having more folks coming to the booth is better.

The folks behind the booth can be put to good use attaching stickers to bananas, and having deeper discussions about the organization, cause, and nuclear generally.

Advocacy insights

The following represent potential exchanges you may have with booth visitors and how to understand their significance beyond the words themselves. These tips may help you better understand how to engage in effective communication strategies in other encounters:

Q: What is largest Carbon free source? A: Bananas?

This is a good example about how mere word/visual association can make the brain think/believe really silly things. This is also a great way to change minds, because it can make the brain reset, and consider what is said next. 

A: Really?  I didn’t know that…

This response indicates that you have broken past someone's initial cognitive barriers. This is a good signal that you can add new information into the conversation, and bypass existing biases.