Throughout history, non-state actor campaigns—loosely connected actions undertaken by one or more non-state actor(s) to achieve a common objective—have helped shape the norms that regulate, enable and constrain our interactions. This paper argues that the way an issue is defined in the early stages of a campaign affects the type and substance of the norm created to address it. The results of analysis of two case studies are provided: the campaign to stop the marketing of breastmilk substitutes and the campaign to protect internally displaced persons. A sample of campaign activities undertaken throughout the campaigns (speeches, press releases, conference reports, brochures, research reports, court hearings, etc.) by a range of actors (NGOs, fieldworkers, researchers, states, religious organisations, international and regional organisations, TNCs, etc.) was captured in a database and analysed according to: 1) how the issue was defined; 2) identification of the issue cause; and 3) proposed solution for the issue (who must change what in order to address the issue). Relationships were then drawn between this data and the emergent norm’s type and substance, including what type of norm emerges; who it governs; and what activities it regulates.
