Pros
Only a few pros. You'll meet some cool people, like fellow canvassers. Group lunches and car rides are great for socializing. You'll visit and canvass different areas in your region. All for a very good cause.
Cons
Many Cons. Reaching quota was very difficult. If you don't reach quota in your first 3 days, you will be let go. Very long hours, from 1pm-10pm. Canvassing takes up 5 of those hrs, from 4 to 9pm. Door to door canvassing itself is very difficult work. The overwhelming majority of people will not donate, let alone answer the door. However, when someone does answer the door, you are required to recite what the organization calls "the rap," basically a verbal performance or script which has been "proven" to get people to donate. Performing the rap and asking for money is not much different than the work of a used car salesman. At least customers at used car dealers are interested in buying a car. People simply do not want to give money to a stranger at their door, especially when they're knocking on their door during the darker, later hours. People who are the best at canvassing and collecting donations are the field managers and directors (aka, the fakest people in the office). The better the actor/actress you are, the higher up you are in the office's hierarchy. While most are friendly (even if they are being fake), some can be very condescending, and often rude, to a newcomer. And if you don't participate in either their un-paid volunteer events or after work social gatherings, you many be looked down upon. In sum, this line of work is not for you if you are uncomfortable with: -Working long, minimum wage hrs. -Putting on a literal verbal performance to ask people for money -Being a disturbance to people during evening hours by knocking on their door. -Being annoyed or discouraged by the fake attitude of the directors/field managers. No wonder there is a high-turnover rate of employees at this job. Seems like they hire and let go of people on a daily basis. Ultimately, if you strongly believe in the cause and what the organization is fighting for, there are definitely other and better ways to get involved than working as a canvasser with Environment California. (Of course, unless, you enjoy the kinda stuff I just wrote about. Then by all means, become a canvasser.)