There's more than one way to influence government.

There's the criminal path traveled by the Jack Abramoffs of the world. They take millions of dollars from super-rich clients to buy influence on their behalf and then divert those funds for an entirely different purpose.

This how several casino-rich Indian tribes who thought they were lobbying for their own interests wound up funding illegal payments to unrelated recipients like Republican former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, who was forced by the scandal to relinquish his leadership post but still denies wrongdoing. It also includes a host of politicians like Sen. Rick Santorum, who scrambled to get the dirty money off their books by "donating" it to charity.

Then there's the equally corrupting but perfectly legal path traveled by other mega-lobbyists, who also take millions of dollars and use it exactly as the clients intended. This is how large corporations (big oil, for example) that helped finance Republican victories wound up setting national policy for their own industries to their own benefit. The same has been true in Democratic administrations, but the current GOP machine has perfected the practice.

Not all lobbying is mega, of course. There's also the garden-variety type at the state and local level that goes on all the time by every cause, business and organization, because if they don't clamor for a seat at the table, someone who does will beat them to it. These groups often lack deep pockets, but they understand the political process, know how to navigate the system and cultivate the key players.

Finally, there's the grass-roots approach, where everyday people seek to organize and/or advocate around issues. This is how irate Pennsylvania citizens from across the board forced the Legislature to repeal its midnight pay heist and launched a larger movement aiming to knock off incumbents in the next election.

The last example is the exception, especially when compared to the routine successes of the big-money approach. But the garden-variety type of lobbying makes the wheels of local government go around, and anyone seeking to affect or participate in civic life needs to know how it works.

That's why we need more advocacy training programs like Ready to be Heard.

The two-day training event, set for Jan. 27 and 28, is designed to teach women how to affect policy, interact with public officials and participate in public affairs. Professional lobbyists will be trainers and panelists. There will be sessions for for-profit and nonprofit professionals, applied case studies, exercises and resource guides.

The program will be held at Chatham College, home of the Pennsylvania Center for Women, Politics and Public Policy. The center is co-sponsoring the event with the Women and Girls Foundation of Southwest Pennsylvania. Interested women may send an e-mail to kdeluca@chatham.edu or call 412-365-2986 for an application.

The need for a program specifically targeting women is all too clear. The Women's Benchmarks Report conducted by the University of Pittsburgh's Center for Social and Urban Research in 2004 demonstrated that working-age women in Allegheny County are among the most educated in urban America but also the lowest-paid and most under-represented in government.

And last year, a study by Carnegie Mellon graduate students showed that while women in Allegheny County accounted for 52 percent of the working-age population, they held only 29 percent of the seats on local boards and authorities.

"The center and the foundation want to help women get the skills to improve their own status and act in their own name and interest," said Allyson Lowe, director of the center at Chatham.

The workshop is aimed at empowering participants in the work they already do, but if it makes some think about running for office, so much the better. The two organizations sponsor candidate training sessions as well, including one last summer that inspired Lisa Bennington (www.lisaforhouse.com), the 29-year-old attorney from Morningside who just announced a primary challenge to state Rep. Frank Pistella, D-Bloomfield, in office since 1979.

"When several people from my district approached me about running, in large part because of what I learned at campaign school I had the confidence to go for it," Ms. Bennington said.

Ms. Lowe said the lobbying workshop was planned before the pay-raise controversy inflamed the public. "But we're benefiting from people's awareness of what the Legislature does and the citizens' ability to influence that."

The program has room for 50 participants, she said, and about 30 have signed up so far. The cost of $20 wouldn't even light one of Jack Abramoff's cigars, but it might light the way to a more responsive, representative government.