Foundation/AGM2022/Election to Board/Answers and manifestos/Q10 OSMF and Local communities

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OSMF ... and Local communities

How will you support the development of OSM's local communities? What would you like to say to local communities who are considering an application for local chapter status?

Daniela Waltersdorfer J. - Q10 OSMF ... and Local communities

Don't be scared to apply! The OSMF Board should not be an intimidating place, it should be an open-place with people that are passionate about the project and eager to help other OSMers and their local communities. The OSMF should be a place where you can go for guidance when considering applying, where the Board can help out in guiding potential chapters as much as possible prior to their application. And, like I mentioned before, I think the process for accepting chapters has to be conscious and understanding that everything cannot be black-or-white, different chapters have different needs.

Arnalie Vicario - Q10 OSMF ... and Local communities

You can listen more about my views about community in Openstreetmap and humanitarian open mapping in the Geomob Podcast Interview - Arnalie Vicario: Building inclusive spaces in OSM.

Short answer: Building inclusive spaces in OSM relates to my top 3 priorities (see my manifesto). First step to that is redistributing the power of mapmaking and storytelling. This could be done by ensuring that the most underrepresented groups - people from historically oppressed & marginalized communities - in OSM have a seat at the table which means that we are part of decision-making and have a vote in governance positions. Second, there should be a focus on community engagement to ensure that our perspectives are taken into account; however, we lack a community engager in the OSM / OSMF Board.

On local chapters application (Note: I am part of the LCCWG so I would like to be clear that my answers here are purely my opinion) - I believe there is a need for more pro-active community engagement to encourage applications which means tackling and addressing barriers e.g. community means for funding, language, time, etc. This may also include re-examining the application process and ensuring transparency and having less restrictive criteria. Everyone can apply to be a local chapter; feeling welcomed and being able to actually apply as a local chapter are another thing. Motivation (or offer) without means is meaningless. Moreso, as a means to also incentivize participation, there is a need to build the network and collaborations between the local chapters and communities.

To add, I applaud OSMF initiating the Active Contributor Program that considers dedicated contributors who cannot pay the membership fee, and that OSMF is continuously improving and looking for ways to also take into account non-mapping contributions in the program.

Włodzimierz Bartczak - Q10 OSMF ... and Local communities

I think I have already partially answered this question above. For new communities seeking local chapter status, I would like to say, I will do my best to make sure that every month there are more reasons to do so.

Ariel Kadouri - Q10 OSMF ... and Local communities

The rise in local tools the past couple years has helped foster a greater sense of connected community within OSM. There are many individuals that edit on their own, and there are some that are unaware of the community in their back yard. Tools like welcome.osm.be, osmcal.org, the information shown by iD, the new forum help connect locals. See the notes from the recent local chapters conference.

There are various scales when talking about a "local" community, whether that be an entire country or a small neighborhood. I would encourage individuals to organize with their local mappers and determine what is best for their community- whether that means local chapter status, applying for micro-grants, or resources from other supportive organizations. Regardless of the size of your community or how official you feel, reach out! There's plenty of experience in the OSM community and individuals ready to help.

Victor N.Sunday - Q10 OSMF ... and Local communities

Christian Shadrack - Q10 OSMF ... and Local communities

The strength of a local community is the members, they should be encouraged to be as inclusive, as honest, as impartial as possible in order to ensure as much acceptance of the members as possible.
I will encourage them because with the local chapters it will be very possible to build the big community.

Sarah Hoffmann - Q10 OSMF ... and Local communities

I see local chapters as an important liason between the global project and local mappers. We need more of them and we should have more interactions between the OSMF and the local chapters. I have not yet formed an opinion on how this can be achieved.

Logan McGovern - Q10 OSMF ... and Local communities

I think their needs to be more of an incentive structure for pursing local chapter status. I will be seeking to examine if any special privileges or responsibilities can be transferred over to local chapters. I hope more groups seek local chapter status.

Arun Ganesh - Q10 OSMF ... and Local communities

Highlighting the achievements of existing chapters will help amplify the benefits of having local chapters and encourage more participation amongst existing ones. The presence of local chapters and communities is core information about OSM that should me be more readily accessible on the homepage.

Running local chapters can be a lot of administrative work and its best that communities consult with existing active chapters on their experiences as a start while considering such an application.

Mateusz Konieczny - Q10 OSMF ... and Local communities

"What would you like to say to local communities"

I would encourage local communities to share their local knowledge and situation and to consider themself as full members of the OSM community. For example, there is no obligation to try to fit some Europe-specific tagging schemes without considering the local situation. Or to use English for name=* tags instead of a local language.

More specific advice would depend on the specific situation.

In general, many improvements apply across the entire world.

Due to massive wealth differences between richer and poor parts of the world it may be possible to help with in-kind help such as a program of a discount or free hosting of some services used by communities from poor regions.

Right now I have no great plans in this area, as mentioned in question #3 I would prefer to avoid the situation of setting everything as a priority and doing nothing. This sadly means that some things end up not being prioritized :(

Craig Allan - Q10 OSMF ... and Local communities

How will you support the development of OSM's local communities? What would you like to say to local communities who are considering an application for local chapter status?

I am very committed to supporting the development of OSM user groups, local communities and Local Chapters. The development of local communities and Chapters is the work of the Local Chapters and Communities Working Group (LCCWG) not the Board in any direct way. However, the Board, and individual Board members, can and do give support and offer guidance to the LCCWG in doing that work.

I believe that creating OSM communities is very important for strengthening the OSM movement from the grassroots up and I want to do more than just support it - I see it as crucial to the success of OSM globally and I'd like the Board to make a serious resource commitment towards community building.

Based on trade union and political experience, I would initially concentrate on create an enabling environment for OSM community development, with skills transfer through online, in-person and paper training and education materials supplemented by in-person workshops. Community organisers should be given access to the many and varied resources needed to build and co-ordinate communities.

Applying to be a Local Chapter:

To applicants I'd say that the role of a Local Chapter is to co-ordinate and support OSM activities, usually across a whole country. Only apply for a Local Chapter after regional user groups are well established and a national leadership team is emerging. Setting up and running a Local Chapter requires effort and expenditure, so think carefully about the available resources before applying.

If you're ready, start an application. Applying for LC status is not a test. There is no pass/fail. It is a team effort. You should work closely with LCC Working Group to get support for preparing your application and helping you set up a Local Chapter that meets the OSMF criteria.

OSMF would like a Local Chapter to be a formally registered organisation, managing funds in a dedicated bank account. A Local Chapter is expected to be a democratic non-profit organisation. It is expected to follow OSM culture, to support the aims of the OSM movement and to not tarnish the reputation of the OSM globally.


OSM Foundation's board election 2022: official questions

All board candidates' manifestos

2022 OpenStreetMap Foundation's: Board election - Voting information and instructions - Annual General Meeting

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Annual General Meetings of the OpenStreetMap Foundation
Board Elections
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