Post on 11-Apr-2017
Meeting in Person: Why, How, & What’s Next?
Kathleen DanielsonState of the Map US 2014
● Board Member, OpenStreetMap US
● Creator and co-organizer of Geo DC
● Technical Project Manager
● Online Community Management
Community is my jam.
Who Am I?
Getting people into the same room to drink beer and do
nerdy things
My Life Skill:
Geo DC, January 2013
1. Save Community, Save the World OSM
2. Every community is unique
3. Take care of yourself
4. Community Scales
If you only pick up 4 things:
Why?
● This community has diverse interests-- people get involved in OSM for a lot of reasons. Learn about them!
● Mapping is a solitary task; it's easy to go down rabbit holes and forget about the big picture
● It can only help the project to establish more in-person hubs
Why Bother?
■ Real Talk: I love OSM, but the mailing list discourse isn’t always as constructive as it could be
■ Building real world connections can help
■ Bottom-up approach to global community building
■ A healthier community won’t spontaneously create itself
Community Health
How?
■ This isn’t scary. (But don’t let anyone tell you it’s easy!)
■ If you don’t get pick-up, that’s ok. Try again. Rethink your approach. Reach out for suggestions. (More on this later)
■ It’s also ok if it doesn’t work out. Every place has unique challenges.
Just Do It!
● Find other mappers
● Spread the word
● Programming
● Keep it going
Getting Started
● New York City● San Francisco● Boston● Tampa Bay● DC● Baltimore
● Cleveland● St. Louis● Salt Lake City● Seattle● Chicago● ???
Where are the local communities?
These aren't all exclusively OSM-focused, and that's ok too. More on that later.
● ito! OSM Mapper
● Pascal's OSM Contributors Map
● talk-us mailing list (but try the others first)
Find people in your area
ito! osm mapper
● Email○ Google Groups are great
● Facebook... wait, what?○ DC Homebrew Club
● Meetup.com○ Not free○ Great way to reach new folks
Spread the Word
Meet your community where they are
● Ask!
● Keep trying new things
● Reassess: what your community needed two years ago might not be what they need today
Assessing your community's needs
● Social meetups ("Mappy Hour")
● Mapping Parties; Field and/or "armchair"
● Informal presentations, "lightning talks"
● Maptime
● Editathons
Now What?
#Editathon!
● No one says you can't have a wider scope
● Some of the largest, most active groups aren't OSM-exclusive
● This is probably an easier way to get started
All OSM all the time?
Maptime!
● Connect with other groups and organizations:○ Environmental groups○ Tech groups○ Others (KCDC)
● Don't try this alone!
● No, seriously: don't forget to reassess your community's needs.
Keeping things going
Take Care of Yourself
● Try to have at least one co-organizer
● Don't be afraid to ask for help or resources from your community
● What type of programming or schedule can you realistically support?
● Make sure it's fun for YOU! Take a break if you need it.
Avoiding Burnout
This Stuff Scales
● How can we help each other build stronger local communities?
● How can our local communities strengthen the national one?
● How can the US community better collaborate with communities around the world?
Let’s talk about it
● Amsterdam Geo Drinks
● Mappers in Belgium
● OSM France in Paris
● OSM meetup in Rome
Local Communities in Europe
● Save Community, Save OSM
● Communities are special snowflakes
● Take care of yourself
● Community Scales
Key Takeaways
@KathleenLD
Thanks!