Welcome to the 1st issue of the reanimated Community Club Weekly.

we are your bee village

We don’t fit in a box. We touch all the departments yet belong in none. Some colleagues may not understand what it is we do, but the hardcore customers do. We can be pollinators and we can be egg yolk emulsifiers. Sometimes we’re the straw that stir the drink. Sometimes we’re putting out sparks before they catch fire. We are catalysts. Creatures of the boundary lands. Daywalkers. Far too humble rainmakers. We’re not one of the options on the drop down menu (yet), but we’re here for each other.

❓❣️What are your dreams, wants, needs in your journey as a community professional? What can we make happen together?❣️❓

Help Shape Community Club

We're starting two new groups to help guide our club as it grows into a nonprofit. Based on interest, we're focusing on two groups first: Vision and Local Connections.

These working groups will help guide the club’s development as a nonprofit association. Kickoff sessions are starting later this week.

the goal of the kickoff sessions is to meet others in the group and spark a collaborative process that will continue in dedicated Slack channels & future live sessions.

You’re welcome to come to either or both kickoff sessions. If you can’t make either session but are still interested in joining either/both working groups, just reply and let me know.

• Vision Working Group - responsible for outlining the longer term vision and strategic plan for the Club, including the specifics around the next phase of membership.

  • July 12th @ 2pm - 2:50pm ET register

  • July 15th @ 12 - 12:50pm ET register

• Local Connections Working Group - Supporting community professionals who are looking to get more involved in their own local communities

  • July 8th @ 12pm - 12:50pm ET register

  • July 16th @ 2pm -2:50pm ET register

We’ll kickoff some other working groups later in the year.

❓❣️What would you want to see from these groups 3 months from now?❣️❓

Learning from Community-Powered Journalism Projects

The flip side of our profession not fitting neatly in a box is that we can find ideas & knowledge everywhere. Our craft is a combinatorial one.

This issue we’re looking at 3 fascinating community-focused journalism projects.

1. 📻 🤖 Public radio station KQED in San Francisco shares how they’ve been experimenting with responsible & transparent ways to enrich their Discord community with AI bots.
   

   

   
   “I think working in this space does involve experimentation (and being flexible enough to change). Involving your community in the experiment would be my advice to anyone wanting to try something new.” - Lowell Robinson (senior producer of voice and AI at KQED).

   See their experiments in action on their Discord server.

2. 🔍🐝 Local journalists & organizers worked with their community members to develop a Hierarchy of Information needs

   

During a workshop a combination of local journalists, mediamakers, community organizers and funders collaborated to develop a framework based on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. They focused on how lack of information is often a proxy for lack of resources.

“Traditional journalism organizations encourage people to follow the news and get involved in their communities without addressing the barriers people face to civic participation…our approach to journalism begins with the things that make it hard to thrive and participate in our community.
- Simon Galperin, Executive Editor of The Jersey Bee
Read more about The Jersey Bee uses this hierarchy of info needs

3. 📰 🏫 Community members get trained by journalists to attend & document local government meetings.

City Bureau recruits, trains and pays a group of highly engaged citizens to participate in the news-gathering process and contribute to a communal pool of knowledge. Over 2k citizens have collectively covered over 5k local public meetings across 11 cities.

[Documenter Project is an example of] ‘Collective effervescence’ when a group comes together to communicate the same understanding and participate in the same action.
- Annmarie Dooling
Read more about The Documenters project or even apply to join

❓❣️What might a version of these projects look like in your community?❣️❓

📚 🎞️ Books & Movie Recommendations

On the Club Slack, people shared some of their favorite books, movies, and articles that aren't directly about community building, but are useful and relevant to community work.

• Scott Baldwin recommended

  • 📚 The 2-hour Cocktail Party

  • 📚 The Social Brain

  • 📚 Team Topologies (organizing teams)

• Lisa Barroca recommended

  • 📚️Emergent Strategy by adrienne maree brown: My #1 community book as a guide for building strong lasting connections and looking for patterns and micro-actions of community.

    🎥 Takeover: About the Blank Panthers and Young Lords takeover of Lincoln Hospital in the Bronx in the 70s; on political education as a foundation for community building and community for public works

    📚️ Leadership and the New Science: Chaos theory, community, and working in "unideal conditions"

• Piper Wilson recommended

  • 🗞️ Giving thanks can make you happier: an article from Harvard Medical School.

• Sarah Hawk recommended

  • ‘Give Away Your Legos’ and Other Commandments for Scaling Startups: from First Round Review

❓❣️What are your favorite books, articles, or movies that aren’t directly about community, yet help you in your community work?❣️❓

We are looking for guest editors for the Community Club Weekly Newsletter. If you’re interested in curating some insights and other resources, just reply.

Some additional thoughts in an audio note.

yours in mayhem & in harmony.

- erik

about Community Club