Welcome, organizer! The aim of this handbook is to introduce you to the resources, responsibilities and benefits of being a public lab organizer. Please be encouraged to reach out to your fellow organizers with any questions! Table of Contents: ####What do we mean by “organizer”? ####Organizers as leaders ####Getting started ####Communication channels - Public Online - Private - In Person ####Resources for organizers - Kits and printed resources - Workshop and presentation support - Fellowships - Project Support ####Organizers as a body - Decision Making - Alumni Group ####Useful Document Links ###What do we mean by “Organizer”? As an organizer, you will receive open access to resources, materials, training, support and internal communication channels. You are invited to take part in Public Lab’s decision making process and participate in shaping the community’s ways of thinking and doing. By sharing our ideas, processes and innovations; organizers contribute to building and expanding the Public Lab’s open infrastructure. Organizers also have responsibilities to the larger Public Lab community. These are outlined in the rest of the document. ###Organizers as leaders As a Public Lab organizer, you become an active, outward facing member of the Public Lab community. This means that the community depends on you for communication, information and access to resources. **Below are some of the recommended ways in which you can help support the Public Lab community though your role as an organizer:** * Review the values statement (in rough draft form [here](http://pad.publiclab.org/p/values-statement)). * Attend at least one organizers call per month or per quarter. * Steward a topic area of your choice.This can be done by facilitating conversations on mailing lists, pushing people to post research on their discussions, post and comment on research notes and update wiki pages. * Support your local chapter. This can be done by holding meetups, welcoming new members, identifying research opportunities with partner organizations, helping document local events and publishing on them in research notes and wikis. * Tracking dates and attendance at the events you organize and report back to Public Lab staff. * Help recruit new organizers with diversity in geography, demography and interest. * Complete a yearly survey to identify your projects, goals and engagement as an organizer. * Help in bringing on new organizers to the group, especially focusing on regional and community wide diversity. ###Getting started The very first thing that will happen when your nomination is accepted is that you will be welcomed and introduced to everyone through the Organizers google group (see below). The following three steps should be completed within the first two weeks of your nomination:
1) Fill out the organizer [contact form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1kvHWi7c5rs8CAMZ5Wg9My3gqL-E6s8wf4QNvBFxHGLQ/viewform) so the Public Lab organizers know how to contact you, send you materials. *This is where your welcome packet will be sent.*
2) Update the [wiki/organizers](http://publiclab.org/wiki/organizers) page to include your name on the top of the list, link it to your profile, add in your preferred location and bump the number count up one.
3) Attend at least one organizers call within the first three weeks. ###Communication channels There are a variety of ways to communicate and work with your fellow organizers, and to communicate and work as an organizer with the broader Public Lab community. ####Public Communications Below are ways to communicate and share with the greater Public Lab community: * your organizer’s email address: first.last@organizers.publiclab.org and we recommend that you include this on your profile page. * presenting at Open Hour: http://publiclab.org/wiki/openhour * promoting your Public Lab related social media posts over the shared Public Lab channels on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Flickr. * Full details here: http://publiclab.org/wiki/social-media) ####Private communications with organizers * The private organizers discussion list (https://groups.google.com/group/plots-organizers) - though we prize openness, having a private list can be helpful for sensitive topics and planning meetings * Weekly organizers calls are held Thursday in alternating times, 7:00pm est and 12:30pm est. Notes are kept on each call on a shared organizer google doc which you will be sent access to once you are nominated into the organizers group. Currently this call is held over Skype (add public.lab as your skype contact), but we can also call in a private phone number. ####In person communications [The Organizers Summit](http://publiclab.org/wiki/organizers-summit) is an annual event the day preceding the annual Barnraising. This gathering is aimed at bringing organizers together to set goals, collaborate on projects and build our skills a Public Lab community leaders. ###Resources for organizers ####Kits and printed resources As a Public Lab organizer, you have access to some free and discounted kits and services.
When you first become an organizer, Kits Team will mail you an organizer’s welcome pack containing: * 50 stickers * 50 about Public Lab cards * 15 Brochures * 5 copies of the most recent Grassroots Mapping Forum * one of each flat kit As an organizer, you also receive a 20% discount at the [Public Lab Store](store.publiclab.org) with the discount code ORGANIZERS. ####Workshop and presentation support We offer a monthly $200 organizer event funding support to organizers. Applications for these funds are due the 20th day of the month, the month prior to the scheduled event. The application form can be found [here](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1fStWRLoBFiteSFyPLzXjym4RcJqyIkSxsu6VEbHPZhM/viewform). As an organizer, you have access to the Public Lab Events Google Calendar to add and promote events. The calendar is displayed on http://publiclab.org/event. Organizers have created resources that are reusable and updatable! Some of these include: * [About Public Lab Slide Deck](https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1n3Eybsrz6y_l7lrTfceLaWZA57qydCQwUA-USmn4NxI/edit#slide=id.g9f9714f1f_1_14)
* Workshop guides for activities such as a - [Balloon Mapping Workshop](http://publiclab.org/wiki/host-balloon-mapping-workshop), - [Spectrometry workshop](http://publiclab.org/wiki/spectral-challenge-event-model) - [Wetlands Toolkit](http://publiclab.org/wiki/wetlands-toolkit) - [Gardening Toolkit](http://publiclab.org/wiki/gardening-toolkit) - add yours here! ####Fellowships Public Lab offers three fellowship options which are laid out on this [wiki page](http://publiclab.org/wiki/fellows). Although fellowships are open to all in the Public Lab community, organizers are noted with distinction in the application process. ####Project support Project support that is available to organizers from the non-profit team include: - Tool incubation (email kits@publiclab.org) - Funding partnerships [outlined on this wiki.](http://publiclab.org/wiki/funding-partnerships-with-public-lab) - Project management support in areas such as information/task management and tracking organizational partners (email liz@publiclab.org or stevie@publiclab.org) ###Organizers as a body Organizers function both as individuals and as a collective body. The input of organizers often help to direct Public Lab non-profit and community. Yet organizers most often self define how they contribute to community growth and development. It is important to recognize both the influence organizers have on the non-profit and community, as well as their individual rights to define their contributions. ####The undersigning process Public Lab Organizers often discuss and debate issues important to our community. Opinion statements may be circulated within the organizer’s group, however no statements will be publicly made on behalf of the Public Lab organizers unless supported by group consensus. Statements supporting particular positions may be circulated for signatures, and should be attributed to “the undersigned Public Lab organizers”. While some statements may live only on the organizer meeting document, others may be made public on the wiki. When such statements are circulated for signature, indication of how the document will be published shall be provided with the statement. ####Active/inactive We recognize that, at times, the responsibilities of being a Public Lab organizer fall behind other demands. Therefore, you have the opportunity to define your status as an organizer, as either “active” or “inactive” this will be reflected on the Organizer’s page. ###Useful Document Links: - [Organizer Contact Information Form(https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1kvHWi7c5rs8CAMZ5Wg9My3gqL-E6s8wf4QNvBFxHGLQ/viewform) - [Event Funding Request Form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1fStWRLoBFiteSFyPLzXjym4RcJqyIkSxsu6VEbHPZhM/viewform) - [Request for Public Lab Materials Resupply](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1kxfTIMey3bTlmalg-58Wf6F3qoOkYexRX88GWmlfxx0/viewform) - [Event Tracking Form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1ERhVg5dT8IMPs_LmaEJHUtKKcYRxSJxpFgQMh3-Y56k/viewform)