Hey NOLOSERS! Members of our community have met twice to talk about reviewing our Community Agreements. A summary of the meetings we have had follow. We’re excited for this process to be transparent and involve as many folks as possible. Conference call meetings are on the second Wednesday of every month, at 8 EST/5 PST. Questions, or want to get involved? Email policy [at] nolose {{DOT}} org!
FIRST MEETING:
On March 24, 2015, NOLOSE had a preliminary meeting to discuss reviewing, editing, strengthening, or otherwise changing community agreements. This meeting was open to the wider NOLOSE community, with 5 community members in attendance. Aspects of the agreements that people said they appreciated included:
- their existence,
- the fact that they are printed and detailed,
- the fact that they are signed,
- the fact that they are actions-focused and have a lot of examples.
Some concerns raised about the agreements as they are currently written include:
- that they were created in a top-down manner,
- that they are conference-specific,
- language like “the board will decide” and “go to the board,” and
- the need for other voices in creating them.
There was a lot of discussion about the need for representation of a wider range of voices beyond the people currently on the committee–prioritizing voices of trans women, older dykes, people of color–and the need for creating various ways for people to participate in the process. Next steps include reaching out to more people, including older people still interested in NOLOSE, and scheduling another meeting where we can come up with more of a timeline for the process.
SECOND MEETING:
On April 15, 5 members of the NOLOSE community met to discuss the next steps in the process of modifying the community agreements. The committee agreed that the first major step in moving forward is to get feedback and information from the larger NOLOSE community. This will begin with a survey and informal conversations, as well as specific conversations with people whose perspectives are underrepresented on the community or at NOLOSE. The committee will invite them to join the committee or otherwise provide feedback. The group hopes to have three segments of the agreements modified to the extent that they can be discussed at the next conference. The committee also recommends keeping the current agreements in place through one more conference cycle while we are still working to change them.
Meetings will be on the second Wednesday of every month, at 8 EST/5 PST. Questions, or want to get involved? Email policy at nolose {dot} org!
Follow Us: