We have an exciting announcement for you: after an almost 3 year journey of building OuiShare across the globe, we have decided to introduce an official OuiShare Membership. Since we have always been hesitant in OuiShare in creating structure and, as an open community, we have simply always said "anyone who feels like a member is one", we've waited a long time to introduce an official membership. However as our organization has grown, many voices from the community have reached us expressing the wish for a way to officialize their participation in the community without having to take on the commitment of becoming a Connector, who are our most active members. We hear this call and would like to respond to it by introducing a OuiShare membership that is free and open to anyone. This membership should empower those who support us and give recognition and visibility to all contributors, large and small. After thinking about many possible membership models, we decided to keep it simple: if you feel part of our community, you can become a member simply by registering on our website and confirming your commitment to the OuiShare mission and values. This will enable you to have a personal profile on our website and become part of an online member ecosystem that we are just starting to develop and which will evolve greatly in the next year. We'll also send you special information from time to time and give you access to the knowledge we have produced together in the OuiShare Commons. >> Read more about what it means to be a member>> Register now on our website
Members, Connectors and Core Connectors
Introducing memberships is part of a larger project of adapting our organizational structure to one that more clearly reflects people's different levels of involvement. We now differentiate between three key roles: Members are individuals who identify themselves with the OuiShare mission, values and culture, and actively contribute to community activities, such as events, projects or online discussions. Members interact regularly with each other through the local or topical groups they are part of, which are facilitated by OuiShare Connectors. What is new as of today is that members can officially sign up on our website as such and will be listed in our membership database. Connectors are the highly active members that put our mission into action day by day. They are community and/or project leaders who connect ideas, people and organizations around the collaborative economy. They participate in the co-creation of the OuiShare strategy and take part in decision-making processes. Core Connectors are the Connectors who run the organization on a day-to-day basis. They execute the strategy co-created during OuiShare Summits and support the rest of the Connector team in carrying out their activities. They are also responsible for operational activities and coordination between local communities.
We also now have Alumni Connectors, who are former or temporarily inactive Connectors, and Advisors, a group of thought leaders who support us with their advice. However these roles are far from static. We want it to be as easy as possible for people to move in and out of the organization, as well as dynamically rotate between these different roles and levels of involvement. This structure is simply the framework that should enable the community to continue to thrive, as well as support and empower all our members in what they do. We are looking forward to hearing your feedback on it, and hope that many of you will join us on the continuation of this adventure :)