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Getting Started

Meetup Groups​

Groups can be established for a city, state / province, a country or even for a region. For the most updated list of our groups, visit our Meetup network page.

What roles can Meetup Groups play​

Here are some ideas for activities groups might want to work on:

Organize local events

  • Ensure a positive experience for all meetup members and attendees
  • Focusing on issues and challenges relevant for the group
  • Run various types of events, e.g. panel discussions, workshops, bootcamps, work sprints, localization drives, hackathons, watch parties, etc.
  • We encourage groups to hold in-person events for their local members

Address local contribution barriers

  • Tools: Promote best practices in the area, picking up ideas and solutions
  • Time zones: local groups can help address the issues experienced on a global scale
  • Language: English can become a contribution barrier where it is not widely used for communication. Organizers can hold events and provide their members with materials in the local language

Other contribution opportunities

  • Collect and share local information and use cases (from press, presentations, etc).
  • Share with the wider community through blog posts, and other appropriate channels.
  • Connect with local universities to help them learn more about GSF
  • Assist local students and professors to plug in with the GSF Meetup community

What support is available to Groups​

GSF can support Groups with:

  • Meetup Costs: Covering the costs of creating and maintaining groups on Meetup.com. This solely relates to the costs of creating and _maintaining the Group on the Meetup platform. GSF does not cover costs related to the specific events. _
  • Communication: Creating a global mailing list, discussion forums, meetings and document space to facilitate communication across all groups.
  • Career Growth: "GSF Meetup Organizer" is an official community role that someone can use to build their resume, share over LinkedIn, and gain additional career skills
  • Speakers: GSF maintains a database of speakers and can help to coordinate their engagement in local events where needed
  • Graphic Support: GSF can create graphics to support your meetup including cover images and social share images, stickers etc...
  • Marketting Support: GSF can help promote your meetup event to our newsletter and social channels.

Support will be based on how engaged an Organizer is. Preference will be given to Organizers who are fully committed to their mission and deliver outstanding results.

How to apply to be an Organizer and start a Group​

If you are passionate about green software, why not start a meetup group in your area? To become a GSF Meetup Organizer, please read this guide and then contact us at meetup@greensoftware.foundation.

In general, there are a few requirements to be met in order to set up a group in a specific region:

  • Choose the city, state / province, country or region you want to start your group in. The region for which the group is to be formed must represent a distinct language or geography as well as a large demographic of existing or a rising group of technologists.
  • Establish a clearly defined mission for how your group will contribute to the GSF network.
  • Submit a draft event calendar outlining the events you are planning to organize for your group. Ideally, each group should hold at least one event per month, and not less than one per quarter.
  • Name at least one organizer for the group who is willing to recruit new members, organize regular meetings and make sure that the group is working toward the goals that are set in the group’s mission. We encourage you to share responsibilities with others and not try and do it all yourself. From experience, we’ve found that having 2 or 3 co-organizers for a meetup is ideal and allows you to share tasks when you become busy with other things for a period of time. The most successful meetup groups have consistent local leadership and representation.