Post in Some example start-up posts

Mar 03 20:17 UTC

I wanted to share an update on the launch of the new forum for my neighborhood
in Minneapolis.

I've added the 125 paper sign-up based members.  We are now at 150 members and
I'd like get the forum to 200 registered participants before officially opening
to post.

Steps completed:

1. Bcc: opt-out from paper sign-up - I caught at least 20 e-mail addresses that
were mistyped or hard to read before uploading to the server.

2. Upload paper sign-ups.

3. Sent Welcome how to change password post:
http://forums.e-democracy.org/r/post/4NXlQibCkGg0xEg7kN1IWQ

4. Sent "invite your neighbors" post for forwarding:

Something amazing is happening. Over 150 neighbors across the Standish
and Ericsson neighborhoods are coming together online to build a
stronger community in the "real world".

Join me on the forum as it opens in the coming days. Once there are 200
of us, we will average one household per block. At 400, we will have 10
percent of the households in regular contact.

This online forum encourages e-mail or web-based (your choice) sharing
of announcements and discussion of specifically local topics. From
schools and parks to crime and local environment, we can now communicate
across our neighborhoods in minutes.

Unlike most online forms, the host E-Democracy.Org requires civility and
the use of real names. Participation is worth your time, on your own
time. Because we live near one another, conversations will flow back and
forth, offline and back online. Each of us is a connecting point to
dozens of people on our block, on a walk, or at the park.

Where do I join?  Visit:

    http://e-democracy.org/se

Select "register and join" to sign-up. As a default, all members receive
individual posts by e-mail and may publish text, photos, etc. by simply
posting to "<email obscured>". A daily digest
version simply listing topics with links read posts via website is
available as well.

Two important rules keep message volume reasonable - no one may post
more than twice in 24 hours and announcements must be either about
events within the geographic boundaries of the neighborhoods or be made
by direct participants in area community activities (e.g. an invitation
to a Hiawatha Lions pancake breakfast hosted in East Nokomis can only be
made by a Lions member who lives or works in Standish or Ericsson for
example). The forum has two volunteer co-hosts, Victoria Ford (Standish)
and Steven Clift (Ericsson) and they can privately answer any questions
you might have - <email obscured>

Please spread the word by passing this message on your to neighbors.

P.S. Additional background on neighborhood forums across the Twin Cities
is available - http://e-democracy.org/nf -. Also, while this forum is
not officially sponsored by the Standish Ericsson Neighborhood
Association, they are participating in its promotion. E-Democracy.Org,
is experienced in supporting volunteers who host similar dynamic forums
in over ten communities across three countries.

5. Challenged participants to recruit local "who's who" ... we need to open a
forum with those in the halls of power/with access to community resources to
ensure that the forum is heard:

Subject: Who should we invite to join us? Who can help us solve problems, move
resources?

Please forward the invitation I just sent to others you know who live or
work in the neighborhood. Dig out your neighbors e-mail addresses,
perhaps invite them over for coffee as well as to join you on the forum.
:-)  My goal is to have 200 registered members by the time (voluntary)
introductions conclude.

More specifically, who do you personally know who should join us on this
forum?

We want people on the forum who can help us interface with the numerous
public institutions that serve us. Not only can they help share
announcements, they can also help answer questions. Better yet, if we
get this on our loop, they can listen and learn from our discussions be
they about development proposals, crime incidents, etc.

It is best that someone on the forum with a personal connection
volunteer to invite others.

Please volunteer to invite a specific person(s) -
staneric-fm@e-democracyorg - in this role:

1. City council member(s) and aides
2. Police officers who often serve our neighborhood
3. Community policing, National Night Out contacts
3. Principals and interested teachers at the schools where many of our
children attend, school board members
4. Park facility staff and board members in general area
5. County and state legislature elected officials
6. Local librarians
7. Light rail/transit staff knowledgeable about our area
8. Someone from the local fire station
9. Local clergy/places of worship (announcements about special public
events such as visiting choirs, etc. are welcome)
10. Local service club representatives (YMCA, Lions, etc.)
11. Locally owned businesses
12. People highly active in our neighborhood association, NRP staff,
other city/county staff who serve/live in our neighborhood
13. Who are we missing on our map of "public life" in our neighborhood?

Again, please volunteer privately - staneric-fm@e-democracyorg - to take
five minutes and invite someone you know filling any of these roles.
You can just e-mail them right now and cc: <email obscured>
so we know who has been invited. If they say yes, we can just add them
manually to make it easy.

Assuming they say yes, you can also ask them to forward the public
invitation via their own locally relevant e-mail lists to join.

Your Neighbor,
Steven Clift
E-Democracy.Org

6. Next up will be a follow-up note asking people to be sure to help us invite
others.

7. Moderated Introductions week ... starting later this week ... I hope to get
at least 1/3 of members to say hello as I cruise through sections of the
neighborhood (I think) rotating north and south.