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Geo-Professional Affiliation and OSGeo Membership
Last week I brought up the idea of setting up geospatial mentors that would act like a professional apprenticeship programme. I am particularly interested in one that focuses on open source technology, as I believe that to be a professional means much more than simply learning commercial products. There is certainly a place for that, but other institutions handle these needs quite well already.
This got me thinking about what I like to be associated with - what kinds of things would I wear as a badge of professional recognition? As I thought about the kinds of professional association that I would like to have in my career, the one I kept coming back to was OSGeo.
Although OSGeo is not technically a professional association, I suspect that many of us feel that it is starting to fill that role somewhat. If you are anything like me you appreciate being affiliated, even informally, with others who are like-minded and enthusiastic. For me, this is no better represented than in my contacts and involvement with OSGeo. Is this the same for you?
OSGeo represents the like-mindedness that I long for. Thankfully, we are not one homogenous mass, but the fundamental philosophies that we share are clear: freedom, open development and leading edge software for changing our schools, businesses, communities and world.
Is being associated with other OSGeo professionals important to you?
In my opinion, one area of OSGeo that needs some more work is that of encouraging (and in some cases, defining) membership. As I ponder this issue, I wonder how we could better address it.
- What would make you (or someone you know) want to become a member?
- In what ways do you think OSGeo could help develop you as a professional, volunteer or academic?
- Would you pay a fee to join OSGeo? If so, what would you expect in return?
I am not supposing that OSGeo should become a formal professional association like some trades have, but it sure feels like it could help fill that need for many of us.
Chris Hutcherson:
I just stumbled upon this and wonder if there has been an OSGeo membership set up. I sounds like a good idea. More information would be great. Thanks!
Chris Tweedie:
Tyler, for me - "membership" should _mean_ something. I see too many affiliations these days which mean little more than "yeah, i pay $400/yr, sign my name at the conference door to get the CPD points and i am now a certified member". If someone was to say they are an OSGEO member, i would expect they should have significant, proven experience in at least one project.
Thats not to say i dont acknowledge the neogeographers who may just dabble with OSGEO projects in their free time. As you mentioned regarding mentoring, perhaps a structured membership might be the way to go
1. Mentors. I would expect these people would be nominated by their peers due to their significant contirbutions/experience. These would still need to maintain their OsGEO membership status, but recieve additional kudos.
2. Members. Paying members who must demonstrate experience via a quantitative or subjective test/demonstration to a panel(??). This is commonly done via CPD allocations to workshops, paper submission etc.
3. *Insert entry level membership name here* This would perhaps be a very, very cheap membership with a few entitlements that would show their intention to further their "Osgeo membership".
Of course its all easier said than done :)
Alexandre Leroux:
Hi Tyler,
"Is being associated with other OSGeo professionals important to you?" - Yes.
"What would make you (or someone you know) want to become a member?"
Simplicity and flexibility. I, and I'm probably not alone, have limited time to divert to the OSGeo and related projects. I consider myself an "OSGeo enthusiast" :-) Should this enthusiasm turns into some kind of 'membership', it's not required, but I would not be against claiming I'm an OSGeo "member" ;-)
"Would you pay a fee to join OSGeo? If so, what would you expect in return?"
Yes. A small fee (maybe 10$/year? 150$ lifetime membership??). The first question that comes to my mind: what would be the benefit for me to be a member? I do use some OSGeo-mentored software, but don't need the OSGeo to use them at all. I fail to see personal benefits to pay for becoming a member, other than encouraging an organization I want to succeed. What would be the benefits of being a OSGeo member from the 'average user' point of view?
Tyler Mitchell:
> What would be the benefits of being a OSGeo member from the 'average user' point of view?
Hi Alexandre,
You can't ask my own question back to me ;) I have my own ideas about what it means (or could mean) to become a member, but I am more interested in hearing what others would _like_ to get from a membership.
Various ideas have been discussed around what kinds of perks a paid member could have. The ideas include receiving benefits such as t-shirts, business cards, discounted conference fees, etc.
Do you have any other ideas? I am still wondering what it would take to make a paying membership feel valuable to you.
Thanks for the note,
Tyler
Alexandre Leroux:
:-) In addition to the ideas you shared, I guess some kind of geospatial professionals networking tool specifically for OSGeo members, such as linkedin.com, would be nice (see also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_social_networking_websites and look for the professionals ones). (I don't need a job, but knowing who's working where doing what within the OSGeo enthusiast could be useful)
Off topic, if possible, it would be great to allow people to know there's a reply to their comment on your blog :-)
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