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Community Groups

Groups are free and flexible community spaces that can be used in many different ways. 

Shared Places

Groups that form around a specific location might focus on:

  • In-person connection and trade
  • Finding local products and services
  • Coordinating meet-ups and events
  • Developing local initiatives 

Shared Interests

Groups that form around specific sectors, social or environmental challenges, or business models might focus on:

  • Information sharing and peer learning
  • Sourcing specialized products and services
  • Collective problem solving
  • Coordinating campaigns and advocacy efforts

Photos from Organic Participatory Guarantee System, World Fair Trade Organization, Global Ecovillage Network, Fair Trade Federation 

Shared Goals

Groups created by established teams, member organizations, or networks might focus on:

  • Internal updates and improved coordination
  • Identifying and prioritizing new opportunities
  • Clarifying key challenges
  • Decision-making and governance

Each group is hosted by a Good Market Approved enterprise or network. The functionality is currently being tested by networks and will be rolled out to the rest of the community soon.

Functionality

Each group has its own space for messages, questions, and polls and is able to set its own membership criteria and group rules. Group boundaries and rules help create a healthy, positive, and useful community space. They might include guidelines on how to contribute to the group, what content is appropriate, how decisions are made, and how the group is governed. 

Messages

Hosts can choose between Chat Messages and Broadcast Messages.

If Chat Messages is selected, all members are able to send messages, share information, and participate in the conversation.

If Broadcast Messages is selected, only the group host is able to send messages. Broadcast Messages are recommended for very large groups and network groups focused on sharing updates with members.

Questions

When a group member has a question they would like many people to reply to, they should be encouraged to add it to the questions forum. This keeps all of the responses in one place and makes it easier to search for information in the future. Questions can be used to discuss new ideas, find products or services, solve problems, and enable peer learning.

Polls

When it’s time to move from a discussion to a decision, create a poll. Polls can be used to test ideas, clarify concerns, identify priorities, vote on options, and improve decision making within groups. There are three types of polls to start. Additional types of polls may be added in the future based on community requirements.