Community Engagement Collaborative Working Group

The Community Engagement Collaborative (CEC) plays a central role in strengthening the Software Preservation Network’s community. This group is dedicated to creating inclusive spaces, building lasting relationships, and ensuring that all SPN activities reflect the needs and values of the broader software preservation ecosystem. The CEC fosters a vibrant, connected network by developing opportunities for education, peer learning, and collective participation.

Overview

By collaborating with other SPN working groups and external organizations, the CEC amplifies the collective impact of the network, ensuring that SPN’s work is accessible, inclusive, and supportive of diverse perspectives by:

• Designing Inclusive Engagement Strategies: Developing and refining practices that support inclusive participation across roles, sectors, and identities—ensuring a respectful, welcoming environment for all.
• Hosting Learning and Community Events: Organizing forums, webinars, workshops, and informal gatherings to promote shared learning, surface emerging needs, and strengthen connections across the network.
• Creating Accessible Public Resources: Producing community-centered content—like case studies, facilitation guides, and engagement toolkits—that support both newcomers and experienced practitioners.
• Facilitating Mentorship and Peer Learning: Supporting pathways for new member onboarding, cross-disciplinary exchange, and leadership development within SPN.
• Gathering and Acting on Community Feedback: Collecting insights from members to guide SPN initiatives, identify opportunities for collaboration, and evolve programming based on community needs.

The CEC strengthens SPN’s impact by leading education, engagement, and community-building efforts: It hosts at least two major forums or workshops each year, and its merger with the Education & Training Working Group has expanded its scope, resulting in new member welcome practices, speaker calls, and the production of SPN’s STACKTRACE newsletter. The group regularly hosts major events that help shape and grow the preservation field from within—making the community stronger, more informed, and more connected.

How You Might Engage

The Community Engagement Collaborative is a welcoming space for building relationships and supporting shared learning across the software preservation field. Whether you’re a communicator, facilitator, educator, or advocate, we’d love your voice at the table. Here are a few ways to connect and contribute:

Lead Learning and Engagement Efforts: Help plan and facilitate events, develop new resources, and support activities that strengthen SPN’s educational and community-building work.

Guide SPN’s Community Activities: Bring creative energy to shared initiatives with other SPN groups—integrating community insights into infrastructure, research, metadata, and policy projects.

Build Community Creatively: Whether you’re skilled in facilitation, passionate about community care, or just eager to welcome others, your contributions can help foster a more equitable and sustainable software preservation ecosystem.

If you’re excited about building a connected and inclusive community for software preservation, we invite you to contribute to the Community Engagement Collaborative.

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