Do you want to track informal learning experiences offered by your community?
What is an Impact Community?
An Impact Community is a group of people usually numbering between 30 and 150 members which uses the ARK as a platform to track (informal) learning progress and to share best practices.
A Impact Community can set any interest focus and has
- learning, i.e. personal and collective growth and
- sustainability, i.e. sustaining life on Earth as an additional objective; and
- has taken stewardship over a commons, i.e. a defined space shared by the community.
1. Sustainability as Common Ground
Sustainability is the common ground that unites us. Beyond sustainability all partner communities have shared or different interests like DIY, music, literature, flow art, gardening, coding, water sports, literature, etc. It is in sustainability that we recognize planet Earth as our common home.
2. Stewardship Over Commons
The Green Steps ARK follows the Buurtzorg organizational concept and structures ARK users in small teams, which take care of communities and commons, i.e. land or resources belonging to or affecting the whole of a community. These teams are empowered by the platform, which gives them on the one hand the cutting edge of a large organization without the debilitating effects of bureaucracy. On the other hand, they are equipped with the spirit of start-ups and act in economic and legal independence. Ownership and exploitation of land and people are transformed in the term stewardship to a responsible management of human and natural resources.
Types of Impact Communities
We differentiate three types of communities:
- Intentional: created by people who share a vision of sustainable and connected life in a rural, suburban or urban setting.
- Accidental: coming to life as a byproduct of a different project through shared values, e.g. a parents’ associations in a school
- Corporate: created in an enterprise for a team of employees by the executive management to link team performance with sustainable development driving KPIs
Examples
Intentional & Urban – Agora Space
Agora Space has been established in 2010 as a co-working community in downtown Shanghai, which attracts a crowd of software engineers and coders who have an additional interest in sustainability and genuine community building. They host workshops on sour bread making and vegan cooking, composting and many other urban sustainability skills.
Corporate & Urban – IKEA Shanghai service team
The IKEA Shanghai service team comprises 120 people. The director of the service team wanted to combine the annual bonus of team members with a new KPI which reflects learning about sustainability and simultaneously lifts the esprit de corps. Third party providers of ecosystems learning facilitate sessions for community members on the ARK. The director of the service team tracks as Community Mentor with the help of his head of HR the teams learning progress with clear KPIs.
Accidental & Suburban – Dongbang Kayak Club
Dongbang Kayak Club was founded in 2013 at the northern shore of Jinze Water Reservoir. It attracts a large crowd of urban weekend guests who enjoy short and long kayak or SUP rides in the surrounding water bodies. Recently, pollution has grown to such dimensions that the founder wants to upgrade Dongbang’s sports offering with environmental learning.
Intentional & Rural – Jiangshan Nature Education Center
Jiangshan is a 5th tier city in Zhejiang province where in a very nice rural setting a team of about 20 people provides Nature Education services to a mix of clients. The location can host up to 120 persons and is ideal for summer camps and team building.
What is a Community Mentor
- Community Mentors are individuals who have advanced ARK skills which they make available to empower the facilitators of their community;
- A Community Mentor is ideally a proam, i.e. somebody who has facilitated experimental education sessions and therefore knows about the value of this SaaS platform;
- A Community Mentor is a role model user online & offline;
- Community Mentors manage community roles (learners & facilitators) and the appearance of the community on the ARK;
- Community Mentors lead the community communication.
