**How**: 1. Weekly topic release in WIT Leads group and via email 2. Participants review provided learning resources 3. Online discussions with video capability 4. Bi-weekly offline meetups for in-depth discussions 5. Project work based on weekly topics 6. Sharing and voting on best projects
**Expected outcome**: * Increased confidence among women in tech discussions * Enhanced knowledge of various tech topics * Development of presentation and discussion skills * Creation of a supportive community for women in tech * Completion of practical projects related to discussion topics
**How to measure impact**: * Participation rates in online and offline discussions * Number and quality of projects completed * Feedback from participants on confidence levels and knowledge gained * Increase in women's participation in larger tech events (e.g., Useless Projects, Tink Her Hack) * Long-term tracking of participants' involvement in tech fields **Pre-project checklist**: * Set up WIT Leads group and campus WIT WhatsApp groups * Prepare initial set of weekly topics and resources * Arrange online discussion platform * Brief WIT Leads on facilitation techniques * Create project evaluation criteria **Post-project checklist**: * Collect and analyze participant feedback * Document best practices for discussions and projects * Showcase top projects from each week * Evaluate the need for adjustments in format or content * Plan for integration of learnings into larger events **Resource Links**: {% file src="/files/wBT23UWZbdkuRydiWR92" %} {% file src="/files/6CHc3nKSDvZVXADwe7X3" %} {% file src="/files/lGhNx3ZbI8I6U00junCB" %} {% file src="/files/ZzK4iQ1RMSNFtueVoXBh" %} O Penn Mic Edition 3- Generic Topic: Building side hustle while in college(no doc reference, open flow) {% file src="/files/Z54Jen0Dwa6k9jfIstWJ" %} {% file src="/files/jf1Pjt6AjU5qh6BuaQw1" %} {% file src="/files/LAGmBVj3l0wbtvfJUCQp" %} {% file src="/files/kMTW1LS1B97jr4kCmmcW" %} {% file src="/files/rUjOKRIC39pd4jNjX4X4" %} {% file src="/files/IniEBEIqvsigZGWikSmj" %} {% file src="/files/DCoGOu8P9l9K5GgkT2wo" %} # Template Learning Activity Please create a copy of this template and curate a learnig activity **Name**: A catchy, descriptive title for the activity. **Category**: The broad area the activity falls under (e.g., Tech, Soft Skills, Community Building). **Type**: The activity format (e.g., Workshop, Seminar, Meetup, Hackathon). **Summary - oneliner**: A brief, engaging sentence that captures the essence of the activity. **Purpose**: The main goal or objective of the activity. What do you aim to achieve? **How**: A step-by-step explanation of how the activity will be conducted. Include main agenda items. **Expected outcome**: What participants should gain or achieve by the end of the activity. List key takeaways. **How to measure impact**: Methods to evaluate the activity's success and participant learning. Include both quantitative and qualitative measures. **Pre-event checklist**: Essential tasks to complete before the activity begins. Include logistics, materials, and communications. **Post-event checklist**: Follow-up tasks to ensure the activity's impact is maximized. Include feedback collection, resource sharing, and next steps. **Curated by**: Name or team responsible for designing and organizing the activity. **Ideal audience**: The target group that would benefit most from this activity. Include any prerequisites if applicable. **Resource Links**: Useful references, tools, or materials related to the activity. Include both preparation and follow-up resources. This template provides a comprehensive framework for documenting activities, ensuring all important aspects are covered and making it easier for others to understand and potentially replicate the event. ask about the activity trying to structer it to the teamplate, ask many as questions connected to the activity # No internet challange Please create a copy of this template and curate a learnig activity **Name**: A catchy, descriptive title for the activity. **Category**: The broad area the activity falls under (e.g., Tech, Soft Skills, Community Building). **Type**: The activity format (e.g., Workshop, Seminar, Meetup, Hackathon). **Summary - oneliner**: A brief, engaging sentence that captures the essence of the activity. **Purpose**: The main goal or objective of the activity. What do you aim to achieve? **How**: A step-by-step explanation of how the activity will be conducted. Include main agenda items. **Expected outcome**: What participants should gain or achieve by the end of the activity. List key takeaways. **How to measure impact**: Methods to evaluate the activity's success and participant learning. Include both quantitative and qualitative measures. **Pre-event checklist**: Essential tasks to complete before the activity begins. Include logistics, materials, and communications. **Post-event checklist**: Follow-up tasks to ensure the activity's impact is maximized. Include feedback collection, resource sharing, and next steps. **Curated by**: Kurian Jacob **Ideal audience**: The target group that would benefit most from this activity. Include any prerequisites if applicable. **Resource Links**: Useful references, tools, or materials related to the activity. Include both preparation and follow-up resources. This template provides a comprehensive framework for documenting activities, ensuring all important aspects are covered and making it easier for others to understand and potentially replicate the event. ask about the activity trying to structer it to the teamplate, ask many as questions connected to the activity # Repair Café: Fix, Explore & Learn **Ideal audience**: The target group that would benefit most from this activity. Include any prerequisites if applicable. **Resource Links**: Useful references, tools, or materials related to the activity. Include both preparation and follow-up resources. **Category:** Tech, Community Building, Open Hardware #### **Type:** Hands-on Meetup, Repair & Tinkering Session #### **Summary - One-liner:** An event where people bring their gadgets, open them up, explore how they work, and learn the mindset of repair and making, rather than just fixing. ### **Purpose:** This event is inspired by the **Repair Café movement** (
**Okay…so what is the actual process? How should we solve a problem???** 1\. Sit in groups. Groups of 3-5 works best. 2\. Go through the case study completely. 3\. Identify the problem at core. 4\. Extract solutions from each member of the group independently- without the use of AI. This step need not necessarily involve technology. Tech solutioning can come at the end. 5\. Ask questions. Ask ‘but what if..’, as much as possible to understand the nuances. 6\. Identify how a tech tool or technology can be used anywhere if required to solve the problem. 7\. Make a pipeline of your solution, and how it can help. 8\. If you can build the solution you came up with…you have made the IMPOSSIBLE - POSSIBLE!.
I would also suggest you to try finding out experts from the area and having an online or offline discussion with them on whether your solution actually works. You will get a deeper understanding of their pain points too. Or who knows…maybe you would have solved something they have been working on for years!. So yes. Every Friday, keep a close eye on your inbox. Get the story, know the plot, find your Watson, identify your clues, and SOLVE IT!. \
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# The Farmer Who Kept Losing Money Rajendran had been farming paddy for nearly thirty-two years. People in his village often joked that he knew the soil better than he knew people. His fields lay about a kilometre away from his house in Palakkad, a stretch he had walked thousands of times across seasons—blazing summers, heavy monsoons, and everything in between. But the last few years had begun to trouble him in ways he hadn’t expected. Four consecutive harvests had brought losses, not profits. Not massive losses, but the slow, painful kind that ate away at savings and confidence. Once or twice, he dismissed it as “climate change,” something he’d heard on television. But the pattern kept repeating. This year, the trouble began early. One morning, Rajendran walked to the field and found the water level unexpectedly low. He was puzzled—it had rained the previous night. The soil felt dry in patches, almost cracked. He looked around to see if the canal had clogged again, but everything looked normal. He shrugged it off and flooded the field manually. That evening, his ankle began to hurt again, a sharp reminder that the walk to the fields was getting harder. A week later, he noticed pale yellow spots on the tender leaves. A pest, perhaps. But he wasn’t sure which one. By the time he showed the leaves to the agriculture officer during his next visit, the officer said the infection had already spread.\ “You should have informed me earlier, Rajendran,” he said kindly.\ “How, sir? You only come once in two weeks,” Rajendran replied, embarrassed. The officer scribbled notes in his register, promised to send someone from the Krishi Bhavan, and left. No one came. Then came the weather problem. Unexpected heat waves, sudden rain, long dry spells—none of the patterns Rajendran had known his whole life seemed reliable anymore. The weather forecast on television hardly matched what happened in his small village. The nearby stations recorded humidity and rainfall, but his fields existed in their own microclimate, unpredictable and unforgiving. His wife noticed the change in him. He had become quieter, more withdrawn. He ate less and spent more time staring at the field map he had drawn by hand, as if he was trying to find answers in the creases of the paper.\ “What is worrying you so much?” she asked one evening.\ He simply replied, “I don’t understand my own land anymore.” One night, his son, a commerce graduate working in a small firm in Coimbatore, said casually, “Appa, we should stop this. Farming is not worth the stress. Why don’t we give the land on lease?”\ The words hit him harder than the losses. He had always hoped his son wouldn’t leave farming behind completely, but he didn’t blame him—the boy had only seen farming as struggle, not pride. The turning point came when the local cooperative society called him to discuss loan settlements.\ “Rajetta, don’t take this personally,” the officer said, “but many farmers like you are struggling. We’re trying to understand what’s happening.” For the first time, it dawned on Rajendran that he wasn’t alone. Several others around him were facing similar issues—unpredictable moisture levels, delayed pest detection, lack of timely information, inability to be physically present at the fields daily, and no system to alert them before something went wrong. Everyone was fighting their battles separately, with no shared data, no collective monitoring, no alerts, and no structured support system. The agriculture officers were stretched thin, visiting twenty or more farms in a single week. Farmers relied on instinct, luck, and outdated schedules. Nothing connected them, and so everything kept slipping through their fingers. One evening, as he sat looking at his field—still beautiful, still full of potential—Rajendran whispered to himself,\ “How do I take care of something I cannot see every day? How do I know before the damage happens, not after?” He was not asking for miracles. He was asking for information—timely, accurate, simple information that could help him act at the right time. And somewhere, hidden under the weight of his worries, lay a much bigger question:\ “Is there a way for someone like me to farm smarter, even if I cannot be at the field every day? Is there a way to stop money from slipping away before I can save it?” That is the mystery waiting to be solved. # “The Numbers That Didn’t Match” It was 9:15 a.m. on a busy Tuesday at Sree Lakshmi Medical College, a mid-sized teaching hospital in South India. The second case on the list was a 62-year-old man, Mr. Raghavan, coming in for a major abdominal surgery to remove a tumor. Inside OR 3, the team moved with the familiar mix of routine and pressure.\ Dr. Anil, the surgeon, stood scrubbed and focused.\ Dr. Meera, the anesthesiologist, watched the monitors with her usual quiet intensity.\ Two junior nurses, Deepa and Arun, managed sponges, instruments, irrigation, suction and the constant stream of “Sister, gauze… suction… more saline.” From the outside, it looked smooth. From the inside, the numbers were already starting to blur. *** As the surgery progressed, the field became increasingly bloody. Deepa opened new packs of gauze, passing them as fast as the scrub nurse asked. Used, blood-soaked sponges piled into a kick bucket. The suction canister slowly filled with a dark red fluid — a mix of blood and the clear irrigation saline used to keep the field visible. “Can you tell me the blood loss roughly?”\ Dr. Meera asked over the drapes, eyes still on the patient’s blood pressure and heart rate. Deepa glanced at the suction canister.\ “About eight hundred, ma’am?” she said, uncertainty in her voice. “Plus the sponges… I’ll calculate.” There was no automated system. The “calculation” was a mix of habit, mental math and guesswork. The rough method in this OR was the same as in many:\ look at the volume in the suction canister, subtract what you think was irrigation fluid, then add an estimate of how much blood must be on the sponges. But no one knew exactly how much irrigation had gone in. It was written on a whiteboard, updated when someone remembered. The sponges, all different sizes and degrees of saturation, were waiting to be weighed at the end — if there was time. And everyone knew that by then, decisions about fluids and transfusions would already have been made. Mr. Raghavan’s blood pressure dipped slightly.\ “Let’s start a bolus,” said Dr. Meera. “And cross-check blood loss again in ten minutes.” *** Two hours later, the operation was still underway. The first unit of blood had been transfused. The suction canister had been changed once, the new one already half full. Irrigation bottles came and went — one litre, another half litre, another litre — scribbled in rushed handwriting on the side of the whiteboard. At one point, when things became more difficult surgically, everyone’s attention shifted fully to the field. “More suction… more saline… hold that retractor… give me another pack of gauze.” Nobody updated the board for twenty minutes. “Meera, how much are we at now?”\ Dr. Anil’s voice broke through. She exhaled slowly. “By my count, maybe fifteen hundred? But I need the exact totals.” Deepa quickly tried to reconstruct the numbers.\ “How many litres of saline have we used?” Meera asked. There was a pause.\ “Four? Or maybe five, ma’am… One bottle we didn’t write down, I think. I’ll check,” Arun replied, looking worried. Meera knew this was not their fault. This was simply how things were done everywhere she had ever worked: visual estimation, mental subtraction, retroactive guessing. In textbooks and conferences, everyone agreed this was inaccurate. In real life, this was still the norm. *** The surgery finally ended. Mr. Raghavan was shifted to recovery, still intubated but stable enough to move. The team prepared to hand over to the post-op nurses. “How much blood loss?” the recovery nurse asked, pen hovering over the sheet. There was a silence that lasted a bit too long. Deepa opened her notebook. “From the suction: two canisters, around sixteen hundred total. Irrigation… probably about nine hundred ml. For sponges, we’ve written seven hundred based on weight.” “So what do we write?” the nurse asked again. “Net blood loss… about fourteen hundred,” Meera answered, doing the math in her head, then immediately doubting it. “Write fourteen hundred.” Later, while documenting, Meera realized that if she added the numbers another way, she could get a completely different total, still “reasonable,” still technically defensible, and still wrong in ways nobody could precisely prove. *** That night, in the ICU, Raghavan’s blood pressure dipped again. The intensivist on duty looked at his file. “How much did he lose in OT?” he asked. “Fourteen hundred ml,” the nurse replied, pointing at the sheet. He frowned slightly. “He looks a bit more dry than that,” he muttered, ordering another fluid bolus and an additional blood test. By morning, Raghavan was stable, but the team knew it had been close. When the department sat down for a routine morbidity and mortality meeting later that week, his case came up. “We managed,” the head of surgery said, “but our transfusion and fluid decisions were still built on estimates. If that number was off by even five hundred ml either way, our decisions could have been too aggressive or too conservative.” Meera added quietly, “If you had asked each of us in the OR what the blood loss was at different times, you would have gotten different answers. Our methods are manual, fragmented and subjective. We track blood on gauze one way, suction fluid another way, urine output somewhere else, irrigation in someone’s head or on a smudged whiteboard. All of that, in real time, in a high-pressure environment.” The quality officer, who was also in the meeting, listened carefully. “So you’re saying,” she asked, “that in a modern OR with monitors, ventilators, infusion pumps and electronic records… we still don’t have a reliable, automated way to know how much fluid the patient is actually losing during surgery?” Meera nodded. “Exactly. We are making high-stakes decisions on top of guesswork. Some companies have apps that estimate blood loss from images of sponges. Some devices measure blood content in fluid lines. Some systems track urine output. But they’re all separate. Nothing gives us one integrated, real-time ‘fluid loss picture’ we can trust.” There was a long pause. The hospital’s biomedical engineer, who had recently started a small innovation cell with the residents, broke the silence. “What if we tried to build something?” he asked slowly. “Even a prototype. Something that could bring all this together — blood on gauze, blood in suction, urine output, irrigation in and out — into one live dashboard for the anesthesiologist?” Meera looked at him with a mixture of hope and skepticism. “If you could give me a simple, reliable number,” she said, “even simulated at first… That could change how I manage fluids. It could mean safer surgeries. Fewer close calls like this.” The room went quiet again, but this time the silence felt different. Less like helplessness, more like possibility. *** #### Your Mission You are part of the small innovation team invited by this hospital to study what happened in OR 3 and propose a **tech-enabled solution**. You have access to everything you just read: the messy reality of gauze, suction, urine, irrigation, manual notes, human error, time pressure and patient risk. Your task is to understand the real, underlying problem in this story, map the points where information is lost or distorted, and design a **technology-backed approach** that could give clinicians a more accurate, real-time view of fluid loss during surgery — starting with a proof-of-concept that a hackathon team like yours could realistically build. # “The Biogas Blind Spot” At the edge of a small town on the outskirts of Kochi, behind the vegetable market and the bus stand, stood a shining example of “India’s green future”: a community biogas plant designed using CSIR’s model. The plant had become a matter of local pride. School children came on field visits. Panchayat members loved to show it off to visiting delegations. It took in vegetable waste from the market, food scraps from a nearby hostel, and dairy waste from a small cluster of farms. In return, it produced clean cooking gas for the community kitchen and slurry for the farmers’ fields. On paper, it was perfect. On the ground, it was a bit more complicated. *** Every morning at 6 a.m., before the sun fully rose, Anil would unlock the gate to the plant. He was the “plant operator,” though his actual job description varied depending on who you asked: caretaker, mechanic, waste collector, cleaner, record-keeper, sometimes tour guide. He walked past the intake pit, checking if last night’s waste had settled properly. The dome of the digester sat squat and silent, full of invisible promise. Nearby, a compact gas meter box was fixed to the side of the plant, connected to the pipeline. It displayed crucial numbers: gas production, pressure, cumulative usage. Anil pulled out a small notebook and a pen. He pressed a button on the meter, waited for the digital display to change, and copied down the reading. “Today… 13.2 cubic meters,” he muttered to himself, scribbling the numbers into the notebook along with the date and time. He did this every morning and every evening. If he missed a reading because he was sick or busy, there was simply no data for that period. When it rained, he balanced an umbrella in one hand and the notebook in the other, trying not to smudge the ink. The meter worked. The plant worked. In fact, they both worked very well. The problem was that the information on that little meter stayed exactly where it was: on the wall of the biogas plant. *** Once a month, Meera from the local NGO came to collect data. Her organization had helped the panchayat set up the plant using the CSIR design, and they were now trying to prove that such plants could be both sustainable and economically viable at scale. She would sit at a plastic table in the community hall with Anil’s notebooks spread out in front of her. “Okay, so from June to August, gas production has increased. That’s good,” she said, drawing lines on an Excel sheet on her laptop. “But ma’am,” Anil replied, “these numbers are sometimes guesswork. If the meter display was foggy or I had to rush, I just noted roughly. And sometimes the zero resets… Then I’m not sure what to write.” Meera knew he was doing his best. The plant’s internal technology was solid, based on years of CSIR research. But the interface between the plant and the humans using it was fragile. Data lived in notebooks, on loose sheets, in photos of the meter display sent over WhatsApp. When potential funders or government officials called her and asked, “Can you show us the trend of gas production over the last year? Can you prove reliability? Can you estimate payback period accurately?”, she would sigh and open several disjointed spreadsheets. The plant was “highly functional” in the engineering sense. It produced clean fuel reliably. It handled waste sustainably. It had real market potential. What it did not have was what everyone else now took for granted, even with the cheapest devices in their homes: a way to see what was going on from their phone. *** At the same time, on the other side of town, a women’s hostel depended on the same biogas line for most of its morning cooking. The warden, Latha, had a very simple requirement: she needed to know whether there would be enough gas for breakfast, or whether she should switch to LPG backup. She didn’t want to know about cubic meters or pressure coefficients. She just wanted a clear answer: “Do I have enough gas for tomorrow morning or not?” Most days, she would simply call Anil in the evening. “Chetta, tomorrow gas undavumallo?”\ “It should be there, chechi, today we got good waste. Meter shows enough.” “Should?” she would repeat, stretching the word. If there was less gas than expected the next morning, the hostel kitchen scrambled. LPG cylinders had to be moved in, extra money spent, timelines thrown off. Students complained when breakfast was late. Nobody blamed the biogas plant directly, but a quiet sense of “this is unreliable” began to form in their minds. All the while, the meter continued to show exactly how much gas was being produced. Only the person standing in front of it could see that. *** When a CSIR team visited one weekend for a review, they were impressed by how well the plant performed. “Digestion levels are good,” said one of the engineers, checking pH and temperature logs. “Gas production is stable. This is a solid demonstration site. You could replicate this in a hundred markets easily.” “But can we prove that to a bank?” Meera asked, half joking, half serious. “They want graphs, dashboards, projections. They want to see real-time performance, seasonal trends. Right now, that lives in Anil’s head and these notebooks.” The CSIR team lead, Dr. Rao, frowned thoughtfully. “The design we developed focused on mechanical reliability and efficiency,” he admitted. “We always assumed local operators would just read the meter. We didn’t think about… apps.” “For urban investors and government dashboards, an app is not a luxury,” Meera replied. “It’s the minimum entry ticket.” Anil, listening from a distance, added in his quiet way, “If I could just take a photo of the meter and send it, or if it showed on my phone automatically, I wouldn’t worry so much about writing it correctly every time.” Dr. Rao looked at the meter fixed to the plant wall — precise, robust, yet strangely disconnected from the people who most needed its information. “We solved the digestion problem,” he said softly. “Maybe we forgot the human interface.” *** A few weeks later, a startup founder named Arjun visited the plant. He was exploring “climate tech opportunities” and was excited by the idea of decentralized biogas at scale. “This model is gold,” he told Meera. “Waste to energy, local jobs, circular economy, low carbon, all in one. But if I go to an impact investor and they ask me, ‘How do you monitor your assets across 50 locations?’ I can’t say ‘We have one meter fixed on each plant, and a guy writes it in a notebook.’ They expect at least a basic digital monitoring layer.” He walked around the plant, staring at the pipes, valves, and the meter. “You know,” he mused, “if I can order a ₹200 pizza and track it live on my phone, but I can’t see how much gas a ₹20 lakh biogas asset is producing without physically visiting it… something is wrong with the picture.” Everyone laughed, but they knew he was right. The biogas plant was technically sound, environmentally friendly, economically promising – and yet, from a user experience perspective, still stuck in an earlier decade. Operators had no simple, in-hand way to enter or view data. Hostel wardens and canteen managers had no clear visibility into future gas availability. NGOs and entrepreneurs had no real-time dashboards or historical graphs to convince partners. CSIR had no easy way to compare multiple pilot plants across regions. All the intelligence sat in one place: a single meter, physically attached to each plant. *** The panchayat president, who had been supportive of the project from day one, summed it up during a meeting. “This plant is good,” she said. “People are proud of it. But if we want ten more like this in our block, we need confidence. We need to show performance. We need to know, without going there personally, whether the plant is healthy.” She looked at the small cluster of young engineers, designers and students who had been invited to brainstorm next steps. “You are all the ‘next generation problem solvers’, no?” she teased. “We have the plant. We have the meter. We have the waste. We even have the gas. What we don’t have is a way to carry this plant in our pockets.” She held up her phone and waved it slightly. “If you can help us do that,” she said, “maybe this really can become a model for the whole state. Maybe one day, for the whole country.” *** Your Mission: You are part of the team invited to work with CSIR, the NGO, the panchayat and the startup to figure out how these highly functional biogas plants can become truly user-friendly, trackable and scalable. Using everything you’ve just read – the fixed meter, the notebooks, the operator’s reality, the hostel’s dependence, the investor’s expectations – you must uncover the core problem and imagine a technology-enabled way to bring these plants “into people’s hands” without breaking what already works. # 🌪️ INSIDE OUT #### *Where you think, question, debate — and rethink everything.* Welcome to **INSIDE OUT**, a space where you don’t solve problems with tools, apps, or technology…\ but with **your mind**, your **morals**, your **logic**, and the unexpected corners of your own thinking. This is not a program about right or wrong.\ It’s not even a program about finding answers. It’s about **discovering how you think**. Every week, you’ll get one scenario.\ A situation where human instinct, ethics, judgment, and emotion collide.\ You will sit together — as groups, circles, or pairs — and unpack it *from the inside out*. You will ask:\ **“Why do I feel this way?”**\ **“What is influencing my choice?”**\ **“What changes if I look from someone else’s eyes?”**\ **“Am I reacting, or am I reasoning?”** There is no AI.\ There is no Googling.\ There is no correct answer. There is only **conversation**, **thoughtfulness**, and a chance to understand your mind a little deeper. Get ready.\ Some scenarios will surprise you.\ Some will disturb you.\ Some will make you rethink what you believed was obvious. Every session ends with a simple question:\ **“Did I come out understanding myself better than when I walked in?”** If yes—you’re doing Inside Out right. # “The Train That Cannot Stop You are the controller of a railway junction.\ A high-speed train is rushing down the track, and the brakes have failed.\ You have only **one** control in front of you — a lever that decides which track the train will go down. On **Track A**, there is an elderly man walking alone.\ He is slow. He will not be able to move in time. On **Track B**, there are **three men**.\ They are tied up — unable to escape.\ Later, you learn they are convicted criminals on work duty. The train is seconds away.\ You **must** choose one track. You cannot stop the train.\ You cannot warn anyone.\ You cannot save everyone. You must simply choose. **Which track do you switch the train to?**\ **Why?**\ **What values guide your decision?**\ **Does the identity of the people change your choice?**\ **Should "number of lives" matter more?**\ **Should "innocence" matter more?**\ **What would most people choose — and why might you be different?**\ **What would you choose if someone you loved was on one of the tracks?** There is no correct answer.\ There is only the **inside** of your thinking — and the **outside** you reveal when you speak about it. # Community Building # Kickstater - ചായയും പപ്സും #### **Name** ചായയും പപ്സും #### **Category** Community Building #### **Type** Meetup #### **Summary - oneliner** An interactive forum for campus communities to collaborate, share ideas, and shape a vibrant tech ecosystem in your campus. #### **Purpose** To foster collaboration among different campus communities, explore collective strategies for learning on your campus, introduce the new TinkerHub campus leadership team, and provide clarity on upcoming initiatives. #### **How** * Ice breaker activity * A brief introduction to the activity purpose * Round table discussion: "Maker culture in our campus" * How can communities work together for better outcomes? * Identifying shared challenges and collaborative solutions * Brainstorming joint initiatives and events * Presentation of upcoming TinkerHub activities and how they align with collective goals * New campus leadership team introduction * Q\&A and networking session #### **Expected outcome** * Enhanced sense of shared purpose within the broader tech ecosystem * Stronger bonds formed between different campus communities * Increased awareness of leadership team across communities and potential points of contact * Concrete ideas for inter-community collaboration and campus improvement * A clear understanding of how TinkerHub's activities support collaborative efforts #### **How to measure the impact** * Post-event survey report * Casual conversations with attendees to gather qualitative feedback * Monitor community interaction levels after the event (e.g., increased communication in community channels, collaborative initiatives) * Track attendance and engagement in subsequent events or activities #### **Pre-event checklist** * [ ] Fix a date and time that comfortably works for all participants * [ ] Decide on a suitable space on your campus for the event * [ ] Obtain permission from the concerned campus authority, mentioning the date, time, and expected number of participants * [ ] Create an event in your TinkerHub dashboard, filling in all the required details * [ ] Ensure the event is visible in the Hub app * [ ] Download the event card from the website, add any extra details, and share it across the campus * [ ] Ensure all campus community makers are aware of the program and have registered for the event through the Hub app * [ ] Invite other community leads, share the agenda, and confirm their attendance (make Hub app registration optional for them) * [ ] Prepare and arrange all necessary presentations and materials for the event * [ ] Order chaya (tea) and puffs for the event (consider dividing the cost among community makers) * [ ] Ensure the event organizer is prepared to mark the attendance of all participants using the Hub app scanner * [ ] Ensure someone is taking relevant pictures of this activity to upload in the dashboard and to share in the community #### **Post-event checklist** * [ ] Thank everyone who attended the event in person * [ ] Clean the space used for the activity, ensuring it's left in good condition * [ ] Collect the agreed-upon amount from participants and clear financial dealings with the shop owner for refreshments * [ ] Obtain and keep a copy of the bill for financial records * [ ] Create a short note about the event and share it in your socials including the pictures, make sure to tag relevant people and invited communities * [ ] Share a thank-you note with all guests, especially external community leads * [ ] Fill out the pre-event report of the activity in the activity dashboard * [ ] Remind all participants to fill out the event feedback form in the Hub app * [ ] Fill out the event feedback form from the organizer's perspective * [ ] Review and analyze feedback received from participants * [ ] Share key outcomes and highlights with the broader TinkerHub community * [ ] Follow up on any action items or commitments made during the event * [ ] Update the community leadership on the event's success and any lessons learned #### **Curated by** TinkerHub Core Team #### **Ideal audience** Potential community partners, Existing community makers, Academic Representative #### **Resource Links** Tinkerhub Orientation Deck {% content-ref url="/spaces/2MCLDnN1MKqur5kVl0S1/pages/apOt24x5GjWLZQb7DqbB" %} [Broken mention](broken://spaces/2MCLDnN1MKqur5kVl0S1/pages/apOt24x5GjWLZQb7DqbB) {% endcontent-ref %} # Token Game **Summary**: \ Team-based decision game with points awarded based on color choices **Purpose**: \ To simulate strategic decision-making in a team environment **How**: \ Teams choose between black and white options for 12 rounds, with points awarded based on combinations **Expected outcome**: \ Teams will develop strategies to maximize points while considering other teams' potential choices **How to measure impact**: \ Track point totals after each round and note changes in team strategies **Pre-event checklist:** * Select team captains * Create catchy team names * Explain rules to all participants * Ensure scoring system is clear **Post-event checklist:** * Tally final scores * Discuss strategies used by teams * Reflect on decision-making processes * Award winning team **Curated by**: Foundation **Ideal audience**: \ Community members **Resource Links/Attachments:** {% file src="/files/gsQtlc9q1zXm6bocLeOW" %} {% file src="/files/qSc9nCECekEjs1svwx5y" %} {% file src="/files/26TrTCOgeayL8TXEC0Bn" %} {% file src="/files/RELEMswFudKkzdqFdSdJ" %} {% file src="/files/zqHk6RtU5pjII8Kw3UvU" %} {% file src="/files/cLJ7l8QBtoFU6FgL02Gm" %} **Recent events**:\ Leads Camp # Work Value Inventory **Summary**: \ The Work Values Inventory is a self-assessment tool designed to help individuals identify and prioritize their work-related values. **Purpose**: \ To assist individuals in understanding what they consider most important in their work environment and career choices. **How**: \ Participants rate 45 work-related statements on a scale of 1 (Unimportant) to 5 (Very Important). These statements are grouped into 15 work value dimensions. **Expected outcome**: \ Individuals gain insight into their top work values, which can guide career decisions, job searches, and discussions with employers or career counselors. **How to measure impact:** * Compare top and bottom work values to current job satisfaction * Track changes in work values over time * Assess alignment between personal values and organizational culture **Pre-event checklist**: * Prepare Work Values Inventory questionnaire * Ensure quiet, comfortable environment for completion * Provide clear instructions on rating scale * Have self-scoring sheets ready **Post-event checklist**: * Guide participants through self-scoring process * Discuss meaning of different work value dimensions * Encourage reflection on top and bottom values * Provide resources for further career exploration **Curated by**: Foundation **Ideal audience:** * Community members **Resource Links/Attachments:** {% file src="/files/eq1HQpi2FjOACvj8jrlk" %} **Recent events:** Leads Camp # Value Setting Workshop **Summary**: \ A reflective workshop designed to help participants identify and understand their personal values, both from their own perspective and others'. **Purpose**: \ To encourage self-reflection, enhance self-awareness, and promote understanding of how personal values shape behavior and relationships. **How**: \ Participants engage in a four-page writing exercise, followed by group discussion and collective reflection. **Expected outcome**: \ Increased self-awareness, better understanding of personal values, improved ability to articulate these values, and insights into how values impact relationships and community building. **How to measure impact:** * Collect qualitative feedback on insights gained * Follow-up surveys on how the workshop has influenced participants' decision-making or relationships * Track changes in participants' ability to articulate their values over time **Pre-event checklist:** * Prepare writing materials (4 pages per participant) * Create a comfortable, quiet environment * Brief facilitators on context-setting and closing discussion points * Prepare examples to help participants understand the exercise **Post-event checklist:** * Collect anonymous feedback on the workshop * Summarize key insights from group discussions * Provide resources for further value exploration * Schedule follow-up sessions if needed **Curated by**: Foundation **Ideal audience:** * Community Members **Resources /Attatchments:** *Following questions can be used by the moderator for context setting*\ \ *Page 1: What do YOU find most valuable about yourself?* \ *Page 2: WHY do you think you are like that. e.x if you have mentioned disciplined - why are you like that. think and write it down. for yourself.* \ *Page 3: What do your friends, family, colleagues find most valuable about you? They can call them and ask. best wat for them would be to tell this friend what they find valuable in that friend and then ask the same in return.. they can say - of i was thinking about you and how i find this so valuable about you. and was wondering what you found valuable in me.* \ *Page 4: WHY do you think you are like that. e.x if you your friend mentioned reliable - why are you like that. think and write it down. for yourself.* **Recent events**: Leads Camp # Apocalypse Group Discussion **Summary:** \ A thought-provoking ethical decision-making exercise where participants must choose which 6 out of 13 astronauts should survive on the International Space Station after a catastrophic event on Earth. **Purpose:** \ To stimulate critical thinking about ethical dilemmas, decision-making under pressure, and the complex factors involved in ensuring human survival and species continuation. **How:** \ Participants are presented with detailed profiles of 13 individuals on the ISS and must collaboratively decide which 6 should survive based on limited resources. The decision must be made considering the potential for repopulating Earth. **Expected outcome:** \ Enhanced understanding of ethical decision-making, improved group consensus-building skills, and deeper reflection on the values that guide survival choices in extreme situations. **How to measure impact:** * Analyze the rationale behind group decisions * Evaluate the quality of ethical arguments presented * Assess changes in participants' perspectives before and after the exercise * Measure the group's ability to reach consensus * Collect feedback on insights gained about decision-making under pressure **Pre-event checklist:** * Prepare detailed character profiles for all 13 astronauts * Create decision-making worksheets for individuals and groups * Brief facilitators on ethical considerations and discussion points * Set up a comfortable environment for potentially intense discussions * Prepare prompts for reflection on various ethical dimensions **Post-event checklist:** * Facilitate a debrief session on the decision-making process * Discuss the ethical implications of the choices made * Reflect on how personal biases might have influenced decisions * Explore how this exercise relates to real-world ethical dilemmas * Collect participant feedback on the exercise and its impact **Curated by:** \ TinkerHub Foundation **Ideal audience:** * Community members * Leadership development programs **Resource Links/Attatchments:** {% file src="/files/rhwG4WT46iahC7KFi2HT" %} **Recent events**: Leads Camp # What's a Study Jam? A Study Jam is a structured, community-driven learning initiative organized by TinkerHub Campus Communities or external partners. In a Study Jam, learners register for a course and commit to attending A **Study Jam** is a structured, community-driven learning initiative organized by TinkerHub Campus Communities or external partners. In a Study Jam, learners register for a course and commit to attending a series of scheduled lessons as defined by the course facilitators. These initiatives aim to foster collaborative learning while ensuring a disciplined, immersive experience. > ### Key Characteristics > > * **Community-Driven:** Organized by campus communities or external entities. > * **Structured Learning:** Courses are designed with mandatory and optional lessons. > * **Strict Guidelines:** Attendance rules are enforced rigorously (e.g., missing two mandatory lessons may result in automatic removal). > * **Interactive Sessions:** Facilitators lead the sessions, ensuring an engaging and supportive learning environment. #### Resources Page : {% content-ref url="/spaces/5LRpBWH0oqKie8HA4liY/pages/1xjY3ZDHBSfw9YA7tJIx" %} [Study Jam](/activity-book/learning-activity/study-jam) {% endcontent-ref %} *** {% content-ref url="/pages/2QHhBBnDEwNKD9y253Ew" %} [For Organizers](/study-jams/study-jam-guides/for-organizers) {% endcontent-ref %} {% content-ref url="/pages/S5HLzUi3LgRVCF5Cffqi" %} [For Learners](/study-jams/study-jam-guides/for-learners) {% endcontent-ref %} {% content-ref url="/pages/oSlCFP9nhEDsslcKoToJ" %} [FAQs](/study-jams/faqs/frequently-asked-questions-faq) {% endcontent-ref %} *** # For Organizers ## Access the Study Jams Dashboard On your TinkerHub organizer dashboard, click **Study Jams** in the left sidebar to see a list of **Active**, **Draft**, and **Past** jams. {% stepper %} {% step %} **Active**: Shows ongoing or upcoming Study Jams. {% endstep %} {% step %} **Draft**: Contains Study Jams you’ve started but haven’t published. {% endstep %} {% step %} **Past**: Lists completed or archived Study Jams. {% endstep %} {% step %} **Create New**: Use this button to start a new Study Jam. {% endstep %} {% endstepper %}
Study Jams Koottam Dashboard
Study Jam Creation
Study Jam Course Overview Dashboard
Lesson Creation
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Hosts for the Course
# Orientation Program **Introduction** The TinkerHub Campus Orientation Program is designed to welcome and integrate new members into our vibrant tech community. Recognizing the unique timing of student arrivals, especially first-years, we've developed a two-phase approach that ensures all students have the opportunity to engage with TinkerHub from the start of their college journey. ### **Phase 1: Kickstarter - Chai and Puffs** The Kickstarter, affectionately named "Chai and Puffs," is our initial outreach event. This informal gathering takes place soon after the selection of campus leads and formation of the core team, typically before first-year students join. It's a relaxed, inviting session where existing students can learn about TinkerHub in a casual atmosphere. During this event, campus leads introduce TinkerHub's vision and mission, share highlights of past activities, and invite active members to tell their TinkerHub stories. The informal setting encourages questions and discussions, allowing potential members to get a feel for the community. Light refreshments (chai and snacks) add to the welcoming atmosphere, making it easy for students to connect and engage. ### Phase 2: Official Orientation The Official Orientation is a more comprehensive event held after first-year students join the college. This larger-scale program is designed to give all students, new and returning, a thorough introduction to TinkerHub and its opportunities. This event features a detailed presentation about TinkerHub, including its mission, structure, and ongoing projects. Interactive elements such as tech demos, mini-hackathons, or team-building exercises give students a hands-on taste of TinkerHub activities. A networking session allows new members to connect with the core team and senior members, fostering a sense of community from day one. The Official Orientation utilizes resources provided by the TinkerHub Foundation, including an orientation deck and activity playbook, ensuring consistency across campus communities while allowing for customization to each campus's unique culture. ### Orientation Day Structure The official TinkerHub orientation day is designed to immerse students in the TinkerHub experience. Here's how the day should unfold: 1. **Welcome and Introduction:** Start the day with a warm welcome from the campus lead and core team. Introduce TinkerHub's mission, vision, and the impact it has had on campuses across Kerala. This sets the tone for the day and gives students a clear understanding of what TinkerHub represents. 2. **TinkerHub Showcase:** Present a vibrant showcase of past TinkerHub projects, events, and achievements. This could include video montages, live demonstrations, or an exhibition of student-created projects. The goal is to inspire new members by showing them what's possible through TinkerHub. 3. **Maker Story Session**: Invite TinkerHub community alumni or a relatable maker to share their experiences and maker journey. This provides valuable perspectives on how TinkerHub can impact students' personal and professional growth. 4. **Community Building Activities:** Incorporate team-building exercises and icebreakers throughout the day. These activities help students connect with each other and start building the collaborative relationships that are central to the TinkerHub community. 5. **TinkerHub Programs and Opportunities Presentation:** Provide a comprehensive overview of TinkerHub's various programs, learning tracks, and opportunities available to members. This could include information on upcoming events, bootcamps, and how to get involved in ongoing projects. 6. **Q\&A and Open Discussion:** Allow ample time for questions and open discussion. This is an opportunity for students to clarify doubts, share ideas, and express their interests. 7. **Networking Session:** Conclude with a networking session where new members can interact with the core team, senior members, and each other in a more informal setting. This helps in fostering connections and making new members feel welcome in the community. 8. **Sign-Up and Next Steps:** End the day by guiding interested students through the sign-up process through Hub of TinkerHub app. Provide clear information on the next steps, upcoming meetings, and how they can start participating in TinkerHub activities. ### Follow-up and Engagement The orientation process doesn't end with the events themselves. Follow-up is crucial for maintaining the momentum generated during orientation. This includes collecting feedback from attendees, planning immediate post-orientation activities, and ensuring new members have clear pathways to get involved in TinkerHub projects and events. ### Measuring Impact To continually improve the orientation process, it's important to measure its success. This can be done through tracking attendance numbers, sign-up rates, feedback surveys, and engagement in follow-up activities. These metrics provide valuable insights for refining future orientation programs and ensuring they effectively welcome new members into the TinkerHub community. # Activity Template When creating a new activity, please use this template to document your event. This standardized format will help others understand your activity and potentially recreate it in the future. **Name**: A catchy, descriptive title for the activity. **Category**: Community Building / Learning Activity **Type**: The format of the activity Talk session / Workshop / Hackathon / Learning Program / Meetup **Summary - oneliner**: A brief, engaging sentence that captures the essence of the activity. **Purpose**: The main goal or objective of the activity. **How**: A concise explanation of how the activity will be conducted. **Expected outcome**: What participants should gain or achieve by the end of the activity. **How to measure impact**: Methods to evaluate the activity's success and participant learning. **Pre-event checklist**: Essential tasks to complete before the activity begins. **Post-event checklist**: Follow-up tasks to ensure the activity's impact is maximized. **Curated by**: Name or team responsible for designing and organizing the activity. **Ideal audience**: The target group that would benefit most from this activity. **Resource Links**: Useful references, tools, or materials related to the activity. # TinkerHub Brand Kit The following brand kit it to be used across all programs of TinkerHub. Primary ownership of handling brand kit and ensuring the same is used across campus program creatives is of the Outreach lead. ## [TinkerHub Brand Kit](https://www.figma.com/design/9h1OBzDGtC4HeMUlKNZ7G6/TinkerHub-Brand-kit?node-id=321-79\&p=f\&t=fIbSU6Qant6E5YuY-0) {% embed url="
](https://www.figma.com/design/9EE5TsdlvvbhAgrNgv7TOD/Tinkerhub-Campus-events?node-id=14-2\&t=DiSTilbh6wb76Us9-1) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- # Community Guidelines ### Introduction TinkerHub Foundation is a non-profit organisation which promotes the creation of tech-talent focused among youth, through equipping individuals with emerging technology skill sets, which would accelerate innovation within one's learning path, and make them future-ready. As a community that upholds the openness, inclusion and collaboration, we strive to provide a safe and positive experience for its members. The following guidelines aim to support TinkerHub community where all people should feel safe to participate, introduce new ideas and inspire others, regardless of: * Background * Family status * Gender * Gender identity or expression * Marital status * Sex * Sexual orientation * Native language * Age * Ability * Race and/or ethnicity * National origin * Socioeconomic status * Religion * Geographic location * Any other dimension of diversity TinkerHub Foundation expects it's our members to be following the code of conduct without any fail and uphold our core values like Openness, Collaboration, Inclusion and Participation. We gain strength from diversity and actively seek participation from those who enhance it. These guidelines exist to enable diverse individuals and groups to interact and collaborate to mutual advantage. This document outlines both expected and prohibited behaviour. ### **When and How to Use These Guidelines** These guidelines outline our behaviour expectations as members of the TinkerHub community in all TinkerHub activities - both Offline and Online. Your participation is contingent upon following these guidelines in all TinkerHub activities, including but not limited to: * Working in Community Spaces or Associated * Working with other Community Members and other participants virtually or co-located. * Representing TinkerHub at public events. * Representing TinkerHub in social media/virtual media (official accounts, staff accounts, personal accounts and platforms like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, Telegram, WhatsApp). * Participating in TinkerHub events, offsites and training. * Participating in TinkerHub-related forums, mailing lists, wikis, websites, chat channels, group or person-to-person meetings, and TinkerHub-related correspondence. * These guidelines work in conjunction with our Anti-Harassment/Discrimination Policies, which sets out protections for, and obligations of, TinkerHub Core Team. While these guidelines/code of conduct are specifically aimed at the smooth functioning of a community, we expect to facilitate healthy discussions around the inclusion and community members are more than welcome to suggest any changes if needed. ### **Expected Behaviour:** The following behaviours are expected of all TinkerHub Members: **Be Respectful** Value each other's ideas, styles and viewpoints. We may not always agree, but disagreement is no excuse for poor manners. Be open to different possibilities and being wrong. Be kind in all interactions and communications, especially when debating the merits of different options. Be aware of your impact and how intense interactions may be affecting people. Be direct, constructive and positive. Take responsibility for your impact and your mistakes -- if someone says they have been harmed through your words or actions, listen carefully, apologize sincerely, and correct the behaviour going forward. **Be Direct but Professional** We are likely to have some discussions about if and when criticism is respectful and when it's not. We must be able to speak directly when we disagree and when we think we need to improve. We cannot withhold hard truths. Doing so respectfully is hard, doing so when others don't seem to be listening is harder, and hearing such comments when one is the recipient can be even harder still. We need to be honest and direct, as well as respectful. **Be Inclusive** Seek diverse perspectives. Diversity of views and of people on teams powers innovation, even if it is not always comfortable. Encourage all voices. Help new perspectives be heard and listen actively. If you find yourself dominating a discussion, it is especially important to step back and encourage other voices to join in. Be aware of how much time is taken up by dominant members of the group. Provide alternative ways to contribute or participate when possible. Be inclusive of everyone in an interaction, respecting and facilitating people's participation whether they are: * Remote (on video or phone) * Not native language speakers * Coming from a different culture * Using pronouns other than "he" or "she" * Living in a different time zone * Facing other challenges to participate Think about how you might facilitate alternative ways to contribute or participate. If you find yourself dominating a discussion, step back. Make way for other voices and listen actively to them. **Understand Different Perspectives** Our goal should not be to "win" every disagreement or argument. A more productive goal is to be open to ideas that make our own ideas better. Strive to be an example of inclusive thinking. "Winning" is when different perspectives make our work richer and stronger. **Appreciate and Accommodate Our Similarities and Differences** TinkerHub Members come from many cultures and backgrounds. Cultural differences can encompass everything from official religious observances to personal habits to clothing. Be respectful of people with different cultural practices, attitudes and beliefs. Work to eliminate your own biases, prejudices and discriminatory practices. Think of others' needs from their point of view. Use preferred titles (including pronouns) and the appropriate tone of voice. Respect people's right to privacy and confidentiality. Be open to learning from and educating others as well as educating yourself; it is unrealistic to expect Community Members to know the cultural practices of every ethnic and cultural group, but everyone needs to recognize one's native culture is only part of positive interactions. **Lead by Example** By matching your actions with your words, you become a person others want to follow. Your actions influence others to behave and respond in ways that are valuable and appropriate for our organizational outcomes. Design your community and your work for inclusion. Hold yourself and others accountable for inclusive behaviours. Make decisions based on the highest good for TinkerHub's mission. ### **Behaviours That Will Not Be Tolerated:** The following behaviours are considered to be unacceptable under these guidelines. **Violence and Threats of Violence** Violence and threats of violence are not acceptable - online or offline. This includes incitement of violence toward any individual, including encouraging a person to commit self-harm. This also includes posting or threatening to post other people's personally identifying information online. **Personal Attacks** Conflicts will inevitably arise, but frustration should never turn into a personal attack. It is not okay to insult, demean or belittle others. Attacking someone for their opinions, beliefs and ideas is not acceptable. It is important to speak directly when we disagree and when we think we need to improve, but such discussions must be conducted respectfully and professionally, remaining focused on the issue at hand. **Derogatory Language** Hurtful or harmful language related to: * Background * Family status * Gender * Gender identity or expression * Marital status * Sex * Sexual orientation * Native language * Age * Ability * Race and/or ethnicity * National origin * Socioeconomic status * Religion * Geographic location * Other attributes is not acceptable. This includes deliberately referring to someone by a gender that they do not identify with, and/or questioning the legitimacy of an individual's gender identity. If you are unsure if a word is derogatory, don't use it. This also includes repeated subtle and/or indirect discrimination; when asked to stop, stop the behaviour in question. **Unwelcome Sexual Attention or Physical Contact:** Unwelcome sexual attention or unwelcome physical contact is not acceptable. This includes sexualized comments, jokes or imagery in interactions, communications or presentation materials, as well as inappropriate touching, groping, or sexual advances. This includes touching a person without permission, including sensitive areas such as their hair, pregnant stomach, mobility device (wheelchair, scooter, etc) or tattoos. This also includes physically blocking or intimidating another person. Physical contact or simulated physical contact (such as emojis like "kiss") without affirmative consent is not acceptable. This includes sharing or distribution of sexualized images or text. **Disruptive Behavior** Sustained disruption of events, forums, or meetings, including talks and presentations, will not be tolerated. This includes: * 'Talking over' or 'heckling' speakers. * Drinking alcohol to excess or using recreational drugs to excess, or pushing others to do so. * Making derogatory comments about those who abstain from alcohol or other substances, pushing people to drink, talking about their abstinence or preferences to others, or pressuring them to drink - physically or through jeering. * Otherwise influencing crowd actions that cause hostility in the session. * Influencing Unacceptable Behavior * We will treat influencing or leading such activities the same way we treat the activities themselves, and thus the same consequences apply. ### **How to engage in Healthy Discussions & Debates?** The following sets of guidelines or 'ground rules' is created to make sure that we as a community engage in healthy conversations about various topics from time to time. * **Our primary commitment is to learn from each other.** We will listen to each other and not talk at each other. We acknowledge differences amongst us in backgrounds, skills, interests, and values. We realize that it is these very differences that will increase our awareness and understanding through this process. * **Supporting Inclusivity is our vision.** We want to create an atmosphere for open, honest exchange between all members. Be careful not to generalize about people as we do recognize and/or remember that we have different backgrounds. Consider who gets left out, who is marginalized, under-represented, or erased by particular claims. So, for example, we could say, "That's an image of an ideal family," or we could say, "That may be an image of an ideal family for many middle-class, religiously superior(caste), heterosexual people." * **We will not demean, devalue, or "put down" people** for their experiences, lack of experiences, or difference in interpretation of those experiences. Don't interrupt or engage in private conversations while others are speaking. Be aware of messages you may be communicating with your body language or virtual tools (Emoji's, GIFs, Meme's etc) & expressions in an online environment. We each have an obligation to actively combat the myths and stereotypes about our own groups and other groups so that we can break down the walls which prohibit individual development, group progress and cooperation and group gain. * **We will trust that people are always doing the best they can. We will assume that people are always doing the best they can, both to learn the material and to behave in non-biased and multi culturally productive ways. As an open community we acknowledge the freedom of speech but be mindful that it has to be aligning with the larger vision of the community. Be careful about how you use humor or irony during the discussions. Keep in mind that we don't all find the same things funny - sometimes benign humour can be offensive too and hence refrain from such temptations.** * **Challenge the idea and not the person.** If we wish to challenge something that has been said, we will challenge the idea or the practice referred to, not the individual sharing this idea or practice. If you are uncertain about someone else's approach, ask a question to explore areas of uncertainty. Listen respectfully to how and why the approach could work. * **Speak your discomfort.** Listen and also share. Share briefly from your own experiences when appropriate, rather than simply your positions. If something is bothering you, please share this with the group. Often our emotional reactions to this process offer the most valuable learning opportunities. * **Sensitive Topics need not be avoided**. We acknowledge that sexism, classism, racism, heterosexism, and other forms of discrimination (gender, religion, age, ability, language, education, size, geographic location etc.) exist and may surface from time to time.We acknowledge that one of the meanings of sexism, classism, racism is that we have been systematically taught misinformation about our own group and members of devalued groups (this is true for both dominant and dominated group members). The same is true about elitism and other forms of prejudice or bias -- we are taught misinformation about others and ourselves. When we are discussing topics like race, religion, gender, oppression, minorities, rule of thumb is always let the minorities speak for themselves. None of us have rights to co-opt any movements as we can only empathise what they have been through. So start understanding the issue from people who face it rather than assuming and making statements. Try to listen and learn from them before positioning yourself as an ally. * **Step Up, Step Back.** Be mindful of taking up much more space than others. On the same note, empower yourself to speak up when others are dominating the conversation. Try not to silence yourself out of concern for what others will think about what you say. If you have an idea, don't wait for someone else to say it; say it yourself. If you have a tendency to contribute often, give others the opportunity to speak. * **Accountability & Responsibility**: Ask Questions more than making statements. And make sure to use "I" statements to state your views. For example, "I notice that when I'm with my friends we pay attention differently" is more constructive than "When you're with friends you pay attention differently." Let's assume that we all will be having civil conversations. But any chances of discussions turning into a violation of code of conduct, could be prevented by right intervention. An apology is served right for the larger community to show the accountability for one's actions. ### **Reporting** If you believe you're experiencing unacceptable behaviour that will not be tolerated as outlined above, please make sure to report to us via