Meetings

Be one of the first ones to join the meeting as they would be the one coordinating with the attendees and carrying the meeting forward

Have the agenda document open on a side to read topics from, add names to the roster and make notes/summaries/action-items discussed on

Make sure that all the points from the slated agenda are discussed during the meeting and that the action items, if any, are accounted for

Ensure that the attendees feel comfortable enough and get a fair amount of time to put their points forward and that their points are considered

Act as an arbiter to settle disputes, if there are any, among the attendees and try to reach middle ground and avoid conflicts.

Keep track of "raised hands" in order to ensure that every attendee in the meeting gets their opportunity to speak in the order of "hands raised"

Let the team know well in advance if they are not able to make it to the meeting that they volunteered to chair for to help get a replacement

Attempt to prevent diversions in the meeting, be they caused by either themselves or the attendees and try to maximally utilize the meeting time

Motivate communication in an accessible manner - so folks who are unwilling to use camera and/or microphone should be encouraged to use the chat

Conduct an in-meeting poll, discussion, opinions, debate in an unbiased and fair manner to all the attendees to avoid any possible conflicts

Feel comfortable to pass on their turn to someone else mid-meeting, should something important come up or if they cannot attend anymore

Avoid a survivorship bias by passing on the updates shared and progresses made on the meeting to the wider community using relevant channels

Make notes on the developments made in a meeting, summarize discussions, plans and action items, or find an assignee from the attendees to do it

Ensure that they are attending the meeting from a noise-free and disturbance-free environment and are not distracted by any other work or social media

Use an accessible and simple vocabulary to convey their statements for maximum participation, and wait enough after each point for attendees to reflect

Please focus on listening, and on appreciating what others are trying to say, not only on what you are hearing.

Wherever possible, please refrain from multitasking on email or social media and strive to remain fully present and tuned in to what others are saying and feeling.

Please assume best intent in everyone’s comments and strive to keep a constructive tone in your own.

Please use simple, accessible language. In particular, please avoid jargon and acronyms, so that all may fully participate.

When you speak, please make just one point and then let others speak. We want everyone to have an equal chance to speak. In a group of "n" people, speak no more than "1/nth" of the time.

Please speak for yourself when making comments, using "I". Please don’t speak for the assembled group by speaking as "we".

Help us be mindful of the schedule and stay on time; we anticipate many people will have much they want to say, but please support us in moving the dialog forward.

Please indicate you want to speak by raising your hand on video or with the button in Jitsi Meet; if you are not able to use or raise your hand, feel free to speak up but please try not to interrupt others.

Please stay muted when you are not speaking.

Please be mindful of background noise and join the call from a quiet location. Construction sites, windy gardens and non-quarantined internet cafes do not qualify as quiet locations.

All parents and caregivers shall enjoy an irrevocable "background/foreground kid and dependent noise" exception at all times, but muting etiquette still applies.