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Communication Working Group/Volunteer Manual

From OpenStreetMap Foundation

Short and Sweet

This is the short version and reading everything here is enough to do the job.

Links at the bottom of each section point to fuller guides for more experienced people who want more details.

Questions, suggestions and corrections: communication@osmfoundation.org

What CWG does

We tell OSM's story to the world. That's it; that's the whole job.

The one thing that matters:

  • One blog post a month.
  • One social media post a week.
  • Both are minimums, not targets. You can do more, but consistent presence every week beats brilliance.

Everything below exists to make that easy, not to add more on top of it.

For more detail, click through to the page on Media Planning.

What we post about

There are Five rough categories. Don't overthink which one something fits into:

  • Project news : infrastructure, tech updates, outages.
  • Community stories: mappers, local events, humanitarian work. The most creative pillar.
  • Board news: elections, governance, transparency.
  • Fundraising: campaigns, corporate donor news.
  • Corporate members: new members, contributions.

For a fuller breakdown with examples: Content Pillars

Where we post

Our main channels, in rough order of effort-to-value:

  • Blog (blog.openstreetmap.org): the official voice. Slower, more careful, most weight.
  • Mastodon: active OSM community, warm engagement.
  • X/Twitter: reach, mirrors Mastodon content.
  • Facebook: casual and local-community audience.
  • Instagram: visual content, maps, photos.
  • LinkedIn: professional/institutional audience, formal tone.

Also in use, lower priority: Community Forum, Reddit, Pinterest, Bluesky, WhatsApp/Telegram/Signal groups (community-run, not centrally managed).

For more details see the full channel list with notes: Channels

Don't just post. You can amplify too. Reposting good content from local chapters, mappers, and partners counts. You don't have to write everything yourself. Try to stay in touch with several community channels.

  • How a blog post happens
  1. One person shepherds it start to finish. Open a GitLab issue so the group can discuss it.
  2. Get ideas from GitLab issues tagged "blog idea," or ask the group.
  3. Write it. Add the standard footer. Consult the group.
  4. Request translation if needed.
  5. Request a visual if needed.
  6. Publish via WordPress.
  7. Share to social, add to the OSM Wiki news box.
  8. Check comments at ~day 5–8 and again at ~day 21.

Full process with screenshots and edge cases: [link: Blog Process — full guide]

The rules, short version

Handle with care rule

There are two types of enquiries that present a high risk to the movement if they are not handled correctly. Please be cautious when handling these two categories:

  • Press enquiries: Never reply alone. Always check with the group first, even for routine-looking questions. Templates exist for common cases of press enquiries. Always ask. Don't improvise. If the press is interested in a topic, we might also write about it.
  • Diplomatic or Government enquiries: Don't answer these. Forward the query unanswered to the Board at board@osmfoundation.org There may be an interesting story behind the enquiry so stay in touch with the Board.

Write Responsibly Rules

  • Real humans write the final draft. AI can help you think, but should not replace your voice.
  • Post consistently. Regularity is important.
  • If you can't cover something you committed to, say so early.
  • Credit photos properly.
  • Ask before quoting anyone's unpublished writing.
  • Got a conflict of interest? Say so before you write, not after.
  • Prefer open-source tools where realistic. Not always possible. that's fine.

How we work

  • Fortnightly meeting: We have a fortnightly (every two weeks) meeting on the video app BigBlueButton. The meetings will be as short as possible, with a 60 minute maximum. The link is: https://osmvideo.cloud68.co/user/dor-mt1-8ei-26t
  • Matrix: real-time chat, public room. The link is https://matrix.to/#/#OSM-CWG2.0:matrix.org Most people use the app "Element" to chat on Matrix.
  • email: Communications has an email group. communications@osmfoundation.org
  • GitLab: https://gitlab.com/osmfoundation/cwg for issues, tickets, wiki, everything tracked here.
  • Decisions: whoever's doing the work decides, meeting or matrix chat is a sounding board. Anything that might commit the Foundation publicly on a sensitive topic must go to the Board liaisons first.

Roles — the short version

Chair

The Chair keeps the group moving. Runs meetings, checks in on people, makes sure tasks have an owner. Keeps all the work in their head. The Chair is a Leader not a boss. Nobody has to do what the Chair says, the job is leading and making people want to support the work.

Secretary

The Secretary takes minutes, tracks the member list, chases stalled action items, knows where everything lives, sets meetings, helps members find resources.

CWG Member

CWG Members does at least one concrete skilled thing (writing, design, translation, posting). Members should show up to meetings or say when you can't. That's genuinely most of it.

Chair, Secretary, Member Roles - The full length version

Full role descriptions, including what each role is and isn't can be found here: CWG Membership Roles

Getting access

Who currently holds what access isn't listed here — it changes, and a manual that names people goes stale fast. Ask the Chair or Secretary for the current access register.

What you'll likely need, once accepted:

  • GitLab invitation
  • Matrix room invitation
  • Mailing list membership
  • Blog account (when you're actually writing for it)
  • Canva / Buffer (when appropriate)
  • Social media posting access (when appropriate)

Access to funds is a separate process, contact the Chair of the Finance and Fundraising Committee or the Treasurer for details.

Joining and leaving

  • To join: email communication@osmfoundation.org with your name/username, your affiliations, and why you want in. A member volunteers as your point of contact, seven-day window for objections, then you're in. Rejections are almost always about affiliation balance, not about you.
  • Taking a break: tell the Chair. No minimum activity required.
  • Leaving: tell the Chair, hand off anything open. You'll be moved to former-member status, taken off channels and lists, thanked publicly. Everyone leaves eventually; that's normal, and saying thank you properly is always the right call.

Full process: [link: Joining and Leaving — full guide]

Links

For more detail:

  • Content Pillars — full guide
  • Channels — full guide
  • Blog Process — full guide
  • Roles and Responsibilities — full guide
  • Joining and Leaving — full guide
  • How to Plan a Media Campaign — full guide (in progress)

Policy pages (these override this manual if they disagree):

Contact:

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