Category Archives: Community Management
Neighborly Needs and Quandaries
Front Porch Forum staff work seven days a week to review the flow of postings submitted by members across Vermont. While challenging content appears occasionally, the vast majority of submissions are simple exchanges among neighbors. And many times each day we see gems that leave a smile. Here’s what yesterday’s shift looked like to one FPF staffer…
“Lost pets and wallets reunited with owners, snow shoveling and mud season angels, and tires for sale are all commonplace on FPF. We’re used to that. Then, you come across these really interesting postings… Like today, I saw ones about bat sightings as a sign of spring, someone trying to figure out what to do with a WWII uniform, and a story about losing a peacock (which — no joke — also happened to a different member last week!). I’m constantly surprised at what’s going on out there.”
When you give folks a place to communicate their neighborly needs and quandaries, they can really deliver!
FPF Members Prepare for COVID-19
Vermonters and Upstate New Yorkers are turning to their local FPF to share information and mobilize efforts to help their neighbors prepare for COVID-19. Keep an eye out for new information from your local public officials, updates on area events and business practices, and keep in touch with your neighbors to see how you can help each other to be resilient during this time.
Here are how some neighbors are reaching out in light of COVID-19:
“Hi Neighbors,
We don’t know how much coronavirus is already in our community, but its time to be prepared.
Two of the most important things you can do are:
- -WASH YOUR HANDS frequently and well
- -If you feel at all unwell- STAY HOME.
The 2nd point, self-isolation, can be a really big sacrifice.
I think I speak for our community when I say “thank you” in advance for doing this, and that we want to support you in doing the right thing.
So please, if you need to self-isolate, reach out to your neighbors, through tools like FPF. Some things we might be able to provide for each other might include:
- -Grocery Delivery
- -Netflix Passwords
- -FaceTime Check-ins / playing online games.
If you need to stay isolated @ home and there’s anything at all that might make it easier for you to do that, please don’t hesitate to ask your neighbors.” • Ben in Burlington, Vt.
“Hi, Richmond! Still very much hoping that this does not affect our town. However, if you or someone you know is self-quarantining due to concerns about coronavirus, your community is available to help several people have expressed interest in assisting with deliveries of groceries and other essentials.
In that case, please feel free to get in touch. If you know someone who needs assistance and doesn’t use email, they can reach me by phone.” • Jen in Richmond, Vt.
“Hey neighbors, let’s start using this group as a way to support each other during the coronavirus pandemic. Those of us who are able to provide assistance can let that be known (I can!). And, as voluntary and mandatory social distancing increases, folks who should stay home (anyone over 65, anyone with a compromised immune system, anyone showing signs of illness) can post here with questions or requests for assistance. Why not run a few errands for our neighbors, right? Let’s all take good care of each other.” • Kristen in Burlington, Vt.
Looking for information and resources to help prepare for COVID-19? See this informational video approved by the Vermont Department of Health:
Coronavirus PSA – open captions
Other resources on COVID-19:
Front Porch Forum is a free, local resource that can help neighbors to stay informed and band together. Don’t forget to check in to see how your community is working together to get ahead of COVID-19.
“Go West, Young Company: Front Porch Forum Expands Into New York State”
Front Porch Forum has made its first significant out-of-state expansion and is now serving parts of New York, where about 1,500 members have joined so far.
“Now the free, hyperlocal social network has 170,000 members around Vermont and is striking into new territory: upstate New York. In June, the company launched its first major expansion outside of the Green Mountain State, into New York’s Washington County, a rural stretch that borders Vermont in the Slate Valley; and Warren County, which contains Glens Falls. ”
Read the full story by Molly Walsh of Seven Days here.
Fighting Online Bullying
From Micah Sifry in Civicist 1st Post today
Katy Steinmetz reports for Time magazine on how Instagram is trying to use AI to reduce how much the platform is used for cyberbullying, but as she notes, “it’s much easier to recognize when someone in a photo is not wearing pants than it is to recognize the broad array of behavior that might be considered bullying.” Oh, and the person in charge of this whole effort, Adam Mosseri, previously was in charge of the development of Facebook NewsFeed, so this should inspire confidence. (How does your AI read sarcasm, he asked.)
One problem with Steinmetz’s article is that she accepts the frame of all the blitzscaled platforms, which is that connecting the entire world online requires massively open platforms, unfortunately creating massive toxic effects. But cyberbullying isn’t, as Steinmetz writes, “a problem that crops up anywhere the people congregate online.” It’s a problem that crops up wherever a platform has been optimized for engagement over any other value, and where there is limited to no human moderation. For example, a user of Front Porch Forum in Vermont, where each instance is centered on a neighborhood of roughly 1000 households and a paid part-time moderator helps keep the conversation civil, does not experience cyberbullying, as a recent study found.
Helping DPW crews identify potholes
“This has been a real tough winter for streets and sidewalks. The weather is soon to get warmer and DPW crews are already filling in the worst potholes. But… there are miles of street. They need the public to act as their eyes. DPW reads FPF and the hazards you identify will get filled in.
Lets start a thread that results in the top offenders identified and addressed ASAP. I reported the pothole that shakes shocks as well as the significant dip in front of the library that savvy drivers try to dodge. Please post the street and block of your nominee(s) so that DPW crews can get to it sooner than later. Help us all out.” • Richard in Montpelier
“The Duxbury Selectboard in partnership with our Highway Foreman, will be sharing updates about road work, conditions, equipment updates and crew news to help keep everyone informed about what’s happening on our town roads.” • Erin in Duxbury
Front Porch Forum members also share their thanks to town road crews:
“The road crews have had a crazy winter to deal with! Snow, ice, mud, repeat…Potholes, frozen culverts, flooding. They do what they have to do every day …Thanks to all for your determination everyday.” • Richard in Hyde Park
“Thank you for sending the plow truck this am – it was appreciated!!” • Sharon in Argyle
Vermonters gear up for lively discussion at Town Meeting day
Front Porch Forum members make good use of their local FPF for upcoming Town Meeting Day.
“Several years ago, at a Town Meeting, I remember a very lively discussion among folks who had had enough of the high vehicle repair bills. A decision was made to instruct the town to pay for better quality gravel, with the slimy silt washed out of it. The Road crew embarked on a multi-year project of rebuilding our roads and now we can travel in the spring without worry of sinking into the muck and mire.
I love Town Meeting for just this reason. We can get together as a group and make recommendations to the town. I know that not everyone can come every year, but it points out how important it can be to show up at least once in a while when there is an issue that is really important.
See you at Town Meeting next Tuesday. If you can’t come, make sure you read the Town Report and if you have comments or questions, go to the Selectboard meeting.” • Marie in Richmond
Post and look to your local FPF for info on articles for discussion at Town Meeting Day! And remember to vote!
Public officials reach out to hear from residents about zoning changes
“I am the Town Planner and have recently been posting quite a bit about some zoning changes that the Planning Commission is working on adopting. The public has asked to be more informed about what is going on, so I have been posting information regarding planning issues, meetings, hearings, updates, etc. This has been working really well and I really appreciate having the opportunity to communicate via FPF. You all are a great asset to our community.” • Katherine in Jericho
Are your reaching out to your town officials through Front Porch Forum? They want to hear from you!
Decline of open web in favor of social media… “grim consequences”
Iran’s “Blogfather,” Hossein Derakhshan, in a recent interview on the NiemanStoryboard…
“The decline of the web in favor of social media entails grim consequences. Hyperlinks were the founding principle of the web; it secured a diversity, nonlinearity, decentralization and interactivity, which made the web so powerful. But social media’s very philosophy and monetization strategy, or the stream, cannot be friendly to hyperlinks, since they do not want their users to leave their space. This new environment, in addition to the currently dominant algorithms, which favors popularity and now-ness rather than diversity and quality, is worse than television in its potential damage to representative democratic societies, where majority is supposed to take informed decisions without jeopardizing minorities. The rise of identity politics and intolerance for diversity is directly linked to the current form of the internet. This is the deepest shock of this transition to me since my release. This shift from what I call books-internet to TV-internet.”
Unlike some other social media platforms, Front Porch Forum doesn’t aim to lure people in and hold their attention 24/7. FPF, for many Vermonters, is a 10-minute-a-day habit that leads to more face-to-face conversations with neighbors… and to friendlier, more informed, and more resilient local communities. Hyperlinks in FPF postings are an important part of that.
FPF is hiring… Online Community Manager
Do you love helping neighbors connect? Do you value a strong sense of community among neighbors?
Front Porch Forum is looking to hire a reliable, organized, and self-motivated addition to our highly collaborative Vermont-based team.
Learn more today and apply by March 24, 2017.
Windsor Front Porch Forum taking off!
“Front Porch Forum is a wonderful resource for community involvement! The more members there are, the better it gets. Tell your friends about it and ask them to join!”
• Thomas, Windsor FPF
It’s wonderful to see what a difference one motivated volunteer can make. Thomas started spreading the word in his town recently, and lots of neighbors are responding. Do the same in your area. Here are some ideas and resources that have worked elsewhere.
About Blog
Ghost of Midnight is an online journal about fostering community within neighborhoods, with a special focus on Front Porch Forum (FPF). My wife, Valerie, and I founded FPF in 2006... read more
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