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Governance: Difference between revisions
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{{ | {{Policy | ||
| | |Description=Decisionmaking process at neuromatch.social | ||
| | |Contributor=Jonny Saunders | ||
|Completion Status= | |Approval Status=Approved | ||
| | |Completion Status=Ongoing | ||
| | |Loomio Thread=https://loomio.neuromatch.social/d/N3JMkiod/-proposal-governance | ||
|Date Proposed=2023-01-30 | |||
|Date Approved=2023-02-13 | |||
|Topic=Governance,Proposals,Discussions,Voting | |||
}} | }} | ||
Up to [[Part Of::Mastodon]] | Up to [[Part Of::Mastodon]] | ||
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See [[:Category:Administrative_Object]] | See [[:Category:Administrative_Object]] | ||
The instance is governed by several different types of [[Administrative Objects]], each of which | The instance is governed by several different types of [[Administrative Objects]], each of which must have, and exists as a wiki page with a particular [[Special:Categories|category]], which in turn has a [[mediawikiwiki:Extension:PageSchemas|page schema]]<ref>ie. a [[Special:Templates|template]] that sets [[Special:Properties|properties]] and a [[Special:Forms|form]] for interacting with it</ref>. | ||
=== [[Mastodon/Bylaws|Bylaws]] === | === [[Mastodon/Bylaws|Bylaws]] === | ||
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<graphviz format="svg" class="img-responsive" > | <graphviz format="svg" class="img-responsive" > | ||
digraph { | digraph { | ||
ranksep=0. | ranksep=0.24 | ||
scale=0.25 | scale=0.25 | ||
// splines="ortho" | // splines="ortho" | ||
// items | // items | ||
// idea[ | // idea[ | ||
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=== Proposals === | === Proposals === | ||
Proposals should be made according to the schema currently in place for a [[Category:Proposal]]. In general this should include: | ''See also: [[Making A Proposal]]'' | ||
Proposals should be made according to the schema currently in place for a [[:Category:Proposal]]. In general this should include: | |||
* '''Sponsor''' - If more people than the person posting the thread are involved in the proposal, they should be named | * '''Sponsor''' - If more people than the person posting the thread are involved in the proposal, they should be named | ||
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** The [[Mastodon/Financial WG|Financial WG]] should be able to provide guidance on the feasibility of any proposal given the current state of the [[Mastodon/Budget]]. | ** The [[Mastodon/Financial WG|Financial WG]] should be able to provide guidance on the feasibility of any proposal given the current state of the [[Mastodon/Budget]]. | ||
** If a proposal has some variable cost ("How much should we spend on x this month"), that is indication that a proposal needed further discussion, but it is always possible to propose the high-end of a cost range and use less than was proposed. | ** If a proposal has some variable cost ("How much should we spend on x this month"), that is indication that a proposal needed further discussion, but it is always possible to propose the high-end of a cost range and use less than was proposed. | ||
* '''Specific Description''' - The description of what is being proposed, including any existing policies or etc. that will be changed. | * '''Specific Description''' - The description of what is being proposed, including any existing policies or etc. that will be changed. The content of a proposal is very general, as it is the basic unit of decisionmaking - a proposal can implement a new [[Mastodon/Policies|policy]], [[Mastodon/Bylaws|bylaw]], [[Mastodon/Norms|norm]], or approve some action like merging a [[Mastodon/Hacking|hack]], among others. | ||
* '''Links to Context''' - Any links to preceding discussions or relevant examples | * '''Links to Context''' - Any links to preceding discussions or relevant examples | ||
Loomio threads should | '''Loomio threads''' should | ||
* | * Start with <code>[Proposal]: (proposal title)</code> and be tagged as a Proposal | ||
* Tag any people or working groups that would be relevant to the discussion | * Tag any people or working groups that would be relevant to the discussion | ||
* Contain a poll that allows people to vote on the proposal (the type of poll will vary depending on the proposal) | * Contain a poll that allows people to vote on the proposal (the type of poll will vary depending on the proposal) | ||
** The poll should stay open at least as long as the relevant [[Property:Voting Period|voting period]] | ** The poll should stay open at least as long as the relevant [[Property:Voting Period|voting period]] | ||
** A thread can contain multiple polls if there are multiple independent components of a proposal. Polls should be split at the discretion of the proposer, but other members might ask to split a proposal to eg. avoid a block. | |||
=== After A Proposal === | |||
* Update any relevant wiki pages | |||
** If the proposal created or modified a [[Policies|policy]], it should have a wiki page with a filled [[Template:Policy|policy template]]. | |||
* Announce the result using the relevant [[Special Accounts|special account]], if one exists. | |||
* If a proposal requires a member or working group to take some specific action, distribute that labor accordingly | |||
=== Emergency Proposal === | === Emergency Proposal === | ||
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Working groups have '''responsibilities''' and accompanying '''bounded discretion''' to meet those responsibilities. Conversely, in order to exercise the power implied by the discretion of a working group, a member should take some part in the work of the group's responsibilities: if one wants to second guess the work of a working group, a member should either be doing some of that work, or else be willing to describe how that work should be done differently as part of a structured proposal. | Working groups have '''responsibilities''' and accompanying '''bounded discretion''' to meet those responsibilities. Conversely, in order to exercise the power implied by the discretion of a working group, a member should take some part in the work of the group's responsibilities: if one wants to second guess the work of a working group, a member should either be doing some of that work, or else be willing to describe how that work should be done differently as part of a structured proposal. | ||
Working groups should be established by a proposal that defines each of these three components: | |||
* How it decides its membership or decides who gets any sort of privileged access or power | |||
* What specific responsibilities the group has | |||
* What the bounds on its discretionary activity are | |||
=== Membership === | === Membership === | ||
Membership in any working group should be fluid: in most cases, a member needs only volunteer for a working group in order to be considered a part of it. By volunteering to be a part of a working group, a member agrees to undertake some proportion of the WG's responsibilities, depending on the WG's operating practices. | Membership in any working group should be fluid: in most cases, a member needs only volunteer for a working group in order to be considered a part of it. By volunteering to be a part of a working group, a member agrees to undertake some proportion of the WG's responsibilities, depending on the WG's operating practices. | ||
=== Responsibilities === | === Responsibilities === | ||
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=== Compensation === | === Compensation === | ||
[[Mastodon/TODO]] - We should compensate working group members. | [[Mastodon/TODO]] - We should compensate working group members. This is left undefined at the time of proposal, but should be revisited later | ||
== Voting == | == Voting == | ||
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''See also: [[Consensus]]'' | ''See also: [[Consensus]]'' | ||
Neuromatch.social decisions are made with a modified form of consensus for large asynchronous groups. | Neuromatch.social decisions are made with a modified form of consensus for large asynchronous groups. There is no minimum vote required for quorum: all members are encouraged to vote in all decisions, but since it is impossible to define how many members are active, there is no sensible threshold that can be set. | ||
Voting in a [[Consensus]] system is not like voting in a majoritarian system: | |||
* Rather than voting for the thing that would be best for you, you are voting for what is best for the instance. | |||
* Rather than the proposal being the starting point of a decision which then takes effect if a majority approve, the proposal is the endpoint in a process where the membership will have negotiated and discussed the form of the proposal and tried to address all needs beforehand. | |||
* Rather than voting "no," we think in terms of '''"blocking"''' a proposal: decisions should be made with the rough consensus of the whole instance, which is why the thresholds for approval are much lower than 50%. In smaller settings, a proposal can be blocked by a single person. | |||
The purpose for thinking in terms of consensus and blocking rather than majoritarian voting is to prevent a tyranny of the majority that might overlook the needs of marginalized or other groups in a numerical minority. | |||
In order to prevent every decision from devolving into an academic deadlock: | |||
* Members should be able to influence the particular structure of a proposal prior to a vote, rather than deliberate its details in the voting process. One should only "block" a proposal a few times during their tenure in a governance body, and any block should be an indication that the process has failed, rather than the proposal has failed. | * Members should be able to influence the particular structure of a proposal prior to a vote, rather than deliberate its details in the voting process. One should only "block" a proposal a few times during their tenure in a governance body, and any block should be an indication that the process has failed, rather than the proposal has failed. | ||
* Members that block should - with some exceptions like blocking an action that would be personally harmful to you - participate in the followup process to meet the needs that the OP was trying to meet with their proposal: blocking means you should take on work. | |||
* Members should resist the urge to micromanage and leave the granularity of decisions to the people that will be doing the work implied by any given proposal. We should cultivate a culture of trust in one another: believe your fellow members know what they're doing, and if you have input, you should be ready to volunteer alongside them. | * Members should resist the urge to micromanage and leave the granularity of decisions to the people that will be doing the work implied by any given proposal. We should cultivate a culture of trust in one another: believe your fellow members know what they're doing, and if you have input, you should be ready to volunteer alongside them. | ||
=== Thresholds === | === Thresholds === | ||
Each type of [[#Actions|Action]] has its own threshold for consensus that must be met in order to pass. Consensus thresholds are higher than a simple majority to encourage all members to work together to structure policies that work for the entire instance. If a proposal's poll(s) pass the relevant approval threshold, then the policy or action described by the proposal | |||
=== Non-Binary Decisions === | |||
If a proposal needs to make a decision that isn't a yes or no decision, then the following poll types can be used in loomio: | |||
* Ranked Choice - for deciding among an array of possible options | |||
* Score poll - for deciding on a continuous value like eg. a consensus threshold | |||
In this case, the poll should be accompanied by a second that allows members to block the proposal. Otherwise, the winner of the ranked choice or score poll is the result of the proposal. | |||
== See also == | == See also == | ||
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* [[Consensus]] | * [[Consensus]] | ||
* [https://www.ica.coop/en/whats-co-op/co-operative-identity-values-principles ICA Cooperative identity, values and principles] | * [https://www.ica.coop/en/whats-co-op/co-operative-identity-values-principles ICA Cooperative identity, values and principles] | ||
{{Project | |||
|Part Of=Mastodon, Mastodon/Bootstrapping | |||
|Contributors=Jonny Saunders | |||
|Completion Status=In Progress | |||
|Active Status=Active | |||
|Approval Status=Provisional | |||
}} | |||
[[Category:Mastodon]] | [[Category:Mastodon]] | ||