Community Groups
community groups are formed from a group of people in a local area (geographical, workplace, virtual with common specific interests) who meet on a regular basis to help each other with the 23 (research data) Things program.
A local community catch up can take any form that the local community want it to be.
Some groups have met each week and to do the Thing together and then have a brief discussion. Others have done their own Thing, then they come together for coffee, cake and a chat.
Community Group meetings can be low key - it doesn't have to be anything elaborate. Community groups could run a bit like book groups... do the task then talk about it together. Maybe your group could even ask someone local with a bit of expertise in a particular area to talk to the group about the Thing.
Workplace groups might want to include a discussion on if and how they could introduce a particular Thing as a new concept in the organization.
MeetUp
MeetUp is an online community group where those who wish to can post comments in response to Thing activities and ask questions to others in the community to answer.
During 2016 there was a Discussion Board for each stream of each Thing. MeetUp Discussion Boards are open to registered MeetUp members only (but it's free to join as a regular member). We are working to get an archive of the MeetUp discussions to be included on the ANDS website.
Credly badges
Credly badges are simply a digital ‘reward’ for completing a Thing. You can add badges to your LinkedIn profile, blogs and other social media to indicate your involvement in the 23 (research data) Things program.
More information about Open Badges
You can claim all 23 Thing badges and/or claim the final (super!) badge for completion of your 23 (research data) Things journey. They are claimed on a honour system by simply logging in to Credly from the link provided at the bottom of each Thing description. Links are also provided on Discussion Boards in MeetUp.
