Mental Health - Education, Support and Prevention
04-09-2017 01:56 PM - edited 15-09-2017 02:36 PM
04-09-2017 01:56 PM - edited 15-09-2017 02:36 PM
Hi everyone,
You may have seen around the place, some members of our community that has 'Community Guides' under their usernames. This is a wonderful group of community champions who have volunteered to help create a welcoming and supportive community.
We are now looking expand the program! We are looking for Community Guides for both the Lived Experience and Carers Forum.
Below will be some information on the program, criteria and how to apply.
Applications are open until Sunday 1 Oct.
04-09-2017 01:56 PM
04-09-2017 01:56 PM
Community Guides (CGs) are members of the SANE Forums community who live and breathe the forum values, and care for the community and its members. CGs are;
Those who become CGs are typically already doing the role without even realising! The purpose of the volunteer program is to formalise what they are already doing well and offer additional support to continue their great work to maintain a thriving community.
What’s involved
Some of the activities that CGs do, include:
Most of these activities are called Community Building activities. To learn more about the variety of Community Building activities that CGs can be part of, check out the Community Guide Info Pack.
How SANE supports CGs
The CG volunteer program aims to be flexible and to support the good work that’s already been done. To put this into practice, SANE will work closely with each Community Guide, to assist with;
SANE will support CGs for the duration of their involvement. This will be done through;
How to become a CG
To apply to be a Community Guide, the person must meet the following criteria;
To apply, please email team@saneforums.org with the following information;
For more information, please see Community Guide Info pack (below)
04-09-2017 01:57 PM
04-09-2017 01:57 PM
Community Building Tasks
The following are some examples of how Community Guides (CGs) may participate in their role. It’s not restricted to the following, but provides potential CGs with an insight into what they can get involved in.
Introduction threads
Check introduction thread to see if there’s any new members who are yet to be responded to.
Responses to new members contains;
Special Events: Topic Tuesday, Career Chat and any new events
Topic Tuesday and Career Chat are live information sessions. Topic Tuesdays run for 2 hours once a month in each Forum. It’s typically led by a facilitator (SANE moderator) and often features a special guest.
Career Chat takes place on a Tuesday once a month and runs from 7pm-9pm AEST in the Lived Experience Forum. It is hosted by Ostara Australia and focuses on workplace and employment topics.
CGs can get involved by:
Ask Anything Monday (not currently active)
Sometimes people will submit questions to team@saneforums.org for moderators to post on their behalf anonymously. This takes place most Mondays (depending on whether a question is submitted or not). Typically, these questions are submitted by non-members / new members who feel apprehensive about their question.
CGs can get involved by:
Friday Feast
Friday Feast is a weekly event in the Lived Experience Forum where people come together to share a virtual meal and chat about non-mental health related topics.
CGs can get involved by:
Responding to new discussions
We want to ensure all members feel heard. In particular, we want new members to feel connected and part of the community. Often new members will start their journey in the Forums by posting a new discussion, which is focused on an issue or experience they want support with.
Where there is 3 or less responses, it’s important that a CG connects with these members.
They can do this by:
Not all of the above needs to be done in every instance, but a combination of the most appropriate is recommended.
Keeping discussions on track
At times, discussions that are issue based (ie: started by a member about something they would like feedback, advice or support on) change into social threads. This can be problematic because –
CGs are responsible for assisting in keeping discussions on track by respectfully helping the members who have gone off track to either bring the conversation back on track or move the conversation into a new or a relevant pre-existing thread.
CGs can do this by:
CGs are encouraged to get involved in whatever way they feel comfortable, to the capacity they are able to. Monthly check in’s with the Community Managers will provide support for CGs in the activities they choose to be involved in.
20-09-2017 11:23 PM - edited 22-09-2017 02:10 PM
20-09-2017 11:23 PM - edited 22-09-2017 02:10 PM
Hi @ NikNik i think I could do that and would appreciate the closer connections. Do it anyway I guess. Lapses .
22-09-2017 12:21 PM
22-09-2017 12:21 PM
Hi @Former-Member
Thanks for your post . You're welcome to drop us an email at team@saneforums.org if you wish to chat further about this.
Nik
29-09-2017 03:16 PM
29-09-2017 03:16 PM
Hi everyone,
Given it's a long weekend in most states (some are having the Friday, some the Monday), we will extend the close date to Tuesday 3 Oct 🙂
Nik
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PO Box 1226, Carlton VIC 3053