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<div>I don’t think it’s reasonable to object to this application unless mappers from inside Oceania complain or the chapter becomes a negative influence on OSM, I see neither.</div>
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<div>I do see it acceptable to review any local chapter that doesn’t support its remit reasonably including geographical and cultural extremities.</div>
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<div>--</div>
<div>Andrew<br>
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<div id="divRplyFwdMsg" dir="ltr"><font face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size:11pt" color="#000000"><b>From:</b> Christoph Hormann via osmf-talk <osmf-talk@openstreetmap.org><br>
<b>Sent:</b> 11 August 2020 15:31<br>
<b>To:</b> osmf-talk@openstreetmap.org <osmf-talk@openstreetmap.org><br>
<b>Subject:</b> Re: [Osmf-talk] OSGeo Oceania Local Chapter application</font>
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I have thought about this quite a bit and my recommendation is that the<br>
OSMF not accept local chapters on a supranational level. Should that<br>
idea not find sufficient support i would recommend making supranational<br>
local chapters contingent on qualified support from all national<br>
comunities included in their scope (which in this case quite clearly<br>
would mean Australia and New Zealand only).<br>
<br>
Reasoning for that recommendation:<br>
<br>
The concept of a local chapter in its name already implies localness.<br>
Existing local chapters predominantly represent local communities<br>
defined by cultural similarity and offer them a level of cultural and<br>
legal proximity that the OSMF lacks. This is practically important in<br>
legal as well as economic matters where mappers and the organization<br>
they associate in exist in the same legal domain which simplifies a lot<br>
of interactions. This includes for example financial transactions and<br>
contract matters (donations and funding as well as the local chapter<br>
being able to contract with businesses and shoulder risks when mappers<br>
organize local events or projects) and legal matters - like supporting<br>
and representing local mappers who get in legal trouble through OSM<br>
related activities or pursuing local license matters (like FOSSGIS does<br>
recently w.r.t. insufficient attribution).<br>
<br>
But especially it is important in cultural matters where a local mapper<br>
should be able to expect to find understanding and like-mindedness<br>
w.r.t. their cultural views in their local chapters - no matter from<br>
where within the domain of their chapter they are.<br>
<br>
All of this does not seem to be the case for OSGeo Oceania for the<br>
intended regional domain of Oceania outside of Australia and New<br>
Zealand.<br>
<br>
You can also put it this way: If some local mapper in a village in New<br>
Guinea has their local chapter, which is supposed to be their<br>
representation "when dealing with local government, business, and<br>
media" (quote from the wiki), in Hobart, how is that going to work?<br>
<br>
If the local OSM communities of Australia and New Zealand want to form a<br>
common local chapter i would in principle have no issue with that<br>
although for practical reasons i would suggest they carefully consider<br>
if a national local chapter is not in the long term more beneficial for<br>
the mappers.<br>
<br>
None of this in principle rules out accepting OSGeo Oceania as a local<br>
chapter with a smaller geographic scope. There is precedent for that -<br>
FOSSGIS as an association covers Germany, Austria and Switzerland but<br>
as an OSMF local chapter only covers Germany.<br>
<br>
I also have my doubts on the significance OpenStreetMap plays in the<br>
OSGeo Oceania activities in general and if the position of the OSM<br>
community within the organization is strong enough for it to fulfill<br>
the role of a local chapter. But i have not looked at this deeply<br>
enough to form a clear opinion.<br>
<br>
--<br>
Christoph Hormann<br>
<a href="http://www.imagico.de/">http://www.imagico.de/</a><br>
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