What we think we've figured out so far

a) re•base (the organization / community) is a social experiment

Much like basecamp, re•base is a social experiment that will create a "space" for people with shared values to connect and convene. It will evolve over time. There are benefits to building a grassroots organization organically - by not over-defining what it is going to be, but instead keeping it open to the opportunities that present themselves.

b) re•base (the legal entity that convenes Basecamps and supports Expeditions) is owned by all of us, the members

As part of living our values, the organization is radically inclusive and owned by all of us. It has already been incorporated as a non-profit entity in Canada, which fits our commitment to transparency and openness. Our aim is to follow a steward-owned model (similar to a co-op model) that places purpose over profit.

c) re•base is governed by the members

Part of ownership means that the strategy, rules, and activities are also governed by all of us. Our intention is to use the holacracy framework (similar to Zappos, Medium, and Patagonia) to enable all members of re•base to actively participate in the operations, strategy, and direction of the organization.

Under a holacracy model, the organization is defined by a strong vision and mission, and "sub-missions" and activities are generated to support it. (In other words, each activity or project needs to clearly and directly support the mission and vision. Otherwise, it does not belong).

This framework also enables members to undertake distributed, parallel activity. It provides clear pathways for participation according to individual members' desires, and allocates resources (time and skills) in a way that is transparent to all.

However, while the generic holacracy framework is well understood, we still have a lot of work to do to refine the mission and vision of re•base; to define an initial "operating model"; and to define the initial roles required to (officially?) launch the member-driven model.

d) re•base follows a membership model

While the organization is radically inclusive, people must agree to the values of re•base to become members. Likely, some "rules of conduct" need to be developed.

e) The organization should enable. It should "hold the agenda" and preserve the mission, vision, and values. But it shouldn't dictate or control

The organization should supply guiding principles, tools, resources and other enablers for a flourishing of yet-to-be-determined, member-driven manifestations. Members should not need to wait upon core planning and priorities in order to move. Instead, they should be able to leverage the good name, the compelling narrative, and the global strength of the network to support their own (network-aligned) endeavours.

f) The goal is for the re•base operating budget to be wholly funded by members' contributions

The value of our coming-together (whether at basecamps, or on Expeditions, or via to-be-defined communications platforms) is greatest when it is totally free of outside influence or agendas.

The organization serves the membership best when it is funded by the membership. Many other revenue streams are easy to imagine, and can be implemented. But let's not pretend that they won't compromise our promise to be "By us, for us".

Our current plan is to charge an annual "pay what you can" membership fee in exchange for ownership shares in the organization. These fees will go toward:

• Administrative costs (legal, acct, tools, etc)
• A "token" of some kind that physically symbolizes one's membership
• Other costs that will be defined by members as part of the projects and tasks that support the organization's missions

g) Community infrastructure should be driven by real community demand

The development of supporting/enabling infrastructure should be guided by the expressed needs of basecampers (instead of by what some of us imagine that we all need) and the mission and vision of the organization.

h) Community "platform" (beta version)

While infrastructure should be driven by demand, we still need a place to begin communicating and forming conversations.

Almost immediately, we will be launching an initial online community that enables members to connect and share information. We realize that everyone has a lot of online tools and ways to communicate and don't need one more. But we also need a place to connect, to share information, and to help shape the organization.

Collectively, we will try out this platform to enable membership, and test it as a way for the growing community of basecamp alumni and active Expeditions to:

• Facilitate ongoing dialogue before and after each basecamp
• Foster connections across the individual basecamps and help us all to meet, mentor, inspire and collaborate within a diverse, global network of talented pathfinders
• Keep everyone informed of upcoming local, regional and global gatherings
• Keep everyone informed of the journeys taken, progress achieved and opportunities to support Expeditions
• Give everyone the opportunity to engage with the growing library of "Challenge Papers"
• Gather feedback on strategic and operational proposals for the organization
• Capture organizational knowledge and experience (what worked)

Conveners of future basecamps could also benefit from some supporting infrastructure, for example to:

• Enable the important "Forming, Storming, Norming" aspects of collaborative work in the run-up to basecamps;
• Help them to manage successfully the bringing-together of all the aspects of a successful basecamp

Critical Questions that still need answering

a) What should "membership" in re•base entail?

Our current thinking is that membership should include:

• An ownership share in the organization
• The ability to participate in:
  • framing the organization
  • proposing and participating in activities that support the organization's mission
  • Joining Expeditions
  • Accessing Challenge Papers and discussions
  • Submitting (open) Challenge Papers
• Access to a re•base community platform
  • As well as, access to sub-groups within the community (examples: topics, regional discussions, industry, others?)
• Priority access to events (Basecamps, Summits, and others)

b) What should "membership" in re•base cost?

Our current plan is to charge an annual "pay what you can" membership fee in exchange for ownership shares in the organization. Will this generate sufficient revenues for a professionally managed non-profit operation?

c) Does re•base need a budget (right now) big enough to fund a professional non-profit operation?

Should we supply ourselves with some full-time professional resources now, or wait for membership revenues to grow large enough to supply that budget?

d) Do we need local "chapters"? What would this look like? Should each basecamp also be the founding moment of a more permanent local node / chapter?

e) Who and how can someone become a member?

Can anyone apply? Does everyone need to be nominated or perhaps "vouched" by an existing member?

f) How should the generic "holacracy" framework be implemented for our purposes?

The generic framework is well understood by some of the founding members, but there's still a lot of work to do:

• To refine the mission and vision of re•base
• To define an initial "operating model"
• To define the initial roles required to (officially?) launch the member-driven model.