What if community platforms were designed like ecosystems? Which species (roles, rituals, constraints) stabilize the environment, and which introduce chaos?
This framing is brillant - the keystone species analogy really clicks. What strikes me is how those quiet keystone memebrs often don't realize their own impact until they step away. I've seen communities where removing just one person who asked good follow-up questions caused the whole conversaton dynamic to shift. I dunno if we can design for that role intentionally or if it just emerges naturally from the right conditions.
Not sure we can design for them either unless there is a clear keystone "species" that emerges. But that's unlikely. I have very rarely ever seen a community with identical keystone behavior (similar, yes; identical, no).
I think instead it's a matter of knowing what a keystone species might look like and doing everything we can to encourage their unique existence when they do appear. The tricky bit is recognizing that it's never going to be a one-size-fits-all solution, and we need to be ready to adapt to incredibly unique needs.
I love that you mention stewardship and the role of stewards to curate, facilitate and activate. That includes being clear about scope and gating, norms and gives-gets (what you need to bring as a member and what you can expect to receive in return).
Part of what makes an ecosystem not only a living but also a sustainable organism, is to allow for gradients and diversity of participation. A healthy ecosystem is not flat, where all participants are treated equally, but where belonging becomes 'contributional', recognising and rewarding the behaviours and activities that help the 'ecosystem' prosper ...
Oooh 👀 @Mary Jantsch, this reminds me of the great work you’re doing!
This framing is brillant - the keystone species analogy really clicks. What strikes me is how those quiet keystone memebrs often don't realize their own impact until they step away. I've seen communities where removing just one person who asked good follow-up questions caused the whole conversaton dynamic to shift. I dunno if we can design for that role intentionally or if it just emerges naturally from the right conditions.
Not sure we can design for them either unless there is a clear keystone "species" that emerges. But that's unlikely. I have very rarely ever seen a community with identical keystone behavior (similar, yes; identical, no).
I think instead it's a matter of knowing what a keystone species might look like and doing everything we can to encourage their unique existence when they do appear. The tricky bit is recognizing that it's never going to be a one-size-fits-all solution, and we need to be ready to adapt to incredibly unique needs.
I love that you mention stewardship and the role of stewards to curate, facilitate and activate. That includes being clear about scope and gating, norms and gives-gets (what you need to bring as a member and what you can expect to receive in return).
Part of what makes an ecosystem not only a living but also a sustainable organism, is to allow for gradients and diversity of participation. A healthy ecosystem is not flat, where all participants are treated equally, but where belonging becomes 'contributional', recognising and rewarding the behaviours and activities that help the 'ecosystem' prosper ...
https://medium.com/@tomvandendooren/why-communities-fail-when-everyone-belongs-equally-0bf499edce4d