Membership

Core Members are the only folks in our community who are empowered to fully participate in Noisebridge's consensus process. This is a heady and awesome responsibility, and it is likewise an involved process to become a Core Member.

Do not edit this page. This page is the official process that Noisebridge has agreed by consensus. If you wish to modify it, you should bring up your desired changes at a weekly meetings.

Lets edit this page to make it right...

Lots of folks come to Noisebridge to hack and learn: you don't need to be a member for that. At Noisebridge, membership is something different: it means taking responsibility and committing to help to maintain, improve, and govern Noisebridge. As a member of Noisebridge, you don't just come here to hack and learn, you actively work to improve what you see around you, help to deal with problems, and make this community better than it is today.

Noisebridge Core Members are the only folks in our community who are empowered to fully participate in Noisebridge's consensus process. This is a heady and awesome responsibility, and it is likewise an involved process to become a member. Here's how it goes!

Being a Core Member of Noisebridge

As a Core Member of Noisebridge you are our ambassadors and advocates to the world, maintainers of our physical and digital infrastructure, and probably pretty cool. Here are some things that you should do.

• DO: Contribute to Noisebridge. Pay your dues to the treasurer at or before the first of the month, every month. If you are unable to pay your dues, please consider searching for sponsorship, or asking the treasurer about starving hacker rates. In addition to dues, help out in other ways!
• DO: Be excellent to everyone. Follow our community standards and anti-harassment policy, and teach others about them.
• DO: Represent Noisebridge. Go out into the world, visit other hackerspaces, make awesome projects, and tell everyone how great Noisebridge is.
• DO: Keep your contact info up to date. This also means ensuring that you wiki user page has the right categories.

Hiatus, Departure, and Suspension

Core Members can leave Noisebridge. If a Core Member wishes to leave, they have to inform the treasurer and secretary.

If a Core Member has not paid their dues for 3 months, and the member has not contacted the Treasurer to make arrangements for payment, their membership shall expire.

Once someone is no longer a Core Member of Noisebridge, if that person would like to become a Core Member of Noisebridge again, they will need to go through the entire joining process to become a Core Member again.

Noisebridge also allows Core Member to go on Hiatus if they wish to temporarily suspend their membership. Hiatus may be used when a member will not be involved in Noisebridge for an extended period, such as if they are traveling. To go on hiatus, you merely have to notify the treasurer and secretary. You then don't pay dues, are not able to block a consensus item, and no longer have 24-hour access to the space. When you want to come back again (i.e. you got the job or returned to the country) you simply start paying dues again.

By consensus, Noisebridge may also suspend someone's membership. During this consensus process the member being considered for suspension is not entitled to block the consensus process. If a Core Member has been suspended, they shall no longer be considered a Core Member of Noisebridge for any purpose, including but not limited to, participation in the consensus process, and 24-hour access to Noisebridge.

Application Form

• 
  NB Membership application - feb2026 - Noisebridge.pdf

Add comments on future versions at live gDocs link (commenting enabled).

Updates to process

New membership names in 2026

1. Associate Membership has been renamed to Access Membership
2. "Big M" Membership has been renamed to Core Membership (sometimes just referred to as a Member)

New membership process in 2022

This is the process we Consensed on back in Feb. 2022.

Associate Membership

1. Fill out top part of the membership application form. There should be blank forms in the membership binder, or you can print your own. The source for the form is currently in a Google doc, with a checklist of things a new applicant should learn on the back!
2. Put your completed application form in the binder at the space.
3. Persuade a current Noisebridge "Big M" Member to sponsor your application by signing your application form and going over the checklist on the back of the form with you. The sponsor is there to teach you all that useful stuff!
4. Please show up for the next Tuesday meeting. Every meeting, there is a standing agenda item to read all the applications in the binder. You have to be present (in-person or virtually) when your application is read (or have a proxy in case of emergencies).
5. If no one blocks your application then you are now an Associate ("little m") member. Congrats! Make sure the form stays in the binder.

Big M Membership

1. After you have hung out at Noisebridge for at least 4 weeks after your Associate Membership is approved, and you have obtained a second Big M sponsor, you are up for approval for Full, "Big M" Membership. (Bottom half of the application form) This is reviewed over the course of 4 weeks, during which Noisebridge expects you to attend general meetings during.
2. During these meetings at which you request that Noisebridge consents to have you become a member, those present may ask you (or your proxy) questions.
3. On the 4th review meeting, after those present are finished asking questions, you are asked to leave the room, and your application is discussed without you present. The meeting may then choose to agree to have you become a member of Noisebridge.
4. Once Noisebridge has agreed to have you become a member, you arrange to pay the treasurer your dues.
5. Until you pay the treasurer your dues, you are not a member of Noisebridge. If you have not arranged to pay your dues within thirty days of Noisebridge agreeing to have you as a member, you do not become a member, and must go through the joining process again.

Once Noisebridge has agreed to have you as a Member you have two things to do:

1. Fill out your contact information and give the secretary your application form.
2. Make sure that your wiki user page is updated with the Category:Members.

Once you have done both these things, you are entitled to fully participation in Noisebridge's Consensus process.

At any time, anyone can look in the binder and peruse the applications. If an existing member has any concerns with any of the applicants, they should take time during that month to try and resolve the problem. They may ask another member to be a proxy for them to either help resolve the problem (preferred) or to voice their objection at the approval meeting.

The membership form may be downloaded here. There are copies at the space (until we run out). If we are out of forms, you should print some more! The binder is located on the desk at the entrance, next to the donation bin. Note that these items might be relocated through the space over time.

History

Former aspects of membership process

(For information, and inspiration.)

membership application form, July 2022