You go to a lot of meetings yourself, so why not report back here about what was said, like you did in this post about the OEFFAdirect conversation? I think that would be the greatest contribution you could make to Local Food Columbus, acting as our reporter in the field, blogging about what’s coming up and what just happened. I think this will draw a lot more positive attention to this site than the usual stream-of-consciousness rants where you throw a dozen different ideas into the blender. More importantly, you’ll be facilitating getting other people involved by letting them know specifically HOW to get involved. 90% of success is showing up, and many of us–myself included–seem to be chronically out of the loop when it comes to knowing when and where to show up.

When putting together a report on an event–whether upcoming or something that’s already occurred–remember “Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How.” What’s the NAME of the group holding the meeting? What’s the name of the person to contact for more information? What is the subject of the meeting or purpose of an event? What is the objective of the group holding the meeting? What time and date does it start? How long will it run? Is it a one-time thing, weekly, monthly? Where is it? Is there admission? Is membership required? Parking available? If you can’t find out the address, does the building/park/etc. have a name? Can you give directions on how to get there? How can people get involved? Do they need to bring anything? Finally, what’s important about this cause? Why should people care? How does it affect them or their community?

If you keep a checklist of these questions with you when you go to meetings and keep written notes of the answers, you’ll have incredibly useful information to share with people, and I think you’ll be amazed at how much more receptive people are to what you write. If you decide to do this, I’ll be happy to help you edit your reports before we post them.