August 2025 - TheThinkTank - lists.bikecollectives.org

E-bikes
by Andy Ballentine 01 Dec '25

01 Dec '25

Hi -- How are bike co-ops dealing with e-bikes? We are all-volunteer at the Bicycle Co-Op of Williamsburg (Virginia). We have several very fine mechanics, but none of us is expert in the motors and batteries of e-bikes, and we don't know whether we should accept them as donations or sell them. I'd be interested in others' experience and policies. Thanks -- Andy Ballentine

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Volunteer Retention
by Geoff Smart 20 Nov '25

20 Nov '25

Hi All, In some but not all of our sessions we have an issue with volunteer retention. After surveying our volunteers and people who left after 3-4 sessions the consensus is that our 1 hour induction is not enough and that we need a more structured training and onboarding over multiple sessions for the cohort that for various reasons need more training and more interaction with staff and volunteers. Has anyone had any luck with increasing retention using a more structured approach. If you have, we would appreciate any content or information you can share with us, and any other tips you may have to increase retention Regards *Geoff Smart* Chair Back2Bikes M : 0419 345 440 525 Williamstown Rd Port Melbourne 3207 back2bikes.org.au

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Creating Self-Guided Volunteer Tasks
by Aaron 21 Aug '25

21 Aug '25

Hey everyone, Our collective (Davis Bike Collective) is struggling to implement a volunteer-for-credit system. One of the big questions is how to make it easier for volunteers to, well, volunteer. I think creating some more "self guided" volunteer tasks would help make everything run more smoothly by opening the door to more volunteers while increasing the effectiveness of their efforts. How do other collectives make it easy for volunteers to stay on task? What are some good "self-guided" tasks that wouldn't require lots of oversight from more experienced mechanics? Does anyone have any other tips regarding volunteer for credit i.e. what worked and what hasn't? Thanks in advance! Aaron

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In 2 hours / en 2 horas
by Matthew Pendergraft 06 Aug '25

06 Aug '25

Sorry for the late notice. Perdon por avisar tan tarde. Workshop coming up in 2 hs. Taller HOY en 2 horas. "A Virtual Workshop on Digital Tools for Collective Organization" "Taller Virtual de Herramientas Digitales para la Organizacion Colectiva" online here: en linea aqui: https://i.meet.mayfirst.org/b1k3!b1k3! [image: ingles.jpg]

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