Free Geek Startup Trademark Use Application
This is a page concerning a policy or procedure in development.
Once fleshed out, we'll consider it for adoption as official policy at Free Geek.
Why are we doing this?
We need some way to ensure that new Free Geeks actually understand what "Free Geek" means, and that they're involved in the larger Free Geek community. We also want to help ensure that new startups have a feasible startup plan.
Introduction
This list of questions can be overwhelming to consider, but it's not as overwhelming as actually starting up a new Free Geek. When allowing a new startup to affiliate or use the Free Geek name, we don't require that every last thing is ready. That could stifle a startup right off the bat, which is not what we're trying to do. But we do want to know that new folks have at least thought about it all and have an idea of what they're getting into.
Basics
The following questions should be asked of the people applying to be a startup:
- Have you reviewed the documentation?
- Are you applying to
- be an affiliate? or
- use the Free Geek name?
- What is your mission statement?
- How does your volunteer group make decisions?
- How are decisions recorded?
- How do you encourage participation?
- Please explain the difference between a for-profit recycling and reuse company and a Free Geek style organization?
Background Research and Development Plan
- Have you made contact with local recycling partners?
- What facilities will you likely be using for disposal of e-waste?
- Have you researched their recycling practices?
- Do they send e-waste overseas? Where?
- Do they use prison labor?
- What do they process that ends up in a landfill?
- Have you researched their recycling practices?
- Do you know how much it will cost you to recycle:
- Batteries?
- Monitors?
- Do you know how much you are likely to make off of
- Processors?
- Circuit boards?
- Have you made contacts with other community organizations...
- that work with free or open source software?
- that work with communities of people who lack technology or technical skills?
- Volunteer recruitment
- Do you already have volunteers that are willing to work on a weekly basis?
- How many volunteers?
- How many hours per week?
- How do you plan to recruit more volunteers?
- Do you already have volunteers that are willing to work on a weekly basis?
- Start up funding
- How much startup funding do you already have?
- How much will rent for your initial space likely cost?
- How do you plan to raise more startup funds?
Infrastructure
- Infrastructure for communicating with other Free Geeks:
- Have you joined the Free Geek Startups mailing list?
- Do you know how to contact us via IRC?
- Do you know how to contact us via phone?
- Do you know how to contact us via snail mail?
- Your own infrastructure:
- Do you need hardware to help you get started?
- If so, do you know how to apply for a grant from the mothership?
- Do you understand what software the other Free Geeks are using for infrastructure? (Free Geek in Portland has a Software Overview page.)
- Do you need hardware to help you get started?