What is oiCoffee?

Grab your favorite drink & meet a random oikee for a short, casual conversation. oiCoffee intros are a simple way to connect with oikees from all over the world. On a regular basis, you can decide to sign up in the #oikoffee-signup channel. We will then pair you with another oikee through a DM, encouraging you to meet for a virtual coffee over video chat!

What are you waiting for? Give it a try and join us for a coffee chat :)

How can I participate?

To participate, just click the green checkmark box (✔️) in the #oikoffee-signup channel. This will automatically add you to the pool of members to be considered for the next oiCoffee round. Whenever a round ends, the next one will already be waiting for you there - so make sure to sign up again if you had fun!

You can choose the frequency of intros by clicking on the check mark emoji every time we re-post for another round. No worries, if you miss one sign-up period, the next one will open directly! We always try to introduce people who don't normally interact with each other.

How can I provide my contact information?

If you want to provide additional contact information for your coffee friends, so they know how to get in touch with you, you can send a quick message in #bots with the following contents:

@Coffee Bot setinfo Hello, you can reach me best on Saturdays, send me an email at example@example.com!

This text will be sent to your match!

In this modern world we are gifted with different technological solutions that allow us to stay in touch with oikees worldwide! This section will guide you through variety of options for you to stay connected with your peers and get informed by any exciting news & events that are growing in the oikos ecosystem!

1. First, our International Communication Platform - Discord, community exchange space for all members & friends!

2. Relevant links to our Social Media & Newsletter, where you can get inspired and follow the latest news that are enriched with different international and local initiatives.

3. And last but not least, our Community Calendar, where you can stay up to date and join diversity of community events.

In order to keep the Discord server a safe space for everyone, here are some simple rules we'd like our community members to follow.

1. Stay respectful - think before writing and use your common sense. Make sure that your exchange with other fellow oikees is respectful and please avoid anything that might be offensive to other members.

2. No Spam - Please do not post any files or images that might be offensive to other members or contain viruses.

3. No political statements - we gather here to converse about leadership & sustainability & would appreciate it if this platform is not used for any form of political discourse.

4. Please don't link to this server to any other communities on Discord before talking about it to a moderator.

COMING SOON!

Welcome to the new home of the oikos community!

We invite you to our new shared space - for all oikees, chapters, representatives, friends, and whoever wants to engage and participate in our international community and events.

Discover all the different elements in this short user guide and reach out to us in the Discord help channel if you have any question :)

oiKosmos Discord

Our Discord server is a fun place to exchange ideas, meet new people and get to know about oikos events. Click below to find out more!

Community Calendar

The oikos Community Calendar is a Google Calendar containing all the oikos International and chapters' events, which are accessible to all oikees. Get access here!

Community Zoom

The oikos Community Zoom is a Zoom Account that can be used by all chapters to host their external events. Find out more here:

Our work for you

You've discovered much, but there's even more to see - because oikos is much more than the oiKosmos.

Picture

Discord is a community chatroom with text and video communication that works very similarly to messengers like Slack or WhatsApp. It is structured into servers and channels that are fostering different topics and spaces. A server is a collection of chat rooms (eg. text or voice/video, and resources).

We are looking forward to having you and growing this room for you and your fellow members together. In this guide, we will guide you through joining the platform, your first steps, and the possibilities it offers.

How can I join?

Joining is very easy, and you don’t need any more than a web browser on your laptop/computer or your phone.

Start your Discord journey by clicking the link below to join in oikos Community server!

What are my first steps in the community space?

Create a tutorial

Rules

To make sure that we all feel comfortable and safe in the Discord chat, there are a few rules we'd like to invite you to follow:

oI Coffee

Grab your favorite drink & meet a random oikee for a short, casual conversation. oi Coffee intros are a simple way to connect with oikees from all over the world.

Can I use Discord for my own chapter or group?

Yes! We have a useful template that you can use for your chapter.

It comes with all channels you need for your chapter to get started and is all yours to play around with! There won’t be any interference from oikos International if you choose to follow this template and leverage it for your local oikos chapter.

How can I get help in case anything goes wrong?

If you have any questions, or trouble regarding the new platform we prepared below a short help center to support your effort on this journey and you are always welcome to contact us.

How can I get supported directly from the oI team?

In the Discord server itself, you can send a message with your question in the #support channel or send a direct message to anyone with the @oikos Team label.

If you choose to contact us directly, and don’t receive any answer immediately, please don’t worry and feel free to send a reminder after a while.

How can I change my notification settings?

To choose what you are notified for, eg. general announcements or events, you can use special roles in our #pick-your-roles channel.

General Announcements: Announcements regarding general oikos topics and matters related to the Discord space. Event Announcements: Reminders and notifications for international and chapter events/programs.

To deselect announcements, just click the small icons below the explanation box. Just like that, you can click them again to opt back in to announcements. Keep in mind that you may only get these announcements and notifications if you use the phone apps Discord provides.

Other Discord resources

A Beginner’s Guide to Discord

How do I join a server?

How do I install the applications?

How can I change my profile picture?

All help articles:

1. The oikos Community Zoom is a Zoom Account that can be used by all chapters to host their external events (discussions, welcome sessions to new oikees, legislative meetings etc.) with up to 100 members.

Every oikos Chapter gets access to the Google Workspace. Google Workspace (formerly known as Google Apps and GSuite) is a collection of productivity and collaboration tools, software and products offered and marketed by Google. The main applications that are relevant and useful for oikos Community in the Google workspace toolkit are:

• Gmail

• GDrive

• Google Calendar

• Google Docs

• Google Slides

• Google Sheets

• Google Forms

In the short Google Workspace Guide attached bellow, you will find ALL of the basic info you need to get started with your Google Workspace experience and become a pro.

❓ : how can you get YOUR message through when people are overflowing with information?

What is impact communication?

“Considering your audience, what information do you want to share and the best way to share it to ensure that the message is understood and, most importantly, inspire action?” - Maxime

☁️ Take a minute to think about what personally touches you and moves you to take action? ☁️

Now next time you write a communication piece for your chapter, think about the following questions:

• What do you want a person to feel when they read/see the post (e.g. excitement, reflection, urgency)?

• What key information do I want them to remember (e.g. statement, number)?

• What action do I want them to take (e.g. : register for an event or just share it in their story)?

oikos content inspiration:

Be bold. Play. You are welcome.😉

COMING SOON!

COMING SOON!

COMING SOON!

The Legislative Meeting (LM) is hosted by oikos International twice a year (April & October). It is a space where important decisions are taken that have an influence on oikos International as the umbrella organization of oikos, as well as on the community at large. With our legal form as a Swiss association, it is necessary that our members (aka FULL chapters) democratically take certain decisions within the LMs. Each full chapter can send one representative to vote on behalf of their chapter, though any oikee is welcome to join the meetings (though without voting). Furthermore, Legislative Meetinga are a space to connect with other chapters and receive important updates you can take back to your chapter.

You will always receive the latest information about the upcoming LM in your oikos chapter inbox, so make sure to check it regulalry!

Depending on our possibilities, the meetings happen onsite (hybrid) or fully online.

Squads are the focus groups where we have conversations that matter on topics that move the whole community, developing new concepts and solutions for everyone. oikos Squads are self-organized groups and projects that can take any shape around a focus topic related to sustainability. You are passionate about sustainable finance, want to learn more about mental health? Anyone can join or even open a squad!

Learn more about squads on our website!

Beyond the chapter pathways formats which are meant to accompany active chapters, there a several platforms more focused on fostering the international community and mostly open to any oikee, new and old.

This section will guide you through variety of tools that will serve your needs for co-creative, hands-on and collaborative efforts!

• Google Workspace (Gmail, GDrive, Google Calendar, Google Docs, Slides, Sheets, Forms)

• Zoom

• Miro board

Canva is an easy to use online platform for creating a wide variety of content. Through Canva you can create and edit images, videos, presentations and documents quickly and without much prior knowledge or experience.

Canva is free to use with an option for a Pro account which gives you access to many advanced features. oikos International can provide your chapter with an account that is a part of the ‘oikos Community’ team on Canva which gives you access to all its premium features.

How to get a Canva Pro account for your chapter?

As previously mentioned, Canva is free to use and you may have already had the chance to work with it for your chapter’s needs. In that case you can use that same account for your chapter as part of ‘oikos Community’ team on Canva and use the premium features, while also having access to earlier designs you created on the same account. Otherwise you can select an email address that your chapter members have access to and create a shared Canva account for your chapter on the ‘oikos Community’ team, through which you’ll be able to also access the premium features.

How to use Canva Pro?

1. oikos Brand kit - the brand kit for oikos and it’s initiatives is available to you as part of the ‘oikos Community’ Canva Team. When editing your designs, you can always find it on the left side of your screen in the ‘Brand Kit’ tab.

2. oikos Templates - there’s a set of pre-made templates based on the oikos branding that you can use to create visuals you need or use it a inspiration for your own design. These templates are especially useful if you have little experience with working with visuals or simply need to create content in a short snippet of time.

3. Canva Pro Templates - Canva offers thousands of unique templates for all kinds of designs, which you can access for free with your chapter’s shared Canva Pro account.

Best practices on Canva:

• Know you aspect ratios - for the best experience both online and offline, make sure that you’re using the right formats.

Buffer is a free tool that allows you to manage all your social media accounts on the same platform. There are many tools similar to Buffer but at oikos we like Buffer best because it’s free! :)

It is really simple to use and has two main advantages:

1. It allows you to prepare your social media posts, schedule them in advance, all in one place and save you time instead of going separately on each platform.

2. You can share it within your chapter to collaborate on posts or get feedback.

You can link your Canva account with Buffer, which allows you to quickly create new or edit existing visually appealing posts through Canva, without leaving the page.

This section includes a number of interviews with fellow oikees from around the world. They share their best practices on several topics that are relevant for any chapter at almost any stage.

The interviews have been conducted in August/September 2023.

Feel invited to click through the following pages to learn HOW TO...

Do you want to share your best practices via an interview or in written? Reach out to board@oikos-international.org and we'll try to find a way of incorporating your learnings into the toolbox!

HOW to add an event - details for orientation

When creating an event on Google Calendar, select your time slot and a pop up window will appear.

Our chapters and community are at the heart of oikos International - without a well-connected and enthusiastic network, there is no oikos International! We want to build bridges between chapters and between chapters and oikos International so that we can strengthen each other (with new ideas, energy, motivation and support). Through this work, we can make sense of who is in our community, what they need and how these needs might be met.

Check out the different elements of our community work in the sections below:

LEAP Life had informally started at the end of the first LEAP YOUth (ex LEAP Advanced) cohort in 2016, through all the alumni that continuously remain engaged, continuing their personal development journey and learning further.

With the help of LEAP alumni, LEAP Life was born officially in 2020 with the vision of continuing our development journey, fostering a new sense of ongoing learning, courageous practice and re-generation, and leveraging this incredible community of diverse change agents.

Nowadays LEAP Life fosters several spaces and activities following this vision (e.g. LEAP Life Brave Spaces, LEAP Life Master Classes), as ways of continuing inspiring exchange and learning with and form one another.

The chapter pathways initiative has been created to accompany (y)our chapter’s development and provide a frame throughout the year. The chapter pathway initiative is an opportunity for our chapters to receive support as they practice and reflect on their leadership and development at the local level. We focus on the local chapter leaders and their teams.

There are 4 core elements to the chapter pathways initiative throughout the year:

LEAP YOUth is a 10-month transformational leadership program for international students from oikos community focusing on building leadership capacity with the necessary competencies, qualities, practices, tools and global network to become conscious leaders in the co-creation of thriving and sustainable societies. Since 2015, 300+ participants from 30+ countries have been equipped with knowledge and capacity for conscious leadership on transformative change for sustainability, empowered and inspired to act as conscious leaders in their communities.

Further details on the program, framework and the impact you can check out in the pdf below.

Why you should join house calls as a chapter lead or member:

• get inspired by your peer-chapters!

• have a safe space for exchange on learnings and experiences with other chapters

• build your network in the community

• be an active part of our international community by building strong, personal relationships

• have a regular touchpoint with someone from oikos International

Current houses and house facilitators:

The LEAP Researchers is a 9-month program for the joint personal and professional development of Early Career Researchers (ECRs) - Masters students, PhD students and Post-doctoral researchers addressing sustainability challenges. Program aims to empower academics, helping them reach their full potential in personal development, while fulfilling the mission of researching and transforming economics and management education for sustainable future. With this program we intend to contribute to designing an economic system that allows both the planet and people to thrive.

oikos Academy is a program that aims to make higher education future ready, learner-driven and re-generative. It does so through enabling students to take ownership of their education. The Academy supports student groups from different parts of the world challenging the status-quo at their universities and invite their respective decision makers to a collective learning space, that leads to transformative outcomes, new commitments and next steps.

This section aims to bring inspiration and empowerment to the oikos Chapters worldwide and encourage cross-chapter collaboration! Let us share a bit of magic with each other and enjoy the beauty and impact of our initiatives globally!

Explore & Read : Folder containing just a piece of incredible projects happening on the ground within the oikos community that will inspire your next initiative :

The WHY: Why we created this course and why it’s relevant for our community?

We are a diverse community of student change agents, with different cultures & study backgrounds. We wanted to create an opportunity that prepares us to venture out and climb mount sustainability. For a long while, we've been sitting with the question & challenge of equipping our students with a systemic perspective on sustainability that transcends the local context & culture-influenced conversations that are such an important part of a holistic understanding. Many universities fail in introducing the topic at all. Working together towards sustainability, both in local & international communities, can be challenging if there is no common baseline and no credible place to go for further directions.

We, therefore, developed a short course with multiple interactive & reflective elements that allows students to get in touch with a more systemic perspective on sustainability, find further resources & share their own learnings with one another. A base camp for the hike, so to say.

The WHAT: What awaits you on this journey?

What you will find in the Sustainability Basecamp:

• A Core training (remote course setting you up for the journey, the essentials to thrive ;))

• A Sustainability Compass (resource base, providing orientation)

• Peers to engage with, that are on a similar journey & hold similar questions

We envision higher education that prepares youth to navigate complexity, and grow into the leaders of an economic system that generates positive environmental and social outcomes. Students play a key role in this systemic shift: with the sustainability challenge at hand, there now is an open window for young change agents to take ownership of their education and make change happen in real-time. Accompanied by early career researchers, lecturers and together with other allies, students have the capacity to influence the why, what and how of teaching and learning

The TE Squad is like a warm, welcoming home where students and local oikos Chapters come together to support each other in their shared dream of changing education for the better. In this friendly and caring environment, they talk about their challenges, build strong bonds of trust and friendship, and work together on projects that aim to improve education. It's a place where people express their feelings, have heartfelt conversations, value knowledge, and create partnerships driven by their deep passion to make education even better.

LEAP Tools is a project supporting you to thrive by providing you and your community with the space and tools to grow personally and professionally and to build a strong and engaged team. It can be a simple gift for the members of your organization or the chance to connect better with your whole team. The LEAP Tools for chapters allow you to introduce this program to your local student groups.

what is LEAP?

LEAP is the oikos Leadership initiative focusing on building capacity in the oikos community with the necessary competencies, qualities, practices, tools and global network to become conscious leaders in the co-creation of thriving and sustainable societies.

why do we need (to) LEAP?

The question of transitioning to sustainability, creating thriving and flourishing living systems highlights the need for conscious leadership development. There is a blind spot in our global efforts to create a sustainable global society. A growing number of researchers in sustainability science, as professor Christine Wamsler from Lund University, elucidate that our sustainability challenge cannot be resolved only by new technology, policy or governance approaches. There is a need to address leadership, to educate and prepare students to lead solutions for sustainability and to focus on the role of the inner dimensions (described as people‘s mindsets consisting of values, beliefs, world-views, motivations and associated cognitive, emotional and relational capacities) of human beings and the potential of inner transformation as a powerful leverage point for sustainability (Wamsler 2019).

A big part of oikos’ mission is to transform education. We understand we have a significant role in developing our individual and group members to be inspired, skilled and empowered at imagining and leading sustainability transitions. In this context, LEAP plays a key role in introducing emerging leadership models, in order to overcome the dominant paradigm of leadership, which is often seen as a driver of unsustainable practices.

how do we build leadership capacity in the oikos community?

Ever since 2015, our LEAP initiative has brought different programs and tracks to life based on the needs of the community.

We believe that our global financial system needs to improve. Sustainable Finance tries to achieve this by evolving Traditional Finance.

Traditional Finance focuses on Return and Risk, while Sustainable Finance includes environmental and social issues to measure Impact. We can think of this graphically.

How can the Toolkit help you?

• Learn how to find job opportunities

• Participate in workshops and trainings

• Develop your professional, technical, and leadership skills

• Interview stakeholders and network

• Write on finance "hot topics"

• Organize events and conferences