In the wild and woolly world of tech, building resilient communities is like herding cats through a minefield during a thunderstorm. That was the chaotic and thrilling theme of our talk, "Resilient Community Building for Human-First Developer Relations." Myself and Francesco Andreoli grabbed the mic at ETHDenver and dove headfirst into the madness, preaching the gospel of inclusive and vibrant developer ecosystems, all tied together with shared missions and values.

Self-awareness, deep listening, and empathy are the strange bedfellows we championed, crucial for creating a safe haven amid the digital mayhem.

We ranted and raved about the importance of emergent leadership and standardized frameworks, those sturdy lifeboats in a sea of code and chaos. The necessity of a sanctuary, a safe space, where developers can swap ideas, learn, and forge meaningful connections was hammered home like a nail in a coffin. And of course, we couldn't ignore the power of a gripping narrative, one that resonates with the developer crowd, steering their learning and collaboration like a maniacal captain at the helm of a ghost ship.

Key Takeaways (aka-- why you should bother)

• Redefining developer relations into categories like developer evangelism and advocacy and embracing a more collaborative, product agnostic approach.

• Develop systems and documentation on implementing living systems logic and leadership dynamics in organizations.

• Organize more agnostic ecosystem events focused on technical topics rather than single products with a "collaboration over competition" approach.

• Creating safe developer community environments and frameworks like the "hierarchy of builders needs" based on our experimentation and lived experiences as community builders.

• Products, protocols and orgs should seek to create internal community teams who encompass both the logical and EQ/human aspects to create a holistic dynamic for the most effective community building possible.

Developer ecosystems, frameworks, and community building | (0:24)

• Francesco and I dive into the wild ride of developer ecosystems and the gritty, resilient leadership needed to build vibrant, chaotic communities.

• We lay out frameworks like a mad scientist’s blueprint, creating safe spaces and advocating for tech with the fervor of revolutionaries, all while emphasizing the need for a shared language and purpose.

• I rant about the crucial need for standardizing developer activation and ecosystem frameworks for the unpredictable world of web3 and blockchain communities.

• Our frameworks, tailor-made for developers’ needs and gloriously indifferent to specific products, cover activation and education levels like a twisted road map through the digital frontier.

Building a developer community through events, education, & partnerships | (5:35)

• Francesco lays it out with the fervor of a preacher on fire, emphasizing the need for a safe haven for developers, where education, curiosity, and authenticity reign supreme.

• He pitches a "festival of companies" approach to community building, a wild carnival of strategic partnerships and developer activation.

• Francesco, in his relentless drive, underscores the necessity of evergreen initiatives and hackathons, those electrifying gatherings crucial for developer engagement and ecosystem success.

• He spins tales of Builder Nights, those wild, agnostic ecosystem events with specific topic discussions that worked like a charm in 2023.

• Francesco hammers home the need for a sanctuary where developers can freely discuss and critique products, pointing to the roaring success of their APAC Builder Nights series in the fall of 2023.

• He extols the virtues of leveraging local community partners and weaving in different ecosystem players to spark a movement that's as organic and agnostic as a grassroots revolution.

• Read more about Francesco's Builder Hierarchy of Needs here.

Community resilience, leadership & regeneration | (13:25)

• I dive headfirst into the chaos of resilient communities, preaching the wild gospel of regenerative leadership, self-awareness, mission-driven work, safe spaces, and living system design.

• I emphasize the necessity of relationships in community building, tearing down the old guard of top-down hierarchies and embracing the wild, untamed spirit of biomimicry and emergent leadership.

  I get my panties twisted over the importance of relationships and compassion in this anarchic landscape of community building. Leadership dynamics and self-awareness are the twisted keys to success for those brave enough to venture into this realm.

• Francesco stands out with his rare blend of empathy and kindness, a unicorn among developers.

• And let's not forget, deep listening and surrendering to the chaotic present are the cornerstones of creating truly safe spaces.

Creating safe spaces for developers to learn & build products | (20:53)

• Francesco lays it out with the urgency of a man on fire, emphasizing the need for creating safe spaces where developers can dive into discussions about various topics and verticals.

• We thrash out the crucial need to nail down the first two parts of the funnel before even thinking about product conversion strategies.

• I emphasize the necessity of having a wild, organic space for learning and asking questions.

• Francesco then chimes in with his pitch for a use case-driven approach to product-specific workshops, each step a mad dance toward building something truly extraordinary.

Leadership, developer engagement, and organizational structure in a tech ecosystem | (26:24)

• I roar about the crucial need for developers to keep feeding the beast, continually contributing to the ecosystem.

• Francesco, in his clear-headed fervor, insists that leadership needs to abandon their tunnel vision on individual products and instead embrace the entire wild, sprawling ecosystem.

• I power home the significance of forging strong relationships and offering real value to devs, even those who dabble part-time in the chaos.

• Francesco and I dive into the gritty details of creating a cross-functional team structure, defining roles that mesh and clash in perfect harmony, all with the relentless goal of delivering unmatched value to our devs.

Implementing living systems logic in organizations, including community building & involving external stakeholders | (31:11)

• I lay it out bluntly: organizations have to adapt to living systems logic, embracing the wild autonomy and interconnectedness of people.

• Francesco, with his usual intensity, dives into how emergent systems need resilient structures, balancing the primal elements of tribal leadership with the fluidity of ecosystem flexibility.

• I paint a spicy picture of Denver's community building on a grand scale, where people jump in and help out without waiting for permission.

• Francesco wraps it up with hard-earned lessons: authenticity, inclusivity, and the raw, unfiltered feedback from other ecosystem players.

Community building in tech, with emphasis on empathy and human connection | (35:57)

• I recount my wild ride through the world of traditional hackathons versus more human-centered events, shining a light on the stark contrast in approach and outcomes.

• I hammer home the critical role of empathy and truly grasping the needs of the community in this chaotic dance of emergent leadership.

• Francesco insists with his trademark intensity that the technical and human sides must join forces in the mad venture of community building.

• He also underscores, with all the subtlety of a freight train, that creating a safe space is absolutely vital for the success of any developer ecosystem.

Summing it all up

Community building for web3, developer-centric communities is an entirely different beast and we must turn to new or non-traditional forms of emergent leadership to empower the developers re-imagining the internet. Our entire approach to developer relations must also shift and begin incorporating these emergent principles that create the foundations of our permissionless system.

Forcing traditional approaches from the web2 world of yesterday into the leadership and devrel systems of web3 tomorrow will break our systems and removes the humanity and counter-culture nature we all hold so dear in crypto.

Ping us if you have questions...we have answers. Find us on Farcaster-- Crystal & Francesco