Sustainability Networks Research

Hello Group Admins,

We are excited to share upcoming improvements to WiserEarth Groups.  In one month, we will launch the New Group Design - a significant revamp of the layout, individual modules, and administrator functionality.  During that time, we'll provide an option for all group admins to "upgrade" your group to the new format.  Not to worry, however - if a group admin decides they prefer the classic look, they will have the option of keeping the existing look of groups for the time being.  Keep in mind that eventually, we will phase in all groups over to the new design (within 3-4 months), but we'd like to hear your thoughts during the transition period.

In the meantime, you can preview the upcoming changes in "Group Preview" wikipage, and post any thoughts, feedback and questions you have in our "Group Upgrade - Feedback & Questions" forum.  This upgrade is based entirely on user feedback, so your further input is very valuable!  We think you'll like the changes for the following reasons:

    1.  A dramatic visual overhaul of the look of the entire group using softer, more subtle colors, sharp use of white space and clean visual lines.  The overall result is a more open and inviting look which will better showcase your group's activities.  We've significantly changed the layout of a group to draw visual attention to the most important information, using a "rule of thirds" principle that draws from time-honored rules of photography and composition.

    2.  Branding - The new group will really feel like your own space. We have increased the size and placement of your group's logo.  WiserEarth’s name will remain a small link at the top and bottom of the page.

    3.  iGoogle-like Drag and drop - Group admins will be able to rearrange a group on the fly. All you will have to do is click on the titlebar and drag and drop it wherever you wish.

    4.  New Suggested Content module - This new module will recommend relevant people and content to your group, automatically scanning the WiserEarth directory for useful information. 

    5.  Groups Module redesign - We will completely overhaul the events module on Groups to display events with a calendar view. We will also add a small "plus" icon in the lower right corner where a user can indicate if they are attending, sponsoring or organizing an event.

  6.  Group templates to choose from - When creating a new group (and only then), group admins will be able to choose from three templates-- each focusing on specific types of group activity common on WiserEarth.

We hope the new WiserEarth Group design helps you do your work that much more effectively and efficiently. Please don't hesitate to share your ideas/questions on our forum.

We'd like to thank you for provided us with the important feedback we needed to upgrade the tool, as well as those who contributed financially to WiserEarth. This gave us the ability to move more quickly on this project. We invite your active participation by way of feedback and donations, as we are a community-driven project and are guided by YOU.

Thanks for the work you do!

The WiserEarth team