Ambassadors

CodeRefinery Ambassadors - March 2025: News and invitations

Thank you for your feedback about the meetings and communication. We will collect and share information now before each ambassador meeting and leave the meetings for very short announcement and longer discussions. Since there are not much news at this moment, some parts are copied from the general Newsletter.

Next ambassador meeting will be on March 10th, 14 CET (you got a calendar invite for that on Feb 27th). Connection details can also be found in our notes: https://hackmd.io/@coderefinery/team-meeting

CodeRefinery 4.0 accepted

Our proposal for phase 4 of the project (2025 - 2028) got approved. We will continue to offer online workshops in the now familiar format
(streamed lectures, exercises, bring-your-own-classroom model, co-teaching).

We will also experiment with asynchronous learning and self-paced learning
modules.

Our travel budget is increased compared to previous phases, and we are looking
forward to being able to present the project at more conferences and events and
to engage with more communities and start new collaborations.

We are also in the process of establishing a long-term support for the GitLab
service which we operate since many years.

Next CodeRefinery workshop

Our next CodeRefinery tools workshop (online) will take place March 25-27 and
April 1-3, 2025: https://coderefinery.github.io/2025-03-25-workshop/

You can still offer an in-person classroom. To do that, and get onboarding, please register to the workshop and choose "organizer of a local group".

You can also help us advertise by reusing these texts (https://coderefinery.github.io/2025-03-25-workshop/communication/) or with a workshop poster: https://github.com/coderefinery/posters/tree/main/2025_spring_workshop

Open House

We will have a few smaller Open House events planned for March, to work on lesson updates. We will meet online Wed March 5th 10-12 CET and Mon March 17 10-12 CET (you can join either one, also only part of the time).
You are very welcome to join the sessions and support the lesson updates (there are all kinds of things to do that you also do not need to be an expert in the topic for).
Connection details and info (WIP): https://hackmd.io/@coderefinery/OH_lessonwork
We'll continue with the git masterclass later in Spring.

Nordic-RSE conference

The Nordic-RSE (research software engineers) conference will take place May 20-21, 2025 in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Many CodeRefinery community members will be present there. The registration and call for contributions are open:

• https://nordic-rse.org/nrse2025/

Read about who this event is for and who you might meet there in this blogpost: https://nordic-rse.org/blog/conf-info-event/

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Feb 2025 : News and invitations

Hei,

Thank you to everyone who joined our ambassador meetings so far! I hope you got something out of it. While writing this e-mail I noticed that most of the previous meeting could actually have been an e-mail, so here a short survey on your preferences for information sharing (only 2 short questions): https://www.menti.com/albdgao9fxi7
We will in any case continue the approximately monthly meetings, but may restructure them a bit based on your answers.

Here now a summary of the latest news in written format:

Past

• Git masterclass open house report pt 1, pt 2 coming soon.
  • Interested in follow up event? Send an e-mail to [e-mail]
• CodeRefinery 4.0 proposal submitted
  • Proposal: https://github.com/coderefinery/reports-and-proposals/tree/main/phase-4-proposal
    • Continue: Large online workshops, Train the trainer, lesson development, outreach
    • New: interest in research data management and AI connections, self-learning MOOC, CodeRefinery workshop at conference
  • Potential to join for non-Nordics organizations at any time, see our info for new organizations: https://github.com/coderefinery/reports-and-proposals/blob/main/phase-4-proposal/info_for_new_organizations.md ; contact [e-mail] if interested or wanna hear more
• Some ± new derivative lesson material sets by Radovan:
  • Reproducible Python for Machine Learning: https://coderefinery.github.io/reproducible-python-ml/
  • Data visualization with Python: https://coderefinery.github.io/data-visualization-python/
  • "CodeRefinery in an hour": https://coderefinery.github.io/research-software-engineering/

Upcoming

• Spring workshop registration is open: https://coderefinery.github.io/2025-03-25-workshop/: March 25-27 and April 1-3, 2025
  • Role distributions in progress: co-instructor, notes helper, team lead, local host, communications support, let us know if you wanna help in any capacity by filling in this little survey: https://link.webropolsurveys.com/S/CFA986F053D2E3FF (please forward to anyone who might be interested in helping, or bringing their own classroom)
• Co-instructor info event: Feb 19 + 24, 9-11 CET (both identical)
  • more info: https://hackmd.io/@coderefinery/instructor_info25 (no registration needed, just show up)
  • Note: this is not only for people interested in teaching with us but can also be helpful for people generally teaching online
• Nordic-RSE Conference: https://nordic-rse.org/nrse2025/, May 20+21 in Gothenburg, Sweden
• Preliminary autumn workshop dates: September 16.-18. and 23.-25. 2025

Other

• A wish from the last ambassador meeting: CR workshop poster to print (one general for the workshop and one adaptable if local room is available)
  • Now available here (svg can be edited with e.g. InkScape, general spring workshop poster available as png with CET/EET/BST time (note the name and choose the right one for your timezone), and templates without date and QR code as svg and pdf : https://github.com/coderefinery/posters
• Reminder that we also have some slides that can be shared or integrated in your own presentations: https://github.com/coderefinery/presentations/blob/main/README.md
• In addition to this ambassador e-mail list, CodeRefinery has a general newsletter and chat digest E-Mails (https://coderefinery.org/about/newsletter/).
  • We also have our own chat https://coderefinery.zulipchat.com where we discuss collaborations and other topics of interest to the community. The Nordic Research Software Engineering association also hangs out in that chat.
  • We also use the following external channels to update on things going on in the project:
    • 🐘 Mastodon: fosstodon.org/@coderefinery
    • 🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/coderefinery-research-software-development/
    • 🦋 And now new: We are also on Bluesky! -> https://bsky.app/profile/coderefinery.org

In case of any questions regarding the project or the workshops, please do not hesitate to send an e-mail to [e-mail] or use our Zulip chat (https://coderefinery.zulipchat.com).

Looking forward to hearing about your opinions about the communication channel in the little survey (same link as above): https://www.menti.com/albdgao9fxi7

Kind regards,
Samantha
CodeRefinery community manager

Slideset, upcoming workshop, goodies

Hei,

the preparations for our upcoming workshop are going strong and we are looking forward to it!

Please share the info with your network. And thank you if you have done so already <3

You can find some texts that you can adjust to your needs on our workshop homepage: https://coderefinery.github.io/2024-09-10-workshop/communication/

We will do some more posts on social media soon, which can also be reshared:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/coderefinery-research-software-development/?viewAsMember=true
• X:https://twitter.com/coderefine
• Mastodon: https://fosstodon.org/@coderefinery

CodeRefinery slideset

In addition we have been asked to provide a short slide set about CodeRefinery which can be added to other presentations.
You can now find these slides as markdown (+css) and Libre Office Impress (odp) format in our presentation repository (2024-CodeRefinery-basic.xx): https://github.com/coderefinery/presentations/tree/main (rendered: https://cicero.xyz/v3/remark/0.14.0/github.com/coderefinery/presentations/main/2024-CodeRefinery-basic.md/). They are also linked from our webpage: https://coderefinery.org/about/goodies/ . Please let us know if those are useful or more information should be added. We will also be turning these into a poster soon.

Goodies

We currently have stickers, sew-on patches and iron-on sheets (to make your own CodeRefinery T-shirt) with the CodeRefinery logo: https://coderefinery.org/about/goodies .
If you want some, please send us an email with what and how many you would like and your (work) address.

Website

After the upcoming workshop we will adapt the CodeRefinery website to create a space for ambassadors, if you want to be added there, please send us your name, affiliation/location and e-mail address. This will then be a place for interested parties to find a CodeRefinery affiliate in their organization/location.

Thank you for being an ambassador and hope to see you around :)

Kind regards,
Radovan and Samantha on behalf of CodeRefinery

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Outreach to potential ambassadors

Hei,

we are reaching out to you because FILL IN HERE.

We have recently started the CodeRefinery ambassador program and would like you to become part of it!

What is it?

We rely heavily on local organizers for our workshops and people telling their colleagues about CodeRefinery. And we know many are already supporting the CodeRefinery project that way. We would like to thank you for it, find ways to support you better and keep you in the loop about what is happening.
Currently the ambassador program consists of a mailing list and a chat channel, but we also plan to have more get-togethers in the future. None of which you'd have an obligation to attend.

What can you get from it?

We will provide materials for you to include in your talks, posters and trainings at events (you may anyway be attending). You can also get CodeRefinery goodies to distribute at events.

We can also support you to start your own local community of CodeRefinery enthusiasts or other activities.

What we can offer:

• A chance to influence the future of the project
• Visibility in social media and on our webpage
• Weekly community news
• Support for organizing local events or other activities

Next steps?

If this sounds interesting to you, please sign up to our ambassador mailing list (https://postit.csc.fi/sympa/subscribe/coderefinery-ambassadors/) and/or join the CodeRefinery Zulip chat (https://coderefinery.org/join/chat/).
This will be the main channels of contact. We also plan to organize an ambassador meetup on 12.8.

If you have any questions, suggestions or ideas that you would like to share with us, you may answer to this email or contact us at [e-mail]

Ambassador or not, thank you for being awesome!

Kind regards,
XXX on behalf of the CodeRefinery team

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Current ambassador mailing list subscribers: 11 (5.8) , 9 (24.7)

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People to reach out to

• previous instructors (all same)

• previous helpers (all same)

  6.8

• known hosts of in person rooms (all same) -> drafted together with BYOC outreach, to be sent by RB

• supporters at CSC (Päivi Rausta, Pinja Immonen, Josefine Nordling, Heidi Reiman, Heli Juottonen, Anni, …) -> sent

• supporters in other places (personal)
  – Paula, Halford, Carlos -> sent

  
  – Simon (Ireland) -> sent
  – Weronika (EPCC) -> sent
  – Jan (Hannover) -> sent
  – Frank L (DE) -> sent
  – Luca & Matteo -> sent
  – Gudrun Lotze

• LinkedIn reposters/likers (active)
  – Niket Agrawal
  – Marion Weinzierl
  – Laura Bellentani
  – Korbinian B.
  – Priyanka O.
  – Vilma Häkkinen

• X reposters/likers (active)
  – Katharina Kujala
  – Pradeep Eranti
  – Dr. Ingrid Heggland
  – Abbas K. Rizi
  – Susan Branchett

• Mastodon reposters/likers (active)
  – Esther Plomp
  – Dr. Rachel Kurchin
  – Benedikt Ehinger
  – Jobin John

Seems like it is not possible to contact them in direct message on social media platforms :(
Leaving the list here for later, but not directly contacting for now.

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Ambassador mailing list

Sent out on 8.8 to 18 (+2) ambassadors

Hei,

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TL;DR

Thank you for joining the CodeRefinery ambassadors!
Lots of events coming up: https://coderefinery.org/#news
Ambassador community call: 12.8, 14 CEST at https://uit.zoom.us/j/62141400945

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Thank you for being a CodeRefinery ambassador; we highly appreciate your support!

We started the ambassador program in June 2024 in an effort to build a network with people like you! We hope that this can be the beginning of a fruitful exchange going both ways and support you in growing your professional network around Research Software Engineering and Open Science.

What we hope you can get out of it:

• Network, connections
• Collaborations
• Support, stickers, materials
• Direct connection

What we hope to get out of it:

• Outreach, visibility
• Feedback, improvement ideas, and suggestions
• Collaborations

Note that to be an ambassador, you do not have to be active as a CodeRefinery instructor/helper or community member.

We'll have a bunch of events coming up after the summer break; all free of charge and online:

• CodeRefinery train the trainer, 4 modular sessions every Tuesday morning between August 13. and September 3. Join any of the sessions that interest you; no need to be or aspire to be a CodeRefinery instructor! More info and registration: https://coderefinery.github.io/train-the-trainer/

• CodeRefinery online workshop on tools and techniques for "good enough" FAIR Research Software Engineering practices for researchers, 6 half days between September 10. - 19. More info and registration: https://coderefinery.github.io/2024-09-10-workshop/

• Same workshop but in person is also offered August 27.-29. in Gothenburg: https://coderefinery.github.io/2024-08-27-gothenburg/

• Build systems course and hackathon organized by PDC with CodeRefinery partners in October. 4 course days plus local hackathon and support sessions in Sweden/Finland. More info and registration: https://www.pdc.kth.se/about/events/build-systems-course-and-hackathon-part-i-1.1346795, , Hackathon (SE): https://www.pdc.kth.se/about/events/build-systems-course-and-hackathon-part-ii-1.1346798 , Hackathon/Support session (FI): https://ssl.eventilla.com/build-systems

• On Monday 12.8 at 14 CEST we will provide all ambassadors with an opportunity to meet each other and with the CodeRefinery team; connection details and agenda: https://hackmd.io/@coderefinery/team-meeting

In the meantime, if you want to get in touch, you can join the CodeRefinery chat (https://coderefinery.zulipchat.com/) and find the ambassador topic in the coderefinery channel (https://coderefinery.zulipchat.com/#narrow/stream/215460-coderefinery/topic/CodeRefinery.20ambassador.20program) or send an email to [e-mail] (better than personal emails, to make sure you get an answer even if someone is on vacation or sick).

We are looking forward to working with you! Please do not hesitate to contact us.

Kind regards,
Samantha & Radovan on behalf of CodeRefinery