Goal

The goal of the speaker series is to host a diverse list of speakers who will help educate and energize Indivisible Santa Fe members to pursue and support the Indivisible mission "elect progressive leaders, rebuild our democracy, and defeat the Trump agenda." ISF will endeavor to invite guest speakers who are interesting and informative, and who will adhere to Indivisible's commitment to non-violence and its status as a non-partisan, nonprofit organization.

ISF's Guests may include, but are not limited to, community leaders, city, state, and federal elected officials, subject matter experts, and experienced progressive activists. Potential speakers whose sole purpose is to campaign for public office are not considered eligible.

Guidelines

The following guidelines are intended to assure that all speakers are properly vetted and approved in advance. Following the guidelines will mean:

  • There are no schedule conflicts with ISF's business agendas
  • There are no duplications
  • There is diversity in the guests and topics
  • There are no sudden, unanticipated pop-ups that disrupt the scheduled meeting
  • Speakers' topics will align with the Indivisible mission, and with ISF's operating committees or ongoing projects
  • Speakers represent well established and reputable organizations, with the potential for broad impact
  • There will be sufficient time to publish announcements about upcoming speakers in the ISF Newsletter and ISF website, including photos and biographical information, in order to have a good turnout and maximum impact
  • There will be sufficient time to prepare for the speaker and assure it is a positive experience for our guests

Frequency: ISF will host speakers once a month at regularly scheduled weekly meetings. Inviting more than one speaker in a month is discouraged as ISF needs time to conduct its core business, but may be permissible under certain circumstances and with the advance approval of the Steering Committee.

Topics: We consider ISF's time dedicated to hosting speakers to be a scare resource. Accordingly, recommended speakers and covered topics should align with ISF's mission, and the subject matters and action items covered by ISF's established sub-committees.

Member Recommendations: Members who wish to recommend a speaker must contact a member of the Speaker committee with the proposal with at least two weeks' advance notice. They should conduct basic due diligence on the potential speaker to confirm they are knowledgeable, well established in their fields and accustomed to public speaking, and provide that information to the Speaker Committee.

Approval: The Speakers Committee will jointly review requests and will communicate its recommendations to the Steering Committee.

All speakers require Steering Committee approval in advance. Bypassing the pre-approval process is highly discouraged. Potential speakers that have not been vetted and pop up at meetings unannounced may not be given the opportunity to speak due to full agendas etc.

1 https://indivisible.org/, Home Page, "Who We Are"