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Bike Collective Network

The mission of the Bike Collective Network is to strengthen and encourage communication and resource sharing between existing and future community bike shops. Collectively we can improve a bigger wheel as opposed to re-inventing smaller ones.

Join over 900 like minded individuals from over 500 similar organizations across the world on The Think Tank email list.

This wiki is here to help bike collectives collaborate and share ideas. Whether you are an advocate, mechanic, or just someone who likes to ride -- anyone can freely edit the content of this site. A history of all changes ensures that nothing is lost.

See FAQ about contributing to this wiki.

Lists of Community Bike Projects

• Community Bicycle Organizations
• International Bicycle Aid Organizations
• Social bike rides
• Bike/Pedestrian Advisory, Safety, Advocacy Committees and Organizations

Starter Kits

Just starting out? Looking to expand? Before you do anything crazy, start planning! Set clear goals and the path to meeting those goals will also become clear. Follow hundreds of similar organizations by using and contributing to these free online resources...

1. Starting a Community Bike Shop
2. Organizational Models
3. Legal Filings
4. Insurance
5. Accounting
6. Fundraising
7. Publicity
   • FREE PICKLE Day
8. Strategic Planning
9. Over 300 examples of Community Bicycle Organizations and International Bicycle Aid Organizations.
10. Teaching Resources
11. Common Activities:
    • Community Bike Shop: Providing bicycle tools, parts, used bikes and mechanical expertise to the public.
    • Earn-a-Bike: Programs that allow people to literally earn a bike through learning or volunteer work, sometimes focused exclusively on youth.
      • Examples:
        • Earn-A-Bike Training Manual by Bikes Not Bombs
        • One Revolution at a Time by Recycle-a-Bicycle
        • Tools for Life by Recycle-a-Bicycle
        • Community Cycles Youth Earn-A-Bike Curriculum
      • Teaching Methods
    • Valet Bike Parking: Providing corralled areas where volunteers watch your bike while you enjoy an event.
    • Safety Education: The League of American Bicyclists has a nicely pre-packaged program called Smart Cycling which includes a Bike Rodeo Kit.
    • Mechanical Training: Park Tool has a nicely pre-packaged program called the Park Tool School. See below for suggested Maintenance_Classes.
    • Helmet Distribution
    • Bicycle Art: Following Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle old bikes and parts are turned into works of art.
    • Bicycle Advocacy: Many Community Bicycle Organizations concentrate on the grass roots elements of educating and getting people on bikes. However some organizations, or at least some of their members, are also involved in traditional bicycle advocacy.
    • Women and Trans Night: Encouraging more women and trans people to get involved and learn in a comfortable space.
    • Commercial Bike Racks: Providing outdoor bike racks and installation local businesses and cities.
12. Organization Building Resources
13. How to find, start, or improve a bike program by bikes not bombs
14. Suggestions for starting your own community bike shop (in Spanish): http://lafabricicleta.blogspot.com/p/un-taller-en-tu-barrio.html

Community Bike Shop

Providing bicycle tools, parts, used bikes and mechanical expertise to the public.

1. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) is at the heart of every decision, even if it seems unrelated. Think: how do I tie this decision to DEIB?
   • Language justice
     • resources
     • further reading
   • Patriarchy_and_Bicycle_Repair
   • Safer_Space
   • Women_and_Trans_Programs
2. Bike and Part Donations: acquisition, sorting and re-sale. Shop Manual.
3. Shop Location
4. Staffing: paid, volunteer or both.
5. Shop Organization
6. Shop Recycling
7. Volunteer Handbook
8. Layout
9. Tool lists
10. Rules
11. Hours
12. Capital Improvement Plans
13. Proper Bike Fit
14. Maintenance Classes
15. Software

Conferences/Gatherings

• Bike!Bike! is an annual international conference of nonprofit bike collectives and other bicycle projects.
• Youth Bike Summit is organized by Recycle-a-Bicycle in New York City every year.

Past Conferences

• List of all known previous events
  • Bike!Bike! is an in-person event that has happened most years since 2004. It has been held in the USA, Mexico, and Canada.
    • Previous Bike!Bike! Events with Details (2013 events and later)
  • Bike!Bike! Everywhere! is a virtual, international Bike!Bike! online.
    • Many past workshops are posted on here on archive.org.
      • Note: there were some workshops whose recordings failed or were randomly lost, and some that weren't recorded.

Volunteering for this community of communities

We are a volunteer-run non-hierarchical consensus-based community.

Perks include (but are not limited to)

• Great company
• The opportunity to pursue your skills and interests, to learn, and to grow.
• You make the wheels go 'round, so please assign yourself whatever title is appropriate if you need it for e.g. a resume.
• Please also reach out to someone if you need a letter of reference. We have a nice template in the shared drive that can be edited to describe the work you do.

Getting involved

• Bike!Bike! Everywhere! Volunteer Roles
• B!B!E! Meetings and minutes

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging

We constantly strive to do better at Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging. When volunteering, please keep that in mind. Some specific strategies include:

• Make Space / Take Space
  • Make Space for newer volunteers and people from marginalized communities. Sometimes this may involve taking a back seat and/or letting go of responsibilities you would otherwise take on.
  • Take Space to share your perspective - especially if it is underrepresented here - and to make your needs known.
• Be conscious of your power and privilege.
  • Have you historically been in some sort of leadership role in the bike collectives community?
  • Are you in a position of relative social privilege?
  • This community has historically been very US-centric.
  • Bike collectives, like the broader US cycling community, often skew white, male, and abled.
• If you are in a position of relative power or privilege, try to center other voices.
  • Make space
  • Mentor or support new volunteers
  • Make introductions - connect new volunteers with others who can support them
  • Ensure that everyone can participate in conversations

We are all learning these things together. Please try to be as kind and patient with each other as you can, and also bring up issues and concerns when you notice them so that we know where we need to improve.

Also, the last two bullet points (and sub-points) were written by people in positions of power and privilege so if someone wants to add some points from the perspective of the "take space" component, that would be awesome.