Website Guidelines

Administration

The website shall operate under the auspices of the Communication & Technology Committee of the Edmonton Intergroup Committee. This committee is responsible for determining the site’s content and appointing trusted servants to manage its administration.

1. A web master will be appointed (or hired as needed) to manage the technical aspects of the web site and to provide consultation expertise as needed. The Web Master is responsible to the committee and the groups served. 
2. One or two volunteer web content administrators (web admins) will be appointed to manage the day-to-day maintenance of the Web site content. Experience indicates that managing the site content, keeping local meeting information and other postings current can be time-consuming if only one person is responsible for doing so. This also provides some built-in redundancy in that one web admin can back up the other when he/she is unavailable to perform necessary website updates. The web master or chair positions may be able to provide the needed redundancy, if they are available and have the required experience.
3. Keeping in mind that adherence to our Traditions and Concepts overrides the need to have technical expertise; an effort will be made to sponsor volunteers into the position of web administrator. We need trusted servants who know how we must work together in order to make a website an effective communication tool.
4. The web administrators must have access to a personal computer and the internet. It is suggested that they have at least one year of sobriety.
5. The web admins serve for a term of two years but may be reappointed for one additional, consecutive term of two years.
6. The web master and web admins are authorized to make changes to the Website as deemed necessary within the limitations of these guidelines.
7. The Communication & Technology Committee shall regularly canvass the membership of the Edmonton Intergroup Committee to ascertain whether the website is fulfilling its purpose.
8. These guidelines may be revised upon approval of the voting membership of the Edmonton Intergroup Committee at the monthly scheduled business meeting.
9. The Communication & Technology Committee will employ a web hosting company to host and maintain the website. The chair of this committee will act as the primary contact and liaison to the hosting company. The chair must provide the necessary credit card information to be kept on file with the web host company.
10. At the end of their term, the outgoing Communication & Technology Chair shall provide the incoming Chair with a document containing valid server information. This shall include, but not be limited to, URLs, passwords, security information. The outgoing Chair shall also facilitate any necessary change with the hosting provider to change billing information, or introduce the new Chair as a contact and liaison for Edmonton AA website.
11. The Website shall preferably be registered with [Edmonton] and “aa” in the name and be registered in the name of Edmonton Central Office Society.
12. Edmonton Central Office Society is the named owner of the domain registration for edmontonaa.org.
13. The billing contact should be the Edmonton AA Central Office Manager, however, renewal of the domain name and hosting service are the responsibility of either the web master or the Communication & Technology Chair.
14. The technical contact for the Website’s Internet Service Provider is the web master, or the technology chair if there is no web master.
15. Technical access to the website will be limited to the above trusted servants (Communication & Technology Chair, the web master, and the web admins).

Guidelines

1. A website is a way of communicating to the world who we are and what we do. We must be all-inclusive, technically user friendly, and ensure confidentiality and member anonymity.
2. The web site shall serve as a communication tool for the Edmonton Intergroup Committee by providing approved, publicly available information about Alcoholics Anonymous to:
   – the public (including those who need AA and are searching for help).
   – the media.
   – the A.A. fellowship- inside and outside Edmonton AA.
3. The Website shall present information to enable the still-suffering alcoholic to make direct, face-to-face contact with Alcoholics Anonymous, and to provide information regarding the service structure in Edmonton AA.
4. In keeping with the 12 Traditions of A.A., the Website would NOT:
   • – Publish any member’s telephone number.
     – Publish any member’s email address that identifies the full first and last name of the member.
     – Publish a member’s full name or identifiable picture.
     – Present any affiliation, endorsement, display of or link to any non-A.A. entity.
5. The Website shall be funded exclusively by the Edmonton Central Office Society and should not accept funds from any other source. The Edmonton Central Office Society will provide a fund from which the Communication & Technology Chair can pay for expenses other than those to the service provider.
6. The Website will operate under the guidance and direction of the Edmonton Central Office Society (also known as the Edmonton AA Intergroup Committee.
7. Edmonton area trusted servants may request changes to the group information listing on the Website at any time. Our primary concern here is to always display accurate meeting information at all times.
8. Anyone may request the addition, change, or removal of group information from the Website at any time, but these type of requests may require more verification (as to its accuracy) from the Web Administrator before posting.
9. Announcements of AA events to be posted on the Website shall be submitted to the web admins by the host of the event, using the Calendar feature “Post An Event”.
10. In the spirit of anonymity, and keeping with the wishes of the Edmonton Central Office Society members, any submission that does not adhere to these guidelines shall not be accepted by the web administrator until amended.

Responsibilities

1. The Web Content Administrator (web admin), working within the Communication & Technology committee, is responsible for the day-to-day maintenance of the website. As a trusted servant, a web admins is authorized to make minor changes to the Website, as deemed necessary, within the limitations of these guidelines. No wholesale changes should be made to the web pages without consultation with the Communication & Technology committee chair.
2. The Edmonton AA Communication & Technology committee shall biannually canvas the membership of the Edmonton Central Office Society to ensure that the web site is fulfilling its purpose and that it is effective as a communication tool.
3. If the website is used to distribute meeting reports, that section of the web site should be password protected to limit access to those authorized to see the reports.
4. To facilitate the operation of the Website within the Traditions of A.A., the Communication & Technology Chair (or designated proxy) will maintain E-mail aliases for all trusted servants and special workers. Each E-mail alias should be set up to route communication to the servant’s own private email account.
5. The Communication & Technology committee shall:
   – be directly accountable to the Edmonton Central Office Society intergroup membership.
   – work within the budget assigned to the website.
   – respond to the changing needs of the AA membership in Edmonton as they determine the uses of the web site as a communication tool.

Website Contents

1. The following shall be displayed on the home page: “This web site observes all AA’s practices and principles. Since anonymity ‘is the spiritual foundation of all our traditions’, we practice anonymity at all times. A web site is a public medium which has the potential for reaching the broadest possible audience and, therefore, requires the same safeguards that we use at the level of press, radio and film.”
2. A home page displaying the name of the website as well as clearly identified connections to the other sections of the Website.
3. A map displaying Edmonton AA, identifying the location of Edmonton AA Districts which make up the membership of Edmonton AA Intergroup.
4. A list of A.A. meeting information for groups within Edmonton AA, except the contact number listed would be that of the nearest central office or intergroup instead of any individual member.
5. A page where each Edmonton General Service Committee (EGSC) subcommittees may post relevant information.
6. A page listing the latest contact information for all active districts of Area 78 that comprise EGSC, keeping anonymity in mind.
7. The Conference-approved “A.A. Fact Sheet”.
8. The “Anonymity Letter to the Media” as supplied by GSO.
9. Listings of A.A. events and roundups within or connected to Edmonton AA,as provided by the fellowship.
10. Links to the GSO and the Grapevine Websites.
11. These Guidelines.
12. A list of public Edmonton AA Central Office phone numbers, addresses and hours of operation.
13. Phone numbers for AA call centers in Area 78.
14. A “Search” function for site navigation.
15. A Site Map function to assist in understanding the site organization and navigation.
16. The software which operates the website should be responsive, in that it displays the website on phones and mobile devices in a friendly fashion.