One of the main communication mechanisms for the community is our Slack instance. Our Slack community is available to all members and new members will be invited to Slack shortly after joining HEDGe. All members will be expected to follow the Code of Conduct while participating in Slack discussions.

The HEDGe Slack instance has two types of channels:

Community channels are for discussion, are open to anyone and are unmoderated. Existing community channels:

  • admin: Channel for Slack assistance, messages to the Slack administrators, and requests to join dedicated channels.
  • conferences-events: Channel to share information about external (non-HEDGe) conferences and events that may be of interest to other HEDGe members. People attending a conference or event who want to share that information with other HEDGe members can post it here. Links to conference materials that can be shared can also be posted here.
  • general: Channel for professional conversations available to the full HEDGe membership. This is a good place to alert fellow HEDGers of something of professional interest or ask questions about other member’s experiences.
  • hedge-webinars: Channel for hosting links to the HEDGe webinar resources and discussions of webinar content.
  • random: Channel for friendly conversations. Though non-professional topics are welcome, conversation should remain appropriate for a broad audience.
  • tools-for-dg: Channel for discussing the various data governance tools available. This forum serves as a resource for anyone looking for help about these tools, including their pros & cons and software tips.

Dedicated channels are meant to produce a product or further an outcome.  Anyone can join if they are willing to contribute to the group’s work. Dedicated channels will not be listed as available channels unless the user is a member. Requests to join a dedicated channel should be posted to the #admin channel. Existing dedicated channels:

  • communications-group: Channel for the working team that develops and maintains HEDGe’s group messaging (Slack) and website platforms. This channel is restricted to members of the Communication and Collaboration Team.
  • data-governance-models: Channel for discussing and learning about different data governance and stewardship frameworks and setups in Higher Education. Goal is to build an inventory of models.
  • data-literacy: Channel for discussing and sharing experiences on how to implement data literacy programming in Higher Education. Goal is to create artifacts for use by community members to use in implementing data literacy programs on their campus.
  • international-outreach: Channel to enable discussions among HEDGe members on potential partnerships and information sharing on data governance initiatives undertaken by Higher Education institutions around the world. Goal is to increase membership and connections outside North America.
  • slack-rollout: Channel for collaboration and planning related to rolling out Slack to the HEDGe Community. Goal is to launch and stabilize the multichannel Slack instance and build sustainable support processes.
  • steering: Channel for Steering Committee discussions and collaboration.  This channel is restricted to Steering Committee members.

Slack is available on PC, Mac, iOS and Android devices.  To learn more about using Slack, consult the Slack help pages.


To join HEDGe (and gain access to Slack conversations), fill out this form.

Have questions? Need more information? Let us know.