"Research area reviews" are ways we work to organize and synthesize information and materials on Public Lab based on topic areas. 

## Review Phases

Currently, Research Area Reviews are run in three phases: 

   - **Phase 1**: Information Gathering
   - **Phase 2**: Convening
   - **Phase 3**: Synthesizing 

See the [template below](#Template) for a full list of tasks in each phase. 

#### Phase 1: Information Gathering

In Phase 1, the goal is to sift through and update all the existing resources on PublicLab.org related to a topic. This could include checking in on other projects' updates as well, and if there's been a previous review, that's also a great place to start. 

#### Phase 2: Convening

Phase 2 involves hosting an [Open Call](/opencall) to bring folks together, to go through the collected materials from Phase 1, identify gaps and plan next steps.

#### Phase 3: Synthesizing

In Phase 3, the notes from the call and the newly collected materials, shared goals, and tasks are organized and shared on PublicLab.org, tying the review together in a single post. 

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## Who does reviews?

Organizing community materials on PublicLab.org, and growing and organizing our shared knowledge, is important work. If you're interested in helping out, please go ahead! We're also happy to hear from you and provide support -- get in touch by [leaving a comment on this post](/notes/stevie/05-24-2019/idea-to-distribute-tasks-for-a-reserach-area-review)


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## Template

You can copy this template to organize the phases of a Research Area Review: 

Phase|Task Type|Who can do this|Difficulty|Task|I'll do this! 
-------------------------|---------------------|---------------------|---------------------|---------------------|-------------------------
1|Garden|Anyone|Easy|Go through posts in the area and make sure they are properly tagged|LINK
1|Share|Anyone|Easy|Post questions on the topic area you have, or that you’re not able to find answers to on Public Lab.| LINK
1|Garden|One person|Medium|Make sure the wiki page has clear format|LINK
1|Research|Anyone|Hard|Help find answers to unanswered questions |LINK
1|Facilitate|Anyone|Hard|Invite, listen to, and record new stories related to the topic |LINK
2|Share|Anyone|Easy|Attend the open topic call and collaborate |LINK
2|Facilitate|One person|Medium|Host the public online meeting for group to collaborate to: Highlighting findings, ID gaps in available resources, highlight challenges in this research area |LINK
3|Synthesize|Anyone|Hard|Review existing material and call summary and write an update post on it with materials gathered |LINK
3|Research|One person|Hard|Follow up on gaps identified from the group and post materials to help support information around those gaps.  |LINK