This is a very interesting article about the long-term sustainability of the Fediverse for moderators, administrators, and developers. We’ve already had two of our lovely Beehaw admins take breaks to take care of themselves as they experience the burnout associated with maintaining a community, and I think for a lot of use we already know how exhausting it can be to take a center stage position in an online community.

Unfortunately, I don’t have any great starting points for what to do, but at least talking about it is a start.

  • Lionir [he/him]@beehaw.orgEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    Yes, obviously make mental health treatment more accessible, but if it has gotten to the point where it’s needed (as opposed to the equivalent of checkups and maintenance), then things have already gotten out of hand.

    While I agree with this on principle - at this moment in time - I don’t know any admin of any of the big instances which does not struggle with balancing their admin responsibilities and living.

    While we should pay moderators for their time, because their time is valuable, that’s also not a solution, just basic respect. People with high-paying jobs burn out, too.

    When it is a job, people can quit. When it is a labour of love, that is a lot more difficult. As the model doesn’t give nearly enough money for people to be financially compensated, the only ones who can stay are those doing it as a labour of love. These people probably need to work because they need to live. This makes self-control of the time invested a lot harder, I think. People are more likely to drive themselves to burn out with these conditions in place.