Margaret Fero

North Bay Python

Crisis (Technical) Communication: Teaching Survival Skills You Didn’t Know... - Margaret Fero - 2026

System Reliability and Error Handling: Comparing paradigms from C to Rust Result to build resilient cloud infrastructure.

Ethical Technology and Social Justice: Analyzing the intersection of AI, eugenics, and data labor to advocate for empathetic software design.

Practical Development Skills: Mastering web scraping, designing Python APIs for volatile data, and building civic tech on a budget.

Open Source and Community Building: Learning best practices for project scope management, contributing to large open-source projects, and technical communication.

Explore advanced topics in Python development, system reliability, ethical AI, and community-driven open source projects.

A deep dive into error handling paradigms (C, Exceptions, Rust Result) and the systemic failures that define modern cloud infrastructure. Learn how to build truly robust systems by understanding complex failure modes.

State of Exception(s)

A critical examination of the tech industry's ideological roots, connecting eugenics, data labor, and techno-optimism. Learn to build technology with social justice and empathy.

An Economy of Empathy

A practical framework for applying technology to local activism and civic engagement, focusing on maximizing impact with minimal resources.

Running Resistance Tech on a Shoestring

Learn to build robust Python scrapers and APIs for volatile open web data, focusing on handling silent failures and maintaining data contracts.

Designing Python APIs for Data You Don’t Control

Explore essential technical communication and crisis communication skills needed to navigate rapid technological change and social uncertainty.

Crisis (Technical) Communication: Teaching Survival Skills You Didn’t Know...

A personal journey detailing the growth of an open-source project, emphasizing community building, vulnerability, and technical contribution.

Bumbling into BeeWare: From typo-fix to core developer

A retrospective on web development, covering embedded systems, SSGs, and AI tools, showing the evolution of modern developer workflows.

While I've changed gears... I've managed to find my web development tribe

Applying feminist theory to network engineering, arguing that systemic problems (like latency) require intersectional, non-linear thinking.

What Feminist Theory & Praxis Says About Internet Networking

A case study on maintaining project scope in large open-source projects, crucial for sustainable software architecture.

No Project Scope Survives Contact with Users

North Bay Python 2026

Recognize that technical skills (e.g., using decentralized social media, 3D printing, filing bug reports) are becoming essential tools for community survival and resilience.

Effective technical communication requires deep empathy, acknowledging the audience's existing knowledge gaps and emotional state, rather than assuming understanding.

When teaching technical skills, avoid language that implies simplicity or ease (e.g., 'simply' or 'just'), as this can create feelings of failure or inadequacy.

Always perform 'knowledge checks' when teaching new concepts to ensure the audience is not left feeling behind or overwhelmed.

In technical collaboration, always leave the door open for follow-up help and follow-up questions to encourage sustained engagement and trust.

Learn essential technical communication and crisis communication skills to help your community navigate uncertainty, surveillance, and rapid technological change.

The talk begins by defining key terms: **Technical** (related to a specific skill or discipline), **Technical Communication** (sharing information about technical subject matter), **Crisis** (a key turning point or time of danger), and **Crisis Communication** (sharing information during a crisis). The core premise is that in times of uncertainty, the ability to communicate technical knowledge effectively is paramount. Examples of modern crises include increased digital surveillance, the need to adopt decentralized platforms (like Signal, Mastodon, and PixelFed) away from centralized services, and rapid technological obsolescence.

Several specific, high-value technical skills are highlighted as crucial for modern life: 

* **Decentralized Communication:** Utilizing platforms like Mastodon and Signal to evade surveillance and maintain local community communication.
* **Learning New Apps:** Adapting to new, sometimes hostile, applications (e.g., those requiring sign-ins for previously offline activities) due to job shifts or economic pressures.
* **Bug Reporting & Open Source Contribution:** Learning the formal, often complex, process of filing bug reports on platforms like GitHub, which requires understanding specific templates and workflows.
* **3D Printing:** Using rapid prototyping for emergency needs, offering a less traceable alternative to commercial supply chains.
* **Importation:** Developing alternative methods when global supply chains are disrupted.

The most critical section focuses on *how* to teach these skills. The speaker emphasizes that technical communication must be deeply empathetic and inclusive:

1. **Audience Consideration:** Treat every learner as having valuable, existing skills. A struggle with a tool (like GitHub) is due to lack of exposure, not inability.
2. **Language and Tone:** Avoid language that implies ease or simplicity ('simply,' 'just'). Use welcoming and inclusive language to foster participation.
3. **Process Clarity:** When writing procedures, be explicit about all steps, as muscle memory can lead to skipping crucial details. 
4. **Knowledge Checks:** Always check the audience's existing knowledge level before diving into a topic. This prevents both making people feel inadequate and overwhelming experts.
5. **Maintaining Openness:** Always leave the door open for follow-up questions and help, reinforcing that support is available after the initial session.

Crisis Communication and Technical Skills for Community Resilience

Crisis (Technical) Communication: Teaching Survival Skills You Didn’t Know... - 2026

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Margaret Fero

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