On April 13, 2020, Meetup created its very own Meetup group. The goal was to showcase weekly online events hosted by Meetup organizers and guests. The goal of these events was to promote continued education, personal growth, and dialogue throughout the whole Meetup community.
One year later, that group—Meetup Live—has become an invaluable source of connection and support between the Meetup team and the group’s 65,000+ members. Meetup Live events feature organizers and team members alongside experts and advocates from all walks of life. So far, after 72 Meetup Live events, the total number of RSVPs has reached over 110,000! The three main types of Meetup Live events include:
- Dismantling Social Injustice series
- Community building experts, authors, and thought leaders
- Updates from Meetup
Through panels, interviews, Q&As, and demonstrations, Meetup Live events in each of these categories have helped make the last 12 months more meaningful and purposeful. To celebrate this milestone, let’s take a look back at some of the best moments from the first year of Meetup Live.
Dismantling Social Injustice series
Beginning as a response in support of last summer’s widespread calls for racial justice, this series has become an ongoing effort to unite around the cause of ending discrimination. These events raise awareness, platform historically marginalized voices, and are centered on real actions we can all take to sustain the fight for justice.
In one of the series’ flagship events, How to Help Dismantle Social Injustice, Dr. Naa-Solo Tettey (Professor of Public Health and Creator of HeartSmarts) spoke about the most effective way to address societal problems. She believes we must commit to change at three distinct levels: the individual level, the interpersonal level, and the community level.
Meetup Live has covered a broad range of social issues, such as:
- Class struggles and wealth disparity (Economic Mobility & Urban Policy)
- Disability rights and ableism (The Challenges of Living with Disabilities)
- Civil rights disparities for transgender people (Equal Rights for the Transgender Community)
Community building experts, authors, and thought leaders
In addition to helping members make a positive impact in their communities, Meetup Live is dedicated to helping members improve their daily lives. These events are focused on both professional and personal growth.
On the business side, Meetup Live has featured some of the most innovative voices bringing about a paradigm shift in the corporate world. In Networking Your Way to an Empire, Ali Kriegsman (Co-founder and COO of Bulletin and author of How to Build a Goddamn Empire) taught that networking is a long game in which you have to value genuine connections over impersonal transactions.
On the personal side, Jenn Bane and Trin Garritano (authors of Friendshipping and hosts of the Friendshipping podcast) stopped by to host Meetup Live’s most popular event to date. Nearly 12,000 people RSVP’d to Making New Friends as an Adult, which covered how to ace the legwork of putting yourself out there.
Updates from Meetup
Meetup Live has also been an excellent community bulletin where team members can directly communicate new features and future plans with organizers and members.
In The Download with Meetup’s Tech Team, Rajib Ahmed (Meetup’s Chief Technology Officer) and Annyce Davis (Meetup’s Senior Director of Engineering) discussed upcoming improvements to Meetup’s digital experience. One exciting announcement from this conversation was the plan for a new organizer app with advanced management capabilities to help you engage with members in bigger and better ways.
Meetup’s CEO David Siegel also stopped by Meetup Live to reflect on the legacy of 2020 and talk about what you can expect from Meetup in 2021. In his Moving Forward conversation, he spoke about Meetup’s continued support for online events (and in-person hybrid events) even after the pandemic is behind us, highlighting their global reach and flexibility. Plus, he emphasized Meetup’s commitment to more organizer workshops hosted by Meetup Live.
Community is a click away with Meetup Live
If you want to catch up on the first year of Meetup Live, you can listen back to all of the previous Meetup Live recordings in full. To get involved going forward, join the group and RSVP for upcoming events like Dismantling Social Injustice: Unpacking Anti-Asian Racism.
Last modified on June 23, 2021
