> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://democracy-distributed.gitbook.io/democracy-distributed-docs/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://democracy-distributed.gitbook.io/democracy-distributed-docs/understand/contributor-network.md).

# The Contributor Network

The Contributor Network is DD's microtask layer: small, meaningful pieces of work that connect people who care about the same things, while they do that work together.

It's the engine under both other products:

* **WikiGov** can only know what people link, check, and add.
* **POD** groups only move forward when people pick up the work, and sometimes they need help from outside the group.

**Status:** being designed. Today, the data is gathered and linked by the core team. The tools for anyone to contribute on the site come next.

## Why it matters

DD exists for two reasons: to build a shared understanding of how things work, and to help people join forces to change what isn't working. The Contributor Network is where both happen.

* **Understanding needs people.** In the data we've worked with so far, official sources tend to publish a decision and sometimes a result, but rarely what happened in between. Scraping can't fill that gap. People can: the resident who walks past the site, the researcher who knows where to look, the member who was at the meeting.
* **Joining forces needs a way to find each other.** Someone who cares about a park, a by-law, or a budget line is rarely the only one. The aim is that you can see the others: who commented on the same decision, who upvoted the same idea, who worked on the same project. You can find them by the issue, the neighbourhood, or the organization you care about, or by the skills you share.

Small interactions, repeated, are how strangers become collaborators.

## Where tasks come from

* **WikiGov:** a missing link in a chain, like a payment with no decision attached or a role with no holder recorded
* **POD groups:** a community group posting a task it needs help with, such as research, design, or a pair of hands on the weekend
* **DD itself:** the project's own teams posting work, from writing a post to interviewing residents → [Get involved](/democracy-distributed-docs/contribute/get-involved.md)

## Ways to take part

From a few seconds to a few weeks, across WikiGov, POD, and DD itself:

* **React:** upvote an idea or a concern you share
* **Discuss:** comment on a decision, a project, or a task
* **Share what you know:** add a source, a correction, or what you saw on the ground
* **Pick up a task:** a small, well-defined piece of work
* **Own a Job:** a bigger piece of work with a clear scope, like adding a new year of data or bringing DD to a new city

**Next:** [Get involved →](/democracy-distributed-docs/contribute/get-involved.md)