Collaborate with ASK-Solutions

ASK-Solutions works with people and organisations that want to share knowledge, develop practical solutions, create learning opportunities, improve technical and digital self-reliance, support repair and ownership, or make participation more accessible.

A collaboration can begin with a person, a public question, a technical problem, an educational route, an existing project or an idea that still needs structure. It does not have to fit one fixed programme. The useful form depends on the purpose, the people involved, the responsibilities that must remain clear and the knowledge, facilities and funding available.

Our technical, educational and social work belongs together. Free software, free hardware, repair, publishing, digital support, practical learning and human-scale participation are different ways of working towards shared public-benefit goals.

Choose a route

Community organisations

For foundations, associations, community initiatives, social organisations, maker groups and referral networks.

Collaborate as a community organisation

Government and public bodies

For municipalities, public agencies, policy teams and public programmes working on knowledge, inclusion, repair, participation or local resilience.

Collaborate as a public body

Education

For schools and educational organisations interested in projects, placements, enrichment, return to learning or practical technical education.

Collaborate with education

Healthcare and guidance

For clinicians, care providers, coaches and support organisations looking for careful cooperation alongside their own professional role.

Collaborate around healthcare and guidance

Reintegration and participation

For job coaches, participation providers and organisations supporting a gradual route towards education, voluntary activity or work.

Collaborate on reintegration and participation

Companies and employers

For employers and companies interested in sustainable employability, shared expertise, repair, open technology or public-benefit projects.

Collaborate as a company or employer

Funding and support

For funders, donors and partners who can contribute money, materials, equipment, space, expertise or long-term support.

Support the work

Start a conversation

Not sure which route fits? Describe the question, the people involved and what you hope to make possible.

What ASK-Solutions can contribute

Depending on the collaboration, ASK-Solutions can contribute:

technical knowledge in software, systems, data, electronics, repair, fabrication and digital publication;
free software, free hardware, documentation and reusable technical methods;
project design that connects technology, education and public benefit;
practical learning, mentoring, placements and knowledge transfer;
research, writing and public information about privacy, freedom, ownership and Right to Repair;
human-scale routes for learning, recovery and participation where the setting and responsibilities are appropriate;
local practical environments through locations within The Owl’s Nest where their operator, facilities and capacity fit the question;
clear agreements about roles, safety, privacy, finances, ownership, reporting and follow-up.

Not every collaboration needs all of these elements. A useful first step is often to identify the actual question, who carries which responsibility and what result should remain useful after the first activity or project has ended.

One organisation, several kinds of work

ASK-Solutions is one public-benefit organisation. Technical development, digital support, education, repair, publishing and social work are not unrelated activities grouped under a single name. They are connected ways of working towards the same underlying goals.

ASK-Media-Solutions, ASK-ICT-Solutions and ASK-Technology-Solutions provide specialised public routes to particular areas of ASK-Solutions’ work. They were developed to make different kinds of technical and digital work easier to recognise, but they do not represent separate companies or independent organisations.

Their websites provide focused entry points for subjects such as digital publication, systems and data, free software, electronics and technical development. The activities presented through these names are carried out by ASK-Solutions as part of its wider public-benefit, technical, educational and social mission.

How a collaboration usually starts

First question. We identify what should change, who may benefit and why cooperation is being considered.
Fit and responsibilities. We determine whether ASK-Solutions is a suitable partner and which responsibilities remain with each organisation or professional.
Practical form. We agree on activities, people, location or online setting, capacity, timing, funding and expected results.
Start small where useful. A consultation, trial, prototype or first project phase can provide more information than a large plan built on assumptions.
Evaluate and preserve what was learned. We review the results and, where possible, document knowledge or methods so they remain useful to others.

Some collaborations are informal and based on knowledge exchange. Others require a project plan, agreement, quotation, grant application, privacy arrangements or formal reporting. The form should match the actual responsibility and risk rather than make a small first step unnecessarily complicated.

Collaboration involving The Owl’s Nest

The Owl’s Nest is a shared model for making, repair, practical learning, knowledge sharing and human-scale support. ASK-Solutions currently operates several locations and can collaborate with schools, community organisations, care and guidance professionals, employers and other partners around activities, projects and practical learning or participation routes within these locations.

Collaboration can also involve establishing The Owl’s Nest in another place. A new local implementation can take shape within an existing workshop, school or organisation, or develop from a new local initiative. It can have its own operator, organisational form, facilities and local identity while remaining connected to the shared principles, responsibilities and HPL framework.

A complete plan, building or collection of equipment is not required before starting the conversation. We can explore what is already available, what is needed locally, which organisation could carry responsibility and how a new local implementation could develop in a careful and sustainable way.