[Chapter-delegates] Chapter Website(s)
Andrés Gómez
andres.gomez at feterand.com
Fri Apr 24 12:39:52 PDT 2026
Hi Christine , and all .
I’ve been a developer, ethical hacker and involved in many other
computer-related fields since around 1992 up to the present day. We use
the template for convenience, and the first one worked brilliantly for
our needs. But when we switched to the new one, everything broke.
Unfortunately, our server needed an upgrade, and this required changes
not only to the PHP version but also to other aspects, which in turn
necessitated switching to a new template. But WordPress has many issues,
including this one. You don’t need to know how to code to use WordPress
– that’s a different story. It’s useful, but not much else.
We changed it a while ago, and I hadn’t mentioned it. Due to a lack of
time, I haven’t been able to spare the time to sort it out again. We’ll
do it, but now isn’t the right time.
Whether it was you or the chapter that created it need any analysis or
help, I can explain what happened, in case it happens to another chapter.
If I come across anything interesting that might be useful to other
chapters, I’ll share it with you.
P.S. Genesis isn’t a good choice as a base theme :-)
BR
Andrés Gómez
FETERAND SRL
CTO
AMS's Aragon Chapter Internet Society
+34 656.904.544
Lo urgente casi nunca deja tiempo para lo importante
* Este mensaje (incluyendo los documentos adjuntos al mismo) contiene información confidencial, dirigida a un destinatario y objetivo específico, que está protegida por Ley. Le informamos que si Ud. no es el destinatario del mismo, debe eliminar este mensaje y que está estrictamente prohibido cualquier divulgación, copia o distribución de su contenido, así como desarrollar/ejecutar cualquier acción basada en el mismo. Si Ud. es el destinatario, el uso de la información que reciba, deberá estar limitado al objetivo específico para el cual fue enviado.
* This email (including any attachments) contains confidential information intended for a specific individual and purpose, and is protected by Law. If you are not the intended recipient, you should delete this message and are hereby notified that any disclosure, copyng, or distribution of this message, or the taking of any action based on it, is strictly prohibited. If you are the intended recipient, the message you are receiving should be limited to the specific purpose it has been sent. Gracias por su colaboración/Thank you for your collaboration.
El 24/4/26 a las 12:17, Christine Saegesser via Chapter-delegates escribió:
> Hi Klaus, Andrés, all,
>
> Thank you for sharing your thoughts about the chapter website
> Wordpress theme template available for chapter websites, and for
> taking the time to analyze how other chapters have approached the
> building and updating of their websites.
>
> The theme that the Internet Society has developed for its chapters is
> designed to provide a lightweight baseline that:
>
> * supports alignment with Internet Society branding and structure
> * lowers the technical and maintenance burden for chapters
> * offers a consistent starting point, particularly for chapters with
> limited web development capacity
> * provides a best practice environment, for example: responsive
> design, web standards and/or accessibility
>
> The theme is intentionally not positioned as a full plug‑and‑play
> solution for all existing WordPress sites. Most chapters already have
> mature sites with significant legacy content, plugins, custom layouts,
> forms, or tables. This means that some degree of adaptation is
> typically required to ensure content displays and behaves as expected,
> which helps explain the experience you describe.
>
> For reference, you may also find these resources useful if you have
> not already consulted them:
>
> * Internet Society Chapter Website Theme
> <https://github.com/InternetSociety/genesis-child-chapters>
> * Theme installation
> <https://chapter-template.isoc.org/theme-installation> instructions
> and theme environment
> <https://github.com/InternetSociety/genesis-child-chapters/wiki/Theme-environment> instructions
> (github)
> * WordPress basics and other website tips
> <https://chapter-template.isoc.org/wordpress-basics-and-other-website-tips/>
>
> Klaus, Andrés, if you – or a developer working with the Internet
> Society Germany and/or Spain Aragon Chapter – are able to share more
> concrete details on what you encountered, our team would be happy to
> help look into this and see where improvements or clarifications could
> be made to the existing template and/or related documentation.
> Chapters are encouraged to submit feature requests comments or issues
> related to this website theme template here
> <https://github.com/InternetSociety/genesis-child-chapters/issues>. We
> will examine the requests submitted and see how we can integrate them
> in the theme.
>
> Finally, regarding uptake: the limited number of chapters currently
> using the template should not necessarily be read as a judgment on its
> value. Most chapters already have functioning websites. Using the
> theme is one of the options available to the chapters interested in
> building a new website or updating their existing one.
>
> Every website needs some level of maintenance and support and chapters
> are invited to include costs related to these tasks in their annual
> Chapter Admin Funding requests. Please note that the 2026 deadline to
> apply for Chapter Admin Funding
> <https://www.isocfoundation.org/grant-programme/chapter-admin-funding/> is
> 30 April. Please make sure you submit these request ahead of the
> deadline if not done so yet!
>
> Thanks again for sharing your questions and experience. We’re very
> happy to continue the conversation and work together on concrete next
> steps.
>
> Best regards,
>
> Christine
>
> *Christine Saegesser Baethge,* Sr. Director Chapters and Special
> Interest Groups
> saegesser at isoc.org
>
>
>
>> On 23 Apr 2026, at 22:42, Adebunmi Akinbo via Chapter-delegates
>> <chapter-delegates at elists.isoc.org> wrote:
>>
>> Dear Klaus,
>> The genesis is ISOC Netherlands (isoc.nl <http://isoc.nl/>). We would
>> need to do a deep dive to check if the project was abandoned and
>> certain codes need to be updated.
>>
>> You are quite right on all points.
>>
>> Regards.
>>
>> On Thu, Apr 23, 2026, 8:15 PM Andrés Gómez via Chapter-delegates
>> <chapter-delegates at elists.isoc.org> wrote:
>>
>> This is Andrés from the Aragon chapter.
>>
>> Our site was looking perfect until we had to update PHP and the
>> theme to the new version. That’s when everything went haywire,
>> and we’ve had to start from scratch again. We’re working on it.
>>
>> Andrés Gómez
>> FETERAND SRL
>> CTO
>> AMS's Aragon Chapter Internet Society
>> +34 656.904.544
>>
>> Lo urgente casi nunca deja tiempo para lo importante
>>
>> * Este mensaje (incluyendo los documentos adjuntos al mismo) contiene información confidencial, dirigida a un destinatario y objetivo específico, que está protegida por Ley. Le informamos que si Ud. no es el destinatario del mismo, debe eliminar este mensaje y que está estrictamente prohibido cualquier divulgación, copia o distribución de su contenido, así como desarrollar/ejecutar cualquier acción basada en el mismo. Si Ud. es el destinatario, el uso de la información que reciba, deberá estar limitado al objetivo específico para el cual fue enviado.
>> * This email (including any attachments) contains confidential information intended for a specific individual and purpose, and is protected by Law. If you are not the intended recipient, you should delete this message and are hereby notified that any disclosure, copyng, or distribution of this message, or the taking of any action based on it, is strictly prohibited. If you are the intended recipient, the message you are receiving should be limited to the specific purpose it has been sent. Gracias por su colaboración/Thank you for your collaboration.
>>
>> El 23/4/26 a las 11:27, Klaus Birkenbihl via Chapter-delegates
>> escribió:
>>>
>>> Dear Chapter Leaders, (especially those responsible for the
>>> websites),
>>>
>>> /I'm not sure if this is the right place to bring up this topic.
>>> On the other hand, websites are an important part of our public
>>> relations, and we at ISOC.DE <http://isoc.de/> don't seem to be
>>> the only ones having issues. If you have an answer but don't
>>> want to leave it here, feel free to send me a private email at
>>> Klaus.Birkenbihl at ISOC.DE./
>>>
>>>
>>> Initial Situation:
>>>
>>> After several attempts in recent years, ISOC.DE
>>> <http://isoc.de/> has decided to seriously undertake the
>>> relaunch of its website. After all, ISOC is providing support
>>> and guidelines for the relaunch in the form of the "Genesis
>>> child theme for Internet Society chapters". This should make
>>> switching a WordPress site by changing the theme manageable with
>>> reasonable effort.
>>>
>>>
>>> Expectations:
>>>
>>> Besides all the dazzling, great features that make a theme
>>> attractive, there are a few basic requirements:
>>>
>>> 1. The most important components of a WordPress blog—posts and
>>> pages—should be recognizably displayed,
>>> 2. There should be acceptable default styles for frequently
>>> used elements such as forms (form controls) or tables,
>>> 3. The remaining elements (menus, sidebars, categories,
>>> archives, etc.) should be easily customizable via CSS and,
>>> if necessary, a few scripts.
>>>
>>>
>>> Experience:
>>>
>>> So far expectations 1 and 2 were a disaster. After just
>>> installing the theme, the site looks like this:
>>> https://www.isoc-german-chapter.de/. (Before:
>>> https://www.isoc.de/). Apparently, even the structure hasn't
>>> been preserved. Forms and tables are displayed unusably. Well,
>>> maybe we just make dumb mistakes and don't get the glue.
>>>
>>>
>>> Learn from the winners:
>>>
>>> We thought we simply should take a look at how others managed
>>> it. So I investigated: who is using the theme? I examined 114
>>> chapter sites (source:
>>> https://www.internetsociety.org/chapters/#find-your-chapter). Of
>>> 93 sites I could access, 5 are using the theme. Of these 5
>>> sites, 3 look kind of successful. Congratulations to
>>> https://isoc.nl/, https://www.isoc.cat/, and
>>> https://isoc-ontario.org/. https://isoc.mk/ seems to be under
>>> construction without existing content. (Fun fact:
>>> https://www.isoc-aragon.org/ looks pretty much like
>>> https://www.isoc-german-chapter.de/).
>>>
>>> So 3-5 out of 93 Chapter websites use the Theme? Doesn't sound
>>> too encouraging. Were my investigations wrong?
>>>
>>>
>>> Open questions:
>>>
>>> * Did I miss a Website using the "Genesis child theme for
>>> Internet Society chapters"? Which one?
>>> * Who tried using the theme but then gave up? If so—why did
>>> you give up?
>>> * To those who are successful:
>>> o Would you recommend using the theme (migrating a lot of
>>> existing content)?
>>> o Do you have any tips or tricks on how to affordably
>>> switch a regular WordPress site with traditional
>>> structure (chronological posts, pages, menus, some
>>> forms, categories, archives, etc..,) to this theme?
>>>
>>> Best regards
>>>
>>> Klaus
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> As a Chapter Leader, you are automatically added to the Internet Society’s Chapter Leaders Community Group and the Chapter Delegates e-list, which is regularly synchronized with the Internet Society Chapter Portal (AMS):https://community.internetsociety.org.
>>> The Internet Society has a legitimate interest to communicate with its chapter leaders, you will therefore remain subscribed for the duration of your term and will be unsubscribed automatically when your term ends.
>>> Please note that the archive of this list is publicly accessible and may be viewed by anyone. By submitting information to this list and contributing to the communications, you acknowledge that the contents will be publicly visible.
>>> View the Internet Society Code of Conduct:https://www.internetsociety.org/become-a-member/code-of-conduct/
>>> -
>>> Unsubscribe:https://app.smartsheet.com/b/form/9b6ef0621638436ab0a9b23cb0668b0b?The%20list%20to%20be%20unsubscribed%20from=Chapter-delegates
>> _______________________________________________
>> As a Chapter Leader, you are automatically added to the Internet
>> Society’s Chapter Leaders Community Group and the Chapter
>> Delegates e-list, which is regularly synchronized with the
>> Internet Society Chapter Portal (AMS):
>> https://community.internetsociety.org.
>> The Internet Society has a legitimate interest to communicate
>> with its chapter leaders, you will therefore remain subscribed
>> for the duration of your term and will be unsubscribed
>> automatically when your term ends.
>> Please note that the archive of this list is publicly accessible
>> and may be viewed by anyone. By submitting information to this
>> list and contributing to the communications, you acknowledge that
>> the contents will be publicly visible.
>> View the Internet Society Code of Conduct:
>> https://www.internetsociety.org/become-a-member/code-of-conduct/
>> -
>> Unsubscribe:
>> https://app.smartsheet.com/b/form/9b6ef0621638436ab0a9b23cb0668b0b?The%20list%20to%20be%20unsubscribed%20from=Chapter-delegates
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> As a Chapter Leader, you are automatically added to the Internet
>> Society’s Chapter Leaders Community Group and the Chapter Delegates
>> e-list, which is regularly synchronized with the Internet Society
>> Chapter Portal (AMS): https://community.internetsociety.org.
>> The Internet Society has a legitimate interest to communicate with
>> its chapter leaders, you will therefore remain subscribed for the
>> duration of your term and will be unsubscribed automatically when
>> your term ends.
>> Please note that the archive of this list is publicly accessible and
>> may be viewed by anyone. By submitting information to this list and
>> contributing to the communications, you acknowledge that the contents
>> will be publicly visible.
>> View the Internet Society Code of Conduct:
>> https://www.internetsociety.org/become-a-member/code-of-conduct/
>> -
>> Unsubscribe:
>> https://app.smartsheet.com/b/form/9b6ef0621638436ab0a9b23cb0668b0b?The%20list%20to%20be%20unsubscribed%20from=Chapter-delegates
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> As a Chapter Leader, you are automatically added to the Internet Society’s Chapter Leaders Community Group and the Chapter Delegates e-list, which is regularly synchronized with the Internet Society Chapter Portal (AMS):https://community.internetsociety.org.
> The Internet Society has a legitimate interest to communicate with its chapter leaders, you will therefore remain subscribed for the duration of your term and will be unsubscribed automatically when your term ends.
> Please note that the archive of this list is publicly accessible and may be viewed by anyone. By submitting information to this list and contributing to the communications, you acknowledge that the contents will be publicly visible.
> View the Internet Society Code of Conduct:https://www.internetsociety.org/become-a-member/code-of-conduct/
> -
> Unsubscribe:https://app.smartsheet.com/b/form/9b6ef0621638436ab0a9b23cb0668b0b?The%20list%20to%20be%20unsubscribed%20from=Chapter-delegates
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://elists.isoc.org/pipermail/chapter-delegates/attachments/20260424/fa36a14c/attachment-0001.htm>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: 7lLtdG5uyz62tLMy7C1sG4AZ0YbGncdFng.png
Type: image/png
Size: 6862 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://elists.isoc.org/pipermail/chapter-delegates/attachments/20260424/fa36a14c/attachment-0001.png>
More information about the Chapter-delegates
mailing list