Google Drive for community organizing: Your secure and collaborative digital space

In this first meeting, you will meet Pema, who will accompany you throughout the entire journey.

It does not matter if this is your first time using Google Drive or if you still do not feel completely comfortable using digital tools. Here, you can move forward at your own pace, pause the videos whenever you need to, and practice each step before continuing.

Throughout the course, you will discover that learning about technology does not mean leaving behind what you already know. It is about finding new tools that can help you better organize, share, and care for your information.

In this module, you will begin to:

• become familiar with the course journey;

• recognize that you can learn about technology step by step;

• understand how Google Drive can support your daily activities;

• begin to see digital spaces as places that you can also make your own while staying connected to your identity and your reality.

Imagine Google Drive as a digital backpack where you can store documents, photographs, meeting minutes, and other important files.

The difference is that this backpack is available online, and you can access it from your phone or computer.

In this module, you will explore the main areas of Google Drive, such as My Drive, Shared with me, and Recent. You will also discover the New button, where you can begin creating folders and uploading files.

You will then put what you have learned into practice by opening your own Drive, creating a folder, and saving your first files.

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• recognize the main areas of Google Drive;

• create a folder;

• upload files from your computer or phone;

• begin organizing your own digital space.

Just as you can organize your home, your workspace, or your organization’s materials, you can also adapt Google Drive so that it feels more comfortable and useful for you.

In this module, you will learn how to adjust some of the settings in your digital space.

You will be able to change the language, choose how you want to view your files, check how much storage space you have available, and explore additional settings.

You will also learn how to prepare certain documents so that you can use them without an internet connection. This can be especially useful if you work or live in places where connectivity is limited or unstable.

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• personalize some Google Drive settings;

• change the language of your account;

• choose how your files are displayed;

• check your available storage space;

• prepare documents so you can work when you do not have an internet connection.

The information you keep in digital spaces can be very valuable.

It may include personal documents, photographs, meeting minutes, agreements, project information, or materials that are important to your organization or community. For this reason, learning how to protect your account is also part of caring for that information.

In this module, you will learn about passkeys, which allow you to use tools such as your fingerprint, your face, or your device’s security code to access your account.

You will also learn about two-step verification, which provides an additional layer of protection against unauthorized access.

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• understand why protecting your account is important;

• understand how passkeys work;

• strengthen the security of your Google account;

• incorporate simple digital security practices.

Think of Google Drive as a digital bookshelf.

When everything has its own place and a clear name, finding what you need becomes much easier.

In this module, you will learn how to create folders, upload files, move documents, and use colors to help you identify different spaces, projects, or types of information.

You will also learn how to give your documents clear names and how to use the Google Drive search tool to quickly locate a file.

You will be able to search using different criteria, such as the file name, document type, date, or the person who created it.

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• create and organize folders;

• move files from one place to another;

• use colors to identify folders;

• name your documents clearly;

• find information using the Drive search tool.

Google Drive can also help you work collectively.

In this module, you will learn how to share files and folders with other people while deciding what each person is allowed to do with the information you share.

You can provide different levels of access:

• Viewer, when you only want someone to see the document.

• Commenter, when you want someone to read it and leave comments.

• Editor, when you also want someone to be able to make changes to the content.

You will also learn how to work together with other people in the same document, leave comments, make suggestions, and review the history of changes.

This will allow you to collaborate while still knowing who has access to the information and what they are able to do with it.

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• share documents and folders;

• choose different levels of access;

• collaborate with other people in the same file;

• use comments and suggestions;

• review previous versions of a document.

Google Drive is not only a place to store files.

From Drive, you can also create documents, spreadsheets, and presentations using Google tools.

In this module, you will learn about Google Docs, Google Sheets, and Google Slides.

You can use these tools, for example, to prepare meeting minutes, organize a budget, create a presentation, or develop other materials for your work.

You will also explore available templates and learn how to digitize physical documents using your phone, such as letters, meeting minutes, notes, or official documents, so that you can preserve them directly in Drive.

You will also learn how to create shortcuts that help you keep the files you use most often within easy reach.

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• create documents directly from Google Drive;

• use templates;

• digitize physical documents;

• save scanned documents as digital files;

• create shortcuts to important information.

Your digital space also needs care.

Over time, you may accumulate documents, photographs, duplicate files, or materials that you no longer need.

In this module, you will learn how to check how much storage space you are using and identify which files are taking up the most space.

You will also be able to delete what you no longer need, empty the Trash, and download copies of important documents so that you can keep them outside of Drive.

You will also explore options for synchronizing files between your computer and the cloud and review how to prepare documents so you can continue working when you do not have an internet connection.

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• check how much storage space you are using;

• identify files that take up space;

• delete information you no longer need;

• properly empty the Trash;

• download copies of important documents;

• keep your digital space more organized and manageable.

You have reached the final module of this journey.

Here, you will bring together several of the skills you have learned throughout the course to strengthen an essential practice: caring for your information and maintaining control over who can access it.

You will learn how to review who has access to your documents, change permissions, or remove access when necessary.

You will also be able to review which devices are connected to your account and sign out of sessions that you do not recognize or no longer use.

In addition, you will explore simple practices that you can incorporate into your digital life: using clear names for your documents, storing important information in protected folders, avoiding public links when they are not necessary, creating backup copies, and signing out when you use a computer that is not your own.

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• review who has access to your documents;

• change or remove permissions;

• review devices connected to your account;

• protect important documents;

• create backup copies;

• incorporate habits that strengthen digital care and security.