How much effort can you put in? How much of an impact do you want to have?

Your answers to the two questions are probably strongly correlated. If you can dedicate a lot of time, you'll have a huge impact; likewise if you only have a little time. Here's a rubric for thinking about how much time you want to commit:

• If you only have a few minutes, it's easy enough to sign a petition or donate some money - there's a huge number of ways to do that, and without trying too hard you'll find more than you can count.

• If you think you can handle a few hours here or there, then there are some good organizations which can match you to one-off projects that need a little hand-holding. Foremost in these category is Ragtag. After a little up-front onboarding work, you can quickly get your feet wet and contribute bit by bit. There are plenty of ways to get involved "IRL", as well - these days, most smaller campaigns and social justice organizations have a whole laundry list of software or technical projects they'd love to accomplish. Make a call to an organization in your neighborhood and offer your skills - you'll almost certainly get a warm reception.

• If you really want to sink your teeth into a project, maybe dedicating several days or even weeks over the course of a few months, then there are some exciting open source projects you can join. Foremost in these categories are Spoke and Parsons. These projects have a steeper onboarding curve but give you the chance to really make a significant contribution.

• If you are willing to make a career move, there are several excellent organizations which are always hiring for good talent. In fact there are several categories of excellent organizations: progressive candidates; party committees and state parties; advocacy organizations; and technology vendors which serve progressive causes exclusively or substantially. Read more about these organizations here.

• If you're really willing to burn the midnight oil, and you have an exciting idea that you think can make a difference, you can consider starting up a progressive tech company or organization. Obviously such a move is a huge lifestyle change and is no walk in the park! But if your idea really has legs and you've got what it takes to make it work, then you can have a huge and very satisfying impact. The good news is that there are organizations willing to help you in your journey - foremost in this category are New Media Ventures and Higher Ground Labs.

If you're only now starting to think about getting involved in progressive tech, you may not want to jump into the deeper end right away. That's perfectly ok! There's nothing wrong with getting your feet wet - it's a very satisfying way to contribute to a cause you care about. Some people do that on and off for years at a stretch, and find it to be an excellent way to use their skills. Some people get the progressive tech bug and seek out more in-depth ways to participate. Both of these approaches, and many others, are perfectly good! The best thing to do is to get started.