# Contributing

## How to Participate

This Interest Group welcomes contributions from anyone interested in skills distribution over MCP. You can participate by:

- Joining discussions in the [#skills-over-mcp-ig Discord channel](https://discord.com/channels/1358869848138059966/1464745826629976084) (info on joining the Discord server [here](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/community/communication#discord))
- Opening or commenting on [GitHub Discussions](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/modelcontextprotocol/discussions/categories/meeting-notes-skills-over-mcp-ig) in the main MCP repo
- Sharing experimental findings from your own implementations
- Contributing to documentation and pattern evaluation

## Communication Channels

| Channel | Purpose | Response Expectation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| [Discord #skills-over-mcp-ig](https://discord.com/channels/1358869848138059966/1464745826629976084) | Quick questions, coordination, async discussion | Best effort |
| [GitHub Discussions](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/modelcontextprotocol/discussions/categories/meeting-notes-skills-over-mcp-ig) | Meeting notes, long-form technical proposals, experimental findings | Weekly triage |
| This repository | Living reference for approaches, findings, and decisions | Updated after meetings |

## Coordination with the Agent Skills Spec

The [Agent Skills spec](https://agentskills.io/) is maintained in the [agentskills/agentskills](https://github.com/agentskills/agentskills) repository. For topics that intersect with both this IG and the Agent Skills spec (e.g., protocol design questions, proposed extensions, or alignment on terminology), the recommended channel is [Discussions](https://github.com/agentskills/agentskills/discussions) in that repository.

Before opening a discussion, review the [Agent Skills contributing guide](https://github.com/agentskills/agentskills/blob/main/CONTRIBUTING.md).

## Meetings

[Meeting notes](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/modelcontextprotocol/discussions/categories/meeting-notes-skills-over-mcp-ig) are published in the main MCP repo discussions. Future meetings will be scheduled and scheduling surveys posted in the [#skills-over-mcp-ig Discord channel](https://discord.com/channels/1358869848138059966/1464745826629976084).

Meeting norms:

- Agendas published 24 hours in advance
- Notes published within 48 hours

## Decision-Making

As an Interest Group, we operate by **rough consensus** — we're exploring and recommending, not deciding. Outputs include:

- Documented requirements and use cases
- Evaluated approaches with findings
- Recommendations to relevant WGs or as SEP proposals

## Contribution Guidelines

### Documenting Approaches and Findings

When adding experimental findings or new approaches:

- Include enough detail for others to reproduce or evaluate
- Note which clients and servers were tested
- Be explicit about what worked, what didn't, and what remains untested
- Attribute community input with GitHub handles and link to the source where possible

### Community Input

When adding quotes or input from community discussions:

- Attribute to the contributor by name and GitHub handle
- Link to the original source (Discord thread, GitHub comment, etc.) where possible
- Present input as blockquotes to distinguish it from editorial content

### Filing Issues

Use GitHub Issues for:

- Proposing new approaches or use cases
- Reporting gaps in documentation
- Tracking action items from meetings