It's a nascent idea for now & I don't really know yet where to take this but I would like to do something for the photography community. I am based in India where at least when I started as a full-time photographer, I had no clue how it all worked. Not the craft but the business of photography. What do you think? Should it be open to all / curated? Should it be paid / for free? If everything is already available on the Internet, what could be done differently?

Thanks for the add, Naina. My friend @ded helped to build Branch and I played with it in beta. It is very cool. I am in triage mode digging out of a flood, so not much time for nonessential work at the moment. But I have had good experiences by simply opening up my space for "co-working". Come over on a set day to edit photos, talk, share work, actually work, etc. Open wifi and BYOB...

Thanks David, I appreciate your insight. That is a very cool thing to do: opening up your space for co-working. This is definitely something I would like to do when I have my own space. Now I probably need to change my goal from "starting a photography open house" to "investing in studio space" :)

Naina, studio space is a very expensive thing to have. I had one in Tel Aviv for 12 years and see no point in this unless it is working at least 20 days in a month! I think that in today's reality it is better to rent per day than keep a studio. Never the less, opening up the work area/office/studio/set for co-workers to come and share and experience is not a bad idea at all.

Studio Space, only and only if you are indulging in studio based photography. A studio does hv several hidden costs.
Co-working is a brilliant idea and Tarunn, a photographer in Blore has set up a space for this very effect and is not restricting it to photographers. Its open to any artist who wants to use it..