Hi WikiFriends,
*We need your suggestions and feedback. *
We are planning a few initiatives for WikiProject India (English
Wikipedia). For a long time we have been feeling:
- *On one hand:* WikiProject India is one of the largest projects in
Wikimedia
- *On the other hand: *We sometimes face it difficult to organize simple
co-ordination projects.
We are planning a few initiatives, *please see*:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia_talk:Noticeboard_for_India-related_…
If you have a look at this, you'll clearly understand that we are not
planning anything big at this moment.
Please share you suggestions.
PS. The main project page is here on Meta Wiki:
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/WikiProject_India_Nurturing and here on
English Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:WikiProject_India/Project_WIN
Regards.
Relevant to the discussion on Foundation issues... The NY Times reports on Google's research into what made some teams succeed and some fail.
Short answer: Team norms to respect the individual members, for everyone to get a chance to talk and contribute and be heard.
http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/02/28/magazine/what-google-learned-from-its-…
George William Herbert
Sent from my iPhone
I am starting a new thread because I disagree with the idea that the WMF
should be a high-tech organization as the other thread by Brion seemed to
suggest. Yes, technology is a tool that we use in our mission to gather and
process all forms of human knowledge, but in the end the driving force is
volunteership.
Without volunteers there wouldn't be any movement and there wouldn't be any
need for tools, or any donations whatsoever. It is the concept of working
for free for the common good that allows us to exist and fulfill our
mission. The WMF is instrumental in providing the tools for it to happen,
but those tools are not only technological, they are also legal,
educational, and social, however when talking through computer screens we
seem to forget that.
A hi-tech tool can work for a given task or not, but there are more
important topics like trust, commitment, empowerment, motivation, and joy
that cannot be assessed so easily, and that are at least as crucial as any
software. What is the point of having a perfect tool Z if I don't enjoy
working with my fellows on a common mission?
The role of nurturing volunteers is not exclusive of affiliate
organizations, the WMF offer grants to volunteers and organizes several
gatherings. Is that enough to strengthen the volunteer community? Then I
look at organizations like WOOF or workaway that thrive with full-time
volunteers and I wonder if more opportunities could be opened for our
volunteers.
Is there anything holding us back to try new things besides old patterns of
participation?
It is a challenge to do more for the volunteer community without resorting
to grants or payment, but that is the key to succeed as a volunteer
organization, to provide an ecosystem where personal growth is possible.
I am interested in hearing what others have to say about it. Maybe it is
possible to gather ideas or even a team of people who wants to research
more information about the topic.
Cheers,
Micru
So...
BrewDog, a Scotland-based "hipster brewery" - for want of a better phrase -
have just "open-sourced" their entire recipe collection.
You can read more at https://www.brewdog.com/lowdown/blog/diy-dog.
It's not entirely clear what "licence" they're using but they say:
*"copy them, tear them to pieces, bastardise them, adapt them, but most of
all, enjoy them. They are well travelled but with plenty of miles still
left on the clock. Just remember to share your brews, and share your
results. Sharing is caring."*
I guess "free as in beer" has a slightly different meaning now!
Richard Symonds
Wikimedia UK
0207 065 0992
Wikimedia UK is a Company Limited by Guarantee registered in England and
Wales, Registered No. 6741827. Registered Charity No.1144513. Registered
Office 4th Floor, Development House, 56-64 Leonard Street, London EC2A 4LT.
United Kingdom. Wikimedia UK is the UK chapter of a global Wikimedia
movement. The Wikimedia projects are run by the Wikimedia Foundation (who
operate Wikipedia, amongst other projects).
*Wikimedia UK is an independent non-profit charity with no legal control
over Wikipedia nor responsibility for its contents.*
'Deals' and other 'preferential' arrangements can be easily avoided
.... The WMF can deal with others in public at competitive rates.
If the vendor wishes to make donations to the WMF they can do so and
get a tax deduction!
Regards, Richard.
On Tue, Mar 1, 2016 at 12:43 PM, Andreas Kolbe <jayen466(a)gmail.com> wrote:
<snip>
> Transparency is a fundamental WMF value.
>
> Nobody here is talking about vendor agreements; at least I am not. I have
> no problem whatsoever with your scenario. If the WMF enters into an
> umbrella agreement or business deal with Google or whoever, then that is
> something the community should know. If the WMF gets computer hardware at a
> preferential rate, absolutely no one is interested in that.
>
> Andreas
<cut>
Here is a note that I just sent to the staff mailing list (stuck in a
queue at the moment, so some staff will see it here first.).
Hi everyone!
I am coming to San Francisco on Saturday for a few days to meet with a
lot of you. I know many of you are not actually in San Francisco, so
I'll be sure to set aside time for remote meetings as well.
By now you of course have heard that Lila is leaving us, and my hope is
that we're going to enter a new era of stability and productivity. And
for that to happen, the board - including me - needs to hear from you,
to listen and learn.
Brion Vibber, who I hired as the first ever employee of the Foundation,
said this to me on Facebook recently: "Jimmy Wales welcome back to the
conversation. I look forward to how you address the current crisis, and
hope it will involve the kind of careful listening and thoughtful
consideration that I remember from 2001."
That's what I want, too. I want to listen and I want to help the board
make good decisions.
For me, the mission - a free encyclopedia for every single person on the
planet, in their own language - is what brought us all together. It's
what keeps us going even in difficult times. But my view is that it
doesn't have to be difficult times. Working at the WMF should be - and
will be, I really think - a joy: the joy of working with the best
colleagues, the joy of doing work that matters to the world, and the joy
of working for the fantastic global community of Wikipedians.
I'll be reaching out to some of you - probably starting with people I
already know - but please reach out to me as well if you'd like to meet.
I'm in SF from Saturday afternoon through Wednesday evening, so
depending on demand, I may not be able to see everyone, but I'd like to
get a good overview.
--Jimbo