2009/5/11 Gordon Joly <gordon.joly(a)pobox.com>:
> So... the WMUK 2.0 objects were formulated to enable a registered
> charity to be formed, constrained by the relationship with
> Foundation, and of course UK company law (since a decision was made
> to form a company - not all registered charities are companies).
>
> I am surprised that education is missing. I must admit that I thought
> the application was for an "educational charity".
Education isn't missing. Most of the objects fall under the category
of "furthering education" (a few are heritage related). You can't just
put "Education" as an object, you need to be specific.
Please find below the draft minutes of yesterday's Board meeting. If you have any questions, comments or corrections please post to the talk page on the wiki at http://uk.wikimedia.org/wiki/Meetings/Talk:2009-05-05 or reply to this email.
Regards,
Andrew Turvey
Secretary, Wikimedia UK
Wikimedia UK Board meeting
Tuesday 5 th May 2009, 8:30pm BST at #wikimedia-uk-board
Present: Paul Williams (PW) (Chair); Andrew Turvey (AT) (Minutes); Tom Holden (TH); Steve Virgin (SV); Joseph Seddon (JS) (part)
Apologies: Mike Peel, Zeyi He; Joseph Seddon for late arrival
It was agreed PW would chair in the absence of MP.
1. Minutes of the previous meetings
a. Pre-AGM
Minutes were approved unchanged
JS joined the meeting
a. Post-AGM
Minutes were approved with minor changes. The following actions were carried forward:
JS to send a token of our appreciation to the retiring Directors and tellers; JS Agreed to add the external speakers to this list. AT will email the contact details of the speakers to all board members
ACTION: JS, AT
AT has filed completed all filings with Companies House except for SV's appointment; AT & SV will arrange to do this after the meeting.
ACTION: AT; SV
PW completed the newsletter and distributed to subscribers and WMUK-L
TH has applied for online backing for MP, AT but it hasn't been completed yet. TH to contact the bank to notify them of the new directors and to change the signatories to any two of MP, AT and TH
ACTION: TH
AT has revised the wiki user rights as agreed. No news from MP on forming a private wiki for sharing documents.
ACTION: MP
PW reported back on the current owners of the IRC channels #wikimedia-uk, #wikimedia-uk-board and #wikimedia-uk-board-private; PW will arrange for all Board members to be made “founders” or, if this is not possible, “operators”
ACTION: PW
It was agreed that the owner of the WikimediaUK-L email list be set to the OTRS account so that board members' inboxes are not put under more pressure. Board members are to be given access to the OTRS account.
ACTION: AT
The wikimedia.org.uk addresses have lapsed; AT to follow up taking ownership and re-assigning the email addresses.
ACTION: AT
JS has been unable to get access to the Internal-L email list for himself. It was agreed to keep with the five current nominees; they agreed to participate in all relevant discussions and to forward to board(a)wikimedia.co.uk any items that JS and ZH should be made aware of.
The AGM press release was prepared but not sent out as it was overtaken by the Register story on the HMRC response. The AGM was also covered in the Newsletter. Agreed to let this action fall now.
AT has sent round a draft email to the WMF asking them for permission to use trademarks. However, since the last meeting, the WMF has issued a draft of a new standard Chapter Agreement. This will be discussed later in the meeting.
AT has drafted an application to LawWorks and TH had obtained a rough estimate on how much it would cost to get legal advice. These will be discussed later in the meeting.
c. AGM
These minutes were approved.
2. HMRC response
a. Media
The rejection of our charity application was picked up by the Register who used the occasion to write an article criticising Wikipedia. We issued a statement in response to Wikinews. A news story was drafted for Wikinews but was rejected as being “not notable”. Although there had been some negative comment on the WikimediaUK-L list, the general feeling was that the reputation of the Board among Wikimedia UK supporters had not been significantly affected. It was agreed that it would be better in the future if news like this was shared with the Board first, so that a common position could be agreed, and then promptly shared with supporters.
b. Legal
TH had obtained a rough estimate on how much it would cost to get legal advice. This ranged from £600 to £4,000 – going directly to a barrister would cost around £2,000 plus VAT (£2,300). It was discussed whether we should obtain advice before or after responding to HMRC. It was agreed that we would send the response on 18 th May and do what we can in the meantime to obtain advice – including approaching the Foundation for funding and applying to LawWorks.
c. Response to HMRC
AT has discussed the matter with the officer at HMRC who had decided the case. The officer explained that this decision does not fall within the formal appeals process as there was not direct tax implication to the decision. If we submitted a reclaim form and it was rejected we would then be able to make a formal appeal. HMRC also has powers to refer complex charity cases to the Commission and the officer agreed that if we replied to him he could refer the case to them.
TH has obtained a letter which a barrister friend has drafted setting out the legal arguments for why we think we are a charity. It was agreed to use this letter as a basis for a response, incorporating in addition details clarifying what the Wikimedia Foundation and Wikimedia UK do, and the experience of icommons in getting charity recognition.
TH agreed to post the letter on the wiki and Board members will propose their amendments on that page fro discussion between now and 18 th .
ACTION: TH; All
3. Treasurer's Report
TH reported that the bank balance was currently £397.70 but it is waiting for expenses cheques to be cashed. We had received one membership subscription by bank transfer but the application form hadn't been received yet. TH is following up. Otherwise, no membership applications had been received.
ACTION: TH
The formal Resolution (see http://uk.wikimedia.org/wiki/Meetings/2009-05-05/Resolution) making MP, AT and TH bank account signatories was passed.
4. Secretary's Report
AT has received a letter from a pressure group asking for their point of view to be reflected in the Wikipedia articles on their area of interest. It was agreed the Secretary should respond and should say (a) We do not own Wikipedia or control its content – that's the Foundation but (b) to offer assistance in editing Wikipedia. AT agreed to phone them to follow up. There was no other correspondence.
ACTION: AT
5. Draft new Chapter Agreement
The WMF has issued a draft of a new Chapter Agreement. With their permission this has been published on the wiki and a notice sent to the WMUK-L email list to get input from supporters.
The meeting went in camera; further discussions and actions are noted in the private minutes.
6. Phorm
It was agreed that Wikimedia UK would opt out of Phorm, using a statement similar to the ones used by the WMF and other chapters.
ACTION: AT
7. Next meeting
The next meeting was arranged for Tuesday 12 th May, 8:30pm BST in #wikimedia-uk-board.
Meeting closed at 10:38pm.
I have now uploaded a selection of photos to the Wikimedia UK website.
They can all be found at
http://uk.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:2009_AGM
Best Wishes
Mickey
On Sun, May 3, 2009 at 9:15 AM, Gordon Joly <gordon.joly(a)pobox.com> wrote:
>
>
> Steve Bowbrick's set is here:
>
> http://www.flickr.com/photos/bowbrick/sets/72157617359600152/
>
> Checked again and they all seem to have "Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic"
>
> Gordo
>
>
> At 14:31 -0700 1/5/09, andrewrturvey(a)googlemail.com wrote:
>>Wrong license I think.
>>
>>On May 1, 10:18 pm, Al Tally <majorly.w...(a)googlemail.com> wrote:
>>> On Fri, May 1, 2009 at 10:17 PM, AndrewRT
>>><andrewrtur...(a)googlemail.com>wrote:
>>>
>>> > Has anyone got any pictures of the AGM? If so, could you upload them
>>> > to the wiki at uk.wikimedia.org.
>>>
>>> > It would be good to have some pics so we can start to illustrate the
>>> > site.
>>>
>>> > Cheers!
>>>
>>> > Andrew
>>>
>>> There were some up on flickr - they were mentioned in a list post soon after
>>> the AGM.
>>>
>>> --
>>> Alex
>>> (User:Majorly)
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Wikimedia UK mailing list
>>>
>>>wikimediau...@wikimedia.orghttp://mail.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimediauk-l
>>> WMUK:http://uk.wikimedia.org
>>
>>_______________________________________________
>>Wikimedia UK mailing list
>>wikimediauk-l(a)wikimedia.org
>>http://mail.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimediauk-l
>>WMUK: http://uk.wikimedia.org
>
>
> --
> "Think Feynman"/////////
> http://pobox.com/~gordo/
> gordon.joly(a)pobox.com///
>
> _______________________________________________
> Wikimedia UK mailing list
> wikimediauk-l(a)wikimedia.org
> http://mail.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimediauk-l
> WMUK: http://uk.wikimedia.org
>
User:Stifle is representing Wikipedia in a live radio debate on
NewsTalk Radio (Ireland) tonight at 7pm. His first live media
experience. Wish him luck :-)
You can stream it from http://newstalk.ie/ . (The 32kbps WinAmp stream
worked fine for me in VLC.)
(forwarding to wmuk-l for interest ... we don't have an .ie list yet, do we?)
- d.
Please find forwarded below a message from our sister chapter, Wikimedia Italia, regarding the awards they are doing. Please respond directly to them if you would like to nominate anyone for a prize.
Regards,
Andrew
----- Original Message -----
From: "Ilario Valdelli" <valdelli(a)gmail.com>
To: "Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List" <foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>, chapters(a)wikimedia.ch
Sent: Thursday, 7 May, 2009 12:34:45 GMT +00:00 GMT Britain, Ireland, Portugal
Subject: [Chapters] Wikimedia Italia Award 2009 (most of all the award concerning Commons)
I would announce you that until the 15th of May Wikimedia Italia is
collecting some nominations to select the winners of the Wikimedia
Italia Award 2009 which will take place the 23th May in Vicenza (near
Venice) in collaboration with local administrations and associations
during the "festival of digital freedom"
(http://www.libertadigitali.org/).
The award is divided in different categories and some categories are
strictly related with Italy and with Italian language for example:
* Best project of content's liberation in Italy under free license in the 2009
* Best promotional material in Italian language in the 2009 concerning
Wikimedia's projects
* Best article or study concerning the open content in the 2009
written in Italian language
* Best Italian Wikipedia article written from 15th April and 15th May 2009
* Best image or media published from 15th April and 15th May 2009 in
Commons about the "Palladian Architecture"
(http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Palladian_architecture)
* Best contribution in other projects (Wikibook, Wikinews, Wikisource,
etc.) in Italian language in the 2009
* Best contribution in any other version of Wikipedia written in other
language spoken in Italy different from Italian (i.e. Arpitan,
Sicilian, Slovenščina, etc.)
This award will have an important diffusion in the media and in the
local government.
What could be of your interest?
Also if the categories are connected with Italy and Italian language,
there is an award connected with Commons
(http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Commons:Wikimedia_Italia_Award_2009)
which could be of your interest. The subject is "Palladio and the
palladian architecture"
(http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Palladian_architecture).
In Commons there is a page where any contributor can put the
nominations for the best media (photo or multimedia) concerning the
architecture influenced by Palladio.
We know that this architect has had a wide influence in some
architecture in England, Ireland and USA... please go to take a photo
of your local ancient building influenced by Palladio and upload it in
Commons and put the announcement of your contribution in the related
page (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Commons:Wikimedia_Italia_Award_2009#Nomin…).
You have time until the 15th May.
Please contribute.
I am sending this email also to the chapters to ask your help to
widespread this initiative in your local communities.
Ilario
Wikimedia Italia
Wikimedia Ch
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: phoebe ayers <phoebe.wiki(a)gmail.com>
Date: 2009/5/7
Subject: [Foundation-l] wikimania 2010 announcement
To: wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org, Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List <
foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
Dear Wikimedia,
The Wikimania venue selection committee is pleased to announce that we
have selected Gdańsk, Poland as the location for Wikimania 2010.
The three bids this year each had strong and weak points. The jury
had a very difficult time deciding among them, a testament to the
quality of the bids. Any of the three would have hosted a fine
conference, and we thank the bid teams for their detailed
presentations. The jury narrowed the field to Gdańsk and Amsterdam
before making the final decision.
The most debated criteria were:
* Conference venue details
* Location accessibility, cost, and budget
* Accommodation options and simplicity
* Opportunities for outreach
* Local teamwork and planning
We were impressed by Gdańsk's organized team, roomy venue options, low
cost for attendees, creative outing plans, and outreach potential to
Eastern Europe.
A summary of our bid review is included below. Putting together a
great Wikimania bid is a major undertaking, and we are grateful to all
the bid teams for doing so with style.
With respect and thanks,
Phoebe Ayers
On behalf of the Wikimania 2010 venue selection committee
Voting members:
Ting Chen
Austin Hair
Mohamed Ibrahim
Samuel Klein
Teemu Leinonen
Delphine Ménard
Frank Schulenburg
Non-voting advisors:
Sue Gardner
Michael Snow
==Feedback points==
* Conference venue
The Oxford Town Hall seemed suited to Wikimania, with no major
drawbacks. Gdańsk's venue options were flexible and varied. We also
appreciated Gdańsk's plans for social space, inside and out, on the
island and at the venue. We were intrigued by the Tuschinski theater
venue in Amsterdam, and appreciate that the theater's staff has
experience organizing conferences, but we were concerned that there
were few small rooms and flexible spaces, and no social spaces on site
with after-hours access.
* Overall accessibility and cost
Amsterdam was the most physically accessible bidding city for
international attendees, due to being a major travel hub for many
airlines. Gdańsk and Oxford were a bit less accessible, Oxford because
of the transfer from Heathrow. Amsterdam's budget was high, even with
its confirmed sponsorship. Oxford's was lowest, thanks to venue
sponsorship, but lacked detail. It also had the highest cost of living
and lodging for attendees. Gdańsk's budget was in between but included
various services. The extra cost for travel for an attendee to Gdańsk
was partly offset by the low cost of living and lodging.
* Accommodation
Amsterdam's proposal for accommodation was superior in its combination
of reasonable price and close location for a single hostel that most
attendees could stay in. Gdańsk's hostel options were cheap but
scattered. Oxford's dorm options were potentially close but expensive.
* Outreach
Oxford and Amsterdam were considered to have good inherent options for
global press and publicity, but neither proposal offered related
details. Gdańsk offered good outreach to and from Eastern Europe,
where Wikimedia projects are well known but the communities not as
well to all of us, and engaged in the most press work over the course
of the bid.
* Teamwork and planning
The Gdańsk bid excelled in team planning, with a clear breakdown of
team member roles and responsibilities in the bid and a separate
public planning wiki. Oxford added something similar at the end of the
bid period, but the overall bid was a bit less detailed than the
others. The Amsterdam team was particularly responsive to questions,
with a strong background in planning similar events, but lacked a
detailed team organization plan. All teams had fine party plans, and
Gdańsk had creative plans for conference activities and environmental
issues.
_______________________________________________
foundation-l mailing list
foundation-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/foundation-l
> From: "Steve Bowbrick" <Steve.Bowbrick(a)bbc.co.uk>
> Unrelated question: on Twitter, Chris Vallance, a producer on iPM,
> wonders:
>
> "Wikipedia received most UK traffic from searches for "Swine Flu" -
> Should Directgov, NHS, collaborate with the site?"
>
> And links to these numbers from traffic stats house Hitwise:
> http://weblogs.hitwise.com/robin-goad/2009/05/swine_flu_searches_increas
> e_58.html
>
> Should we encourage UK public health agencies to expand the Swine Flu
> article? To treat Wikipedia as part of the public health communications
> effort? If such a large number of UK searches are hitting the Swine Flu
> entry, is there a public health argument for branching the entry to
> provide nationally-specific material?
>
> Is there a Wikipedia response to crises of this kind?
I'd absolutely encourage UK health agencies to become more involved with
Wikipedia content. The biggest start I can see is releasing under a
Creative Commons license these leaflets to be posted through doors. I
saw photos of them being delivered on TV today, there isn't one here
yet. It could be on Commons, and it would then end up in the Wikipedia
article.
They will have to consider potential conflict of interest issues. Where
that might come up is integrating their own studies or reports into the
article (or articles if it goes that way).
I'd guess the biggest issue at the moment is WMUK is so young, and this
is something that needs organised at flashmob speeds. Basically, an
ad-hoc Wikipedia workshop to bring them up to speed on this.
Interesting vaguely related AP report...
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5ghB7kaUC_cbUE_Y2y7WrZfrjT…
Brian McNeil
Hi all,
After a bit of prodding from various wikipedians I think I've got the
licence right on this set of pics taken at the the AGM 26 April:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bowbrick/sets/72157617359600152/
Unrelated question: on Twitter, Chris Vallance, a producer on iPM,
wonders:
"Wikipedia received most UK traffic from searches for "Swine Flu" -
Should Directgov, NHS, collaborate with the site?"
And links to these numbers from traffic stats house Hitwise:
http://weblogs.hitwise.com/robin-goad/2009/05/swine_flu_searches_increas
e_58.html
Should we encourage UK public health agencies to expand the Swine Flu
article? To treat Wikipedia as part of the public health communications
effort? If such a large number of UK searches are hitting the Swine Flu
entry, is there a public health argument for branching the entry to
provide nationally-specific material?
Is there a Wikipedia response to crises of this kind?
s
--
Editor, BBC Radio 4 Blog http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/radio4
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Wikimedia UK has held its first AGM! The AGM included numerous speakers
talking about a wide range of topics, ranging from collaboration with the
BBC to reaching out around the world with Wikipedia on a DVD! A number of
official actions were also taken - including the passing of six Resolutions,
the election of the new seven-person Board, and the first new Board meeting!
Also this month, an overview of the Chapters meeting in Berlin, of which two
of our number were present, and details of the upcoming meetups this month!
*In this month's newsletter:*
1. Annual General
Meeting<http://uk.wikimedia.org/wiki/Newsletter/April2009#Annual_General_Meeting>
2. New Board<http://uk.wikimedia.org/wiki/Newsletter/April2009#New_Board>
3. Chapters Meeting<http://uk.wikimedia.org/wiki/Newsletter/April2009#Chapters_Meeting>
4. Meet-ups <http://uk.wikimedia.org/wiki/Newsletter/April2009#Meet-ups>
Regards,
Paul Williams
Volunteers DirectorWikimedia UK
Wikimedia UK is the operating name of Wiki UK Limited. Wiki UK Limited is a
Company Limited by Guarantee registered in England and Wales, Registered No.
6741827. The Registered Office is at 23 Cartwright Way, Nottingham, NG9 1RL.