HI Everyone, <br><br>I'm Sandy Ordonez. I am so excited this group was started!! I don't like writing long emails, but I'm thought i can introduce myself and share my experience with Wiki on my first email :) <br>
<br> I feel into Wikipedia in an untraditional way - I worked for them for a short time. I had moved to Florida, and they were the only New York-like website and nonprofit in the area that I had fallen in love with b/c of how much easier my online life was because of them, so I was like a bee to honey. <br>
<br>When I started the job, i expected it to be very similar to any other web production or communication job I had. Imagine my surprise. lol. I ilterally had to learn the wiki ethos and culture BY FIRE in a very short time. Needles to say, there were things I found very challenging. <br>
<br>Ironically, I remember this one night in the very beginning that I had reached my breaking point, and this female Wikipedian reached out to me. I hadn't share what i was feeling with anyone, but she knew exactly what I was going through. Her message was: You might be going through a, b, c, d but hang in there,..I know certain aspects suck, but the bigger picture is beautiful." For some strange reason, being able to realize that it wasn't just me, made handling the aspects I found challenging easier. <br>
<br>I have no idea if my experiences were gender based or not. However, I do have to say that finding other women in the project that I vibed with made things a lot more comfortable. I do feel as though the challenges in gender gap are more reflective of technology in general, but b/c Wikipedia is a big part of knowledge creation and sharing worldwide, it is kinda a big deal to improve this area.. I also do think that its the only culture worldwide to be able to honestly look at a problem like this, and come up with some freakin cool solutions...so for me, its also a learning experience to see how I can improve representations in the many worlds I encounter. <br>
<br>I'm looking forward towards whatever I can to help out. By no means am I hardcore Wikipedian. I am the first to admit that I don't edit very often - its not my strength or something i would just do for fun. However, I do feel that I am very passionate about what the projects represent, and hope my particular skill set might help in whatever way it can!! <br>
<br>Enough rambling. lol Warm vibes!! <br><br>best :) <br><br>Sandy <br>