Forwarding, as this doesn't yet seem to have made it through from the
Announce list (possibly because of the HTML content; but trying anyway. The
message can also be read at
http://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/wikimediaannounce-l/2012-August/000450…
).
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Geoff Brigham <gbrigham(a)wikimedia.org>
To: wikimediaannounce-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
Cc: Geoff Brigham <gbrigham(a)wikimedia.org>
Date: Wed, 1 Aug 2012 12:34:05 -0700
Subject: WMF Policy and Political Affiliations Guideline
Hi all,
Since the SOPA blackout, we have had a number of requests come in for
public affiliations regarding policy and political issues. The Wikimedia
Foundation (WMF) is not a political organization, and many may argue
understandably that our role is to support great projects - not politics.
That said, we recognize that there may be select times where such
affiliations should be considered, and, in those cases, we should have a
review process in place, especially where there is strong community
interest in an issue.
To make sure that the right parties, including the community, are involved
in the review process, we have created the Policy and Political
Affiliations Guideline<http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Legal_and_Community_Advocacy/Foundation_Poli…>to
clarify when and how the WMF associates itself publicly on policy and
political issues. This guideline is an internal “rule of thumb” covering
requests to and actions by the WMF - without restricting the independent
actions of the community. The guideline sets out a number of different
types of affiliations and examines when review is appropriate by the
community, WMF staff, and the Board of Trustees.
We are also establishing an open Advocacy Advisory Group to provide a
community venue to discuss political and legislative developments worldwide
that affect our mission, such as censorship laws and proposals that seek to
restrict a free and open Internet.
The new guideline incorporates consultation with the Advocacy Advisory
Group into the review process. With the most important cases, WMF will
also seek a community Request for
Comments<http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/RFC>(RfC) for consultation or
consensus.
We encourage community members interested in political and policy issues to
join the Advocacy Advisory Group, and members should feel free to apply to
be moderators. You can join the advisory group here:
https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/advocacy_advisors .
If you have any comments, feel free to leave them on the talk page. You can
find the guideline at:
http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Legal_and_Community_Advocacy/Foundation_Poli…
Cheers,
Geoff
Geoff Brigham
General Counsel
Wikimedia Foundation
--
Tilman Bayer
Senior Operations Analyst (Movement Communications)
Wikimedia Foundation
IRC (Freenode): HaeB
>
>
> Message: 2
> Date: Fri, 3 Aug 2012 15:02:51 -0700
> From: Tilman Bayer <tbayer(a)wikimedia.org>
> To: Wikimedia Mailing List <wikimedia-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
> Subject: Re: [Wikimedia-l] [Wikimedia Announcements] 2012-13 Annual
> Plan of the Wikimedia Foundation
> Message-ID:
> <CAPDdKA6rf5W1z6BXg-=
> E6sZp2021WQt845V7VLJXaBuPBnfVvg(a)mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
>
> On Sun, Jul 29, 2012 at 11:18 PM, Federico Leva (Nemo)
> <nemowiki(a)gmail.com> wrote:
> > Tilman Bayer, 29/07/2012 18:28:
> >
> >> Regarding the "normal levels", I suppose you haven't yet had a chance
> >> to look at http://reportcard.wmflabs.org/graphs/active_editors ?
> >
> >
> > Yes and it shows that there's still an increase over the pre-WLM
> situation.
> Given the size of the normal monthly fluctuations (e.g. July-August
> 2011: +0.3K, August-October 2011: +0.2K), and the overall upwards
> trend during 2011-12, I find it hard to understand the objections to
> the interpretation "returning to normal levels".
>
> > Actually I was reading
> > <http://stats.wikimedia.org/wikispecial/EN/TablesWikipediaCOMMONS.htm>
> which
> > shows the numbers better but still doesn't have the total number of
> > uploaders/ussers with at least one edit in a given month.
> It does show the number of users with at least one upload, and those
> with at least one mainspace edit (look further down). As an aside, it
> also contains numbers for uploads made using UploadWizard, strongly
> supporting the statement that much of the 2011-12 growth was due to
> this usability improvement, cf. the statement on slide 25 you already
> cited below.
> >
> >
> >> Also, recently Lodewijk, with the help of WMF data analyst Erik
> >> Zachte, posted this interesting analysis:
> >>
> >>
> http://www.wikilovesmonuments.org/new-editors-thanks-to-wiki-loves-monument…
> >>
> >> If I read it correctly, from the newbies among the WLM participants,
> >> 61 were still active in May 2012. This compares to altogether 7053
> >> active editors on Commons during that month (the latter number is from
> >> http://stats.wikimedia.org/wikispecial/EN/TablesWikipediaCOMMONS.htm ;
> >> note that a user who makes just one edit or one upload during a month
> >> falls below the threshold for the currently used active editors
> >> metric). But as the blog post notes, there are efforts underway to
> >> improve retention of new contributors in this year's WLM.
> >
> >
> > Thanks, I had indeed missed this post for some reason. 231 or 6,6 % with
> > some activity after the end and 61 very active editors
> That's not quite what the blog post said. 61 was the number of all
> *active* editors left during the latest month examined (May), and it
> doesn't say how the average number of edits is distributed among
> these. That being said, it's of course absolutely great that WLM
> appears to have brought in at least some very active contributors,
> among them one who has already done 20,000 edits so far.
> > seems to be better
> > than what the university students do?
> If "what the university students do" refers to the Education Program,
> note that boosting the number of active editors by those students
> isn't its primary goal, and neither has WLM been focused on that
> metric.
> > This is also acknowledged later on, at p. 25: ?[...] multimedia is where
> > early usability efforts (UploadWizard), especially alongside programs
> like
> > Wiki Loves Monuments, have paid off. (Commons is one of the few areas
> where
> > active editors are growing -- 25% year over year, with a spike to 9.37K
> from
> > 6.97K in September 2011 due to the WLM competition.)?.
> Again, I'm not quite sure what "This" in "This is also acknowledged
> later on" refers to. See e.g. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/spike for
> the meaning of "spike".
>
>
>
> --
> Tilman Bayer
> Senior Operations Analyst (Movement Communications)
> Wikimedia Foundation
> IRC (Freenode): HaeB
>
As Wiki Loves Monuments is an annual competition involving the upload of
photographs in September, I would think we need a couple more Septembers
before we know how successful it is at acquiring a group of additional
regular participants.
However what we already know is that it is pretty successful at getting a
large amount of useful content.
If as a non-participant I could suggest one change it would be to allow
people to upload images at any time of year and submit them to the contest
in September. Aside from the advantages of potentially turning an annual
event into a hobby, there are monuments where we want images of the light
at different times of the year, or that are best seen after the leaves have
fallen.
WSC
Hi all,
the Wikimedia Foundation's 2012-13 Annual Plan has just been published at
https://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/File:2012-13_Wikimedia_Foundation_Plan…
accompanied by a Q&A:
https://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/2012-2013_Annual_Plan_Questions_and_An…
The plan was approved by the Board of Trustees at its meeting in
Washington, DC, at Wikimania, and previously outlined to the
Foundation staff and interested community members at the monthly staff
meeting on July 5, 2012. We were planning to publish the video
recording of that meeting at this point, but encountered technical
difficulties; the video will hopefully become available soon.
--
Tilman Bayer
Senior Operations Analyst (Movement Communications)
Wikimedia Foundation
IRC (Freenode): HaeB
_______________________________________________
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Michael Snow writes:
> Perhaps worth adding, I think it's fair to say that these reviews did
> take place with respect to the use of Wikimedia Foundation resources in
> the context of the January SOPA protest. They didn't necessarily follow
> the form of the current policy, since it didn't exist yet, but Geoff was
> actively involved and I believe the staff was generally quite conscious
> of the limitations on what they should do in their official capacity.
> There's always room for honest disagreement about whether the protest
> was desirable or necessary, but just in terms of the process, I think
> things were entirely appropriately handled.
I agree with Michael Snow's take on all this.
> I agree that the community retains the authority to reach its own
> decisions about future actions of this type. I think the policy should
> be understood primarily as something the foundation will adhere to in
> its operations, not something that regulates the community's autonomy.
And I especially agree with this. One of the greatest strengths and
protections in the Wikimedia movement, both for the community and the
Foundation, is the community's autonomy. The community has the
autonomy to make decisions that may include certain kinds of political
action from time to time, and the Foundation is able to function
within its legal constraints because community members are not (for
the most part) agents or employees of the Foundation.
I think Geoff and his team are doing an excellent job at further
developing and strengthening appropriate legal protections for the
Foundation while preserving the community's ability to act
independently, including (what I hope will mostly be unnecessary) the
ability to act and speak out politically.
--Mike
Dear All
I came across a site called Golden Map, which has an encyclopaedic
collection of articles that are the same as in the Wikipedia, but I don't
see anywhere any information expalining what the association/ permission
is. Is there an agreement in place for this?
Look - for example - at this page on the Wildebeest
http://en.goldenmap.com/Wildebeest
Best regards,
Rui
--
_________________________
Rui Correia
Advocacy, Human Rights, Media and Language Work Consultant
Bridge to Angola - Angola Liaison Consultant
Mobile Number in South Africa +27 74 425 4186
Número de Telemóvel na África do Sul +27 74 425 4186
"Quando a verdade é substituída pelo silêncio, o silêncio é uma mentira" -
Yevgeny Yevtushenko
"When truth is replaced by silence, the silence is a lie" - Yevgeny
Yevtushenko
_______________
Forwarding for info.
Thanks,
Mike
Begin forwarded message:
> From: Richard Symonds <richard.symonds(a)wikimedia.org.uk>
> Subject: [Wikimediauk-l] Wikimedia UK appoints new Chair
> Date: 2 August 2012 14:01:17 PDT
> To: Wikimedia UK mailing list <wikimediauk-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
> Reply-To: UK Wikimedia mailing list <wikimediauk-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
>
> All,
>
> I've been asked by the board to send out the following statement on their behalf. This will be passed on to the full membership shortly, but it was though prudent to get it out to the mailing list tonight.
>
> The Board of Wikimedia UK today announced the appointment of Chris Keating as its new Chair. This appointment is effective immediately.
>
> Doug Taylor, another leading Wikimedian with thirty years experience of the non-profit and charity sectors was appointed Vice Chair in support.
>
> Chris has a background in fundraising and campaigning, and he is a long-standing Wikipedia editor and administrator. Elected to the Board of Wikimedia UK in April 2011, his main priority is making sure Wikimedia UK communicates well with the Wikimedia community and with our other supporters. His skills and experience will be invaluable as he leads us through a busy, productive and important period.
>
> The Board wishes to thank Ashley Van Haeften for his excellent contributions as Chair of our charity. There is no doubt that he will continue to perform well as a Trustee and volunteer, particularly in his GLAM (Galleries, Libraries, Archives and Museums) work, where he is a leader in the field. He continues as Chair of the Wikimedia Chapters Association
>
> This change in leadership will not affect the day to day operations of Wikimedia UK as a functioning charity. The Board looks forward to supporting the Wikimedia community as we continue to work towards our objectives.
>
> On behalf of the Board of Wikimedia UK,
>
> Richard Symonds
> Wikimedia UK
> 0207 065 0992
> Disclaimer viewable at http://uk.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia:Email_disclaimer
> Visit http://www.wikimedia.org.uk/ and @wikimediauk
>
> _______________________________________________
> Wikimedia UK mailing list
> wikimediauk-l(a)wikimedia.org
> http://mail.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimediauk-l
> WMUK: http://uk.wikimedia.org
Reminder: this office hours begin in 30 minutes. :-)
Join #wikimedia-office from your IRC client or
Webchat: http://webchat.freenode.net/?channels=#wikimedia-office
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> From: "Siko Bouterse" <sbouterse(a)wikimedia.org>
> Date: Jul 31, 2012 3:36 AM
> Subject: [Wikimedia-l] IRC office hours with the Wikimedia Fellows
> To: <wikimedia-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
>
> Hi all,
> The Wikimedia Fellows program will be holding IRC office hours in
> #wikimedia-office this Thursday, August 2, 2012 at 21:00 UTC. Fellows
> Tanvir Rahman, Peter Coombe, Jon Harald Søby, Steven Zhang, Sarah Stierch
> and Jonathan Morgan will be there to discuss their current fellowship
> projects (exact topics TBD based on who shows up with
> questions/comments/feedback), and I'll take any questions on the
> fellowships program that you may have.[1][2] As always, links to time
> conversion and other office hour info is on Meta.[3] Hope to see you there!
> Best wishes,
> Siko
>
> 1. http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fellowship_News/Current, and this should
> be even more current by Thursday :-)
> 2. http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Fellowships
> 3. https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/IRC_office_hours
>
> --
> Siko Bouterse
> Head of Community Fellowships
> Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.
>
> sbouterse(a)wikimedia.org
> _______________________________________________
> Wikimedia-l mailing list
> Wikimedia-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
> Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l
--
Tanvir Rahman
Community Fellow
Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.
Hello,
Please allow me to send a link to my 'Washington diary' about
Wikimania in Washington; it is mostly about the proceedings of the
Wikimedia Chapters Association.
Kind regards
Ziko
http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Ziko/Washington_diary
Hello,
Please be invited to a questionnaire about the new Wikimedia Chapters
Association. We would like to know what people from the Wikimedia
movement think about its tasks and about some other issues.
We don't know how long the discussions will take, and they won't be
exhaustive and shouldn't prevent us from other proceedings. But it
might be a useful way to find out more about the opinions within the
Wikimedia movement.
http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Chapters_Association/Questionnaire…
Kind regards
Ziko van Dijk
Deputy Chair of the WCA Council