Tl;dr: Want to learn how to effectively organize editing campaigns and events in the movement? Join the beta 2 version of Organizer Lab on WikiLearn to understand how to organize a global campaign around a topic for impact area! This year’s Organizer Lab will focus on upskilling organizers with tools and tactics to run effective campaigns related to gender and sustainability. Applications are open from 6 - 17 Sep. 

Dear Wikimedians,

The Campaign Programs Team at the Wikimedia Foundation is excited to announce Version 2 of the Organizer Lab. This call is open to all Wikimedia community organizers with local organizing experience who embrace the potential of the Wikimedia movement to mobilize around Topics for Impact and are ready to enhance their international organizing skills.

Why an Organizer Lab? 

Campaigns and other topic-based calls to action have greatly influenced the Wikimedia movement. However, organizers consistently report challenges in designing programs that effectively engage and retain new and experienced contributors who meaningfully address knowledge gaps and continue participating in movement activities. 

In 2022, during the Beta version of the Lab, we tested the curriculum for the course to better understand how to train organizers to run events that fill knowledge gaps related to topics for impact. We know that training and access to organizing skills help organizers become more involved and effective at building Wikimedia communities through tactics like campaigns. 

Initial evaluation of the Beta version of the Course was positive: Participant feedback described the course material as very helpful in building confidence in their organizing practices and ability to support other organizers. Furthermore, analysis of the organizing activity from our first 21 graduates indicates that Lab graduates are running more effective content-creating events. 

What’s new? 

The Organizer Lab provides a structured path for organizers to enhance their abilities, and learn how to design campaigns and effective calls to action that address two strategic knowledge gaps: namely climate & sustainability, and gender (new addition). Importantly, participants can apply these skills to other topics for impact areas.

This year we are further testing the learning material with a second, larger cohort and an additional topical focus on Gender. The goal is to refine and strengthen the learning so that we can make public the course materials in the future for use across the movement, as part of larger Learning and Development opportunities on WikiLearn. We are also offering the course in one additional language (Spanish!) and expanding our target audience beyond Sub-Saharan Africa to Latin America.

What can I expect from the Lab?

The Organizer Lab is a 12 week online learning experience that will run from early October to mid-December 2023. Participants will refine their skills in designing strategic calls to action for prioritized knowledge gaps, along with general Wikimedia organizing and campaign/event design skills.

Participating organizers will leave the course with:

• A strong understanding of how to develop a locally relevant topic list for a knowledge gap-focused campaign.

• A process for identifying suitable local audiences and organizations for activation and recruitment.

• Familiarity with effective event design tactics, tools, and newcomer engagement strategies.

• A scalable project proposal for events or projects related to global campaigns on Earth Day and Women’s History Month, as well as other regional and international campaigns.

Only 50 spots are available for the course, and not all qualified applicants can be accepted. While movement and organizing experience will help determine qualification, we will use a lottery system to ensure that factors such as geographic representation (with a focus on Africa and Latin America, although other regions may also be considered based on certain criteria), and gender diversity in order to create a more equitable and diverse cohort.

Apply now or learn more