FYI, we send out the following email to several lists. Please spread the
word :-)
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Hello everyone,
As you may have heard, a little while ago some organizers of Wiki Loves
Monuments 2011 came together in a rainy and cold Amsterdam to evaluate
the 2011 edition, and kick off documentation for 2012. We would like to
share some of the results of our meeting with you.
The first and most important information is:
* There is going to be a Wiki Loves Monuments in 2012 -- and if there is
interest, we are going global!
We would like to get a feeling of in how many countries there would be
people potentially interested in organizing a Wiki Loves Monuments
nationally; but firstly, let us start with the basics.
Wiki Loves Monuments is a photo contest organized in 2010 and 2011 in,
respectively, the Netherlands and in Europe. The contest asks the
general audience to upload pictures of monumental/historical sites and
buildings during September. It has a federal structure and is organised
seperately in every participating country by the local people who know
how things work in their area; best photos from all countries are
nominated for an international contest.
In 2011 this contest was very successful, with more than 165.000 photos
of monuments in 18 participating countries submitted in total. This was
possible thanks to the hard work of hundreds of volunteers in those
countries who helped organise Wiki Loves Monuments in one way or
another. The winning pictures have been published on
<http://www.wikilovesmonuments.eu> and on Wikimedia Commons:
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wiki_Loves_Monuments_2011_winners>.
Besides the wonderful direct impact on the overall quality and coverage
of heritage and culture topics, Wiki Loves Monuments is a fantastic
opportunity to reach some of our important goals: we had a participation
of over 4.000 new users who created the first ever community-driven
contribution peak on Wikimedia Commons
(<_http://stats.wikimedia.org/reportcard/#new_editors_per_month_>); we
have also helped in establishing cooperation between Wikimedia groups &
chapters and some of their local cultural institutions and organisations
in several countries.
Would you be interested in organizing a Wiki Loves Monuments in 2012 in
your country? Would you like to know more? Find all the details at
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Commons:Wiki_Loves_Monuments_2012>.
We have put together some information there for you -- and much more
will follow soon.
We would also like you to join our public mailing list where everyone is
welcome to ask any questions about the details on how to organise a Wiki
Loves Monuments in your country. This is a place where many organizers
of 2011 are already on and we will use that as our main channel for
communications and information dispersion in 2012. Be bold and sign up
for the list at
<https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikilovesmonuments>.
So, please speak up if you're interested!
Best regards,
Lodewijk, Maarten & Tomasz (on behalf of so many others)