I'd just like to back Chris up on this, as Wikimedia UK's 'Finance Man',
for want of a better word. We're tasked with coming up with an activity
plan to be agreed on September 8 this year. We've been asking the community
to come up with various ideas, for a fully volunteer-driven plan. You can
see these ideas - some of them very crazy - at
http://uk.wikimedia.org/wiki/2013_Activity_Plan/Ideas. I for one suggested
a six-month "Free Content Canal Barge" to travel around the UK. Others have
suggested new skins for Wikipedia, a photo-scanning centre, a 'donate your
content when you die' legally binding will - lots of very exciting ideas!
Sufficed to say, not all of them are sensible, and not all of them are
workable - but they're all very individualistic and represent the very best
of crowdsourcing ideas.
When we came up with the 'basic plan' in the WMUK office, we had to come up
with something that seemed relatively sensible to spark off ideas for the
community to work off. Part of that was myself and the Chief Exec throwing
out 'ballpark figures' for the WMUK membership and the WMUK board to
discuss. One of those ballpark figures was £40k for the UK if it wins a
Wikimania 2014 bid, or alternatively putting £40k towards the 2014
Wikimania wherever it may be - in the form of travel grants, a better
venue, better accommodation or something similar. As Chris says, our
Financial Year is February-January, so we have to plan for what would
happen if the community's (and it is community led - see
http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimania_2014_bids/London) London Bid is
successful.
What I'm saying, is that this budget is a *work in progress*, and it's one
that we want the wider community - and the WMUK membership - to lead on. If
you don't think that planning a £40k spend on a confirmed 2014 bid is a
good idea, then say so, but please propose something else! Perhaps there's
an opportunity for a joint UK-Danish project to cover the Faroe and
Shetland Islands - or a joint WMUK-DE-RU project to cover 'Peace and
Reconciliation' - as the cities of Coventry, Dresden and Volgograd
(Stalingrad) were some of the first 'twin cities' in existence.
All the best,
Richard Symonds
Wikimedia UK
(User:Chase me ladies, I'm the Cavalry)
0207 065 0992
Disclaimer viewable at
http://uk.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia:Email_disclaimer
Visit
http://www.wikimedia.org.uk/ and @wikimediauk
On 26 August 2012 22:36, Joseph Fox <josephfoxwiki(a)gmail.com> wrote:
Yeah, I didn't think it'd be £40,000 budgeted
purely for the bid (which
let's face it is really a tourst's guide to whatever city, and a list of
stuff you think you might get).
If you do decide to spend £40,000 on the bid, I'm available for the
position ;)
Joe
On 26 August 2012 22:02, Chris Keating <chriskeatingwiki(a)gmail.com> wrote:
Just to clarify Wikimedia UK's position
regarding Wikimania 2014.
So far the Wikimedia UK board has made no decisions and received no
proposals regarding Wikimania 2014 - spending money on it or otherwise.
What we do have is a section in the current draft of the 2013 activity
plan suggesting allocating £40,000 for Wikimania 2014. This draft is
currently up for community consultation before we discuss it at our
September board meeting. As a result of the discussion there we will
develop a proposal to vote on, and whatever is accepted, we will then send
to the FDC; how the FDC will respond, no-one knows. Then when we know the
FDC's opinion, we will have another version, and then when the fundraiser
out-turn is known in January there will be a further iteration before our
actual 2013 budget is finalised. So there is plenty of work left to do on
this. What's more, since our financial year runs from February and bid
selection is in April it's inevitable that most of any budget allocation we
make for Wikimania would be for *after* a successful bid, rather than
before it.
While I can understand why this it a topic of interest, I'm not sure
there is any need to get worked up about it. We make a conscious effort to
do our planning as openly as possible, and share early drafts of documents
with the community for input. We are also unable to reject proposals that
have not yet been made. Please think carefully about whether shouting at us
as a result is a good idea ;-)
Personally I hope that we end up with a very strong, volunteer-led,
London bid which will be successful and that Wikimedia UK will be able to
support Wikimania 2014 in every way possible - but there is still a very
long way to go yet.
Many thanks,
Chris Keating
(User:The Land)
Chair, Wikimedia UK
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