Now that I managed to catch your attention… I want to remind you that
tomorrow will be the last day to apply for the FDC.
Unfortunately, I decided not to run for another term, because of the heavy
workload in my workplace and my roles in Wikimedia Israel
But I want to tell you a bit about my last two years in. I'm part of this
great movement for more than a decade: I took part in many project,
committees and I serve as chairperson and spokesperson.
I was part of the FDC process for 2 years as a grantee. I didn't always
like the FDCs recommendations, but I have always appreciated the mission
and the importance of this committee. I only learned how much the work this
committee do is so important once I had joined.
If you really care for this movement, and you really want to influence –
the FDC is the right place for you.
Don't get me wrong. It's not an easy task. Not at all. Maybe beside of the
WMF's board, this is the most time-consuming role. 5 days' deliberations in
S.F in November, 3 days' deliberations in Warsaw in May. And you have to
read endless reports and proposals before each deliberation (I counted 319
pages before the November's deliberations).
But – this big but – you really have power to change. Your voice is matter.
I was so lucky to sit in one room with so many talented volunteers and
FDC's staff. To really discuss with them about the impact of each
organization within the movement. To evaluate programs, sometime to
recommend to expend some of them, sometimes to recommend stop them. To ask
tough questions – about what the ROI of each thing that we do. And where we
want to see the Wikimedia's organizations, which have such an important
role within this movement.
Just a few weeks ago, during my last FDC's deliberation, I wrote to my
colleagues an email about one of our decisions. I wrote them and mentioned
the main reason why I joined the committee, and It's because I see a great
importance of the committee to "protect" the donor's money. Millions of
donors every year put their trust in our movement when they donate their
money to the Wikimedia movement.
And for me, the FDC is the part of the movement which is in charge to
oversee this donations and to take care that every dollar is been spend
properly. "for me each dollar worth like a million dollar, and as such, we
have to justify every spending we approve".
Each one of the committee members may express his responsibility and reason
to be part of it differently, but this is how I see it.
If you join the FDC you will work hard, but trust me, you will learn a lot,
and you will take part in the most interesting discussions and decision
making process this movement have to offer.
And in a personal note, this is my goodbye from my role within this
committee. It's was an amazing two years. I can't put into words the amount
of appreciation I have for this amazing team. Each one of them is truly
devoted for the movement. They are not so famous as the WMF's board
members, you will not see many of them in Wikimania and others
international conferences, as they do their amazing work behind closed
doors.
I'll miss all of them. And I hope I'll have the opportunity to join them
back in the future.
Itzik
*Regards,Itzik Edri*
Chairperson, Wikimedia Israel
+972-54-5878078 | http://www.wikimedia.org.il
Imagine a world in which every single human being can freely share in the
sum of all knowledge. That's our commitment!
Hi all,
*Summary: Some examples of topics in Cycle 2 discussions; some reflections
after my first year.*
Modifications to the five themes have been posted on Meta-Wiki, based on
community feedback. These changes helped make the themes easier to
understand and translate. [1] Once again, we appreciate everyone's input on
how to help our global audience engage more effectively in the Cycle 2
discussions. The discussions continue to emerge in new places like Facebook
and among more groups like Wiki in Education and WikiProject Medicine.[2]
*Here are a few examples of what we are hearing in discussions:[3]*
*"We need to establish a way to ensure that all the articles cited do
indeed fairly reflect the scientific consensus as well as the relevant
scientific controversies."
Hebrew Wikipedia village pump[4]
*"Become the most respected source of broad-based knowledge suited for the
general public."
Wikidata discussion[5]
* "International, multilingual nature of Wikimedia project is an asset that
may help to overcome current separatist tendencies in the world, by
bringing knowledge to more people, so they can better understand others and
the world."
Polish Wikipedia[6]
Have a reaction to some of those thoughts? Have opinions and ideas of your
own that you want to contribute? Discussions will continue until June
12,[2] and you can also take the private survey.[7]
*On a related note*
Earlier today, the Wikimedia Foundation held its monthly public metrics and
activities meeting, and I had a chance to reflect on my first year in this
role.[8] I focused mainly on changes in the Wikimedia Foundation. The work
of the community is much broader, and would have been hard to describe in
ten minutes!
I am incredibly proud of how far we have come and very excited about the
opportunities before us. Thank you your support over this past year and for
your ongoing engagement in our discussions about future of our movement!
胸がいっぱいになりました。 (Japanese translation: “I am filled with gratitude.”)
Katherine
PS. A version of this message is available for translation on Meta-Wiki.[9]
[1] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Strategy/Wikimedia_movement/2017/Cycle_2
[2]
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Strategy/Wikimedia_movement/2017/Participate
[3]
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:2017_Wikimedia_movement_strategy_C…
[4]
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Strategy/Wikimedia_movement/2017/Sources_Cy…
[5]
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Strategy/Wikimedia_movement/2017/Sources/Cy…
[6]
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Strategy/Wikimedia_movement/2017/Sources/Cy…
[7]
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Strategy/Wikimedia_movement/2017/Cycle_2/Su…
[8]
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_metrics_and_activities…
[9]
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Strategy/Wikimedia_movement/2017/Updates/18…
--
Katherine Maher
Wikimedia Foundation
149 New Montgomery Street
San Francisco, CA 94105
+1 (415) 839-6885 ext. 6635
+1 (415) 712 4873
kmaher(a)wikimedia.org
https://annual.wikimedia.org
REMINDER: This meeting starts in 30 minutes.
On Thu, May 18, 2017 at 4:11 PM, Lena Traer <ltraer(a)wikimedia.org> wrote:
> Hello everyone,
>
> The next Wikimedia Foundation metrics and activities meeting will take
> place on Thursday, May 25, 2017 at 6:00 PM UTC (11 AM PDT). The IRC channel
> is #wikimedia-office on irc.freenode.net, and the meeting will be
> broadcast as a live YouTube stream.[1]
>
> During the May metrics meeting, we'll hear research and stories about
> developing an inclusive Wikimedia movement. We'll explore some of our
> challenges to becoming an inclusive movement, and what people around the
> movement are doing to create a more inclusive, welcoming space where
> everyone can participate.
>
> Meeting agenda:
>
> * Welcomes, theme introduction
> * Movement update
> * New filters for edit review
> * The Keilana effect
> * Executive update
> * Questions and discussion
> * Wikilove
>
> Please review
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_
> metrics_and_activities_meetings
> for further information about the meeting and how to participate.
>
> We’ll post the video recording publicly after the meeting.
>
> Thank you,
> Lena
>
> [1] https://youtu.be/rAGwQdLyFb4
>
> Lena Traer
> Project Assistant // Communications // Advancement
> Wikimedia Foundation
>
*May 25, 2017 metrics meeting -- Movement update Appendix *
WikiMed
* January 2017 marked the completion of the 4th iteration of the course.
* 106 medical students participated in the course, almost 50% of them women.
* The majority of participants were Hebrew native speakers, but many were
Arabic native speakers, and some Russian and French native speakers.
* On average, each student wrote 2 articles during the semester,
collectively contributing over 200 new articles (about 8% of the medical
content on Hebrew Wikipedia), which by now got over 4 millions page views.
* More information:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Sackler_Faculty_of_Medicine_at_Tel_…
Art + Feminism
* March 2017 marked the completion of the 4th annual Wikipedia edit-a-thon.
* 2,500 participants across 200 events in 42 countries around the world
created or improved 6,500 articles. Almost double the outcomes from the
2016 campaign.
* Anyone can participate, by joining an event, or organizing their own with
their local community. To this end, there is an organizer’s kit available
for consultation.
* More information:
https://artandfeminism.tumblr.com/post/159717690675/the-results-are-in-over…
Wikiquote at the hospital
* A project to work with patients from a mental institution. Coordinated by
User:Jaluj, funded with a Rapid Grant.
* Editing skills as a way to construct a more inclusive society: “[He found
the workshop] useful because the negative thoughts, which told him that he
would not be able to do anything, disappeared when he managed to began to
edit.”
* Many valuable lessons on how to work with patients from a mental health
institution, and how it can influence their relationship to other people.
* More information:
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Grants:Project/Rapid/Jaluj/Wikiquote_at_the…
Hi John
HRE is not simply a front-end to an online database, but is a
fully-featured open source desktop research application which
incorporates its own database. The primary use is genealogy, and to that
end it's designed to take over and extend the features of the most
capable but unfortunately no-longer-supported commercial program The
Master Genealogist (TMG). However, the principles behind the study of
genealogy are equally applicable to a wide range of historical fields.
Historians are very poorly served by the commercial software market, and
frequently find themselves locked into expensive or inflexible academic
or cultural sector packages.
We have identified the following high-level principles applicable to
generic historical research software:
* The data that needs to be stored for history research has a
largely common structure usually falling into one of two broad types:
1. a description of something, or
2. how that thing relates to other things (for example via a
person, date, time or location)
* A researcher may want to view and analyse the same data from a
variety of different perspectives
* Rules can help to validate the veracity of an assertion of a
relationship
* High quality research requires an analysis of the evidential base
for any assertions that are made, and the ability to be able to
report on that analysis.
Traditionally, historians have divided their research into targeted
areas such as genealogy, anthropology, ecology, archaeology, military
history and so on. The fundamental data and analysis requirements are
the same, and can be dealt with in software in a common way even if the
things being measured and the rules for validation may differ.
By embracing these ideas the History Research Environment project aims
to create a research platform of wide historical and cultural utility.
We would like to encourage Wikimedians to get involved, especially in
coding, with a view to interoperability and/or integration with the
Wikimedia sites.
More details can be found by following the links from here:
https://historyresearchenvironment.org/articles/
Michael
(User:MichaelMaggs on Commons)
GitHub:
https://github.com/History-Research-Environment/HRE--History-Research-Envir…
> John Levin <mailto:anterotesis@gmail.com>
> 25 May 2017 at 10:13 am
>
>
> Ah, sorry, missed the screenshots page:
> https://historyresearchenvironment.org/screens
>
> John
>
> John Levin <mailto:anterotesis@gmail.com>
> 25 May 2017 at 10:10 am
> As a PhD student & hstorian, this looks like a really useful idea.
>
> I'm not entirely clear how it would work: is it a GUI for are there
> any screen mock-ups or such like? Is it a sort of front end for
> databases like Wikidata?
>
> And the strapline on the site "Towards a history of almost anything"
> is kinda scary. That's applying a single tool to a huge number of
> things. Is history that similar to genealogy, and then to biology as
> well?
>
> John
>
>
>
>
>
> Michael Maggseatured generalogy and history reserach
> <mailto:Michael@maggs.name>
> 24 May 2017 at 3:58 pm
> There has been quite bit of discussion over the years about how the
> Wikimedia movement could engage with those who have research interests
> in family history or genealogy, and a centralised discussion page [1]
> has been set up on Meta.
>
> I am posting to ask whether there would be Wikimedian developers who
> would be interested in joining an open source project to create a free
> platform independent application called History Research Environment
> [2] (‘HRE’) for the serious genealogist or historical researcher.
> Considerable effort has been put into high-level planning over several
> years, and we are now ready to start writing code.
>
> While the proposed software is not currently an official Wikimedia
> project, if there is enough interest we are open to it becoming
> integrated or affiliated in some way. The plan is, in any event, that
> the software should be interoperable with Wikidata to allow (subject
> to the agreement of the Wikidata community) the exchange of a variety
> of structured data including verified and fully sourced family trees.
>
> I'd be happy to answer queries.
>
> Michael Maggs
>
>
> [1] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_genealogy_project
>
> [2] https://historyresearchenvironment.org
>
> (please excuse cross-posting for greater visibility, as the
> [wikimedia-genealogy] mailing list still has very few subscribers)
>
> _______________________________________________
> Wikimedia-genealogy mailing list
> Wikimedia-genealogy(a)lists.wikimedia.org
> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-genealogy
Dear All,
Please see email below on behalf of Jaime Villagomez, CFO of the Wikimedia
Foundation.
Hello everyone,
The Wikimedia Foundation has submitted to the US Internal Revenue Service
(IRS) and posted on-wiki[1] our annual Form 990 filing. The Form 990 is the
annual financial reporting which is required by the federal government for
active nonprofit organizations in the United States.
In addition to posting the Form 990 on-wiki, we have also posted an
accompanying page with answers to frequently asked questions related to the
form and information we submitted.[2] Almost all financial reports by their
very nature can be confusing, so to add clarity here is a simple breakdown
of what this form covers.
It was pointed out last year that the dates covered by our financial
reports can be confusing given our fiscal year is different from the
calendar year. This "2015 Form 990" covers the financial activities of the
Wikimedia Foundation for the 2015-2016 fiscal year, which ran from July 1,
2015 to June 30, 2016. A notable exception is information related to the
compensation of our officers, key employees, highest paid staff and
independent contractors, which is instead based on the 2015 calendar year.
The Wikimedia Foundation's total revenue from fiscal year 2015-2016 was
US$78,691,737. Our total expenses from this period were US$65,061,845 and
our total net assets at the end of the fiscal year were US$91,782,795.
Included in the approximately US$65 million expenses from this period is a
US$5 million seed contribution to the Wikimedia Endowment, building on the
initial donation by Jim Pacha of approximately US$1 million. This
contribution accounts for the bulk of the increase from the year before in
"grants and similar amounts paid" listed on the summary page. It is listed
as an expense in the form because the Endowment is an independent fund
housed at Tides. To learn more about the purpose and structure of the
Wikimedia Endowment, visit its Meta-Wiki page.[3]
The Form 990 also includes information about the salaries of the Wikimedia
Foundation's five highest paid employees. The salaries for all paid
positions are set according to salary bands which are determined
bi-annually based on independent third party survey data.[4] Executive
salaries are subject to this same standard. All executive salaries, with
the exception of the Executive Director's salary, are set by the Executive
Director in discussion with the Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees
uses the independent third party survey data, as well as comparative data
from other nonprofit organizations, to set the salary of the Executive
Director, and to assess and advise on other executive salaries.
The largely technical and high-skilled nature of some of our work requires
competitive wages to recruit the best talent and compensate them fairly for
their expertise and commitment. We believe that the Wikimedia Foundation
continues to pay competitively, but within in the average (50th percentile)
when compared to tech companies, and higher average (90th percentile)
compared to nonprofits.
In addition to salary information, the report includes other payments made
to the highest paid employees upon their departure from the organization
(known as severance payments). Following our regular practice for staff
departures, these amounts are set on a case-by-case based on a person's
tenure with the organization. We recognize that people have an interest in
this topic, and that there will be some questions. However, as an employer
we are limited in what we can discuss publicly. Out of respect for the
people involved, and in consideration of the laws and ethics related to
sharing human resources information, we will not be commenting on the
specific nature of the severance payments or circumstances which may be
related to them.
Through reports and discussions like these, the Wikimedia Foundation will
continue to strive to provide a responsible level of transparency and
accountability for our work. I imagine there are other questions, and I
invite you to review the on-wiki FAQ[2], or email me if your question is
not answered there.
Thank you to the Foundation's Talent & Culture, Legal, Advancement and
Communications departments for their assistance with developing this year's
Form 990 and related communications. A very big thank you to our Finance
and Administration department for their hard work once again preparing this
important public filing.
Best,
Jaime
[1] Wikimedia_Foundation_2015_Form_990
<https://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/File:Wikimedia_Foundation_2015_Form_99…>
[2] Wikimedia_Foundation_Form_990_Frequently_Asked_Questions
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/IRS_tax_issues_and_information/2015_Wikimed…>
[3] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Endowment
[4] https://www.radford.com/home/surveys/gts/
--
Tony Le
Wikimedia Foundation
Ph: 415-839-6885 ext 6749 <(415)%20839-6885>
Fax: 415-882-0495 <(415)%20882-0495>
tle(a)wikimedia.org
This message is confidential and may be legally privileged or otherwise
protected from disclosure. If you are not the intended recipient, please
telephone or email the sender and delete this message and any attachment
from your system; you must not copy or disclose the contents of this
message or any attachment to any other person.
Dear all,
Wikimedia Italy had its AGM on April 8. During this meeting, the 2016
Annual Report was approved, and a new Board was elected. Three positions
were up for contest and two new people were elected, while one was
reconfirmed.
On the same day, the Board appointed the different roles:
* Lorenzo Losa - president
* Paola Liliana Buttiglione - vice-president (newly elected)
* Giuseppe Profti - secretary (newly elected)
* Saverio Giulio Malatesta - treasurer (reconfirmed)
* Luca Martinelli - projects coordinator
Few words about the new entries:
* Paola Liliana is an archaeologist working on local development by
promotion of cultural heritage
* Giuseppe is a long time Wikipedian, former regional coordinator for
Wikimedia Italy, researcher and teacher in Computer Science
* Saverio is an archaeologist, extremely interested about open culture, and
already stepped in as treasurer since December 2016, when the previous
treasurer (Simone Cortesi) resigned.
As for the non-contestant, Lorenzo has been president for the last year and
is quite involved into the Wikimedia community (i.e. FDC), while Luca (yet
another long-time Wikipedian) served in the board for the last three years,
firstly as secretary, and from last year as projects coordinator.
We are sorry to be this late in announcing the new Board, but these months
were packed with events and activities. :)
Kind regards,
Giuseppe (on behalf of WM-IT Board)
There has been quite bit of discussion over the years about how the
Wikimedia movement could engage with those who have research interests
in family history or genealogy, and a centralised discussion page [1]
has been set up on Meta.
I am posting to ask whether there would be Wikimedian developers who
would be interested in joining an open source project to create a free
platform independent application called History Research Environment [2]
(‘HRE’) for the serious genealogist or historical researcher.
Considerable effort has been put into high-level planning over several
years, and we are now ready to start writing code.
While the proposed software is not currently an official Wikimedia
project, if there is enough interest we are open to it becoming
integrated or affiliated in some way. The plan is, in any event, that
the software should be interoperable with Wikidata to allow (subject to
the agreement of the Wikidata community) the exchange of a variety of
structured data including verified and fully sourced family trees.
I'd be happy to answer queries.
Michael Maggs
[1] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_genealogy_project
[2] https://historyresearchenvironment.org
(please excuse cross-posting for greater visibility, as the
[wikimedia-genealogy] mailing list still has very few subscribers)
Here is an interesting quote of a Mozilla Foundation lawyer from
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/05/11/mozilla_wants_eu_to_slow_down_its_…
"draft Regulation imposes very specific restrictions on the technology
industry that may challenge the business models of some ISPs. In some
areas, obligations are proscriptive, undermining the principle of
technological neutrality that this legislation needs to withstand the
test of time in a rapidly changing environment"
Is it appropriate for the Wikimedia Foundation to respond to this sort
of thing? Mozilla is almost entirely funded by ad-supported
businesses at present.
Hi everyone!
I'm very happy to announce that the Affiliations Committee has recognized
the Wikimedia Tool Developers Group [1] as a Wikimedia User Group. The
group is international cooperative of developers who create freely-licensed
tools for improving the Wikimedia projects.
Please join me in congratulating the members of this new user group!
Regards,
Kirill Lokshin
Chair, Affiliations Committee
[1] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Tool_Developers_Group