This would be more convincing if our house was in order. It is not. Cheers, Peter
From: Nathan [mailto:nawrich@gmail.com]
Sent: 18 August 2023 12:24
To: Wikimedia Mailing List
Subject: [Wikimedia-l] Re: Sharing an update on the Wikimedia Foundation Knowledge Equity
Fund’s grantees
Steven,
I've been thinking about your points here and I wonder if it's worth zooming out a
little bit on what Wikimedia is trying to achieve. The classic slogan of making the sum of
all human knowledge accessible to all is an incredibly broad and ambitious goal. Since the
WMF was founded, the primary implementation of that goal has been the various projects
(anchored by Wikipedia's, the initial innovation). But how convinced are we that this
is and will always remain the best way to achieve WMF's actual mission?
If we're completely sure that any distraction away from the WMF projects, and the
model of collecting and distributing knowledge that they represent, would be harmful to
that goal... then I would agree that the approach taken by funding these grants is taking
us down the wrong road.
If we admit to ourselves instead that Wikimedia's projects represent a great model
now, and hopefully for many years to come, but that more or better ways of achieving the
mission may surface... Then perhaps its worthwhile to invest persistently in supporting
other approaches, to create opportunities for the same innovation and discovery behind
Wikipedia to uncover what model may best meet future moments in delivering knowledge to
all.
~Nate
On Wed, Aug 16, 2023 at 1:08 PM Steven Walling <steven.walling(a)gmail.com> wrote:
On Wed, Aug 16, 2023 at 12:34 AM Christophe Henner <christophe.henner(a)gmail.com>
wrote:
Hi Steven,
If I may, I have a different reading on the topic. Knowledge Equity is a topic because for
centuries knowledges have been destroyed, banned, etc? as such, and with our current rules
with written sources, funding any organisation empowering marginalised communities is
critical.
If we were funding only direct integration of marginalised knowledges into the project we
would actually be missing so much.
I actually appreciate the Movement funding initiatives outside the Movement.
As Nadee said in her email, and I get a feeling it also is partly your point, what would
be critical here would be to ensure the grantees are supported and encouraged in working
with local or thematic Wikimedia Organisations.
@Nadee out of curiosity, is there any staff in the Knowledge Equity Fund project in charge
of working with grantees to increase their relationships with us?
Thanks a lot :)
Christophe
Christophe,
Thanks for your thoughts. I think the problem with "I actually appreciate the
Movement funding initiatives outside the Movement." is where does the boundary of
acceptable initiatives end?
For instance, should we feel comfortable creating a grants program to fight climate
change? Extreme weather events obviously threaten the stability of the projects, and might
disrupt editors from volunteering their time. Solving world hunger and global health
issues would increase the pool of potential volunteers. We could also fund a non-profit
alternative to Starlink, to increase global Internet access to make it possible for more
people to edit the projects.
The problem is that none of these things are what donors believe they are funding when
they give us $5 from a banner on Wikipedia asking them to support the projects.
On Aug 16, 2023, at 8:36 AM, Steven Walling <steven.walling(a)gmail.com> wrote:
?
This is really really disappointing to see. The lessons noted in the blog post totally
miss the point as to why the Wikimedia community has objected to Knowledge Equity Fund.
The issue is not community oversight via committees or visibility into the work. It?s that
the work had no demonstrable impact on Wikimedia projects whatsoever. We all should want
the projects to be more equitable when it comes to representing knowledge?it's
perfectly aligned with the Wikimedia mission. This program is doing absolutely nothing to
accomplish that.
If we want to impact knowledge equity, why not say, let people working on underserved
languages and topics apply for expense reimbursement when they've bought access to
sources or equipment to create media for Commons? Or fund a huge series of edit-a-thons on
BIPOC topics?
If we want free knowledge created by and for people with less systemic privilege in the
world, direct grants (given to actual Wikimedians) is something that the Foundation is
uniquely placed to do, as opposed to generic lump sum grants for addressing the root
causes of social injustice and inequity. While those are laudable problems to solve, they
are not in fact our organization?s mission and what donors think they are funding when
they give us money.
A second Knowledge Equity round that fails to specifically address how each grantee and
their work is going to help Wikimedia projects accomplish our mission is a huge misstep
and a violation of the trust that the community and donors place in the Foundation to
disburse funds. I fully agree that we should find ways to correct for the fact that
Wikimedia content tends to reflect the unjust past and present of the world. We want the
sum of *all* knowledge, not just knowledge from/for people with money and privilege, but
this is not the way.
On Thu, Aug 3, 2023 at 9:25 AM Nadee Gunasena <ngunasena(a)wikimedia.org> wrote:
Hi all,
As part of the Wikimedia Foundation?s Annual Plan
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Annual_Plan/2023-2024/Goals/Equity#Equity_Fund>
goal around supporting knowledge equity by supporting regional and thematic strategies,
and helping close knowledge gaps, I wanted to share an update on the Knowledge Equity
Fund. Earlier this year, the Foundation shared
<https://diff.wikimedia.org/2023/04/12/what-weve-learned-from-the-equity-funds-first-round/>
learnings from the first year of the Knowledge Equity Fund pilot, as well as reports from
our first year grantees. These learnings include how we can increase visibility into the
work of the grantees, and also connect the grantees with Wikimedians and local communities
to enable greater understanding and more ties to the work of free knowledge on the
Wikimedia projects.
With these learnings in mind, today we are
<https://diff.wikimedia.org/2023/08/03/announcing-the-second-round-of-grantees-from-the-wikimedia-foundation-knowledge-equity-fund/>
announcing the second round of grantees from the Knowledge Equity Fund. This second round
includes seven grantees that span five regions, including the Fund?s first-ever grantees
in Asia. This diverse group of grantees was chosen from an initial pool of 42 nominations,
which were received from across the Wikimedia movement through an open survey in 2022 and
2023. Each grantee aligns with one of Fund?s
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Knowledge_Equity_Fund#Criteria_for_grantees> five
focus areas, identified to address persistent structural barriers experienced by
communities of color that prevent equitable access and participation in open knowledge.
They are also recognized nonprofits with a proven track record of impact in their region.
The grantees include:
Aliansi Masyarakat Adat Nusantara, Indonesia: The <https://aman.or.id/> Aliansi
Masyarakat Adat Nusantara, or the Alliance of the Indigenous Peoples of the Archipelago
(AMAN for short), is a non-profit organization based in Indonesia that works on human
rights, journalism, and advocacy issues for indigenous people.
Black Cultural Archives, United Kingdom: <https://blackculturalarchives.org/> Black
Cultural Archives is a Black-led archive and heritage center that preserves and gives
access to the histories of African and Caribbean people in the UK.
Create Caribbean Research Institute, Commonwealth of Dominica:
<https://createcaribbean.org/create/> Create Caribbean Research Institute is the
first digital humanities center in the Caribbean.
Criola, Brazil: <https://criola.org.br/> Criola is a civil society organization,
based in Rio de Janeiro, dedicated to advocating for the rights of Black women in
Brazilian society.
Data for Black Lives, United States: <https://d4bl.org/> Data for Black Lives is a
movement of activists, organizers, and scientists committed to the mission of using data
to create concrete and measurable change in the lives of Black people.
Filipino American National Historical Society, United States: The
<http://fanhs-national.org/filam/> Filipino American National Historical Society has
a mission to gather, document and share Filipino American history through its 42 community
based chapters.
Project Multatuli, Indonesia: <https://projectmultatuli.org/en/> Project Multatuli
is an organization dedicated to non-profit journalism, especially for underreported
topics, ranging from indigenous people to marginalized issues.
The Equity Fund Committee, made up of five Wikimedia community members and five Wikimedia
Foundation staff, have also connected each of these grantees with regional and relevant
partners in the Wikimedia movement, including local and established movement affiliates
who can support knowledge equity work and help grantees learn about how to connect back to
the work of free knowledge on the Wikimedia projects. We continue to look for ways to
increase these connections and welcome your input.
This second round of grants was administered by the Wikimedia Foundation, after all
remaining funds for the Equity Fund were transferred back from Tides Advocacy to the
Foundation earlier this year.
We welcome thoughts and questions about the Equity fund and the second round of grantees
on <https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Knowledge_Equity_Fund> Meta.
Thank you,
Nadee Gunasena
On behalf of the
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Knowledge_Equity_Fund#The_Knowledge_Equity_Fund_Committee>
Equity Fund Committee
Biyanto Rebin, Emna Mizouni, Gala Mayi Miranda, Kelly Foster, Maari Zwick-Maitreyi, Aeryn
Palmer, Jorge Vargas, Kassia Echavarri-Queen, Nadee Gunasena, Sandister Tei
--
<https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8b/Wikimedia-logo_black.svg/54px-Wikimedia-logo_black.svg.png>
Nadee Gunasena
Chief of Staff
<https://wikimediafoundation.org/> Wikimedia Foundation
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