Hi everyone,
With the appointment of Raju to the Board of Trustees a couple of months ago, we were left with a remaining open vacancy to fill. I am thrilled to share that after several months of searching and discussions, we have made another important appointment. At our November Board Retreat, the Board appointed and welcomed Esra’a Al Shafei to fill our vacant expert seat.
Esra'a is a prominent international human rights activist and social entrepreneur. She founded and directs Majal, a nonprofit which utilizes digital media to amplify under-reported and marginalized voices throughout the Middle East and North Africa. For those of you that heard her keynote presentation at this year's Wikimania, I think you will agree she will make a very valuable addition to the Board and brings an important perspective and skillset to the Board's efforts.
Below (and on the Wikimedia Blog) you will find the official announcement about Esra’a Al Shafei. Please join me in warmly welcoming her to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees and to the Wikimedia movement!
Christophe Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of Esra’a may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the privacy and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any photographs or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.
Press release
Header: Esra'a Al Shafei joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
Subheader: Bahraini human rights activist and social entrepreneur brings to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees more than a decade of experience in applying creative solutions to challenges faced by underserved and underrepresented communities.
Image: https://wikimania2017.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Esraa.png%5Ba] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt1 [b] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt2 [c] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt3 [d] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt4
San Francisco, California, 1 December 2017 — The Wikimedia Foundation today announced the appointment of Esra'a Al Shafei, a prominent human rights activist and a passionate defender of free expression, to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a’s work aims to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa. She founded and directs Majal, a network of online platforms that amplify under-reported and marginalized voices.
“Esra'a shares Wikimedia's foundational belief that shared knowledge can facilitate shared understanding,” said Wikimedia Foundation Executive Director, Katherine Maher. "Her achievements exemplify how intentional community building can be a powerful tool for positive change, while her passion for beautiful and engaging user experiences will only elevate our work. We are so fortunate to have her perspective in support of our global Wikimedia communities."
Esra'a founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth, at the time a series of blogs bringing a voice to marginalized and underrepresented young people across the Middle East. Today, the organization's team helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity and social justice. Their endeavors include CrowdVoice.org, which curates crowdsourced media to contextualize social movements throughout the world; Mideast Tunes, the largest web and mobile app showcasing underground musicians in the Middle East and North Africa who use music as a tool for social change; and Ahwaa.org, an open discussion platform for Arab LGBTQ individuals that uses game mechanics to protect and engage its community.
“When I first encountered Wikipedia shortly after obtaining an internet connection in the early 2000s, I felt that the true purpose of the internet was realized. With Wikipedia, I accessed research regarding persecuted communities in my home country and the wider region: ethnic and religious minorities whom we were discouraged from learning about, and whose histories and beliefs were dictated to us from a singular government perspective. Wikipedia’s open source and crowdsourcing practices would inspire the platforms I built to advocate for underrepresented communities, and the internet would shape my life’s work in advocating for freedom of expression and identity around the world,” said Esra'a.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society." The World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015." She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media for the betterment of humanity.
She has been featured in Fast Company as one of the "100 Most Creative People in Business;" in The Daily Beast as one of the 17 bravest bloggers worldwide; and in Forbes' "30 Under 30" list of social entrepreneurs making an impact in the world.
Esra'a was a keynote speaker at Wikimania 2017 in Montreal, the annual conference centered on the Wikimedia projects.
“Esra'a brings tech expertise and a valuable perspective to the Board - coming from a region where access to information is not taken for granted. I was impressed by her talk during Wikimania 2017 on 'Experiences from the Middle East: Overcoming Challenges and Serving Communities'. I think her experience in that region will be important to our efforts around the globe,” said Nataliia Tymkiv, Governance Chair for the Board.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org.
Esra'a joins nine other Foundation Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q%3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees%26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg%3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg=AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A who collectively bring expertise in the Wikimedia community, financial oversight, governance, and organizational development; and a commitment to advancing Wikimedia’s mission of free knowledge for all.
She was approved unanimously by the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees. Her term is effective December 2017 and will continue for three years. Please see the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q%3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees%26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg%3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg=AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A for complete biographies.
About the Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that supports and operates Wikipedia and its sister free knowledge projects. Wikipedia is the world’s free knowledge resource, spanning more than 45 million articles across nearly 300 languages. Every month, more than 200,000 people edit Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, collectively creating and improving knowledge that is accessed by more than 1 billion unique devices every month. This all makes Wikipedia one of the most popular web properties in the world. Based in San Francisco, California, the Wikimedia Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charity that is funded primarily through donations and grants.
Esra’a Al Shafei profile
Esra'a Al Shafei is a human rights activist and the founder and director of Majal, a nonprofit which helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity, and social justice.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a works avidly to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa. She founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth. The organization has built online platforms that creatively facilitate the struggle for social change in the Middle East and North Africa.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society." The World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015."
She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media for the betterment of humanity.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org. She lives in the Middle East and North Africa region.
Welcome, Esra'a. Thank you for taking the time to serve. I look forward to your contribution. /a
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 12:59 PM, Christophe Henner chenner@wikimedia.org wrote:
Hi everyone,
With the appointment of Raju to the Board of Trustees a couple of months ago, we were left with a remaining open vacancy to fill. I am thrilled to share that after several months of searching and discussions, we have made another important appointment. At our November Board Retreat, the Board appointed and welcomed Esra’a Al Shafei to fill our vacant expert seat.
Esra'a is a prominent international human rights activist and social entrepreneur. She founded and directs Majal, a nonprofit which utilizes digital media to amplify under-reported and marginalized voices throughout the Middle East and North Africa. For those of you that heard her keynote presentation at this year's Wikimania, I think you will agree she will make a very valuable addition to the Board and brings an important perspective and skillset to the Board's efforts.
Below (and on the Wikimedia Blog) you will find the official announcement about Esra’a Al Shafei. Please join me in warmly welcoming her to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees and to the Wikimedia movement!
Christophe Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of Esra’a may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the privacy and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any photographs or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.
Press release
Header: Esra'a Al Shafei joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
Subheader: Bahraini human rights activist and social entrepreneur brings to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees more than a decade of experience in applying creative solutions to challenges faced by underserved and underrepresented communities.
Image: https://wikimania2017.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Esraa.png%5Ba] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt1 [b] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt2 [c] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt3 [d] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt4
San Francisco, California, 1 December 2017 — The Wikimedia Foundation today announced the appointment of Esra'a Al Shafei, a prominent human rights activist and a passionate defender of free expression, to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a’s work aims to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa. She founded and directs Majal, a network of online platforms that amplify under-reported and marginalized voices.
“Esra'a shares Wikimedia's foundational belief that shared knowledge can facilitate shared understanding,” said Wikimedia Foundation Executive Director, Katherine Maher. "Her achievements exemplify how intentional community building can be a powerful tool for positive change, while her passion for beautiful and engaging user experiences will only elevate our work. We are so fortunate to have her perspective in support of our global Wikimedia communities."
Esra'a founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth, at the time a series of blogs bringing a voice to marginalized and underrepresented young people across the Middle East. Today, the organization's team helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity and social justice. Their endeavors include CrowdVoice.org, which curates crowdsourced media to contextualize social movements throughout the world; Mideast Tunes, the largest web and mobile app showcasing underground musicians in the Middle East and North Africa who use music as a tool for social change; and Ahwaa.org, an open discussion platform for Arab LGBTQ individuals that uses game mechanics to protect and engage its community.
“When I first encountered Wikipedia shortly after obtaining an internet connection in the early 2000s, I felt that the true purpose of the internet was realized. With Wikipedia, I accessed research regarding persecuted communities in my home country and the wider region: ethnic and religious minorities whom we were discouraged from learning about, and whose histories and beliefs were dictated to us from a singular government perspective. Wikipedia’s open source and crowdsourcing practices would inspire the platforms I built to advocate for underrepresented communities, and the internet would shape my life’s work in advocating for freedom of expression and identity around the world,” said Esra'a.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society." The World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015." She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media for the betterment of humanity.
She has been featured in Fast Company as one of the "100 Most Creative People in Business;" in The Daily Beast as one of the 17 bravest bloggers worldwide; and in Forbes' "30 Under 30" list of social entrepreneurs making an impact in the world.
Esra'a was a keynote speaker at Wikimania 2017 in Montreal, the annual conference centered on the Wikimedia projects.
“Esra'a brings tech expertise and a valuable perspective to the Board - coming from a region where access to information is not taken for granted. I was impressed by her talk during Wikimania 2017 on 'Experiences from the Middle East: Overcoming Challenges and Serving Communities'. I think her experience in that region will be important to our efforts around the globe,” said Nataliia Tymkiv, Governance Chair for the Board.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org.
Esra'a joins nine other Foundation Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A who collectively bring expertise in the Wikimedia community, financial oversight, governance, and organizational development; and a commitment to advancing Wikimedia’s mission of free knowledge for all.
She was approved unanimously by the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees. Her term is effective December 2017 and will continue for three years. Please see the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A for complete biographies.
About the Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that supports and operates Wikipedia and its sister free knowledge projects. Wikipedia is the world’s free knowledge resource, spanning more than 45 million articles across nearly 300 languages. Every month, more than 200,000 people edit Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, collectively creating and improving knowledge that is accessed by more than 1 billion unique devices every month. This all makes Wikipedia one of the most popular web properties in the world. Based in San Francisco, California, the Wikimedia Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charity that is funded primarily through donations and grants.
Esra’a Al Shafei profile
Esra'a Al Shafei is a human rights activist and the founder and director of Majal, a nonprofit which helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity, and social justice.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a works avidly to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa. She founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth. The organization has built online platforms that creatively facilitate the struggle for social change in the Middle East and North Africa.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society." The World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015."
She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media for the betterment of humanity.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org. She lives in the Middle East and North Africa region. _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Great news, thanks Christophe! Welcome to the Wikimedia movement, Esra'a.
El vie., 1 de dic. de 2017 a la(s) 18:28, Anna Stillwell < astillwell@wikimedia.org> escribió:
Welcome, Esra'a. Thank you for taking the time to serve. I look forward to your contribution. /a
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 12:59 PM, Christophe Henner chenner@wikimedia.org wrote:
Hi everyone,
With the appointment of Raju to the Board of Trustees a couple of months ago, we were left with a remaining open vacancy to fill. I am thrilled to share that after several months of searching and discussions, we have
made
another important appointment. At our November Board Retreat, the Board appointed and welcomed Esra’a Al Shafei to fill our vacant expert seat.
Esra'a is a prominent international human rights activist and social entrepreneur. She founded and directs Majal, a nonprofit which utilizes digital media to amplify under-reported and marginalized voices
throughout
the Middle East and North Africa. For those of you that heard her keynote presentation at this year's Wikimania, I think you will agree she will
make
a very valuable addition to the Board and brings an important perspective and skillset to the Board's efforts.
Below (and on the Wikimedia Blog) you will find the official announcement about Esra’a Al Shafei. Please join me in warmly welcoming her to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees and to the Wikimedia movement!
Christophe Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of
Esra’a
may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the
privacy
and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any
photographs
or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.
Press release
Header: Esra'a Al Shafei joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
Subheader: Bahraini human rights activist and social entrepreneur brings
to
the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees more than a decade of
experience
in applying creative solutions to challenges faced by underserved and underrepresented communities.
Image: https://wikimania2017.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Esraa.png%5Ba] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt1 [b] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt2 [c] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt3 [d] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt4
San Francisco, California, 1 December 2017 — The Wikimedia Foundation
today
announced the appointment of Esra'a Al Shafei, a prominent human rights activist and a passionate defender of free expression, to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a’s work aims to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa.
She
founded and directs Majal, a network of online platforms that amplify under-reported and marginalized voices.
“Esra'a shares Wikimedia's foundational belief that shared knowledge can facilitate shared understanding,” said Wikimedia Foundation Executive Director, Katherine Maher. "Her achievements exemplify how intentional community building can be a powerful tool for positive change, while her passion for beautiful and engaging user experiences will only elevate our work.
We
are so fortunate to have her perspective in support of our global
Wikimedia
communities."
Esra'a founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth, at the time a series of blogs bringing a voice to marginalized and underrepresented young people across the Middle East. Today, the organization's team helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity and social justice. Their endeavors include CrowdVoice.org, which curates
crowdsourced
media to contextualize social movements throughout the world; Mideast Tunes, the largest web and mobile app showcasing underground musicians in the Middle East and North Africa who use music as a tool for social
change;
and Ahwaa.org, an open discussion platform for Arab LGBTQ individuals
that
uses game mechanics to protect and engage its community.
“When I first encountered Wikipedia shortly after obtaining an internet connection in the early 2000s, I felt that the true purpose of the
internet
was realized. With Wikipedia, I accessed research regarding persecuted communities in my home country and the wider region: ethnic and religious minorities whom we were discouraged from learning about, and whose histories and beliefs were dictated to us from a singular government perspective. Wikipedia’s open source and crowdsourcing practices would inspire the platforms I built to advocate for underrepresented
communities,
and the internet would shape my life’s work in advocating for freedom of expression and identity around the world,” said Esra'a.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from the
Berkman
Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society."
The
World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015." She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media for the betterment of humanity.
She has been featured in Fast Company as one of the "100 Most Creative People in Business;" in The Daily Beast as one of the 17 bravest bloggers worldwide; and in Forbes' "30 Under 30" list of social entrepreneurs
making
an impact in the world.
Esra'a was a keynote speaker at Wikimania 2017 in Montreal, the annual conference centered on the Wikimedia projects.
“Esra'a brings tech expertise and a valuable perspective to the Board - coming from a region where access to information is not taken for
granted.
I was impressed by her talk during Wikimania 2017 on 'Experiences from
the
Middle East: Overcoming Challenges and Serving Communities'. I think her experience in that region will be important to our efforts around the globe,” said Nataliia Tymkiv, Governance Chair for the Board.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org.
Esra'a joins nine other Foundation Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A who collectively bring expertise in the Wikimedia community, financial oversight, governance, and organizational development; and a commitment
to
advancing Wikimedia’s mission of free knowledge for all.
She was approved unanimously by the Wikimedia Foundation Board of
Trustees.
Her term is effective December 2017 and will continue for three years. Please see the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A for complete biographies.
About the Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that supports and operates Wikipedia and its sister free knowledge projects. Wikipedia is
the
world’s free knowledge resource, spanning more than 45 million articles across nearly 300 languages. Every month, more than 200,000 people edit Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, collectively creating and improving knowledge that is accessed by more than 1 billion unique devices every month. This all makes Wikipedia one of the most popular web properties in the world. Based in San Francisco, California, the Wikimedia Foundation
is
a 501(c)(3) charity that is funded primarily through donations and
grants.
Esra’a Al Shafei profile
Esra'a Al Shafei is a human rights activist and the founder and director
of
Majal, a nonprofit which helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity, and social justice.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a works avidly to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa.
She
founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth. The organization has built online platforms that creatively facilitate the struggle for social change in
the
Middle East and North Africa.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society."
The
World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015."
She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media
for
the betterment of humanity.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org. She lives in the
Middle
East and North Africa region. _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
--
Fantastic Wikimania keynote, fascinating addition to the board, fabulous addition to our community.
Welcome.
On Fri, 1 Dec 2017 at 22:28, Anna Stillwell astillwell@wikimedia.org wrote:
Welcome, Esra'a. Thank you for taking the time to serve. I look forward to your contribution. /a
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 12:59 PM, Christophe Henner chenner@wikimedia.org wrote:
Hi everyone,
With the appointment of Raju to the Board of Trustees a couple of months ago, we were left with a remaining open vacancy to fill. I am thrilled to share that after several months of searching and discussions, we have
made
another important appointment. At our November Board Retreat, the Board appointed and welcomed Esra’a Al Shafei to fill our vacant expert seat.
Esra'a is a prominent international human rights activist and social entrepreneur. She founded and directs Majal, a nonprofit which utilizes digital media to amplify under-reported and marginalized voices
throughout
the Middle East and North Africa. For those of you that heard her keynote presentation at this year's Wikimania, I think you will agree she will
make
a very valuable addition to the Board and brings an important perspective and skillset to the Board's efforts.
Below (and on the Wikimedia Blog) you will find the official announcement about Esra’a Al Shafei. Please join me in warmly welcoming her to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees and to the Wikimedia movement!
Christophe Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of
Esra’a
may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the
privacy
and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any
photographs
or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.
Press release
Header: Esra'a Al Shafei joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
Subheader: Bahraini human rights activist and social entrepreneur brings
to
the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees more than a decade of
experience
in applying creative solutions to challenges faced by underserved and underrepresented communities.
Image: https://wikimania2017.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Esraa.png%5Ba] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt1 [b] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt2 [c] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt3 [d] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt4
San Francisco, California, 1 December 2017 — The Wikimedia Foundation
today
announced the appointment of Esra'a Al Shafei, a prominent human rights activist and a passionate defender of free expression, to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a’s work aims to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa.
She
founded and directs Majal, a network of online platforms that amplify under-reported and marginalized voices.
“Esra'a shares Wikimedia's foundational belief that shared knowledge can facilitate shared understanding,” said Wikimedia Foundation Executive Director, Katherine Maher. "Her achievements exemplify how intentional community building can be a powerful tool for positive change, while her passion for beautiful and engaging user experiences will only elevate our work.
We
are so fortunate to have her perspective in support of our global
Wikimedia
communities."
Esra'a founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth, at the time a series of blogs bringing a voice to marginalized and underrepresented young people across the Middle East. Today, the organization's team helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity and social justice. Their endeavors include CrowdVoice.org, which curates
crowdsourced
media to contextualize social movements throughout the world; Mideast Tunes, the largest web and mobile app showcasing underground musicians in the Middle East and North Africa who use music as a tool for social
change;
and Ahwaa.org, an open discussion platform for Arab LGBTQ individuals
that
uses game mechanics to protect and engage its community.
“When I first encountered Wikipedia shortly after obtaining an internet connection in the early 2000s, I felt that the true purpose of the
internet
was realized. With Wikipedia, I accessed research regarding persecuted communities in my home country and the wider region: ethnic and religious minorities whom we were discouraged from learning about, and whose histories and beliefs were dictated to us from a singular government perspective. Wikipedia’s open source and crowdsourcing practices would inspire the platforms I built to advocate for underrepresented
communities,
and the internet would shape my life’s work in advocating for freedom of expression and identity around the world,” said Esra'a.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from the
Berkman
Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society."
The
World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015." She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media for the betterment of humanity.
She has been featured in Fast Company as one of the "100 Most Creative People in Business;" in The Daily Beast as one of the 17 bravest bloggers worldwide; and in Forbes' "30 Under 30" list of social entrepreneurs
making
an impact in the world.
Esra'a was a keynote speaker at Wikimania 2017 in Montreal, the annual conference centered on the Wikimedia projects.
“Esra'a brings tech expertise and a valuable perspective to the Board - coming from a region where access to information is not taken for
granted.
I was impressed by her talk during Wikimania 2017 on 'Experiences from
the
Middle East: Overcoming Challenges and Serving Communities'. I think her experience in that region will be important to our efforts around the globe,” said Nataliia Tymkiv, Governance Chair for the Board.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org.
Esra'a joins nine other Foundation Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A who collectively bring expertise in the Wikimedia community, financial oversight, governance, and organizational development; and a commitment
to
advancing Wikimedia’s mission of free knowledge for all.
She was approved unanimously by the Wikimedia Foundation Board of
Trustees.
Her term is effective December 2017 and will continue for three years. Please see the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A for complete biographies.
About the Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that supports and operates Wikipedia and its sister free knowledge projects. Wikipedia is
the
world’s free knowledge resource, spanning more than 45 million articles across nearly 300 languages. Every month, more than 200,000 people edit Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, collectively creating and improving knowledge that is accessed by more than 1 billion unique devices every month. This all makes Wikipedia one of the most popular web properties in the world. Based in San Francisco, California, the Wikimedia Foundation
is
a 501(c)(3) charity that is funded primarily through donations and
grants.
Esra’a Al Shafei profile
Esra'a Al Shafei is a human rights activist and the founder and director
of
Majal, a nonprofit which helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity, and social justice.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a works avidly to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa.
She
founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth. The organization has built online platforms that creatively facilitate the struggle for social change in
the
Middle East and North Africa.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society."
The
World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015."
She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media
for
the betterment of humanity.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org. She lives in the
Middle
East and North Africa region. _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Thank you, Christophe, for sharing this excellent news.
Those of you who were at Wikimania or watching on the livestream had the chance to get acquainted with Esra'a through her keynote. I'm certain that, if you were part of that audience, you'll join me in agreeing that she is an exceptional and accomplished individual who brings a whole host of talents to our movement. I'm personally delighted that she will be lending her perspective and wisdom to our movement and to the governance of the Wikimedia Foundation. There is so much we can learn from her, and I hope she finds her tenure on the Board to be rewarding.
Esra'a, thank you so very much for joining our Board and engaging even more with our movement! It is an honor to have this opportunity to work with you.
Yours, Katherine
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 1:31 PM, Liam Wyatt liamwyatt@gmail.com wrote:
Fantastic Wikimania keynote, fascinating addition to the board, fabulous addition to our community.
Welcome.
On Fri, 1 Dec 2017 at 22:28, Anna Stillwell astillwell@wikimedia.org wrote:
Welcome, Esra'a. Thank you for taking the time to serve. I look forward
to
your contribution. /a
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 12:59 PM, Christophe Henner <
chenner@wikimedia.org>
wrote:
Hi everyone,
With the appointment of Raju to the Board of Trustees a couple of
months
ago, we were left with a remaining open vacancy to fill. I am thrilled
to
share that after several months of searching and discussions, we have
made
another important appointment. At our November Board Retreat, the Board appointed and welcomed Esra’a Al Shafei to fill our vacant expert seat.
Esra'a is a prominent international human rights activist and social entrepreneur. She founded and directs Majal, a nonprofit which utilizes digital media to amplify under-reported and marginalized voices
throughout
the Middle East and North Africa. For those of you that heard her
keynote
presentation at this year's Wikimania, I think you will agree she will
make
a very valuable addition to the Board and brings an important
perspective
and skillset to the Board's efforts.
Below (and on the Wikimedia Blog) you will find the official
announcement
about Esra’a Al Shafei. Please join me in warmly welcoming her to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees and to the Wikimedia movement!
Christophe Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of
Esra’a
may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the
privacy
and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any
photographs
or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.
Press release
Header: Esra'a Al Shafei joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
Subheader: Bahraini human rights activist and social entrepreneur
brings
to
the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees more than a decade of
experience
in applying creative solutions to challenges faced by underserved and underrepresented communities.
Image: https://wikimania2017.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Esraa.png%5Ba] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt1 [b] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt2 [c] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt3 [d] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt4
San Francisco, California, 1 December 2017 — The Wikimedia Foundation
today
announced the appointment of Esra'a Al Shafei, a prominent human rights activist and a passionate defender of free expression, to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a’s work aims to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa.
She
founded and directs Majal, a network of online platforms that amplify under-reported and marginalized voices.
“Esra'a shares Wikimedia's foundational belief that shared knowledge
can
facilitate shared understanding,” said Wikimedia Foundation Executive Director, Katherine Maher. "Her achievements exemplify how intentional community building can be a powerful tool for positive change, while her passion for beautiful and engaging user experiences will only elevate our work.
We
are so fortunate to have her perspective in support of our global
Wikimedia
communities."
Esra'a founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth, at the time a series of blogs bringing a voice to marginalized and underrepresented young people across the Middle East. Today, the organization's team helps
build
communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity and social justice. Their endeavors include CrowdVoice.org, which curates
crowdsourced
media to contextualize social movements throughout the world; Mideast Tunes, the largest web and mobile app showcasing underground musicians
in
the Middle East and North Africa who use music as a tool for social
change;
and Ahwaa.org, an open discussion platform for Arab LGBTQ individuals
that
uses game mechanics to protect and engage its community.
“When I first encountered Wikipedia shortly after obtaining an internet connection in the early 2000s, I felt that the true purpose of the
internet
was realized. With Wikipedia, I accessed research regarding persecuted communities in my home country and the wider region: ethnic and
religious
minorities whom we were discouraged from learning about, and whose histories and beliefs were dictated to us from a singular government perspective. Wikipedia’s open source and crowdsourcing practices would inspire the platforms I built to advocate for underrepresented
communities,
and the internet would shape my life’s work in advocating for freedom
of
expression and identity around the world,” said Esra'a.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from the
Berkman
Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society."
The
World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World
in
2015." She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative
uses
of media for the betterment of humanity.
She has been featured in Fast Company as one of the "100 Most Creative People in Business;" in The Daily Beast as one of the 17 bravest
bloggers
worldwide; and in Forbes' "30 Under 30" list of social entrepreneurs
making
an impact in the world.
Esra'a was a keynote speaker at Wikimania 2017 in Montreal, the annual conference centered on the Wikimedia projects.
“Esra'a brings tech expertise and a valuable perspective to the Board - coming from a region where access to information is not taken for
granted.
I was impressed by her talk during Wikimania 2017 on 'Experiences from
the
Middle East: Overcoming Challenges and Serving Communities'. I think
her
experience in that region will be important to our efforts around the globe,” said Nataliia Tymkiv, Governance Chair for the Board.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a
Director’s
Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org.
Esra'a joins nine other Foundation Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A who collectively bring expertise in the Wikimedia community, financial oversight, governance, and organizational development; and a commitment
to
advancing Wikimedia’s mission of free knowledge for all.
She was approved unanimously by the Wikimedia Foundation Board of
Trustees.
Her term is effective December 2017 and will continue for three years. Please see the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A for complete biographies.
About the Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that supports
and
operates Wikipedia and its sister free knowledge projects. Wikipedia is
the
world’s free knowledge resource, spanning more than 45 million articles across nearly 300 languages. Every month, more than 200,000 people edit Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, collectively creating and
improving
knowledge that is accessed by more than 1 billion unique devices every month. This all makes Wikipedia one of the most popular web properties
in
the world. Based in San Francisco, California, the Wikimedia Foundation
is
a 501(c)(3) charity that is funded primarily through donations and
grants.
Esra’a Al Shafei profile
Esra'a Al Shafei is a human rights activist and the founder and
director
of
Majal, a nonprofit which helps build communities that celebrate,
protect,
and promote diversity, and social justice.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a works avidly to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa.
She
founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth. The organization has built
online
platforms that creatively facilitate the struggle for social change in
the
Middle East and North Africa.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society."
The
World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World
in
2015."
She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press
Unlimited,
and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media
for
the betterment of humanity.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a
Director’s
Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org. She lives in the
Middle
East and North Africa region. _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
-- wittylama.com Peace, love & metadata _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Thank you, Esra’a, for volunteering!
However, I’m very concerned by this:
"P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of Esra’a may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the privacy and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any photographs or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.”
This is security by obscurity (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q133735) - which is at best a temporary measure that won’t last, particularly in a high-profile position like this. Aside from the potential media coverage, Wikimedia events are very well photographed by Wikimedians who want to illustrate a rather well-read encyclopaedia… This leads to an awkward situation where someone’s safety and Wikimedia’s openness are conflicting, which is not OK.
Thanks, Mike
On 1 Dec 2017, at 19:59, Katherine Maher kmaher@wikimedia.org wrote:
Thank you, Christophe, for sharing this excellent news.
Those of you who were at Wikimania or watching on the livestream had the chance to get acquainted with Esra'a through her keynote. I'm certain that, if you were part of that audience, you'll join me in agreeing that she is an exceptional and accomplished individual who brings a whole host of talents to our movement. I'm personally delighted that she will be lending her perspective and wisdom to our movement and to the governance of the Wikimedia Foundation. There is so much we can learn from her, and I hope she finds her tenure on the Board to be rewarding.
Esra'a, thank you so very much for joining our Board and engaging even more with our movement! It is an honor to have this opportunity to work with you.
Yours, Katherine
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 1:31 PM, Liam Wyatt liamwyatt@gmail.com wrote:
Fantastic Wikimania keynote, fascinating addition to the board, fabulous addition to our community.
Welcome.
On Fri, 1 Dec 2017 at 22:28, Anna Stillwell astillwell@wikimedia.org wrote:
Welcome, Esra'a. Thank you for taking the time to serve. I look forward
to
your contribution. /a
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 12:59 PM, Christophe Henner <
chenner@wikimedia.org>
wrote:
Hi everyone,
With the appointment of Raju to the Board of Trustees a couple of
months
ago, we were left with a remaining open vacancy to fill. I am thrilled
to
share that after several months of searching and discussions, we have
made
another important appointment. At our November Board Retreat, the Board appointed and welcomed Esra’a Al Shafei to fill our vacant expert seat.
Esra'a is a prominent international human rights activist and social entrepreneur. She founded and directs Majal, a nonprofit which utilizes digital media to amplify under-reported and marginalized voices
throughout
the Middle East and North Africa. For those of you that heard her
keynote
presentation at this year's Wikimania, I think you will agree she will
make
a very valuable addition to the Board and brings an important
perspective
and skillset to the Board's efforts.
Below (and on the Wikimedia Blog) you will find the official
announcement
about Esra’a Al Shafei. Please join me in warmly welcoming her to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees and to the Wikimedia movement!
Christophe Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of
Esra’a
may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the
privacy
and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any
photographs
or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.
Press release
Header: Esra'a Al Shafei joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
Subheader: Bahraini human rights activist and social entrepreneur
brings
to
the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees more than a decade of
experience
in applying creative solutions to challenges faced by underserved and underrepresented communities.
Image: https://wikimania2017.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Esraa.png%5Ba] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt1 [b] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt2 [c] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt3 [d] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt4
San Francisco, California, 1 December 2017 — The Wikimedia Foundation
today
announced the appointment of Esra'a Al Shafei, a prominent human rights activist and a passionate defender of free expression, to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a’s work aims to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa.
She
founded and directs Majal, a network of online platforms that amplify under-reported and marginalized voices.
“Esra'a shares Wikimedia's foundational belief that shared knowledge
can
facilitate shared understanding,” said Wikimedia Foundation Executive Director, Katherine Maher. "Her achievements exemplify how intentional community building can be a powerful tool for positive change, while her passion for beautiful and engaging user experiences will only elevate our work.
We
are so fortunate to have her perspective in support of our global
Wikimedia
communities."
Esra'a founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth, at the time a series of blogs bringing a voice to marginalized and underrepresented young people across the Middle East. Today, the organization's team helps
build
communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity and social justice. Their endeavors include CrowdVoice.org, which curates
crowdsourced
media to contextualize social movements throughout the world; Mideast Tunes, the largest web and mobile app showcasing underground musicians
in
the Middle East and North Africa who use music as a tool for social
change;
and Ahwaa.org, an open discussion platform for Arab LGBTQ individuals
that
uses game mechanics to protect and engage its community.
“When I first encountered Wikipedia shortly after obtaining an internet connection in the early 2000s, I felt that the true purpose of the
internet
was realized. With Wikipedia, I accessed research regarding persecuted communities in my home country and the wider region: ethnic and
religious
minorities whom we were discouraged from learning about, and whose histories and beliefs were dictated to us from a singular government perspective. Wikipedia’s open source and crowdsourcing practices would inspire the platforms I built to advocate for underrepresented
communities,
and the internet would shape my life’s work in advocating for freedom
of
expression and identity around the world,” said Esra'a.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from the
Berkman
Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society."
The
World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World
in
2015." She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative
uses
of media for the betterment of humanity.
She has been featured in Fast Company as one of the "100 Most Creative People in Business;" in The Daily Beast as one of the 17 bravest
bloggers
worldwide; and in Forbes' "30 Under 30" list of social entrepreneurs
making
an impact in the world.
Esra'a was a keynote speaker at Wikimania 2017 in Montreal, the annual conference centered on the Wikimedia projects.
“Esra'a brings tech expertise and a valuable perspective to the Board - coming from a region where access to information is not taken for
granted.
I was impressed by her talk during Wikimania 2017 on 'Experiences from
the
Middle East: Overcoming Challenges and Serving Communities'. I think
her
experience in that region will be important to our efforts around the globe,” said Nataliia Tymkiv, Governance Chair for the Board.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a
Director’s
Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org.
Esra'a joins nine other Foundation Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A who collectively bring expertise in the Wikimedia community, financial oversight, governance, and organizational development; and a commitment
to
advancing Wikimedia’s mission of free knowledge for all.
She was approved unanimously by the Wikimedia Foundation Board of
Trustees.
Her term is effective December 2017 and will continue for three years. Please see the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A for complete biographies.
About the Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that supports
and
operates Wikipedia and its sister free knowledge projects. Wikipedia is
the
world’s free knowledge resource, spanning more than 45 million articles across nearly 300 languages. Every month, more than 200,000 people edit Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, collectively creating and
improving
knowledge that is accessed by more than 1 billion unique devices every month. This all makes Wikipedia one of the most popular web properties
in
the world. Based in San Francisco, California, the Wikimedia Foundation
is
a 501(c)(3) charity that is funded primarily through donations and
grants.
Esra’a Al Shafei profile
Esra'a Al Shafei is a human rights activist and the founder and
director
of
Majal, a nonprofit which helps build communities that celebrate,
protect,
and promote diversity, and social justice.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a works avidly to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa.
She
founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth. The organization has built
online
platforms that creatively facilitate the struggle for social change in
the
Middle East and North Africa.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society."
The
World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World
in
2015."
She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press
Unlimited,
and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media
for
the betterment of humanity.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a
Director’s
Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org. She lives in the
Middle
East and North Africa region. _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
-- wittylama.com Peace, love & metadata _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
-- Katherine Maher Executive Director
*We moved! **Our new address:*
Wikimedia Foundation 1 Montgomery Street, Suite 1600 San Francisco, CA 94104
+1 (415) 839-6885 ext. 6635 +1 (415) 712 4873 kmaher@wikimedia.org https://annual.wikimedia.org _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Welcome Esra'a !
Le 1 déc. 2017 23:23, "Michael Peel" email@mikepeel.net a écrit :
Thank you, Esra’a, for volunteering!
However, I’m very concerned by this:
"P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of Esra’a may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the privacy and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any photographs or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.”
This is security by obscurity (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q133735) - which is at best a temporary measure that won’t last, particularly in a high-profile position like this. Aside from the potential media coverage, Wikimedia events are very well photographed by Wikimedians who want to illustrate a rather well-read encyclopaedia… This leads to an awkward situation where someone’s safety and Wikimedia’s openness are conflicting, which is not OK.
Thanks, Mike
On 1 Dec 2017, at 19:59, Katherine Maher kmaher@wikimedia.org wrote:
Thank you, Christophe, for sharing this excellent news.
Those of you who were at Wikimania or watching on the livestream had the chance to get acquainted with Esra'a through her keynote. I'm certain
that,
if you were part of that audience, you'll join me in agreeing that she is an exceptional and accomplished individual who brings a whole host of talents to our movement. I'm personally delighted that she will be
lending
her perspective and wisdom to our movement and to the governance of the Wikimedia Foundation. There is so much we can learn from her, and I hope she finds her tenure on the Board to be rewarding.
Esra'a, thank you so very much for joining our Board and engaging even
more
with our movement! It is an honor to have this opportunity to work with
you.
Yours, Katherine
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 1:31 PM, Liam Wyatt liamwyatt@gmail.com wrote:
Fantastic Wikimania keynote, fascinating addition to the board, fabulous addition to our community.
Welcome.
On Fri, 1 Dec 2017 at 22:28, Anna Stillwell astillwell@wikimedia.org wrote:
Welcome, Esra'a. Thank you for taking the time to serve. I look forward
to
your contribution. /a
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 12:59 PM, Christophe Henner <
chenner@wikimedia.org>
wrote:
Hi everyone,
With the appointment of Raju to the Board of Trustees a couple of
months
ago, we were left with a remaining open vacancy to fill. I am thrilled
to
share that after several months of searching and discussions, we have
made
another important appointment. At our November Board Retreat, the
Board
appointed and welcomed Esra’a Al Shafei to fill our vacant expert
seat.
Esra'a is a prominent international human rights activist and social entrepreneur. She founded and directs Majal, a nonprofit which
utilizes
digital media to amplify under-reported and marginalized voices
throughout
the Middle East and North Africa. For those of you that heard her
keynote
presentation at this year's Wikimania, I think you will agree she will
make
a very valuable addition to the Board and brings an important
perspective
and skillset to the Board's efforts.
Below (and on the Wikimedia Blog) you will find the official
announcement
about Esra’a Al Shafei. Please join me in warmly welcoming her to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees and to the Wikimedia movement!
Christophe Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of
Esra’a
may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the
privacy
and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any
photographs
or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.
Press release
Header: Esra'a Al Shafei joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
Subheader: Bahraini human rights activist and social entrepreneur
brings
to
the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees more than a decade of
experience
in applying creative solutions to challenges faced by underserved and underrepresented communities.
Image: https://wikimania2017.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Esraa.png%5Ba] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt1 [b] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt2 [c] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt3 [d] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt4
San Francisco, California, 1 December 2017 — The Wikimedia Foundation
today
announced the appointment of Esra'a Al Shafei, a prominent human
rights
activist and a passionate defender of free expression, to the
Wikimedia
Foundation Board of Trustees.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a’s work aims to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa.
She
founded and directs Majal, a network of online platforms that amplify under-reported and marginalized voices.
“Esra'a shares Wikimedia's foundational belief that shared knowledge
can
facilitate shared understanding,” said Wikimedia Foundation Executive Director, Katherine Maher. "Her achievements exemplify how intentional community building can be a powerful tool for positive change, while her passion for beautiful and engaging user experiences will only elevate our
work.
We
are so fortunate to have her perspective in support of our global
Wikimedia
communities."
Esra'a founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth, at the time a series of blogs bringing a voice to marginalized and underrepresented young people across the Middle East. Today, the organization's team helps
build
communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity and social justice. Their endeavors include CrowdVoice.org, which curates
crowdsourced
media to contextualize social movements throughout the world; Mideast Tunes, the largest web and mobile app showcasing underground musicians
in
the Middle East and North Africa who use music as a tool for social
change;
and Ahwaa.org, an open discussion platform for Arab LGBTQ individuals
that
uses game mechanics to protect and engage its community.
“When I first encountered Wikipedia shortly after obtaining an
internet
connection in the early 2000s, I felt that the true purpose of the
internet
was realized. With Wikipedia, I accessed research regarding persecuted communities in my home country and the wider region: ethnic and
religious
minorities whom we were discouraged from learning about, and whose histories and beliefs were dictated to us from a singular government perspective. Wikipedia’s open source and crowdsourcing practices would inspire the platforms I built to advocate for underrepresented
communities,
and the internet would shape my life’s work in advocating for freedom
of
expression and identity around the world,” said Esra'a.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from the
Berkman
Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society."
The
World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World
in
2015." She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative
uses
of media for the betterment of humanity.
She has been featured in Fast Company as one of the "100 Most Creative People in Business;" in The Daily Beast as one of the 17 bravest
bloggers
worldwide; and in Forbes' "30 Under 30" list of social entrepreneurs
making
an impact in the world.
Esra'a was a keynote speaker at Wikimania 2017 in Montreal, the annual conference centered on the Wikimedia projects.
“Esra'a brings tech expertise and a valuable perspective to the Board
coming from a region where access to information is not taken for
granted.
I was impressed by her talk during Wikimania 2017 on 'Experiences from
the
Middle East: Overcoming Challenges and Serving Communities'. I think
her
experience in that region will be important to our efforts around the globe,” said Nataliia Tymkiv, Governance Chair for the Board.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a
Director’s
Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org.
Esra'a joins nine other Foundation Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A who collectively bring expertise in the Wikimedia community, financial oversight, governance, and organizational development; and a
commitment
to
advancing Wikimedia’s mission of free knowledge for all.
She was approved unanimously by the Wikimedia Foundation Board of
Trustees.
Her term is effective December 2017 and will continue for three years. Please see the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A for complete biographies.
About the Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that supports
and
operates Wikipedia and its sister free knowledge projects. Wikipedia
is
the
world’s free knowledge resource, spanning more than 45 million
articles
across nearly 300 languages. Every month, more than 200,000 people
edit
Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, collectively creating and
improving
knowledge that is accessed by more than 1 billion unique devices every month. This all makes Wikipedia one of the most popular web properties
in
the world. Based in San Francisco, California, the Wikimedia
Foundation
is
a 501(c)(3) charity that is funded primarily through donations and
grants.
Esra’a Al Shafei profile
Esra'a Al Shafei is a human rights activist and the founder and
director
of
Majal, a nonprofit which helps build communities that celebrate,
protect,
and promote diversity, and social justice.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a works avidly to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa.
She
founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth. The organization has built
online
platforms that creatively facilitate the struggle for social change in
the
Middle East and North Africa.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society."
The
World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World
in
2015."
She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press
Unlimited,
and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of
media
for
the betterment of humanity.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a
Director’s
Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org. She lives in the
Middle
East and North Africa region. _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l
,
mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
-- wittylama.com Peace, love & metadata _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
-- Katherine Maher Executive Director
*We moved! **Our new address:*
Wikimedia Foundation 1 Montgomery Street, Suite 1600 San Francisco, CA 94104
+1 (415) 839-6885 ext. 6635 +1 (415) 712 4873 kmaher@wikimedia.org https://annual.wikimedia.org _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/
wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l
New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l,
mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Welcome, Esra'a !
Fantastic, and congratulations!
Regards, Scott
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 2:29 PM, Pierre-Selim pierre-selim@huard.info wrote:
Welcome Esra'a !
Le 1 déc. 2017 23:23, "Michael Peel" email@mikepeel.net a écrit :
Thank you, Esra’a, for volunteering!
However, I’m very concerned by this:
"P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of Esra’a may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure
the
privacy and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any photographs or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.”
This is security by obscurity (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q133735) - which is at best a temporary measure that won’t last, particularly in a high-profile position like this. Aside from the potential media coverage, Wikimedia events are very well photographed by Wikimedians who want to illustrate a rather well-read encyclopaedia… This leads to an awkward situation where someone’s safety and Wikimedia’s openness are
conflicting,
which is not OK.
Thanks, Mike
On 1 Dec 2017, at 19:59, Katherine Maher kmaher@wikimedia.org wrote:
Thank you, Christophe, for sharing this excellent news.
Those of you who were at Wikimania or watching on the livestream had
the
chance to get acquainted with Esra'a through her keynote. I'm certain
that,
if you were part of that audience, you'll join me in agreeing that she
is
an exceptional and accomplished individual who brings a whole host of talents to our movement. I'm personally delighted that she will be
lending
her perspective and wisdom to our movement and to the governance of the Wikimedia Foundation. There is so much we can learn from her, and I
hope
she finds her tenure on the Board to be rewarding.
Esra'a, thank you so very much for joining our Board and engaging even
more
with our movement! It is an honor to have this opportunity to work with
you.
Yours, Katherine
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 1:31 PM, Liam Wyatt liamwyatt@gmail.com
wrote:
Fantastic Wikimania keynote, fascinating addition to the board,
fabulous
addition to our community.
Welcome.
On Fri, 1 Dec 2017 at 22:28, Anna Stillwell <astillwell@wikimedia.org
wrote:
Welcome, Esra'a. Thank you for taking the time to serve. I look
forward
to
your contribution. /a
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 12:59 PM, Christophe Henner <
chenner@wikimedia.org>
wrote:
Hi everyone,
With the appointment of Raju to the Board of Trustees a couple of
months
ago, we were left with a remaining open vacancy to fill. I am
thrilled
to
share that after several months of searching and discussions, we
have
made
another important appointment. At our November Board Retreat, the
Board
appointed and welcomed Esra’a Al Shafei to fill our vacant expert
seat.
Esra'a is a prominent international human rights activist and social entrepreneur. She founded and directs Majal, a nonprofit which
utilizes
digital media to amplify under-reported and marginalized voices
throughout
the Middle East and North Africa. For those of you that heard her
keynote
presentation at this year's Wikimania, I think you will agree she
will
make
a very valuable addition to the Board and brings an important
perspective
and skillset to the Board's efforts.
Below (and on the Wikimedia Blog) you will find the official
announcement
about Esra’a Al Shafei. Please join me in warmly welcoming her to
the
Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees and to the Wikimedia
movement!
Christophe Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of
Esra’a
may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the
privacy
and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any
photographs
or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting
this
important safety consideration.
Press release
Header: Esra'a Al Shafei joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of
Trustees
Subheader: Bahraini human rights activist and social entrepreneur
brings
to
the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees more than a decade of
experience
in applying creative solutions to challenges faced by underserved
and
underrepresented communities.
Image: https://wikimania2017.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Esraa.png%5Ba] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt1 [b] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt2 [c] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt3 [d] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt4
San Francisco, California, 1 December 2017 — The Wikimedia
Foundation
today
announced the appointment of Esra'a Al Shafei, a prominent human
rights
activist and a passionate defender of free expression, to the
Wikimedia
Foundation Board of Trustees.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a’s work aims to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices,
and
improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North
Africa.
She
founded and directs Majal, a network of online platforms that amplify under-reported and marginalized voices.
“Esra'a shares Wikimedia's foundational belief that shared knowledge
can
facilitate shared understanding,” said Wikimedia Foundation
Executive
Director, Katherine Maher. "Her achievements exemplify how
intentional
community building can be a powerful tool for positive change, while her passion for beautiful and engaging user experiences will only elevate our
work.
We
are so fortunate to have her perspective in support of our global
Wikimedia
communities."
Esra'a founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth, at the time a series
of
blogs bringing a voice to marginalized and underrepresented young people across the Middle East. Today, the organization's team helps
build
communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity and
social
justice. Their endeavors include CrowdVoice.org, which curates
crowdsourced
media to contextualize social movements throughout the world;
Mideast
Tunes, the largest web and mobile app showcasing underground
musicians
in
the Middle East and North Africa who use music as a tool for social
change;
and Ahwaa.org, an open discussion platform for Arab LGBTQ
individuals
that
uses game mechanics to protect and engage its community.
“When I first encountered Wikipedia shortly after obtaining an
internet
connection in the early 2000s, I felt that the true purpose of the
internet
was realized. With Wikipedia, I accessed research regarding
persecuted
communities in my home country and the wider region: ethnic and
religious
minorities whom we were discouraged from learning about, and whose histories and beliefs were dictated to us from a singular government perspective. Wikipedia’s open source and crowdsourcing practices
would
inspire the platforms I built to advocate for underrepresented
communities,
and the internet would shape my life’s work in advocating for
freedom
of
expression and identity around the world,” said Esra'a.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from the
Berkman
Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008
for
"outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on
society."
The
World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the
World
in
2015." She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative
uses
of media for the betterment of humanity.
She has been featured in Fast Company as one of the "100 Most
Creative
People in Business;" in The Daily Beast as one of the 17 bravest
bloggers
worldwide; and in Forbes' "30 Under 30" list of social entrepreneurs
making
an impact in the world.
Esra'a was a keynote speaker at Wikimania 2017 in Montreal, the
annual
conference centered on the Wikimedia projects.
“Esra'a brings tech expertise and a valuable perspective to the
Board
coming from a region where access to information is not taken for
granted.
I was impressed by her talk during Wikimania 2017 on 'Experiences
from
the
Middle East: Overcoming Challenges and Serving Communities'. I think
her
experience in that region will be important to our efforts around
the
globe,” said Nataliia Tymkiv, Governance Chair for the Board.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a
Director’s
Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org.
Esra'a joins nine other Foundation Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A who collectively bring expertise in the Wikimedia community, financial oversight, governance, and organizational development; and a
commitment
to
advancing Wikimedia’s mission of free knowledge for all.
She was approved unanimously by the Wikimedia Foundation Board of
Trustees.
Her term is effective December 2017 and will continue for three
years.
Please see the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A for complete biographies.
About the Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that
supports
and
operates Wikipedia and its sister free knowledge projects. Wikipedia
is
the
world’s free knowledge resource, spanning more than 45 million
articles
across nearly 300 languages. Every month, more than 200,000 people
edit
Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, collectively creating and
improving
knowledge that is accessed by more than 1 billion unique devices
every
month. This all makes Wikipedia one of the most popular web
properties
in
the world. Based in San Francisco, California, the Wikimedia
Foundation
is
a 501(c)(3) charity that is funded primarily through donations and
grants.
Esra’a Al Shafei profile
Esra'a Al Shafei is a human rights activist and the founder and
director
of
Majal, a nonprofit which helps build communities that celebrate,
protect,
and promote diversity, and social justice.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a works avidly to increase and protect
free
speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices,
and
improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North
Africa.
She
founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth. The organization has built
online
platforms that creatively facilitate the struggle for social change
in
the
Middle East and North Africa.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from
Berkman
Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008
for
"outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on
society."
The
World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the
World
in
2015."
She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press
Unlimited,
and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of
media
for
the betterment of humanity.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a
Director’s
Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org. She lives in the
Middle
East and North Africa region. _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at:
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*We moved! **Our new address:*
Wikimedia Foundation 1 Montgomery Street, Suite 1600 San Francisco, CA 94104
+1 (415) 839-6885 ext. 6635 +1 (415) 712 4873 kmaher@wikimedia.org https://annual.wikimedia.org _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/
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Congratulations.
Katherine, you just said there was a livestream. There was no livestream and no recording at Wikimania 2017 for this speaker, right? Was there a transcript of that talk or anything else recorded?
The notice here says that we still are not doing photos of Esra'a, which is doable, but I am confused about the mention of livestream.
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 5:29 PM, Pierre-Selim pierre-selim@huard.info wrote:
Welcome Esra'a !
Le 1 déc. 2017 23:23, "Michael Peel" email@mikepeel.net a écrit :
Thank you, Esra’a, for volunteering!
However, I’m very concerned by this:
"P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of Esra’a may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure
the
privacy and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any photographs or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.”
This is security by obscurity (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q133735) - which is at best a temporary measure that won’t last, particularly in a high-profile position like this. Aside from the potential media coverage, Wikimedia events are very well photographed by Wikimedians who want to illustrate a rather well-read encyclopaedia… This leads to an awkward situation where someone’s safety and Wikimedia’s openness are
conflicting,
which is not OK.
Thanks, Mike
On 1 Dec 2017, at 19:59, Katherine Maher kmaher@wikimedia.org wrote:
Thank you, Christophe, for sharing this excellent news.
Those of you who were at Wikimania or watching on the livestream had
the
chance to get acquainted with Esra'a through her keynote. I'm certain
that,
if you were part of that audience, you'll join me in agreeing that she
is
an exceptional and accomplished individual who brings a whole host of talents to our movement. I'm personally delighted that she will be
lending
her perspective and wisdom to our movement and to the governance of the Wikimedia Foundation. There is so much we can learn from her, and I
hope
she finds her tenure on the Board to be rewarding.
Esra'a, thank you so very much for joining our Board and engaging even
more
with our movement! It is an honor to have this opportunity to work with
you.
Yours, Katherine
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 1:31 PM, Liam Wyatt liamwyatt@gmail.com
wrote:
Fantastic Wikimania keynote, fascinating addition to the board,
fabulous
addition to our community.
Welcome.
On Fri, 1 Dec 2017 at 22:28, Anna Stillwell <astillwell@wikimedia.org
wrote:
Welcome, Esra'a. Thank you for taking the time to serve. I look
forward
to
your contribution. /a
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 12:59 PM, Christophe Henner <
chenner@wikimedia.org>
wrote:
Hi everyone,
With the appointment of Raju to the Board of Trustees a couple of
months
ago, we were left with a remaining open vacancy to fill. I am
thrilled
to
share that after several months of searching and discussions, we
have
made
another important appointment. At our November Board Retreat, the
Board
appointed and welcomed Esra’a Al Shafei to fill our vacant expert
seat.
Esra'a is a prominent international human rights activist and social entrepreneur. She founded and directs Majal, a nonprofit which
utilizes
digital media to amplify under-reported and marginalized voices
throughout
the Middle East and North Africa. For those of you that heard her
keynote
presentation at this year's Wikimania, I think you will agree she
will
make
a very valuable addition to the Board and brings an important
perspective
and skillset to the Board's efforts.
Below (and on the Wikimedia Blog) you will find the official
announcement
about Esra’a Al Shafei. Please join me in warmly welcoming her to
the
Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees and to the Wikimedia
movement!
Christophe Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of
Esra’a
may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the
privacy
and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any
photographs
or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting
this
important safety consideration.
Press release
Header: Esra'a Al Shafei joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of
Trustees
Subheader: Bahraini human rights activist and social entrepreneur
brings
to
the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees more than a decade of
experience
in applying creative solutions to challenges faced by underserved
and
underrepresented communities.
Image: https://wikimania2017.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Esraa.png%5Ba] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt1 [b] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt2 [c] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt3 [d] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt4
San Francisco, California, 1 December 2017 — The Wikimedia
Foundation
today
announced the appointment of Esra'a Al Shafei, a prominent human
rights
activist and a passionate defender of free expression, to the
Wikimedia
Foundation Board of Trustees.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a’s work aims to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices,
and
improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North
Africa.
She
founded and directs Majal, a network of online platforms that amplify under-reported and marginalized voices.
“Esra'a shares Wikimedia's foundational belief that shared knowledge
can
facilitate shared understanding,” said Wikimedia Foundation
Executive
Director, Katherine Maher. "Her achievements exemplify how
intentional
community building can be a powerful tool for positive change, while her passion for beautiful and engaging user experiences will only elevate our
work.
We
are so fortunate to have her perspective in support of our global
Wikimedia
communities."
Esra'a founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth, at the time a series
of
blogs bringing a voice to marginalized and underrepresented young people across the Middle East. Today, the organization's team helps
build
communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity and
social
justice. Their endeavors include CrowdVoice.org, which curates
crowdsourced
media to contextualize social movements throughout the world;
Mideast
Tunes, the largest web and mobile app showcasing underground
musicians
in
the Middle East and North Africa who use music as a tool for social
change;
and Ahwaa.org, an open discussion platform for Arab LGBTQ
individuals
that
uses game mechanics to protect and engage its community.
“When I first encountered Wikipedia shortly after obtaining an
internet
connection in the early 2000s, I felt that the true purpose of the
internet
was realized. With Wikipedia, I accessed research regarding
persecuted
communities in my home country and the wider region: ethnic and
religious
minorities whom we were discouraged from learning about, and whose histories and beliefs were dictated to us from a singular government perspective. Wikipedia’s open source and crowdsourcing practices
would
inspire the platforms I built to advocate for underrepresented
communities,
and the internet would shape my life’s work in advocating for
freedom
of
expression and identity around the world,” said Esra'a.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from the
Berkman
Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008
for
"outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on
society."
The
World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the
World
in
2015." She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative
uses
of media for the betterment of humanity.
She has been featured in Fast Company as one of the "100 Most
Creative
People in Business;" in The Daily Beast as one of the 17 bravest
bloggers
worldwide; and in Forbes' "30 Under 30" list of social entrepreneurs
making
an impact in the world.
Esra'a was a keynote speaker at Wikimania 2017 in Montreal, the
annual
conference centered on the Wikimedia projects.
“Esra'a brings tech expertise and a valuable perspective to the
Board
coming from a region where access to information is not taken for
granted.
I was impressed by her talk during Wikimania 2017 on 'Experiences
from
the
Middle East: Overcoming Challenges and Serving Communities'. I think
her
experience in that region will be important to our efforts around
the
globe,” said Nataliia Tymkiv, Governance Chair for the Board.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a
Director’s
Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org.
Esra'a joins nine other Foundation Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A who collectively bring expertise in the Wikimedia community, financial oversight, governance, and organizational development; and a
commitment
to
advancing Wikimedia’s mission of free knowledge for all.
She was approved unanimously by the Wikimedia Foundation Board of
Trustees.
Her term is effective December 2017 and will continue for three
years.
Please see the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A for complete biographies.
About the Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that
supports
and
operates Wikipedia and its sister free knowledge projects. Wikipedia
is
the
world’s free knowledge resource, spanning more than 45 million
articles
across nearly 300 languages. Every month, more than 200,000 people
edit
Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, collectively creating and
improving
knowledge that is accessed by more than 1 billion unique devices
every
month. This all makes Wikipedia one of the most popular web
properties
in
the world. Based in San Francisco, California, the Wikimedia
Foundation
is
a 501(c)(3) charity that is funded primarily through donations and
grants.
Esra’a Al Shafei profile
Esra'a Al Shafei is a human rights activist and the founder and
director
of
Majal, a nonprofit which helps build communities that celebrate,
protect,
and promote diversity, and social justice.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a works avidly to increase and protect
free
speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices,
and
improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North
Africa.
She
founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth. The organization has built
online
platforms that creatively facilitate the struggle for social change
in
the
Middle East and North Africa.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from
Berkman
Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008
for
"outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on
society."
The
World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the
World
in
2015."
She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press
Unlimited,
and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of
media
for
the betterment of humanity.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a
Director’s
Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org. She lives in the
Middle
East and North Africa region. _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at:
wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/
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,
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-- Katherine Maher Executive Director
*We moved! **Our new address:*
Wikimedia Foundation 1 Montgomery Street, Suite 1600 San Francisco, CA 94104
+1 (415) 839-6885 ext. 6635 +1 (415) 712 4873 kmaher@wikimedia.org https://annual.wikimedia.org _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/
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New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l,
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You're right, sorry Lane. I was responding with excitement and trying to be more inclusive in my message by acknowledging that people could participate in Wikimania even if they weren't in the room, but of course that was true for all *but* this session.
There was no livestream!
Katherine
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 4:39 PM, Lane Rasberry lane@bluerasberry.com wrote:
Congratulations.
Katherine, you just said there was a livestream. There was no livestream and no recording at Wikimania 2017 for this speaker, right? Was there a transcript of that talk or anything else recorded?
The notice here says that we still are not doing photos of Esra'a, which is doable, but I am confused about the mention of livestream.
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 5:29 PM, Pierre-Selim pierre-selim@huard.info wrote:
Welcome Esra'a !
Le 1 déc. 2017 23:23, "Michael Peel" email@mikepeel.net a écrit :
Thank you, Esra’a, for volunteering!
However, I’m very concerned by this:
"P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of Esra’a may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure
the
privacy and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any photographs or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.”
This is security by obscurity (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q133735)
which is at best a temporary measure that won’t last, particularly in a high-profile position like this. Aside from the potential media
coverage,
Wikimedia events are very well photographed by Wikimedians who want to illustrate a rather well-read encyclopaedia… This leads to an awkward situation where someone’s safety and Wikimedia’s openness are
conflicting,
which is not OK.
Thanks, Mike
On 1 Dec 2017, at 19:59, Katherine Maher kmaher@wikimedia.org
wrote:
Thank you, Christophe, for sharing this excellent news.
Those of you who were at Wikimania or watching on the livestream had
the
chance to get acquainted with Esra'a through her keynote. I'm certain
that,
if you were part of that audience, you'll join me in agreeing that
she
is
an exceptional and accomplished individual who brings a whole host of talents to our movement. I'm personally delighted that she will be
lending
her perspective and wisdom to our movement and to the governance of
the
Wikimedia Foundation. There is so much we can learn from her, and I
hope
she finds her tenure on the Board to be rewarding.
Esra'a, thank you so very much for joining our Board and engaging
even
more
with our movement! It is an honor to have this opportunity to work
with
you.
Yours, Katherine
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 1:31 PM, Liam Wyatt liamwyatt@gmail.com
wrote:
Fantastic Wikimania keynote, fascinating addition to the board,
fabulous
addition to our community.
Welcome.
On Fri, 1 Dec 2017 at 22:28, Anna Stillwell <
astillwell@wikimedia.org
wrote:
Welcome, Esra'a. Thank you for taking the time to serve. I look
forward
to
your contribution. /a
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 12:59 PM, Christophe Henner <
chenner@wikimedia.org>
wrote:
> Hi everyone, > > With the appointment of Raju to the Board of Trustees a couple of
months
> ago, we were left with a remaining open vacancy to fill. I am
thrilled
to
> share that after several months of searching and discussions, we
have
made > another important appointment. At our November Board Retreat, the
Board
> appointed and welcomed Esra’a Al Shafei to fill our vacant expert
seat.
> > Esra'a is a prominent international human rights activist and
social
> entrepreneur. She founded and directs Majal, a nonprofit which
utilizes
> digital media to amplify under-reported and marginalized voices throughout > the Middle East and North Africa. For those of you that heard her
keynote
> presentation at this year's Wikimania, I think you will agree she
will
make > a very valuable addition to the Board and brings an important
perspective
> and skillset to the Board's efforts. > > Below (and on the Wikimedia Blog) you will find the official
announcement
> about Esra’a Al Shafei. Please join me in warmly welcoming her to
the
> Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees and to the Wikimedia
movement!
> > Christophe > Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees > > P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos
of
Esra’a > may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure
the
privacy > and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any photographs > or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting
this
> important safety consideration. > > > Press release > > Header: Esra'a Al Shafei joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of
Trustees
> > Subheader: Bahraini human rights activist and social entrepreneur
brings
to > the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees more than a decade of experience > in applying creative solutions to challenges faced by underserved
and
> underrepresented communities. > > Image: https://wikimania2017.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Esraa.png%5Ba] > https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt1> > [b] > https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt2> > [c] > https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt3> > [d] > https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt4> > > San Francisco, California, 1 December 2017 — The Wikimedia
Foundation
today > announced the appointment of Esra'a Al Shafei, a prominent human
rights
> activist and a passionate defender of free expression, to the
Wikimedia
> Foundation Board of Trustees. > > A native of Bahrain, Esra'a’s work aims to increase and protect
free
> speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices,
and
> improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North
Africa.
She > founded and directs Majal, a network of online platforms that > amplify under-reported and marginalized voices. > > “Esra'a shares Wikimedia's foundational belief that shared
knowledge
can
> facilitate shared understanding,” said Wikimedia Foundation
Executive
> Director, Katherine Maher. "Her achievements exemplify how
intentional
> community building can be a powerful tool for positive change,
while
> her passion > for beautiful and engaging user experiences will only elevate our
work.
We > are so fortunate to have her perspective in support of our global Wikimedia > communities." > > Esra'a founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth, at the time a
series
of
> blogs bringing a voice to marginalized and underrepresented young > people across the Middle East. Today, the organization's team
helps
build
> communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity and
social
> justice. Their endeavors include CrowdVoice.org, which curates crowdsourced > media to contextualize social movements throughout the world;
Mideast
> Tunes, the largest web and mobile app showcasing underground
musicians
in
> the Middle East and North Africa who use music as a tool for
social
change; > and Ahwaa.org, an open discussion platform for Arab LGBTQ
individuals
that > uses game mechanics to protect and engage its community. > > > “When I first encountered Wikipedia shortly after obtaining an
internet
> connection in the early 2000s, I felt that the true purpose of the internet > was realized. With Wikipedia, I accessed research regarding
persecuted
> communities in my home country and the wider region: ethnic and
religious
> minorities whom we were discouraged from learning about, and whose > histories and beliefs were dictated to us from a singular
government
> perspective. Wikipedia’s open source and crowdsourcing practices
would
> inspire the platforms I built to advocate for underrepresented communities, > and the internet would shape my life’s work in advocating for
freedom
of
> expression and identity around the world,” said Esra'a. > > Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from the Berkman > Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008
for
> "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on
society."
The > World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the
World
in
> 2015." She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free
Press
> Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges
innovative
uses
> of media for the betterment of humanity. > > She has been featured in Fast Company as one of the "100 Most
Creative
> People in Business;" in The Daily Beast as one of the 17 bravest
bloggers
> worldwide; and in Forbes' "30 Under 30" list of social
entrepreneurs
making > an impact in the world. > > Esra'a was a keynote speaker at Wikimania 2017 in Montreal, the
annual
> conference centered on the Wikimedia projects. > > “Esra'a brings tech expertise and a valuable perspective to the
Board
> coming from a region where access to information is not taken for granted. > I was impressed by her talk during Wikimania 2017 on 'Experiences
from
the > Middle East: Overcoming Challenges and Serving Communities'. I
think
her
> experience in that region will be important to our efforts around
the
> globe,” said Nataliia Tymkiv, Governance Chair for the Board. > > Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a
Director’s
> Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth
Foundation
> Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org. > > Esra'a joins nine other Foundation Trustees > https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% > 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% > 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=
1512164054901000&usg=
> AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A> > who > collectively bring expertise in the Wikimedia community, financial > oversight, governance, and organizational development; and a
commitment
to > advancing Wikimedia’s mission of free knowledge for all. > > She was approved unanimously by the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees. > Her term is effective December 2017 and will continue for three
years.
> Please see the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees > https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% > 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% > 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=
1512164054901000&usg=
> AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A> > for > complete biographies. > > About the Wikimedia Foundation > > The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that
supports
and
> operates Wikipedia and its sister free knowledge projects.
Wikipedia
is
the > world’s free knowledge resource, spanning more than 45 million
articles
> across nearly 300 languages. Every month, more than 200,000 people
edit
> Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, collectively creating and
improving
> knowledge that is accessed by more than 1 billion unique devices
every
> month. This all makes Wikipedia one of the most popular web
properties
in
> the world. Based in San Francisco, California, the Wikimedia
Foundation
is > a 501(c)(3) charity that is funded primarily through donations and grants. > > Esra’a Al Shafei profile > > Esra'a Al Shafei is a human rights activist and the founder and
director
of > Majal, a nonprofit which helps build communities that celebrate,
protect,
> and promote diversity, and social justice. > > A native of Bahrain, Esra'a works avidly to increase and protect
free
> speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices,
and
> improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North
Africa.
She > founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth. The organization has built
online
> platforms that creatively facilitate the struggle for social
change
in
the > Middle East and North Africa. > > Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from
Berkman
> Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008
for
> "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on
society."
The > World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the
World
in
> 2015." > > She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press
Unlimited,
> and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of
media
for > the betterment of humanity. > > Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a
Director’s
> Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth
Foundation
> Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org. She lives in
the
Middle > East and North Africa region. > _______________________________________________ > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at:
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On 01/12/2017 23:22, Michael Peel wrote:
Thank you, Esra’a, for volunteering!
Welcome,Esra'a!
However, I’m very concerned by this:
"P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of Esra’a may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the privacy and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any photographs or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.”
This is security by obscurity (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q133735) - which is at best a temporary measure that won’t last, particularly in a high-profile position like this. Aside from the potential media coverage, Wikimedia events are very well photographed by Wikimedians who want to illustrate a rather well-read encyclopaedia… This leads to an awkward situation where someone’s safety and Wikimedia’s openness are conflicting, which is not OK.
Sorry, but I have to disagree, Mike.
Openness - as generally understood in Wikimedia - does not conflict with respecting someone's privacy, much less so with not endangering their safety. I believe that respecting the privacy and anonymity of our editors (and readers, as well) is a value of Wikimedia.
Furthermore, I feel that Wikimedians value very highly their privacy and anonimity, in fact, there are several Wikipedians with whom I have edited pages for years now, and I still have no idea of their real names, their age, their gender or where they live. All I know is their nicknames on the projects and it's perfectly fine like that. There are several rules that the communities have adopted to protect the privacy and anonymity of every user.
Even at in-person events, there are usually ways to signal the fact that one does not want to be photographed or have photos or recordings of him/her, put online. You can also wear a badge with just your nickname and not your real name, so that's not new even for our live events.
I agree with the idea that occupying a high-profile position and trying to limit one's own exposure are conflicting goals, but I am sure that this was very carefully.
So, I understand that this may seem different from the usual, but, actually, it is not.
Ciao,
Respecting the privacy of others is one of our core values as a movement. Esra’a Al Shafei is not an anonymous person, AFAIK. If they are not willing to share their photos or video or does not wish to be photographed, I don't see any problem with that and I think we should respect their decision.
Regards,
Isaac
On Dec 2, 2017 5:31 AM, "Cristian Consonni" cristian@balist.es wrote:
On 01/12/2017 23:22, Michael Peel wrote:
Thank you, Esra’a, for volunteering!
Welcome,Esra'a!
However, I’m very concerned by this:
"P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of
Esra’a may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the privacy and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any photographs or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.”
This is security by obscurity (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q133735) -
which is at best a temporary measure that won’t last, particularly in a high-profile position like this. Aside from the potential media coverage, Wikimedia events are very well photographed by Wikimedians who want to illustrate a rather well-read encyclopaedia… This leads to an awkward situation where someone’s safety and Wikimedia’s openness are conflicting, which is not OK.
Sorry, but I have to disagree, Mike.
Openness - as generally understood in Wikimedia - does not conflict with respecting someone's privacy, much less so with not endangering their safety. I believe that respecting the privacy and anonymity of our editors (and readers, as well) is a value of Wikimedia.
Furthermore, I feel that Wikimedians value very highly their privacy and anonimity, in fact, there are several Wikipedians with whom I have edited pages for years now, and I still have no idea of their real names, their age, their gender or where they live. All I know is their nicknames on the projects and it's perfectly fine like that. There are several rules that the communities have adopted to protect the privacy and anonymity of every user.
Even at in-person events, there are usually ways to signal the fact that one does not want to be photographed or have photos or recordings of him/her, put online. You can also wear a badge with just your nickname and not your real name, so that's not new even for our live events.
I agree with the idea that occupying a high-profile position and trying to limit one's own exposure are conflicting goals, but I am sure that this was very carefully.
So, I understand that this may seem different from the usual, but, actually, it is not.
Ciao,
Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Welcome Esra'a! I look forward to working with you. :)
Mike, as Cristian says - the Wikimedia movement has a history of trying to balance the safety concerns of volunteers in not-so-free regions (to put it mildly...) with having them contribute to our projects and events. We *need* these contributions, these voices - but we can sometimes be hard-pressed to understand the challenges associated. Esra'a is not requesting "security by obscurity" - she already has had ample media coverage and recognition, as can be read in the announcement. She has even attended and given a (wonderful) keynote at Wikimania a few months ago. We *can* successfully figure out together how to balance having her voice present while respecting her safety needs.
Again, thank you Esra'a for your willingness to take up the challenge of serving on the WMF Board!
Kind regards,
María
El 2 dic. 2017 5:31, "Cristian Consonni" cristian@balist.es escribió:
On 01/12/2017 23:22, Michael Peel wrote:
Thank you, Esra’a, for volunteering!
Welcome,Esra'a!
However, I’m very concerned by this:
"P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of
Esra’a may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the privacy and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any photographs or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.”
This is security by obscurity (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q133735) -
which is at best a temporary measure that won’t last, particularly in a high-profile position like this. Aside from the potential media coverage, Wikimedia events are very well photographed by Wikimedians who want to illustrate a rather well-read encyclopaedia… This leads to an awkward situation where someone’s safety and Wikimedia’s openness are conflicting, which is not OK.
Sorry, but I have to disagree, Mike.
Openness - as generally understood in Wikimedia - does not conflict with respecting someone's privacy, much less so with not endangering their safety. I believe that respecting the privacy and anonymity of our editors (and readers, as well) is a value of Wikimedia.
Furthermore, I feel that Wikimedians value very highly their privacy and anonimity, in fact, there are several Wikipedians with whom I have edited pages for years now, and I still have no idea of their real names, their age, their gender or where they live. All I know is their nicknames on the projects and it's perfectly fine like that. There are several rules that the communities have adopted to protect the privacy and anonymity of every user.
Even at in-person events, there are usually ways to signal the fact that one does not want to be photographed or have photos or recordings of him/her, put online. You can also wear a badge with just your nickname and not your real name, so that's not new even for our live events.
I agree with the idea that occupying a high-profile position and trying to limit one's own exposure are conflicting goals, but I am sure that this was very carefully.
So, I understand that this may seem different from the usual, but, actually, it is not.
Ciao,
_______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wik i/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
María Sefidari maria@wikimedia.org wrote:
[…]
Mike, as Cristian says - the Wikimedia movement has a history of trying to balance the safety concerns of volunteers in not-so-free regions (to put it mildly...) with having them contribute to our projects and events. We *need* these contributions, these voices - but we can sometimes be hard-pressed to understand the challenges associated. Esra'a is not requesting "security by obscurity" - she already has had ample media coverage and recognition, as can be read in the announcement. She has even attended and given a (wonderful) keynote at Wikimania a few months ago. We *can* successfully figure out together how to balance having her voice present while respecting her safety needs.
[…]
You are conflating two aspects here that are not congruent (IMHO).
If someone is requesting privacy, that is to be honored by default (there are exceptions like Essjay or Amina Abdallah Arraf al Omari, but I don't see that applicable here). It is an individual choice to determine what one wants to share about himself, and that decision is not up for discussion (as long as there is no deception involved).
If someone (or an organization) is requesting privacy "for safety reasons", then that argument can be analyzed, criticized and doubted. To parade someone in front of several hundred strangers with the knowledge that a single recognition would endanger that one's safety is negligent at best (or, for a US-based organization: potentially costly).
Tim
Welcome, Esra'a!
Congratulations!
Hasive WMBD
On Sun, Dec 3, 2017 at 8:39 AM, Tim Landscheidt tim@tim-landscheidt.de wrote:
María Sefidari maria@wikimedia.org wrote:
[…]
Mike, as Cristian says - the Wikimedia movement has a history of trying
to
balance the safety concerns of volunteers in not-so-free regions (to put
it
mildly...) with having them contribute to our projects and events. We *need* these contributions, these voices - but we can sometimes be hard-pressed to understand the challenges associated. Esra'a is not requesting "security by obscurity" - she already has had ample media coverage and recognition, as can be read in the announcement. She has
even
attended and given a (wonderful) keynote at Wikimania a few months ago.
We
*can* successfully figure out together how to balance having her voice present while respecting her safety needs.
[…]
You are conflating two aspects here that are not congruent (IMHO).
If someone is requesting privacy, that is to be honored by default (there are exceptions like Essjay or Amina Abdallah Arraf al Omari, but I don't see that applicable here). It is an individual choice to determine what one wants to share about himself, and that decision is not up for discussion (as long as there is no deception involved).
If someone (or an organization) is requesting privacy "for safety reasons", then that argument can be analyzed, criticized and doubted. To parade someone in front of several hundred strangers with the knowledge that a single recognition would endanger that one's safety is negligent at best (or, for a US-based organization: potentially costly).
Tim
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Welcome Esra’a,
Thanks Cristian for remming us all, about one of the (non-written :-) core values of Wikimedia. From the very beginning of the movement the idea that people can participate anonymously and that we respect privacy has been important. Lets keep it this way.
- Teemu
On 2 Dec 2017, at 6.31, Cristian Consonni cristian@balist.es wrote:
On 01/12/2017 23:22, Michael Peel wrote: Thank you, Esra’a, for volunteering!
Welcome,Esra'a!
However, I’m very concerned by this:
"P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of Esra’a may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the privacy and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any photographs or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.”
This is security by obscurity (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q133735) - which is at best a temporary measure that won’t last, particularly in a high-profile position like this. Aside from the potential media coverage, Wikimedia events are very well photographed by Wikimedians who want to illustrate a rather well-read encyclopaedia… This leads to an awkward situation where someone’s safety and Wikimedia’s openness are conflicting, which is not OK.
Sorry, but I have to disagree, Mike.
Openness - as generally understood in Wikimedia - does not conflict with respecting someone's privacy, much less so with not endangering their safety. I believe that respecting the privacy and anonymity of our editors (and readers, as well) is a value of Wikimedia.
Furthermore, I feel that Wikimedians value very highly their privacy and anonimity, in fact, there are several Wikipedians with whom I have edited pages for years now, and I still have no idea of their real names, their age, their gender or where they live. All I know is their nicknames on the projects and it's perfectly fine like that. There are several rules that the communities have adopted to protect the privacy and anonymity of every user.
Even at in-person events, there are usually ways to signal the fact that one does not want to be photographed or have photos or recordings of him/her, put online. You can also wear a badge with just your nickname and not your real name, so that's not new even for our live events.
I agree with the idea that occupying a high-profile position and trying to limit one's own exposure are conflicting goals, but I am sure that this was very carefully.
So, I understand that this may seem different from the usual, but, actually, it is not.
Ciao,
_______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Welcome Esra’a!
And thank you Cristian for remming us all, about one of the (non-written :-) core values of Wikimedia. From the very beginning of the movement the idea that people can participate anonymously and that we respect privacy has been important. Lets keep it this way.
- Teemu
On 2 Dec 2017, at 6.31, Cristian Consonni cristian@balist.es wrote:
On 01/12/2017 23:22, Michael Peel wrote:
Thank you, Esra’a, for volunteering!
Welcome,Esra'a!
However, I’m very concerned by this:
"P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of Esra’a may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the privacy and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any photographs or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.”
This is security by obscurity (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q133735) - which is at best a temporary measure that won’t last, particularly in a high-profile position like this. Aside from the potential media coverage, Wikimedia events are very well photographed by Wikimedians who want to illustrate a rather well-read encyclopaedia… This leads to an awkward situation where someone’s safety and Wikimedia’s openness are conflicting, which is not OK.
Sorry, but I have to disagree, Mike.
Openness - as generally understood in Wikimedia - does not conflict with respecting someone's privacy, much less so with not endangering their safety. I believe that respecting the privacy and anonymity of our editors (and readers, as well) is a value of Wikimedia.
Furthermore, I feel that Wikimedians value very highly their privacy and anonimity, in fact, there are several Wikipedians with whom I have edited pages for years now, and I still have no idea of their real names, their age, their gender or where they live. All I know is their nicknames on the projects and it's perfectly fine like that. There are several rules that the communities have adopted to protect the privacy and anonymity of every user.
Even at in-person events, there are usually ways to signal the fact that one does not want to be photographed or have photos or recordings of him/her, put online. You can also wear a badge with just your nickname and not your real name, so that's not new even for our live events.
I agree with the idea that occupying a high-profile position and trying to limit one's own exposure are conflicting goals, but I am sure that this was very carefully.
So, I understand that this may seem different from the usual, but, actually, it is not.
Ciao,
Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Hi Chistian, and others
First congratulation to Esra’a Al Shafei.
Le 02/12/2017 à 05:31, Cristian Consonni a écrit :
I agree with the idea that occupying a high-profile position and trying to limit one's own exposure are conflicting goals, but I am sure that this was very carefully.
I feel like there is a verb missing at the end of this sentence, isn't it?
So, I understand that this may seem different from the usual, but, actually, it is not.
Well, it is a bit different as this is not the same context. Although it's already sometime a difficult task, it's far easier to protect online contributors anonymity than it is for a person occupying such a visible position in the organization chart. We can apply usual precautions, but possibly it requires additional ones. Plus it's easier to do our best to protect anonymity of our fellow wikimedians in our own environment, but it's far harder outside this scope. Laws might help in some cases when people are clearly trying to harm someone with personal information disclosure, but when you are a public figure laws also grants some freedom to general press to which such a position might expose.
ĝis,
Ciao,
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My statement will be terribly boring, but +1 to Liam statement *Awesome* appointment.
Florence
Le 01/12/2017 à 22:31, Liam Wyatt a écrit :
Fantastic Wikimania keynote, fascinating addition to the board, fabulous addition to our community.
Welcome.
On Fri, 1 Dec 2017 at 22:28, Anna Stillwell astillwell@wikimedia.org wrote:
Welcome, Esra'a. Thank you for taking the time to serve. I look forward to your contribution. /a
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 12:59 PM, Christophe Henner chenner@wikimedia.org wrote:
Hi everyone,
With the appointment of Raju to the Board of Trustees a couple of months ago, we were left with a remaining open vacancy to fill. I am thrilled to share that after several months of searching and discussions, we have
made
another important appointment. At our November Board Retreat, the Board appointed and welcomed Esra’a Al Shafei to fill our vacant expert seat.
Esra'a is a prominent international human rights activist and social entrepreneur. She founded and directs Majal, a nonprofit which utilizes digital media to amplify under-reported and marginalized voices
throughout
the Middle East and North Africa. For those of you that heard her keynote presentation at this year's Wikimania, I think you will agree she will
make
a very valuable addition to the Board and brings an important perspective and skillset to the Board's efforts.
Below (and on the Wikimedia Blog) you will find the official announcement about Esra’a Al Shafei. Please join me in warmly welcoming her to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees and to the Wikimedia movement!
Christophe Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of
Esra’a
may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the
privacy
and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any
photographs
or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.
Press release
Header: Esra'a Al Shafei joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
Subheader: Bahraini human rights activist and social entrepreneur brings
to
the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees more than a decade of
experience
in applying creative solutions to challenges faced by underserved and underrepresented communities.
Image: https://wikimania2017.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Esraa.png%5Ba] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt1 [b] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt2 [c] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt3 [d] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt4
San Francisco, California, 1 December 2017 — The Wikimedia Foundation
today
announced the appointment of Esra'a Al Shafei, a prominent human rights activist and a passionate defender of free expression, to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a’s work aims to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa.
She
founded and directs Majal, a network of online platforms that amplify under-reported and marginalized voices.
“Esra'a shares Wikimedia's foundational belief that shared knowledge can facilitate shared understanding,” said Wikimedia Foundation Executive Director, Katherine Maher. "Her achievements exemplify how intentional community building can be a powerful tool for positive change, while her passion for beautiful and engaging user experiences will only elevate our work.
We
are so fortunate to have her perspective in support of our global
Wikimedia
communities."
Esra'a founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth, at the time a series of blogs bringing a voice to marginalized and underrepresented young people across the Middle East. Today, the organization's team helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity and social justice. Their endeavors include CrowdVoice.org, which curates
crowdsourced
media to contextualize social movements throughout the world; Mideast Tunes, the largest web and mobile app showcasing underground musicians in the Middle East and North Africa who use music as a tool for social
change;
and Ahwaa.org, an open discussion platform for Arab LGBTQ individuals
that
uses game mechanics to protect and engage its community.
“When I first encountered Wikipedia shortly after obtaining an internet connection in the early 2000s, I felt that the true purpose of the
internet
was realized. With Wikipedia, I accessed research regarding persecuted communities in my home country and the wider region: ethnic and religious minorities whom we were discouraged from learning about, and whose histories and beliefs were dictated to us from a singular government perspective. Wikipedia’s open source and crowdsourcing practices would inspire the platforms I built to advocate for underrepresented
communities,
and the internet would shape my life’s work in advocating for freedom of expression and identity around the world,” said Esra'a.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from the
Berkman
Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society."
The
World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015." She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media for the betterment of humanity.
She has been featured in Fast Company as one of the "100 Most Creative People in Business;" in The Daily Beast as one of the 17 bravest bloggers worldwide; and in Forbes' "30 Under 30" list of social entrepreneurs
making
an impact in the world.
Esra'a was a keynote speaker at Wikimania 2017 in Montreal, the annual conference centered on the Wikimedia projects.
“Esra'a brings tech expertise and a valuable perspective to the Board - coming from a region where access to information is not taken for
granted.
I was impressed by her talk during Wikimania 2017 on 'Experiences from
the
Middle East: Overcoming Challenges and Serving Communities'. I think her experience in that region will be important to our efforts around the globe,” said Nataliia Tymkiv, Governance Chair for the Board.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org.
Esra'a joins nine other Foundation Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A who collectively bring expertise in the Wikimedia community, financial oversight, governance, and organizational development; and a commitment
to
advancing Wikimedia’s mission of free knowledge for all.
She was approved unanimously by the Wikimedia Foundation Board of
Trustees.
Her term is effective December 2017 and will continue for three years. Please see the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A for complete biographies.
About the Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that supports and operates Wikipedia and its sister free knowledge projects. Wikipedia is
the
world’s free knowledge resource, spanning more than 45 million articles across nearly 300 languages. Every month, more than 200,000 people edit Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, collectively creating and improving knowledge that is accessed by more than 1 billion unique devices every month. This all makes Wikipedia one of the most popular web properties in the world. Based in San Francisco, California, the Wikimedia Foundation
is
a 501(c)(3) charity that is funded primarily through donations and
grants.
Esra’a Al Shafei profile
Esra'a Al Shafei is a human rights activist and the founder and director
of
Majal, a nonprofit which helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity, and social justice.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a works avidly to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa.
She
founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth. The organization has built online platforms that creatively facilitate the struggle for social change in
the
Middle East and North Africa.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society."
The
World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015."
She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media
for
the betterment of humanity.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org. She lives in the
Middle
East and North Africa region. _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Welcome Esra! I'm thrilled to have you join the Board.
Sydney
Sydney Poore User:FloNight Co-founder Kentucky Wikimedians, Co-founder WikiWomen User Group, Co-founder WikiConference North America Board member of Wiki Project Med Foundation
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 3:59 PM, Christophe Henner chenner@wikimedia.org wrote:
Hi everyone,
With the appointment of Raju to the Board of Trustees a couple of months ago, we were left with a remaining open vacancy to fill. I am thrilled to share that after several months of searching and discussions, we have made another important appointment. At our November Board Retreat, the Board appointed and welcomed Esra’a Al Shafei to fill our vacant expert seat.
Esra'a is a prominent international human rights activist and social entrepreneur. She founded and directs Majal, a nonprofit which utilizes digital media to amplify under-reported and marginalized voices throughout the Middle East and North Africa. For those of you that heard her keynote presentation at this year's Wikimania, I think you will agree she will make a very valuable addition to the Board and brings an important perspective and skillset to the Board's efforts.
Below (and on the Wikimedia Blog) you will find the official announcement about Esra’a Al Shafei. Please join me in warmly welcoming her to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees and to the Wikimedia movement!
Christophe Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of Esra’a may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the privacy and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any photographs or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.
Press release
Header: Esra'a Al Shafei joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
Subheader: Bahraini human rights activist and social entrepreneur brings to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees more than a decade of experience in applying creative solutions to challenges faced by underserved and underrepresented communities.
Image: https://wikimania2017.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Esraa.png%5Ba] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt1 [b] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt2 [c] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt3 [d] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt4
San Francisco, California, 1 December 2017 — The Wikimedia Foundation today announced the appointment of Esra'a Al Shafei, a prominent human rights activist and a passionate defender of free expression, to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a’s work aims to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa. She founded and directs Majal, a network of online platforms that amplify under-reported and marginalized voices.
“Esra'a shares Wikimedia's foundational belief that shared knowledge can facilitate shared understanding,” said Wikimedia Foundation Executive Director, Katherine Maher. "Her achievements exemplify how intentional community building can be a powerful tool for positive change, while her passion for beautiful and engaging user experiences will only elevate our work. We are so fortunate to have her perspective in support of our global Wikimedia communities."
Esra'a founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth, at the time a series of blogs bringing a voice to marginalized and underrepresented young people across the Middle East. Today, the organization's team helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity and social justice. Their endeavors include CrowdVoice.org, which curates crowdsourced media to contextualize social movements throughout the world; Mideast Tunes, the largest web and mobile app showcasing underground musicians in the Middle East and North Africa who use music as a tool for social change; and Ahwaa.org, an open discussion platform for Arab LGBTQ individuals that uses game mechanics to protect and engage its community.
“When I first encountered Wikipedia shortly after obtaining an internet connection in the early 2000s, I felt that the true purpose of the internet was realized. With Wikipedia, I accessed research regarding persecuted communities in my home country and the wider region: ethnic and religious minorities whom we were discouraged from learning about, and whose histories and beliefs were dictated to us from a singular government perspective. Wikipedia’s open source and crowdsourcing practices would inspire the platforms I built to advocate for underrepresented communities, and the internet would shape my life’s work in advocating for freedom of expression and identity around the world,” said Esra'a.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society." The World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015." She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media for the betterment of humanity.
She has been featured in Fast Company as one of the "100 Most Creative People in Business;" in The Daily Beast as one of the 17 bravest bloggers worldwide; and in Forbes' "30 Under 30" list of social entrepreneurs making an impact in the world.
Esra'a was a keynote speaker at Wikimania 2017 in Montreal, the annual conference centered on the Wikimedia projects.
“Esra'a brings tech expertise and a valuable perspective to the Board - coming from a region where access to information is not taken for granted. I was impressed by her talk during Wikimania 2017 on 'Experiences from the Middle East: Overcoming Challenges and Serving Communities'. I think her experience in that region will be important to our efforts around the globe,” said Nataliia Tymkiv, Governance Chair for the Board.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org.
Esra'a joins nine other Foundation Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A who collectively bring expertise in the Wikimedia community, financial oversight, governance, and organizational development; and a commitment to advancing Wikimedia’s mission of free knowledge for all.
She was approved unanimously by the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees. Her term is effective December 2017 and will continue for three years. Please see the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A for complete biographies.
About the Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that supports and operates Wikipedia and its sister free knowledge projects. Wikipedia is the world’s free knowledge resource, spanning more than 45 million articles across nearly 300 languages. Every month, more than 200,000 people edit Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, collectively creating and improving knowledge that is accessed by more than 1 billion unique devices every month. This all makes Wikipedia one of the most popular web properties in the world. Based in San Francisco, California, the Wikimedia Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charity that is funded primarily through donations and grants.
Esra’a Al Shafei profile
Esra'a Al Shafei is a human rights activist and the founder and director of Majal, a nonprofit which helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity, and social justice.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a works avidly to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa. She founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth. The organization has built online platforms that creatively facilitate the struggle for social change in the Middle East and North Africa.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society." The World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015."
She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media for the betterment of humanity.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org. She lives in the Middle East and North Africa region. _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Congratulations everyone! Esra'a is a wonderful addition to the Board. I'm delighted she was able to join!
Best, Phoebe
PS on the photos question, I worked closely with Esra'a on this for Wikimania - it was not difficult to accommodate no photos of her, and it's important. She has a lot of experience with how to do this practically in group situations - being out of frame, etc - and I don't think a reluctance to have photos of herself online changes her, or our, commitment to crowdsourced, well-documented open projects in the slightest.
On Dec 1, 2017 3:59 PM, "Christophe Henner" chenner@wikimedia.org wrote:
Hi everyone,
With the appointment of Raju to the Board of Trustees a couple of months ago, we were left with a remaining open vacancy to fill. I am thrilled to share that after several months of searching and discussions, we have made another important appointment. At our November Board Retreat, the Board appointed and welcomed Esra’a Al Shafei to fill our vacant expert seat.
Esra'a is a prominent international human rights activist and social entrepreneur. She founded and directs Majal, a nonprofit which utilizes digital media to amplify under-reported and marginalized voices throughout the Middle East and North Africa. For those of you that heard her keynote presentation at this year's Wikimania, I think you will agree she will make a very valuable addition to the Board and brings an important perspective and skillset to the Board's efforts.
Below (and on the Wikimedia Blog) you will find the official announcement about Esra’a Al Shafei. Please join me in warmly welcoming her to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees and to the Wikimedia movement!
Christophe Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of Esra’a may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the privacy and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any photographs or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.
Press release
Header: Esra'a Al Shafei joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
Subheader: Bahraini human rights activist and social entrepreneur brings to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees more than a decade of experience in applying creative solutions to challenges faced by underserved and underrepresented communities.
Image: https://wikimania2017.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Esraa.png%5Ba] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt1 [b] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt2 [c] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt3 [d] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt4
San Francisco, California, 1 December 2017 — The Wikimedia Foundation today announced the appointment of Esra'a Al Shafei, a prominent human rights activist and a passionate defender of free expression, to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a’s work aims to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa. She founded and directs Majal, a network of online platforms that amplify under-reported and marginalized voices.
“Esra'a shares Wikimedia's foundational belief that shared knowledge can facilitate shared understanding,” said Wikimedia Foundation Executive Director, Katherine Maher. "Her achievements exemplify how intentional community building can be a powerful tool for positive change, while her passion for beautiful and engaging user experiences will only elevate our work. We are so fortunate to have her perspective in support of our global Wikimedia communities."
Esra'a founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth, at the time a series of blogs bringing a voice to marginalized and underrepresented young people across the Middle East. Today, the organization's team helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity and social justice. Their endeavors include CrowdVoice.org, which curates crowdsourced media to contextualize social movements throughout the world; Mideast Tunes, the largest web and mobile app showcasing underground musicians in the Middle East and North Africa who use music as a tool for social change; and Ahwaa.org, an open discussion platform for Arab LGBTQ individuals that uses game mechanics to protect and engage its community.
“When I first encountered Wikipedia shortly after obtaining an internet connection in the early 2000s, I felt that the true purpose of the internet was realized. With Wikipedia, I accessed research regarding persecuted communities in my home country and the wider region: ethnic and religious minorities whom we were discouraged from learning about, and whose histories and beliefs were dictated to us from a singular government perspective. Wikipedia’s open source and crowdsourcing practices would inspire the platforms I built to advocate for underrepresented communities, and the internet would shape my life’s work in advocating for freedom of expression and identity around the world,” said Esra'a.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society." The World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015." She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media for the betterment of humanity.
She has been featured in Fast Company as one of the "100 Most Creative People in Business;" in The Daily Beast as one of the 17 bravest bloggers worldwide; and in Forbes' "30 Under 30" list of social entrepreneurs making an impact in the world.
Esra'a was a keynote speaker at Wikimania 2017 in Montreal, the annual conference centered on the Wikimedia projects.
“Esra'a brings tech expertise and a valuable perspective to the Board - coming from a region where access to information is not taken for granted. I was impressed by her talk during Wikimania 2017 on 'Experiences from the Middle East: Overcoming Challenges and Serving Communities'. I think her experience in that region will be important to our efforts around the globe,” said Nataliia Tymkiv, Governance Chair for the Board.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org.
Esra'a joins nine other Foundation Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A who collectively bring expertise in the Wikimedia community, financial oversight, governance, and organizational development; and a commitment to advancing Wikimedia’s mission of free knowledge for all.
She was approved unanimously by the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees. Her term is effective December 2017 and will continue for three years. Please see the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A for complete biographies.
About the Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that supports and operates Wikipedia and its sister free knowledge projects. Wikipedia is the world’s free knowledge resource, spanning more than 45 million articles across nearly 300 languages. Every month, more than 200,000 people edit Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, collectively creating and improving knowledge that is accessed by more than 1 billion unique devices every month. This all makes Wikipedia one of the most popular web properties in the world. Based in San Francisco, California, the Wikimedia Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charity that is funded primarily through donations and grants.
Esra’a Al Shafei profile
Esra'a Al Shafei is a human rights activist and the founder and director of Majal, a nonprofit which helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity, and social justice.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a works avidly to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa. She founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth. The organization has built online platforms that creatively facilitate the struggle for social change in the Middle East and North Africa.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society." The World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015."
She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media for the betterment of humanity.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org. She lives in the Middle East and North Africa region. _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
On 2 Dec 2017, at 14:08, phoebe ayers phoebe.wiki@gmail.com wrote:
PS on the photos question, I worked closely with Esra'a on this for Wikimania - it was not difficult to accommodate no photos of her, and it's important. She has a lot of experience with how to do this practically in group situations - being out of frame, etc - and I don't think a reluctance to have photos of herself online changes her, or our, commitment to crowdsourced, well-documented open projects in the slightest.
This helps - thanks. I was worried about a future where no photos/livestreams/videos of anything involving the WMF board were possible, but providing this is mitigated as you say then that helps.
On 2 Dec 2017, at 09:33, María Sefidari maria@wikimedia.org wrote:
Esra'a is not requesting "security by obscurity" - she already has had ample media coverage and recognition, as can be read in the announcement.
To be clear, it’s obscurity of photos, not obscurity of the person, that I was referring to here. Which lasts right up to the point where a well-meaning volunteer posts a photo online. And that’s leaving aside all the CCTV coverage in today’s world, which governments etc. have access to…
But clearly my worry isn’t significantly shared by others, so I’ll park this here. And, to be clear, I think Esra’a is an excellent addition to the WMF board.
Thanks, Mike
But clearly my worry isn’t significantly shared by others, so I’ll park this here.
It's shared by me, but first let me agree with you on this:
to be clear, I think Esra’a is an excellent addition to the WMF board.
I do too. The problem with the photography restriction is that we've had a substantial number of deliberately anti-social detractors over the years, including moderately well-organized trolls, many of whom are still active, and a few of whom that have managed to consolidate substantial power among the alt-right and would love to humiliate the WMF and Ms. Al Shafei. What reasons are there to think that the state actors from whom we are trying to hide Ms. Al Shafei's images would not be prompted by her appointment to try to obtain such photos, too?
I would prefer that we go a bit further than simply asking people to refrain from taking photographs, and provide some sort of measures to prevent them. I have no idea of the pros and cons of different solutions, but a few that come to mind, roughly ordered from easiest to most difficult, are: veils, room-dividers or opaque audio booths in group events, photography-capable-equipment-at-the-door social rooms, private entrance/exit accommodations, and security details.
If you simply ask people to refrain from taking photos, not everyone will comply, some out of spite, and some because it may be their job.
Sincerely, Jim
On 3 December 2017 at 21:33, James Salsman jsalsman@gmail.com wrote: .
trying to hide Ms. Al Shafei's images
I would prefer that we go a bit further than simply asking people to refrain from taking photographs, and provide some sort of measures to prevent them. I have no idea of the pros and cons of different solutions, but a few that come to mind, roughly ordered from easiest to most difficult, are: veils [...]
I'm sorry, but making photographers wear veils simply wouldn't be acceptable,
Still, at least you didn't do anything so crass as to suggest that our movement should ask a woman - a young, Muslim woman who is already the subject of oppression - to wear a veil.
I think Esra’a and the WMF people already took into considerations these risks.
Though I fear it's impossible to prevent pictures from "leaking", I trust their judgment on the matter.
Since I never attend events I, for one, can do few, apart from supporting any effort to prevent Esra’a's photos from being shared.
Vito
2017-12-03 22:33 GMT+01:00 James Salsman jsalsman@gmail.com:
But clearly my worry isn’t significantly shared by others, so I’ll park
this here.
It's shared by me, but first let me agree with you on this:
to be clear, I think Esra’a is an excellent addition to the WMF board.
I do too. The problem with the photography restriction is that we've had a substantial number of deliberately anti-social detractors over the years, including moderately well-organized trolls, many of whom are still active, and a few of whom that have managed to consolidate substantial power among the alt-right and would love to humiliate the WMF and Ms. Al Shafei. What reasons are there to think that the state actors from whom we are trying to hide Ms. Al Shafei's images would not be prompted by her appointment to try to obtain such photos, too?
I would prefer that we go a bit further than simply asking people to refrain from taking photographs, and provide some sort of measures to prevent them. I have no idea of the pros and cons of different solutions, but a few that come to mind, roughly ordered from easiest to most difficult, are: veils, room-dividers or opaque audio booths in group events, photography-capable-equipment-at-the-door social rooms, private entrance/exit accommodations, and security details.
If you simply ask people to refrain from taking photos, not everyone will comply, some out of spite, and some because it may be their job.
Sincerely, Jim
Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
Fantastic. !
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 3:59 PM, Christophe Henner chenner@wikimedia.org wrote:
Hi everyone,
With the appointment of Raju to the Board of Trustees a couple of months ago, we were left with a remaining open vacancy to fill. I am thrilled to share that after several months of searching and discussions, we have made another important appointment. At our November Board Retreat, the Board appointed and welcomed Esra’a Al Shafei to fill our vacant expert seat.
Esra'a is a prominent international human rights activist and social entrepreneur. She founded and directs Majal, a nonprofit which utilizes digital media to amplify under-reported and marginalized voices throughout the Middle East and North Africa. For those of you that heard her keynote presentation at this year's Wikimania, I think you will agree she will make a very valuable addition to the Board and brings an important perspective and skillset to the Board's efforts.
Below (and on the Wikimedia Blog) you will find the official announcement about Esra’a Al Shafei. Please join me in warmly welcoming her to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees and to the Wikimedia movement!
Christophe Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of Esra’a may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the privacy and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any photographs or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.
Press release
Header: Esra'a Al Shafei joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
Subheader: Bahraini human rights activist and social entrepreneur brings to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees more than a decade of experience in applying creative solutions to challenges faced by underserved and underrepresented communities.
Image: https://wikimania2017.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Esraa.png%5Ba] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt1 [b] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt2 [c] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt3 [d] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt4
San Francisco, California, 1 December 2017 — The Wikimedia Foundation today announced the appointment of Esra'a Al Shafei, a prominent human rights activist and a passionate defender of free expression, to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a’s work aims to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa. She founded and directs Majal, a network of online platforms that amplify under-reported and marginalized voices.
“Esra'a shares Wikimedia's foundational belief that shared knowledge can facilitate shared understanding,” said Wikimedia Foundation Executive Director, Katherine Maher. "Her achievements exemplify how intentional community building can be a powerful tool for positive change, while her passion for beautiful and engaging user experiences will only elevate our work. We are so fortunate to have her perspective in support of our global Wikimedia communities."
Esra'a founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth, at the time a series of blogs bringing a voice to marginalized and underrepresented young people across the Middle East. Today, the organization's team helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity and social justice. Their endeavors include CrowdVoice.org, which curates crowdsourced media to contextualize social movements throughout the world; Mideast Tunes, the largest web and mobile app showcasing underground musicians in the Middle East and North Africa who use music as a tool for social change; and Ahwaa.org, an open discussion platform for Arab LGBTQ individuals that uses game mechanics to protect and engage its community.
“When I first encountered Wikipedia shortly after obtaining an internet connection in the early 2000s, I felt that the true purpose of the internet was realized. With Wikipedia, I accessed research regarding persecuted communities in my home country and the wider region: ethnic and religious minorities whom we were discouraged from learning about, and whose histories and beliefs were dictated to us from a singular government perspective. Wikipedia’s open source and crowdsourcing practices would inspire the platforms I built to advocate for underrepresented communities, and the internet would shape my life’s work in advocating for freedom of expression and identity around the world,” said Esra'a.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society." The World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015." She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media for the betterment of humanity.
She has been featured in Fast Company as one of the "100 Most Creative People in Business;" in The Daily Beast as one of the 17 bravest bloggers worldwide; and in Forbes' "30 Under 30" list of social entrepreneurs making an impact in the world.
Esra'a was a keynote speaker at Wikimania 2017 in Montreal, the annual conference centered on the Wikimedia projects.
“Esra'a brings tech expertise and a valuable perspective to the Board - coming from a region where access to information is not taken for granted. I was impressed by her talk during Wikimania 2017 on 'Experiences from the Middle East: Overcoming Challenges and Serving Communities'. I think her experience in that region will be important to our efforts around the globe,” said Nataliia Tymkiv, Governance Chair for the Board.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org.
Esra'a joins nine other Foundation Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A who collectively bring expertise in the Wikimedia community, financial oversight, governance, and organizational development; and a commitment to advancing Wikimedia’s mission of free knowledge for all.
She was approved unanimously by the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees. Her term is effective December 2017 and will continue for three years. Please see the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A for complete biographies.
About the Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that supports and operates Wikipedia and its sister free knowledge projects. Wikipedia is the world’s free knowledge resource, spanning more than 45 million articles across nearly 300 languages. Every month, more than 200,000 people edit Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, collectively creating and improving knowledge that is accessed by more than 1 billion unique devices every month. This all makes Wikipedia one of the most popular web properties in the world. Based in San Francisco, California, the Wikimedia Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charity that is funded primarily through donations and grants.
Esra’a Al Shafei profile
Esra'a Al Shafei is a human rights activist and the founder and director of Majal, a nonprofit which helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity, and social justice.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a works avidly to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa. She founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth. The organization has built online platforms that creatively facilitate the struggle for social change in the Middle East and North Africa.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society." The World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015."
She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media for the betterment of humanity.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org. She lives in the Middle East and North Africa region. _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
This is fantastic news!
*María Cruz * \ Communications and Outreach project manager, L&E Team \ Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. mcruz@wikimedia.org | Twitter: @marianarra_ https://twitter.com/marianarra_
On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 12:59 PM, Christophe Henner chenner@wikimedia.org wrote:
Hi everyone,
With the appointment of Raju to the Board of Trustees a couple of months ago, we were left with a remaining open vacancy to fill. I am thrilled to share that after several months of searching and discussions, we have made another important appointment. At our November Board Retreat, the Board appointed and welcomed Esra’a Al Shafei to fill our vacant expert seat.
Esra'a is a prominent international human rights activist and social entrepreneur. She founded and directs Majal, a nonprofit which utilizes digital media to amplify under-reported and marginalized voices throughout the Middle East and North Africa. For those of you that heard her keynote presentation at this year's Wikimania, I think you will agree she will make a very valuable addition to the Board and brings an important perspective and skillset to the Board's efforts.
Below (and on the Wikimedia Blog) you will find the official announcement about Esra’a Al Shafei. Please join me in warmly welcoming her to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees and to the Wikimedia movement!
Christophe Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
P.S. Due to the nature of Esra’a’s work, sharing photos or videos of Esra’a may endanger her safety or the safety of others. To help ensure the privacy and safety of Esra’a and her colleagues, we are not sharing any photographs or videos of Esra'a. We ask that you please join us in supporting this important safety consideration.
Press release
Header: Esra'a Al Shafei joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
Subheader: Bahraini human rights activist and social entrepreneur brings to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees more than a decade of experience in applying creative solutions to challenges faced by underserved and underrepresented communities.
Image: https://wikimania2017.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Esraa.png%5Ba] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt1 [b] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt2 [c] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt3 [d] https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1wNmwgJkUPp25nVLRVgX5WzU_ LuEi5a9gJDpB7HWEft4/mobilebasic#cmnt4
San Francisco, California, 1 December 2017 — The Wikimedia Foundation today announced the appointment of Esra'a Al Shafei, a prominent human rights activist and a passionate defender of free expression, to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a’s work aims to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa. She founded and directs Majal, a network of online platforms that amplify under-reported and marginalized voices.
“Esra'a shares Wikimedia's foundational belief that shared knowledge can facilitate shared understanding,” said Wikimedia Foundation Executive Director, Katherine Maher. "Her achievements exemplify how intentional community building can be a powerful tool for positive change, while her passion for beautiful and engaging user experiences will only elevate our work. We are so fortunate to have her perspective in support of our global Wikimedia communities."
Esra'a founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth, at the time a series of blogs bringing a voice to marginalized and underrepresented young people across the Middle East. Today, the organization's team helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity and social justice. Their endeavors include CrowdVoice.org, which curates crowdsourced media to contextualize social movements throughout the world; Mideast Tunes, the largest web and mobile app showcasing underground musicians in the Middle East and North Africa who use music as a tool for social change; and Ahwaa.org, an open discussion platform for Arab LGBTQ individuals that uses game mechanics to protect and engage its community.
“When I first encountered Wikipedia shortly after obtaining an internet connection in the early 2000s, I felt that the true purpose of the internet was realized. With Wikipedia, I accessed research regarding persecuted communities in my home country and the wider region: ethnic and religious minorities whom we were discouraged from learning about, and whose histories and beliefs were dictated to us from a singular government perspective. Wikipedia’s open source and crowdsourcing practices would inspire the platforms I built to advocate for underrepresented communities, and the internet would shape my life’s work in advocating for freedom of expression and identity around the world,” said Esra'a.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society." The World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015." She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media for the betterment of humanity.
She has been featured in Fast Company as one of the "100 Most Creative People in Business;" in The Daily Beast as one of the 17 bravest bloggers worldwide; and in Forbes' "30 Under 30" list of social entrepreneurs making an impact in the world.
Esra'a was a keynote speaker at Wikimania 2017 in Montreal, the annual conference centered on the Wikimedia projects.
“Esra'a brings tech expertise and a valuable perspective to the Board - coming from a region where access to information is not taken for granted. I was impressed by her talk during Wikimania 2017 on 'Experiences from the Middle East: Overcoming Challenges and Serving Communities'. I think her experience in that region will be important to our efforts around the globe,” said Nataliia Tymkiv, Governance Chair for the Board.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org.
Esra'a joins nine other Foundation Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A who collectively bring expertise in the Wikimedia community, financial oversight, governance, and organizational development; and a commitment to advancing Wikimedia’s mission of free knowledge for all.
She was approved unanimously by the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees. Her term is effective December 2017 and will continue for three years. Please see the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?q% 3Dhttps://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees% 26amp;sa%3DD%26amp;ust%3D1512164054873000%26amp;usg% 3DAFQjCNHvsp86oFFv5hD8SZzexjBIHdrkWA&sa=D&ust=1512164054901000&usg= AFQjCNGS6qlGUSUBQzF5PmvviPecf7Kw4A for complete biographies.
About the Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that supports and operates Wikipedia and its sister free knowledge projects. Wikipedia is the world’s free knowledge resource, spanning more than 45 million articles across nearly 300 languages. Every month, more than 200,000 people edit Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, collectively creating and improving knowledge that is accessed by more than 1 billion unique devices every month. This all makes Wikipedia one of the most popular web properties in the world. Based in San Francisco, California, the Wikimedia Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charity that is funded primarily through donations and grants.
Esra’a Al Shafei profile
Esra'a Al Shafei is a human rights activist and the founder and director of Majal, a nonprofit which helps build communities that celebrate, protect, and promote diversity, and social justice.
A native of Bahrain, Esra'a works avidly to increase and protect free speech, promote expression for youth and underrepresented voices, and improve the lives of LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa. She founded Majal in 2006 as Mideast Youth. The organization has built online platforms that creatively facilitate the struggle for social change in the Middle East and North Africa.
Esra'a received the Berkman Award for Internet Innovation from Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School in 2008 for "outstanding contributions to the internet and its impact on society." The World Economic Forum listed her as one of "15 Women Changing the World in 2015."
She has won the "Most Courageous Media" Prize from Free Press Unlimited, and the Monaco Media Prize, which acknowledges innovative uses of media for the betterment of humanity.
Esra'a is a senior TED Fellow, an Echoing Green fellow, and a Director’s Fellow at the MIT Media Lab. She received a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship in 2012 for her work on CrowdVoice.org. She lives in the Middle East and North Africa region. _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/ wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe
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