Dear Wikimedians,
Greetings to all of you.
As you are aware, Wikidata is celebrating its remarkable journey as it
marks its 11th birthday, reflecting on the remarkable transformation of the
past decade.
These birthday festivities span a wide array of events taking place both
online and offline across the globe
<https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Wikidata:Eleventh_Birthday/Events>,
attracting participation from Wikimedians, data enthusiasts, and open
knowledge advocates. Through activities such as edit-a-thons, workshops,
and meetups, these gatherings serve as a unifying force for contributors
and open data enthusiasts.
To celebrate Wikidata's 11th birthday, we've organized a series of
thrilling events and activities in India.
*Datathon*
A *11 day long Wikidata data-thon* is planned to celebrate Wikidata's 11th
birthday in India.[1] The data-thon is organised to celebrate the birthday
of Wikidata along with learning how we can contribute to Wikidata and make
use of it in different Wikimedia projects.
The data-thon aims to enhance Wikidata items by incorporating labels and
descriptions in your native language, along with the addition of
references, qualifiers, and statements. Additionally, it encourages the
utilization of India-related properties within these items, ultimately
contributing to the improvement of structured data in Wikidata.
To stay updated and get involved, please have a look at the event page
<https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Wikidata:WikiProject_India/Events/Wikidata_El…>
[1]
and join the datathon by adding your name in the participants section. The
page also provides details about the tasks and activities scheduled as part
of the datathon.
- *Date:* Oct 26th - Nov 5th 2023 (Online)
- *Event Page: *Wikidata:WikiProject India/Events/Wikidata Eleventh
Birthday Datathon
Your contributions play a pivotal role in shaping the success and impact of
the data-thon, and it will help enrich the shared knowledge that benefits
us all.
*Community Meetup and Birthday Celebration*
We *Wikimedians of Kerala UG
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedians_of_Kerala> *is thrilled to
celebrate Wikidata's 11th birthday this year along with the OpenStreetMap
Community. Joining hands with the OSM Kerala Community meetup
<https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/OSM_Kerala_Community_Meetup_2023>,
we're joyfully organising Wikidata's 11th birthday with a delightful
cake-cutting ceremony, enlightening talks, and engaging data-a-thons
We cordially invite you to join us for the in-person community event and
birthday celebration in Thrissur, Kerala.
We are pleased to announce that a limited number of scholarships for travel
and accommodation facilities are available for those traveling to attend
the event from India. Please check the event page
<https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Wikidata:WikiProject_Kerala/Events/Wikidata_E…>
[2]
for more information on how to apply for these scholarships and register
for the event.
- *Event page: *Wikidata Eleventh Birthday celebration in Kerala
<https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Wikidata:WikiProject_Kerala/Events/Wikidata_E…>
- *Date:* Nov 4th - Nov 5th 2023
- *Venue: *Kerala Sahitya Akademi, Thrissur, Kerala, India
- *Registration: *
https://airtable.com/app2OaYApDXzm9ib5/shrneKnUQU4AHGzEF
Join us in celebrating Wikidata's birthday celebrations in Thrissur, Kerala
and let's continue to support and enrich the world of open knowledge.
*Discover More Celebrations*
We have a page to list all the birthday celebrations happening online and
offline in India
<https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Wikidata:Eleventh_Birthday/India>.[3] If
you're planning to host a Wikidata birthday celebration (virtual meetup, a
local gathering) in your community, please feel free to add it to the event
page.
Additionally if you or your community have created any presents for
Wikidata's birthday those can be presented online during the WikidataCon
2023. To register for a slot, please read the instructions and add your
project to this page
<https://etherpad.wikimedia.org/p/WikidataCon2023-BirthdayLTsession>.[4]
If you have any questions or need support, feel free to contact me.
[1] - Datathon -
https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Wikidata:WikiProject_India/Events/Wikidata_El…
[2] - Community Meetup and Birthday Celebration in Kerala -
https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Wikidata:WikiProject_Kerala/Events/Wikidata_E…
[3] - 11th Birthday Celebrations in India -
https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Wikidata:Eleventh_Birthday/India
[4] - Projects to present during WikidataCon
https://etherpad.wikimedia.org/p/WikidataCon2023-BirthdayLTsession
Regards,
*Jinoy*
User:Gnoeee
*Please don’t print this e-mail unless you really need to.Every 3000 sheets
consume a tree. Conserve Trees for a better tomorrow!*
Hello everyone,
I hope you are all doing well. I wanted to inform you about the Image
Description Month in India campaign, which began today. If you're
interested in contributing or participating in this initiative, please sign
up on the dedicated page.
You can find all the details on the Meta page here:
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/CIS-A2K/Events/Image_Description_Month_in_I…
<https://meta.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/CIS-A2K/Events/Image_Description_Month_in…>
If you have any questions or doubts, please feel free to reach out at
nitesh(a)cis-india.org.
Regards,
Nitesh (CIS-A2K)
On Thu, 28 Sep 2023 at 12:11 AM, Nitesh Gill <gillteshu(a)gmail.com> wrote:
> Thank you Fiona :)
>
> On Thu, 28 Sep 2023 at 12:07 AM, Fiona Romeo <fromeo(a)wikimedia.org> wrote:
>
>> Dear Nitesh,
>>
>> I appreciate you so much for organising this!
>>
>> Fiona
>>
>> On Wed, 27 Sept 2023 at 19:35, Nitesh Gill <gillteshu(a)gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Dear everyone,
>>>
>>> I trust this email finds you in good health. We are excited to announce
>>> the upcoming Image Description Month in India description-a-thon, a
>>> collaborative effort, Image Description Month
>>> <https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image_Description_Month>, aimed at
>>> enhancing image-related content across Wikimedia projects. This event is
>>> scheduled to run for an entire month, from October 1st to October 31st,
>>> 2023.
>>>
>>> During the course of this event, our focus will revolve around three
>>> primary areas: Wikipedia, Wikidata, and Wikimedia Commons. We have several
>>> tasks lined up, including adding captions to images on Wikipedia,
>>> associating images with relevant Wikidata items, and improving the
>>> organization, categorization, and captions of media files on Wikimedia
>>> Commons etc.
>>>
>>> To stay updated and get involved, please visit our dedicated event page
>>> <https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/CIS-A2K/Events/Image_Description_Month_in_I…> We
>>> encourage you to sign up on the respective meta page and generously
>>> contribute your time and expertise to make essential and impactful edits.
>>>
>>> *Please note that our event page is currently under construction, and we
>>> are diligently working to complete it by October 1st.*
>>>
>>> If you have any questions or require further information, please do not
>>> hesitate to reach out to me at nitesh(a)cis-india.org.
>>>
>>> Your active participation will play a significant role in enriching
>>> Wikimedia content, making it more accessible and informative for users
>>> worldwide.
>>>
>>> Regards,
>>> Nitesh
>>> Program Officer
>>> CIS-A2K
>>>
>> _______________________________________________
>>> Wikimediaindia-l mailing list -- wikimediaindia-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
>>> To unsubscribe send an email to
>>> wikimediaindia-l-leave(a)lists.wikimedia.org
>>> To unsubscribe from the list / change mailing preferences visit
>>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/postorius/lists/wikimediaindia-l.lists.wikimedi…
>>
>>
Hello all,
Hope you all are doing well. We would like to remind you that the eleventh
Open Community Call will be happening *today* (*i.e. **29 October 2023*) where
we will be holding conversations around important aspects necessary for
communities, open space to share the ongoing activities among the
communities and their Wiki stories with others. The detailed agenda,
etherpad, call timings, and meeting link are available on the meta page
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/WikiConference_India_2023/Open_Community_Ca…>
.
Please add the following to your respective calendars and we look forward
to seeing you on the call.
[WCI 2023] Open Community Call
Date: 29 October 2023
Time: 1800-1900 [6 pm to 7 pm] (IST)
Google Link: https://meet.google.com/ubk-ugun-qzu
Please join the General Chat telegram group <https://t.me/+X9RLByiOxpAyNDZl>
to share your ideas, thoughts, inputs, suggestions, or questions.
Alternatively, you can also leave us a message on the talk page
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Talk:WikiConference_India_2023/Open_Communi…>
.
Look forward to connecting with you all,
Thank you!
Warm regards,
WCI 2023 Team
Hey! If you are interested in joining these calls, click on this public link
<https://calendar.google.com/calendar/u/2?cid=Y182ZWY5ZGQwODA4OWI2ZTdiNGRkNm…>
and
add the “Open Community Call” to get meeting invitations directly to your
calendar so that you don't miss out on any of our future calls. If you are
interested in moderating one of these calls, you can sign up under the
Moderator
Sign-up
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/WikiConference_India_2023/Open_Community_Ca…>
section.
Hello everyone,
We are delighted to extend an invitation to participate in the Indic Oral
Culture Project
<https://meta.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/Grants:Project/MSIG/Indic_Oral_Culture_Pr…>,
an initiative dedicated to the preservation and dissemination of
underrepresented forms of knowledge, specifically focused on oral culture,
including folk songs and folk tales. Our mission is to foster a cross-wiki,
cross-community effort to bring non-textual forms of knowledge onto various
Wikimedia projects.
Why use Wikimedia projects to document oral culture:
-
Folk songs are a cultural art form disappearing fast according to native
speakers and linguists
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Needs_assessment_for_documentation_and_revi…>
.
-
Several people now have access to cameras and freely available software
to create and process audiovisuals.
-
Broader accessibility and long-term preservation, fostering global
engagement and knowledge exchange.
Who can participate:
-
Beginners are welcome to join.
-
Knowledgeable on Wikimedia volunteerism.
-
Passionate about digitizing the underrepresented aspect of their
language and culture.
What we offer:
-
Online training program covering the use of mobile devices for recording
oral culture videos and the workflow of Wikimedia projects.
-
Utilization of Wikimedia projects to digitize and preserve oral culture.
-
Internet & travel support, and per diem for those who require it.
Please share with your community or individuals who might be interested in
this project. Reach out to us via email at amritsufi2(a)gmail.com
<http://indicoralculture.org/amritsufi2@gmail.com> or
peerzadaiflaq(a)gmail.com
Regards,
Peerzada Iflaq
Communications & Community coordinator
Indic Oral Culture Project
FYI
---------- Forwarded message ---------
వీరినుండి: Nataliia Tymkiv <ntymkiv(a)wikimedia.org>
Date: 23 అక్టో, 2023, సోమ 21:58
Subject: [Wikimedia-l] Wikimedia Foundation Affiliates Strategy: Summary
and Report
To: Wikimedia Mailing List <wikimedia-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
Dear all,
In November 2022, we announced that the Wikimedia Foundation Board of
Trustees (Board) would be embarking on creating a Wikimedia Foundation
Affiliates Strategy in collaboration with the Affiliations Committee, the
affiliates, and the broader communities [1]. The intention was to develop a
strategy that will help guide the Foundation’s immediate work in supporting
affiliates for the next few years, with a primary focus on the recognition
process, as a direct responsibility of the Board. We are now publishing the
report summary [2] and the report itself [3]. This report is presented in
the same format it was presented to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of
Trustees in Singapore, with identifiable information removed to respect
respondents’ privacy, and the context added at the beginning, to make it a
stand alone document.
We would like to thank all those who attended the meetings, and calls,
filled in the survey, additionally shared materials and ideas – and also to
staff for helping us to shape the process
Please take some time to review the summary and the report. You will see
that the conversations covered several topics and captured feedback outside
of the affiliate recognition process as well. We have shared this feedback
with the Board and with leadership at the Wikimedia Foundation, so that
more can be learnt to address feedback on these topics as well.
Maryana, the CEO of the Foundation, recently announced Talking: 2024
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Community_Affairs_Comm…>,
conversations to share, listen, and learn with intention as we all continue
to plan our future as a movement. You can use the Let’s Talk
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Community_Affairs_Comm…'s_talk>
feature to sign up for a time to speak with me and other trustees about the
Affiliate Recognition Strategy Report or any other topic regarding the
Wikimedia Foundation Board, Movement Strategy etc.
Best regards,
Nat & Shani & Lorenzo
Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees Liaisons to the Affiliations
Committee
== Wikimedia Foundation Affiliates Strategy: Summary ==
The Wikimedia Foundation (WMF) Board of Trustees believes that Wikimedia
affiliates are a key and integral part of the Wikimedia movement, and
affiliates’ success is vital for the Wikimedia movement’s success. To that
end, it is crucial to develop a clear vision regarding affiliates, making
it possible to assess whether the investment in, collaboration with, and
policy towards affiliates is promoting the right goals.
The Foundation’s Board decided to begin the process with creating a
strategy that will help guide the Foundation’s immediate work in supporting
affiliates for the next few years, with a primary focus on how affiliates
are recognised, as a direct responsibility of the Board.
In November 2022, the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees announced they
would be embarking on building this Wikimedia Foundation Affiliate Strategy
<https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org…>
in collaboration with the Affiliations Committee, the affiliates, and the
broader communities.
Over several months, the Wikimedia Foundation Board engaged with an outside
consultant to drive a review process of what work the Foundation was doing
to support affiliates. The end goal was to have several recommended actions.
=== The process ===
The first phase of the process was largely internal to the Board and the
Affiliations Committee. This phase involved interviewing current
Affiliations Committee (AffCom) members, its advisors, staff support
(former and current), staff from different teams and departments of the
Wikimedia Foundation who work closely with affiliates (like Legal,
Community Resources, and Advancement). The interviews were conducted by Jon
Huggett, a consultant on governance related topics. Jon previously worked
on the Movement roles project (2010–2011) and has completed other
governance-related analysis for the Board of Trustees. The result of the
first phase was summarised in a report presented to the Wikimedia
Foundation Board Liaisons to AffCom. This report was then discussed with
AffCom. This initial report was used to scope out the next phase of work.
The second phase involved collecting data from affiliates. This process
included calls with affiliates and a survey open to everyone (a public
invitation went out on the Wikimedia-L mailing list). The information
collected was compiled into a report with immediate recommendations. This
report was first presented and discussed with the AffCom, Community Affairs
Committee (CAC), and the Wikimedia Foundation Board at the Board meeting at
Wikimania in August 2023.
In total, the following groups were consulted:
-
8 Affiliations Committee members and advisors were interviewed 1-on-1
-
11 Wikimedia Foundation staff were interviewed 1-on-1
-
14 Affiliate Executive Directors interviewed in 5 group sessions
-
65+ community members attended 9 different online sessions and one
face-to-face session at WikiConference India
-
7 stakeholders interviewed 1-on-1
-
38 responses to 2023 Affiliate Experience Survey
=== The findings ===
Over the years, AffCom’s role has evolved into a very difficult set of
tasks, creating a demanding workload for hard-working volunteers. There are
opportunities to streamline the work to focus on affiliate recognition.
There needs to be further clarity around which decisions on recognition,
derecognition and conflict rest with AffCom, which are with the CAC, which
are with Foundation staff, and which with the Foundation Board.
=== Recommendations ===
One recommendation from the report is to move some of the administrative
work from AffCom to staff, including the tasks that require quick response
and detail. There also need to be new ways to select members of AffCom.
Finally, over the long term, some responsibilities could be transferred to
a Global Council. Further details on these recommendations can be found
directly in the report.
=== What happens next ===
The Trustees have reviewed the recommendations and the CAC will be working
with AffCom to implement some of the changes, the prioritisation and
implementation of which would be discussed with the AffCom, and further
communicated to the communities and affiliates. Community members can look
forward to periodic updates from the CAC.
[1]
https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org…
[2]
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Affiliates_Strategy/Re…
(summary page)
[3]
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wikimedia_Foundation_Affiliate_Reco…
(pdf)
On Fri, Jun 16, 2023 at 8:01 PM Nataliia Tymkiv <ntymkiv(a)wikimedia.org>
wrote:
> Dear all,
>
> Please find below a process update regarding the Wikimedia Foundation
> Affiliates Strategy [1], which was announced back in November 2022 [2].
> Here is a page with FAQs [3].The primary focus is determining the support
> affiliates need, especially during the recognition process, which is the
> Affiliations Committee’s core purpose [4].
>
> The first phase of the process was internal – interviewing current
> Affiliations Committee (AffCom) members, its advisors, staff support
> (former and current), staff from different teams and departments of the
> Wikimedia Foundation who work closely with affiliates (like Legal,
> Community Resources, and Advancement). The interviews were conducted by Jon
> Huggett, a consultant on governance related topics, who some of you may
> know from Movement roles project (2010–2011) [5]. The result of the first
> phase was summarised in a report presented to Wikimedia Foundation Board
> Liaisons to AffCom, and discussed with AffCom itself. This initial report
> was used to scope out the next phase of work and the aggregated comments
> from both phases will be included in the final report.
>
> The second phase is to collect data from affiliates – for this there are
> calls with affiliates being organised (the next ones are on June 18, and if
> you are interested, you can register and join them, here is the calendar
> [1]). Also there is a survey to fill in [6] (the privacy statement is here
> [7]). The data is being collected till June 30, 2023 (AoE - anywhere on
> Earth).
>
> As a note: the survey [6] is meant to be filled in by an individual, and
> it is important to hear from members of affiliates (not only from its main
> contacts). Also, it is possible to fill it in even without being affiliated
> with any affiliates – a community member can have a perspective about the
> work of affiliates in their region, language or thematic activities, and
> that perspective would be a bit different, as they would not know some
> internal issues the affiliate might have, but, that perspective would be
> still valuable. So please fill in the survey, if you have thoughts on the
> topic. Also there is an option to request a meeting with the Board liaisons
> to Affiliations Committee, if these forms of collecting data (calls and
> survey) are not enough in a specific case.
>
> After this second phase is done, the data would be processed, and a report
> will be produced, including the perspectives collected from the calls and
> survey. This report, including some immediate recommendations, would be
> first presented and discussed by the AffCom, Community Affairs Committee
> [8], and eventually by the Wikimedia Foundation Board at the Singapore
> meeting at Wikimania in August 2023.
>
> There would be an update here and on the Meta page [1] with the next steps
> after Wikimania.
>
>
> Best regards,
> Nat & Shani & Lorenzo
> Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees Liaisons to the Affiliations
> Committee
>
>
>
> [1]
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Affiliates_Strategy
>
> [2]
> https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org…
>
>
> [3]
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Affiliates_Strategy/FAQ
>
>
> [4] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Affiliations_Committee
>
> [5] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Movement_roles_project
>
> [6]
> https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScyRTQSIMYj9ymX4S-pbjtpZSqnQ8Icr-P…
>
>
> [7]
> https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Legal:2023_Affiliate_experience_surve…
>
>
> [8]
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Community_Affairs_Comm…
>
>
>
>
> ---------- Forwarded message ---------
> From: Nataliia Tymkiv <ntymkiv(a)wikimedia.org>
> Date: Wed, Nov 30, 2022 at 7:03 PM
> Subject: Beginning work on a Wikimedia Foundation Affiliates Strategy +
> AffCom elections update
> To: Wikimedia Mailing List <wikimedia-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
>
>
> Hello all,
>
> The Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees believes that Wikimedia
> affiliates are a key and integral part of the Wikimedia movement, and
> affiliates’ success is vital to the Wikimedia movement’s success. To that
> end, it is crucial to develop a clear vision regarding the affiliates,
> making it possible to assess whether the Foundation’s investment in,
> collaboration with, and policy towards affiliates is promoting the right
> goals. The Board will be embarking on building a Wikimedia Foundation
> Affiliates Strategy in collaboration with the Affiliations Committee (AffCom),
> the affiliates, and the broader communities. This strategy will help guide
> the Foundation’s immediate work in supporting affiliates for the next few
> years.
>
> In order to ensure that there is continuity and institutional memory
> during this process, there will be a delay of the elections for AffCom
> until after the strategy is complete, and the terms of the current AffCom
> members will be prolonged (in a separate resolution) to December 31, 2023.
> While the strategy is under development, AffCom will continue its current
> responsibilities, in addition to collaborating on the Wikimedia Foundation
> Affiliates Strategy.
>
> Once the Wikimedia Foundation Affiliates Strategy is ready, there would be
> clarity on what is expected from the Wikimedia Foundation for supporting
> affiliates, and what is expected from affiliates.
>
> As the weeks progress in the new calendar year, a plan of the process will
> be released, including opportunities for communities and affiliates to
> engage. You can find some FAQs below to assist further understanding of the
> Wikimedia Foundation Affiliates Strategy.
> Best regards,
> Nat & Shani
> Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees Liaisons to the Affiliations
> Committee
>
> == FAQs ==
> 1. What are Wikimedia movement affiliates? What is AffCom?
>
> Wikimedia movement affiliates are "independent and formally recognised"
> groups of people intended to organise and engage in activities to support
> and contribute to the Wikimedia movement [1]. Currently there are three
> active models for affiliates: chapters, thematic organisations, and user
> groups. The Affiliations Committee (AffCom) advises and makes
> recommendations regarding the recognition and existence of Wikimedia
> movement affiliates.
>
> 2. How is the work with affiliates at the Wikimedia Foundation organised
> now?
>
> As of now, processes are fragmented across different teams at the
> Wikimedia Foundation, and some decision making regarding affiliates is
> happening at different levels. A unified and consistent process is
> beneficial to all parties, hence the start of the work on the Wikimedia
> Foundation Affiliates Strategy.
>
> 3. What is the Wikimedia Foundation Affiliates Strategy? Is this an update
> of some existing document or something brand new?
>
> Until now there has not been any unified vision regarding how the work
> around affiliates should happen, as there was no affiliate-specific
> strategy developed before. The Wikimedia Foundation Affiliates Strategy is
> to be a blueprint that will guide the Foundation’s immediate work with
> affiliates. This strategy will be in place to inform and guide the
> Wikimedia Foundation budget and support to affiliates, until some kind of
> Movement-wide Affiliates Strategy is developed.
>
> 4. Why do we need a Wikimedia Foundation Affiliates Strategy?
>
> The Affiliates are a key part of the Wikimedia movement as mentioned in
> the Wikimedia Foundation mission, and their success is integral to the
> success of the whole Wikimedia Movement. As the affiliate ecosystem has
> grown in size and complexity, it is increasingly important to review
> existing approaches and ensure that the focus is on the right areas. The
> Wikimedia Foundation Affiliates Strategy will help to strengthen and
> advance the work of the affiliates.The Wikimedia Foundation Affiliates
> Strategy will take into account Wikimedia 2030 Movement Strategy
> recommendations
> <https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Movement_Strategy/Recommendations>.
>
> The Strategy will direct Foundation attention to the needs of affiliates
> and focus resources on those needs towards impact by affiliates.
>
> 5. Does the decision of developing the Wikimedia Foundation Affiliates
> Strategy change the role of AffCom?
>
> There are no immediate changes in the role of AffCom, which is continuing
> doing its job. However, the Wikimedia Foundation Affiliates Strategy will
> direct the future work of the Wikimedia Foundation in support of the
> affiliates, which could result in revising the role and scope of AffCom.
>
> 6. Why are the AffCom Elections delayed?
>
> Traditionally, AffCom had elections at least once every year to select
> (not elect) and appoint members who will serve in AffCom for a period of
> two years. This year AffCom elections will not be held. Instead, the
> elections will be delayed as AffCom is a key input for the Board in
> developing the Wikimedia Foundation Affiliates Strategy, and adding the
> burden of selecting and on-boarding new members will encumber the committee
> and make it difficult for it to discharge its regular duties as well as
> collaborate on the strategy. If the number of voting members falls below
> five (per the AffCom Charter
> <https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Affiliations_Committee_Charter>),
> elections will nonetheless be held.
>
> 7. Will the Movement Charter also have an "Affiliates Strategy" and/or
> define affiliate roles?
>
> While it is reasonable to expect that the Movement Charter will have
> prescriptions on affiliates and their recognition, and some of these
> responsibilities might shift to the Global Council once it is formed, it is
> currently unknown how this will unfold, and it will bear consequences only
> in years to come. Accordingly, this work is worth doing now so that the
> available resources are having the impact needed and are best serving the
> current Wikimedia movement and the affiliate ecosystem in the interim.
>
> 8. Is AffCom being asked to propose a Wikimedia Foundation Affiliates
> Strategy?
>
> No, AffCom is not expected to propose a Wikimedia Foundation Affiliates
> Strategy. AffCom has been invited by the Board to collaborate and give an
> expert opinion. While the Affiliations Committee is an advising committee
> to the Board, the Board is responsible for this strategy and will lead the
> community and affiliate conversations around it.
>
> 9. What is the timeline for this project?
>
> The target is to have a draft of the Wikimedia Foundation Affiliates
> Strategy for the Board’s approval at Wikimania 2023 (August 2023).
>
>
> [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation#Affiliates
>
_______________________________________________
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To unsubscribe send an email to wikimedia-l-leave(a)lists.wikimedia.org
"There are two topics this letter talks about – 1) the call for new members
of the Wikimedia Affiliations Committee (AffCom) is open
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Legal_department/Commi…>
on Meta until 17 November 2023, and 2) there are membership changes in the
committee to ensure the transition process for offboarding existing
members, and onboarding new ones."
---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Nataliia Tymkiv <ntymkiv(a)wikimedia.org>
Date: Tue, Oct 17, 2023 at 2:00 PM
Subject: [Wikimedia-l] Wikimedia Affiliations Committee: Call for New
Members + Membership changes
To: Wikimedia Mailing List <wikimedia-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
Dear all,
TL;DR
There are two topics this letter talks about – 1) the call for new members
of the Wikimedia Affiliations Committee (AffCom) is open
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Legal_department/Commi…>
on Meta until 17 November 2023; and 2) there are membership changes in the
committee to ensure the transition process for offboarding existing
members, and onboarding new ones.
== 2023 Call for AffCom members ==
The Affiliations Committee
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Affiliations_Committee> is, until 17
November 2023, seeking additional members to help the Wikimedia Foundation
Board of Trustees (Board) support the affiliate ecosystem. As a note: two
other movement groups (Ombuds commission and Case Review Committee) are
also seeking members. You can read about the process and how to apply here
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Wikimedia_Foundation_Leg…>
on Meta.
AffCom makes recommendations to the Board on the recognition, approval, or
derecognition of Wikimedia movement affiliates. It helps Wikimedians from
around the world self-organise into chapters, thematic organizations, and
user groups, and to gain official recognition from the Wikimedia
Foundation. AffCom’s work involves the recognition of new affiliates,
helping them retain their affiliate status through yearly reportings, and
conflict mitigation when challenges happen within affiliates.
Volunteers in this role should be experienced Wikimedians from any project,
have experience working with affiliates to practice good governance.
International perspectives, collaboration, teamwork and experience handling
sensitive situations are among traits needed. Given the scope of work,
proficiency in English is required. AffCom seeks members committing 7-10
hours monthly for a 3-year term. The members will have the option to run
again after completion of their terms.
Members are required to sign the Confidentiality agreement for nonpublic
information
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Confidentiality_agreement_for_nonpublic_inf…>
and must be willing to comply with the appropriate Wikimedia Foundation
board policies (such as the access to non-public information policy
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Access_to_nonpublic_information_policy>).
Members must also be over 18 years of age.
The information about this was previously shared on village pumps of the
Wikimedia projects, but as usual this call is also shared here, on the
mailing list.
== AffCom transition period ==
The number of members AffCom needs to recruit this year is not set, as
there was the intentional delay in selecting new members last year
(announced in December 2022, as AffCom was “a key input for the Board in
developing the Wikimedia Foundation Affiliates Strategy” [1]), but it has
created a need to stagger selection - as all AffCom members term come to
end at the same time: December 31, 2023. The number of seats available will
depend on how many existing members decide to carry on.
As having a committee formed entirely of new members is not sustainable,
there is an option for the current members to remain in their seats for a
transition period of 6 to 12 months (maximum until December 2024). Others
may choose to step down, before or after helping to onboard new members,
and pass on open tasks, and some may choose to join the volunteer process
to apply for another three year term as AffCom members.
With the goal of ensuring continuity, we, as the Board liaisons to AffCom,
have suggested to AffCom to convert two current AffCom advisors for a one
year term as AffCom members – as they have been a part of the AffCom work
for a while, they would need minimal onboarding, and would be able to
support the current workflows. Thus as of now, AffCom has two more members
joining it for a term ending 31 December 2024:
* Maor Malul, also known as user:Maor X
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Maor_X>, who has considerable
experience on this committee, having served even before his current role as
advisor as a member between 2013 and 2019, during which time he served
first as chair and then as co-chair;
* Aleksey Chalabyan, also known as user:Xelgen
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Xelgen>, who has already been
providing considerable value as an advisor since his appointment last year.
Speaking on behalf of the Board and reflecting the sentiments voiced by
AffCom itself, we are very happy that Maor and Aleksey have agreed to
support us in this way.
You can view more details about what this important committee does on Meta
in its “What we do
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Affiliations_Committee#what-we-do>”
section and also in their charter
<https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Affiliations_Committee_Charter>.
There will be a public comment period on applicants
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Affiliations_Committee/C…>
from 17 October to 17 November. Candidates will meet with AffCom, Board
liaisons and staff to discuss the role and their interest in it. The
Board’s Community Affairs Committee will also review the AffCom candidates,
to provide input. Per its Charter [2] the AffCom will appoint new members,
taking into account also the community feedback. The new members will be
announced in late December 2023, after individuals have been notified.
Thank you for reading this long letter, and thank you in advance for your
interest to join AffCom – or Ombuds commission and Case Review Committee!
And if you are not interested but know someone who might be, please share
this message with them, personal encouragement goes a long way in the
Wikimedia Movement. Also please let us know if you have any questions.
[1]
https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org…
[2] https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Affiliations_Committee_Charter
Best regards,
Nat & Shani & Lorenzo
Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees Liaisons to the Affiliations
Committee
------
antanana / Nataliia Tymkiv
Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
*NOTICE: You may have received this message outside of your normal working
hours/days, as I usually can work more as a volunteer during weekend. You
should not feel obligated to answer it during your days off. Thank you in
advance!*
_______________________________________________
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--
Pavan Santhosh.
Hello everyone,
We are delighted to extend an invitation to participate in the Indic Oral
Culture Project
<https://meta.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/Grants:Project/MSIG/Indic_Oral_Culture_Pr…>,
an initiative dedicated to the preservation and dissemination of
underrepresented forms of knowledge, specifically focused on oral culture,
including folk songs and folk tales. Our mission is to foster a cross-wiki,
cross-community effort to bring non-textual forms of knowledge onto various
Wikimedia projects.
Why use Wikimedia projects to document oral culture:
-
Folk songs are a cultural art form disappearing fast according to native
speakers and linguists
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Needs_assessment_for_documentation_and_revi…>
.
-
Several people now have access to cameras and freely available software
to create and process audiovisuals .
-
Broader accessibility and long-term preservation, fostering global
engagement and knowledge exchange.
Who can participate:
-
Beginners are welcome to join.
-
Knowledgeable on wikimedia volunteerism.
-
Passionate about digitizing the underrepresented aspect of their
language and culture.
What we offer:
-
Online training program covering the use of mobile devices for recording
oral culture videos and the workflow of Wikimedia projects.
-
Utilization of Wikimedia projects to digitize and preserve oral culture.
-
Internet & travel support, and per diem for those who require it.
Please share with your community or individuals who might be interested in
this project. Reach out to us via email at amritsufi2(a)gmail.com
<http://indicoralculture.org/amritsufi2@gmail.com> or
peerzadaiflaq(a)gmail.com
Regards,
Amrit Sufi
Project manager for Indic Oral Culture Project
Hello everyone,
The Indic MediaWiki Developers User Group
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Indic_MediaWiki_Developers_User_Group> is
happy to announce Indic Wikimedia Hackathon 2023 on 16 & 17 December 2023
in Pondicherry, India. The event is for everyone who contributes to
Wikimedia’s technical spaces code developers, maintainers, translators,
designers, technical writers and other related technical aspects. Along
with that, contributors who don't necessarily contribute to technical
spaces but have good understanding of issues on wikis and can work with
developers in addressing them can join too. You can come with a project in
mind, join an existing project, or create something new with others. The
goal of this event is to bring together technical contributors from India
to resolve pending technical issues, bugs, brainstorm on tooling ideas, and
foster connections between contributors.
We have scholarships to support participation of contributors residing in
India.
The scholarship form can be filled at
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd_Qqctj7I87QfYt5imc6iPcGPWuPfncCO…
and will close at 23:59 hrs on 7 October 2023 (Sunday) [IST].
Please reach out to contact(a)indicmediawikidev.org if you have any questions
or need support.
Best,
Indic MediaWiki Developers UG
Dear Indic Wikimedians,
Greetings from A2K. We hope this message finds you in good health and high spirits. We are excited to share a career opportunity with the Access to Knowledge team.
We are currently looking for a motivated individual to join our team as a Program Associate (Technical Outreach). The Program Associate will play a pivotal role in facilitating technical engagement, providing support, and advancing technological initiatives within the Wikimedia community. For a detailed overview of the position, including responsibilities, qualifications, and application details, please visit the official job posting on our website: [ https://cis-india.org/jobs/program-associate-technical-outreach | https://cis-india.org/jobs/program-associate-technical-outreach ] .
If you are interested in applying please do it sooner as we are reviewing applications on a rolling basis. If you know someone who might be a perfect fit for this role, please feel free to share this opportunity with them.
Please reach out to me at [ mailto:pavan@cis-india.org | pavan(a)cis-india.org ] if you have any further questions.
Best regards,
Pavan Santhosh,
Program Manager,
CIS-A2K.