Hello Board, Here are the answers to the questions 1. Why do you think you suit to be in the board of WMKE? I have been a part of WMKE for over a year now and I have seen it grow. I understand the tasksand challenges that lie ahead and I believe taking a lead role as a Board member I am going to leverage on the lessons and experiences that I have learned since I joined so that we Make Wikimedia Kenya a chapter of excellence and a model to be emulated all across our continent. Having worked in the education and technology field for quite sometime I know that knowledge is a great resource that has the capacity to change generations and alter the course of history for the better. I am therefore very supportive of the Wikimedia Vision and I will bring with me my experience as an open source enthusiast and a Webfwd for the success of the chapter.
2. What is your take on the level of participation of members in WMKE projects/meetings/mailing list? Anything you think should be done differently?
We Should work to improve member participation and come up with projects. I do believe the mailing list is a good form of communication but only if used in the right way so that we have only the most important and relevant information on the mailing list and not too much that it causes inconvenience.
3. As a board needs members with different skills (e.g. administrative, financial, public relations etc), please tell us which particular skill set have you worked in previously, like in another society or organisation?
I bring with me plenty of experience in management having worked in the educational field as an administrative assistant at Bridge international Academies, as an Operations Associate at Mprep and also as agribusiness officer at PanAAC.
I am also good in networking and building communities and I hope to use this skills in improving wikimedia Kenya
4. Which languages have you worked in so far? And what is your position on both a language policy and a language strategy for WMKE?
I have worked on Swahili and English and I beleive we should really work more in improving the local languages particularly swahili.
5. How would you best deal with the issue of editor attraction and retention in our local chapter so as to ensure the growth of WMKE as a whole?
I will encourage more outreach projects to educational institutions and also work towards having entry level projects for the newbies. e.g Wikpedia Takes Nairobi.
6. Now that we are an independent chapter, how do you plan to raise funds supposing the parent Wikimedia Foundation won't avail funds to run the aforementioned project?
Having taken part in the annual fundraiser I learned a lot of lessons on the topic.
1. Wikimedia Fundraiser is facilitated by 2 things, Banners and Appeals.
2. The banners and appeals used in other parts of the world may not have the same impact as it does here in Kenya.
We therefore need to come up with Banners and that best describe our local experience and also have a lower level of contribution that most people can afford. I am thinking of the Kenyans for Kenya intitiative where it was possible for people to donate as low as 10Shs.
Therefore working with the team we will come up with the best fundraiser strategy that best fits our local chapter.
7. What kind of a project/ activity would you envision WMKE and its members undertake in order to fulfill the objectives of Wikimedia Foundation as a whole?
We need to further on the exiting offline project and also work on attracting more editors in our Swahili Wikipedia. My goal is to have at least 300 edits per month on Swahili Wikipedia.
The other project is partnering with chapters in other parts of the world on potential projects that can be replicated locally. e.g the Wik1 Africa project.
Warmly, Isaac K. Kosgei. Bachelor of Agribusiness Management +254727553981 SkypeProfile: Kipsizoo http://ke.linkedin.com/in/kipsizoo Twitter: @kipsizoo Blogs: www.kipsizoo.blogspot.com Agribusiness Blog "My satisfaction comes from my commitment to advancing a better world" - Faye Wattleton