Thanks for the clarification.
I look forward to seeing an advocacy group working at the beginning of
2016. Unfortunately as there is a new requirement that to take part in
committees you must be a member of WMUK[2], this ensures that I will
be unable to contribute.
Links:
2. https://wikimedia.org.uk/wiki/Committee_Member_Code_of_Conduct/Proposed
Thanks,
Fae
On 2 December 2015 at 13:18, Lucy Crompton-Reid
<lucy.crompton-reid@wikimedia.org.uk> wrote:
> Dear Fae
>
> Many thanks for your email and you raise some very valid points. What I
> meant in my message was that strategic responsibility for advocacy would no
> longer form part of the communications role, as we are appointing this at a
> lower level and will no longer have a Head of External Relations. I
> certainly don't mean that I will be taking on or indeed controlling all
> advocacy work, as volunteers are (as you've said) crucial in this. As I
> mentioned, a working group for advocacy is being set up early next year and
> this will be made up of volunteers, although I will be involved in these
> meetings at least initially. Whilst this group is likely to focus on public
> policy, advocacy happens at many different levels and in its widest sense is
> about changing public perceptions and awareness of free and open knowledge -
> in which the role of volunteers as advocates and ambassadors is, of course,
> absolutely vital.
>
> I totally agree that the staff team needs to focus on meaningful programmes
> that have impact!
>
> Best wishes
> Lucy
>
>
>
> On 2 December 2015 at 12:23, Fæ <faewik@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> Hi Lucy,
>>
>> Just a couple of years ago, when the number of employees in the UK was
>> measured between zero or two, unpaid volunteers like me used to go
>> along and sit in on and give views in parliamentary discussions, meet
>> and share ideas with other unpaid volunteer representatives from
>> advocacy groups such as the Open Knowledge Foundation, Creative
>> Commons etc. This no longer seems to happen, nor does it seem
>> expected. It is still the norm for open knowledge groups apart from
>> WMUK to have unpaid volunteers as their leading advocates and main
>> points of contact.
>>
>> Considering that the FDC has already stated that:[1]
>> A. "The FDC is concerned about very low targets for WMUK’s program work."
>> B. "The FDC believes that WMUK's advocacy work and work on influencing
>> policy towards Open Knowledge in the UK and EU has potential."
>>
>> Would you consider keeping the staff focus firmly on delivering more
>> ambitious outcomes in programme work, and stepping back from
>> controlling advocacy work yourself? You could try approaching or
>> encouraging volunteers, such as the couple of trustees that are seen
>> at wikimeets, to take responsibility to push our advocacy for open
>> knowledge forward and enthuse some of their fellow UK Wikimedians.
>> With volunteers taking an active role, this brings relevance and
>> urgency to our volunteer groups and restores the organization to one
>> where the volunteers are central and leading change, rather than
>> joining projects where employees are the default top of the hierarchy.
>>
>> In terms of meaningful metrics, if hardly any volunteers are
>> interested in finding out more or getting directly involved with
>> suggested political or legislative advocacy even with supporting WMUK
>> employee time, then it seems a poor strategic choice to just proceed
>> with that work regardless.
>>
>> Links:
>> 1.
>> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Grants:APG/FDC_portal/FDC_recommendations/2015-2016_round1#Wikimedia_UK
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Fae (past trustee and chair for WMUK, no longer a member of WMUK)
>>
>> On 30 November 2015 at 13:00, Lucy Crompton-Reid
>> <lucy.crompton-reid@wikimedia.org.uk> wrote:
>> ...
>> > on hold while we were awaiting the FDC's recommendations for our annual
>> > grant from the Wikimedia Foundation; however I'm now hoping to advertise
>> > for
>> > a new Communications Co-ordinator in the new year. This post will be at
>> > a
>> > lower level than Stevie - mainly for financial reasons - and will have a
>> > slightly different emphasis. The advocacy work that Stevie was managing
>> > brilliantly will now be led by me, but will also involve staff from our
>> > programmes team as well as an advocacy working group that is being set
>> > up.
>> ...
>> > Lucy
>> --
>> faewik@gmail.com https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Fae
>>
>> _______________________________________________
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>> wikimediauk-l@wikimedia.org
>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimediauk-l
>> WMUK: https://wikimedia.org.uk
>
>
>
>
> --
>
> Lucy Crompton-Reid
>
> Chief Executive
>
> Wikimedia UK
--
faewik@gmail.com https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Fae
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