Dear Wiki Community,
It's been a while since our last communication so we want to catch up with
you on some important issues.
Chapter's Conference
The Wikimedia Chapter's Conference was held in Berlin from 13 - 17 May. WM
ZA was represented by Bobby, Dumi and Theresa. Some very important issues
were discussed with regards to the future of the movement. We invite you to
view the meta page on the conference
<https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Wikimedia_Conference_2015> .
The way forward for the movement in the African context and how the Chapter
can assist user groups throughout Africa to promote the movement in their
respective communities were discussed at the African meetup
<http://pad.tn/p/wikiafrican> .
_____
Award Ceremony for Wiki from Above and Meetup
The FPV Festival <http://www.fpvfest.com/> will be held in Stellenbosch
tomorrow where we will be announcing the winners of the Wiki from Above
competition <https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:WFA_2015> . There
will also be a wiki-meetup
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Meetup/Cape_Town/Cape_Town_8>
earlier in the day. If you are in the area, please do join us!
_____
Joburgpedia
The second Joburgpedia edit-a-thon will be held tomorrow at ConHill.
Learners from 24 schools will be working on their submissions for the
Joburgpedia writing contest. For more information, or if you would like to
attend the event, please contact Thato
<mailto:T.Masiangoako@constitutionhill.org.za> or Bobby
<mailto:bobbyshabangu@gmail.com> .
_____
Evaluation Survey
Please remember to complete our evaluation survey
<http://wikimedia.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_5pXdPBtl9B5BsDH> if you have
not done so yet. The survey closes on 19 June 2015.
_____
Kiwix Units
Our first two Kiwix units have arrived and we will shortly be installing one
of these at Sinenjongo High School. These nifty devices enable you to have
the whole Wikipedia at hand wherever you go! To find out more, please visit
the Kiwix website <http://www.kiwix.org/wiki/Main_Page> .
_____
Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees Elections 2015
Voting has begun for the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees election.
This Board oversees the foundation and it's work as its ultimate corporate
authority. There are two candidates from Africa. Remember that the people
elected are to serve the best interest of our movement. Think about what
that means for South Africa and Africa as a continent. Your vote as a
Wikipedian is your voice. Make it heard! You can vote here
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_elections_2015> .
Votes will be accepted until 23:59 on 31 May 2015 (UTC).
_____
Workshop - The role of Wikipedia in the intellectualisation of the African
Languages: Why, what and how?
Through this workshop, the Academy of African Languages and Science (AALS)
hopes to play its part in creating an awareness of the significance of
Wikipedia as a key educational and language resource through which
encyclopaedic information and educational content can be produced and
consumed in the African languages. For more information on this workshop,
please visit our website <http://wikimedia.org.za/wiki/Main_Page> .
Until next week, happy editing!
Wiki Regards
signature
If you aren't a <http://wikimedia.org.za/wiki/Template:Join-Us> member of
WM ZA yet, why not join us? Membership requests can be
<mailto:humetheresa@gmail.com?subject=WMZA%20Membership%20Enquiry> mailed to
the Administrator.
Remember, to follow us on <http://www.twitter.com/Wikimedia_ZA> Twitter,
<http://www.facebook.com/WikimediaZA> Facebook,
<http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBFQLpvHnAWXcrVFMxdYLPw> YouTube and
subscribe to our <https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimediaza>
Mailing List.
Workshop on the role of Wikipedia in the intellectualisation of the African
Languages: Why, what and how?
Hosted by the Academy of African Languages and Science (AALS), College of
Graduate Studies, Unisa
www.unisa.ac.za/aals
Date: 3 June 2015
Time: 08:30-15:30
Venue: Bamboo Room, Kgorong, Unisa Muckleneuk Campus, Pretoria
Attendance: Free of charge, but registration is essential since the venue
has limited seating.
RSVP: Ms Motswalle Kanyane, aals(a)unisa.ac.za
Purpose
Wikipedia changed the world by putting an encyclopaedia within reach of
anybody with internet access. Available in over 280 languages, it grows and
improves by the hour and has become one of the most well-known and used
resources on the Web. However, in spite of the many languages currently
represented in Wikipedia, not all of them have thorough and in-depth content
to support multilingual education. Moreover, outside of the realm of a human
readable online encyclopaedia in multiple languages, the full value of
Wikipedia has remained largely hidden to many readers. Today Wikipedia, for
example, also provides a building block for many other advanced
technologies, especially language technologies.
Through this workshop, the Academy of African Languages and Science (AALS)
hopes to play its part in creating an awareness of the significance of
Wikipedia as a key educational and language resource through which
encyclopaedic information and educational content can be produced and
consumed in the African languages.
Our hope is that academics, school teachers, language practitioners, subject
experts across many domains, students and any other interested persons will
recognise and embrace the opportunities that Wikipedia offers for the
development of the African languages. Possible ways of contributing are, for
example, by translating articles from other Wikipedias, specifically the
English one, or by writing new content in the African languages. Since
Wikipedia relies on volunteers for its existence, growth and quality, AALS
also offers opportunities for training and support for persons interested in
getting involved in the building of the African languages Wikipedias in the
future.
The specific aims of this workshop are to (1) explain what Wikipedia really
is and why it is of such strategic significance for sustainable
multilingualism; (2) explore possible ways to identify topics on which to
write and to select articles in the English Wikipedia to translate; (3)
provide basic technical information on how to participate and how AALS can
assist; (4) get a glimpse of what it means to be a Wikipedian - examples and
lessons learnt.
Invited keynote speaker - Amir Aharoni, Wikimedia Foundation
Amir Aharoni was born in Moscow and now lives in Jerusalem. He received a
B.A. from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in Hebrew language and
Structural Linguistics, and began studying for an M.A. in Romance studies in
the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He is a member of the language
engineering team of the Wikimedia Foundation, improving the software support
for different languages. As a volunteer, he is also a member of Wikimedia
Israel and of the Wikimedia Foundation's language committee.
signature
Wiki groete aan almal
Vir die gelukkiges wat in die mooie Kaap woon, wil ons julle graag uitnooi na die volgende Wiki-byeenkoms wat sal plaasvind op Saterdag, 30 Mei vanaf 10:00. Hierdie byeenkoms val saam met die FPV Fees op Stellenbosch.
By hierdie fees sal die wenners van die ‘Wiki From Above’ kompetisie bekendgemaak word, en jy sal die geleentheid hê om deel te neem aan die feestelikhede van die dag.
Vir meer inligting, besoek gerus die feesblad <http://www.fpvfest.com/> en die meta bladsy vir die byeenkoms <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Meetup/Cape_Town/Cape_Town_8> .
Wiki groete
signature
Dear Wiki Community,
The week in review :
Launch of the Joburgpedia Writing Contest
On Saturday, 9 May 2015 we will be launching the 2015 Joburgpedia Writing
Contest <http://joburgpedia.co.za/index.php?title=Writing_Competition> in
partnership with The Constitution Hill Education Project. Representatives
from 21 schools will be attending this event.
The competition runs from 9 May 2015 to 30 June 2015 and is open to
residents of Gauteng, as well as schools who wish to participate as a
collaborative input unit. To find out more about the competition please
visit the Joburgpedia website
<http://joburgpedia.co.za/index.php?title=Main_Page> . If you want to
attend the launch, please indicate your attendance on the Facebook page
<http://www.facebook.com/events/357675861089799/> .
Evaluation Survey
We would like to thank the 127 editors who have completed the survey to
date. For those of you who have not had the opportunity, we ask that you
take a few minutes to do this to help us understand the editing community in
South Africa. We apologise for the length of the questionnaire, but as this
is the first survey conducted in South Africa, there are several metrics
that we need your feedback on. The survey can be taken here
<http://wikimedia.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_5pXdPBtl9B5BsDH> .
Chapter's Conference
The annual meeting of all Wikimedia organisations to discuss the future of
the Wikimedia movement in terms of collaboration, structures and
organisational development will take place in Berlin from 13 - 17 May 2015.
Bobby Shabangu and Theresa Hume will represent WM ZA. There is an African
meetup on Friday, 15 May from 18:00 - 21:00 at the conference venue for
representatives from Africa who are attending.
VAT Registration
Just some feedback on the status of our VAT registration. There was a hold
up with our application at SARS and we hope to have our application
finalised by the end of the week. We will advise as soon as registration
has gone through.
Wiki From Above Competition
Remember that the deadline for Wiki from Above has been extended to 25 May
2015. A tutorial on how to enter the competition
<http://youtu.be/N7o6BXHn_oU> is available on Youtube. There are also
steps available on the competition page
<http://wikimedia.org.za/wiki/Wiki_From_Above_2015#How_to_enter> .
As I will be away at the Chapter's Conference, the next weekly update will
be sent out at the end of the month. Happy editing until then!
Wiki Regards
signature
If you aren't a <http://wikimedia.org.za/wiki/Template:Join-Us> member of
WM ZA yet, why not join us? Membership requests can be
<mailto:humetheresa@gmail.com?subject=WMZA%20Membership%20Enquiry> mailed to
the Administrator.
Remember, to follow us on <http://www.twitter.com/Wikimedia_ZA> Twitter,
<http://www.facebook.com/WikimediaZA> Facebook,
<http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBFQLpvHnAWXcrVFMxdYLPw> YouTube and
subscribe to our <https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimediaza>
Mailing List.
Dear Wiki Community,
The week in review :
Launch of the Joburgpedia Writing Contest
On Saturday, 9 May 2015 we will be launching the 2015 Joburgpedia Writing
Contest <http://joburgpedia.co.za/index.php?title=Writing_Competition> in
partnership with The Constitution Hill Education Project. Representatives
from 21 schools will be attending this event.
The competition runs from 9 May 2015 to 30 June 2015 and is open to
residents of Gauteng, as well as schools who wish to participate as a
collaborative input unit. To find out more about the competition please
visit the Joburgpedia website
<http://joburgpedia.co.za/index.php?title=Main_Page> . If you want to
attend the launch, please indicate your attendance on the Facebook page
<http://www.facebook.com/events/357675861089799/> .
Evaluation Survey
We would like to thank the 127 editors who have completed the survey to
date. For those of you who have not had the opportunity, we ask that you
take a few minutes to do this to help us understand the editing community in
South Africa. We apologise for the length of the questionnaire, but as this
is the first survey conducted in South Africa, there are several metrics
that we need your feedback on. The survey can be taken here
<http://wikimedia.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_5pXdPBtl9B5BsDH> .
Chapter's Conference
The annual meeting of all Wikimedia organisations to discuss the future of
the Wikimedia movement in terms of collaboration, structures and
organisational development will take place in Berlin from 13 - 17 May 2015.
Bobby Shabangu and Theresa Hume will represent WM ZA. There is an African
meetup on Friday, 15 May from 18:00 - 21:00 at the conference venue for
representatives from Africa who are attending.
VAT Registration
Just some feedback on the status of our VAT registration. There was a hold
up with our application at SARS and we hope to have our application
finalised by the end of the week. We will advise as soon as registration
has gone through.
Wiki From Above Competition
Remember that the deadline for Wiki from Above has been extended to 25 May
2015. A tutorial on how to enter the competition
<http://youtu.be/N7o6BXHn_oU> is available on Youtube. There are also
steps available on the competition page
<http://wikimedia.org.za/wiki/Wiki_From_Above_2015#How_to_enter> .
As I will be away at the Chapter's Conference, the next weekly update will
be sent out at the end of the month. Happy editing until then!
Wiki Regards
signature
If you aren't a <http://wikimedia.org.za/wiki/Template:Join-Us> member of
WM ZA yet, why not join us? Membership requests can be
<mailto:humetheresa@gmail.com?subject=WMZA%20Membership%20Enquiry> mailed to
the Administrator.
Remember, to follow us on <http://www.twitter.com/Wikimedia_ZA> Twitter,
<http://www.facebook.com/WikimediaZA> Facebook,
<http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBFQLpvHnAWXcrVFMxdYLPw> YouTube and
subscribe to our <https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimediaza>
Mailing List.