Dear All,
As a part of the Wikimedia Foundation Chief Executive Officer Maryana’s Listening Tour, a meeting is scheduled for conversation with communities in South Asia.
Please see the event page here: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Maryana%E2%80%99s_Listening_Tour_%E2%80%95_…
The meet will be on Friday 26 November 2021 - 1:30 pm UTC [7:00 pm IST]. Maryana Iskander, Wikimedia Foundation Chief Executive Officer (CEO), will be the guest of the session.
We invite you to join the meet. The session will be hosted on Zoom and will be recorded. Please fill this short form, if you are interested to attend the meet.
Registration link: https://forms.gle/bDrJgdHFXTQh4otPA
Please follow the event page for updates.
Regards,
Jayanta Nath
CIS-A2K Team
Dear Wikimedians,
As you may already know, the Universal Code of Conduct (UCoC) provides a
baseline of behaviour for collaboration on Wikimedia projects worldwide.
Communities may add to this to develop policies that take account of local
and cultural context while maintaining the criteria listed here as a
minimum standard. The Wikimedia Foundation Board has ratified the policy in
December 2020.
The current round of conversations is around how the Universal Code of
Conduct should be enforced across different Wikimedia platforms and spaces.
This will include training of community members to address harassment,
development of technical tools to report harassment, and different levels
of handling UCoC violations, among other key areas.
The conversation hour is an opportunity for community members from South
Asia to discuss and provide their feedback, which will be passed on to the
drafting committee. The details of the conversation hour are as follows:
- Date and Time: 16 September, 5 pm to 6:30 pm IST
- Meeting link: https://meet.google.com/dnd-qyuq-vnd | add to your
calendar
<https://calendar.google.com/event?action=TEMPLATE&tmeid=NmVzbnVzbDA2Y3BwbHU…>
You can also attend the global round table sessions hosted on 18 September
- more details can be found on this page
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Universal_Code_of_Conduct/2021_consultation…>
.
--
Krishna Chaitanya Velaga (he/him)
Movement Strategy and Governance, Wikimedia Foundation
Dear Wikimedians,
Movement Strategy announces the Call for Candidates for the Movement
Charter Drafting Committee
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Movement_Charter/Draftin…>
.
The Call opens on 2 August and closes on 1 September 2021. The Committee is
expected to represent diversity in the Movement
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Movement_Charter/Draftin…>.
Diversity includes gender, language, geography, and experience. This
comprises participation in projects, affiliates, and the Wikimedia
Foundation.
- English fluency is not required to become a member. If needed,
translation and interpretation support is provided.
- Members will receive an allowance to offset participation costs. It is
US$100 every two months.
We are looking for people who have some of the following skills
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Movement_Charter/Draftin…>
:
- Know how to write collaboratively. (demonstrated experience is a plus)
- Are ready to find compromises.
- Focus on inclusion and diversity.
- Have knowledge of community consultations.
- Have intercultural communication experience.
- Have governance or organization experience in non-profits or
communities.
- Have experience negotiating with different parties.
The Committee is expected to start with 15 people. If there are 20 or more
candidates, a mixed election and selection process will happen. If there
are 19 or fewer candidates, then the process of selection without election
takes place.
If you are interested, please submit your candidacy here
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Movement_Charter/Draftin…>
.
Please contact strategy2030(a)wikimedia.org with questions.
--
Krishna Chaitanya Velaga (he/him)
Movement Strategy and Governance, Wikimedia Foundation
Dear All,
The Centre for Internet & Society (CIS) is seeking applications for the position of Research Associate, to support its Access to Knowledge (A2K) Programme.
The research associate is expected to support the larger goals of the programme, which include growth of Indian language Wikipedias, related Wikimedia projects and the contributor communities. Your primary responsibility will be to undertake research on selected topics relevant to key areas of programmatic work. For the present year, the focus will be on studying challenges and efforts to bridge the gender gap/bias on Indian language Wikimedia projects, exploring possibilities of collaboration with organizations working on building resources related to gender and sexuality, and assisting with a baseline study on Wikisource in India.
Given present restrictions on movement due to the pandemic, this would be a remote, full-time position until further notice. We encourage applications from individuals identifying as women, LGBTQIA+ and of gender non-conforming identity and sexual orientation. The deadline for applications is Friday, August 6, 2021.
Please read the detailed call for applications here: https://cis-india.org/jobs/call-for-research-associate-access-to-knowledge-…. & https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/CIS-A2K/Team/Join.
Thanks and Regards,
Jayanta Nath
Programme Officer (Wikisource)
Access to Knowledge Programme
The Centre for Internet & Society
Dear Urdu Wikimedians,
As you may already know, the 2021 Board of Trustees elections are from 4
August 2021 to 17 August 2021. Members of the Wikimedia community have the
opportunity to elect four candidates to a three-year term.
After a three-week-long Call for Candidates, there are 20 candidates for
the 2021 election
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Template:WMF_elections_candidate/2021/candi…>.
This event is for community members of South Asian and ESEAP communities to
know the candidates and interact with them.
The event will be on 31 July 2021 (Saturday) from 4 pm to 6:30 pm (IST).
For registration and other details, please visit the event page at
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_elections/2021/Meeting…
Let me know if you have any questions. Please share this in your
communities.
--
Krishna Chaitanya Velaga (he/him)
Movement Strategy and Governance, Wikimedia Foundation
Dear Urdu Wikimedians,
As you may be aware, the Wikimedia Foundation has started elections[1] for
community seats on the Board of Trustees. While previously there were three
community seats on the Board, with the expansion of the Board to sixteen
seats last year, community seats have been increased to eight, four of
which are up for election this year.
In the last fifteen years of the Board's history, there were only a few
candidates from the South Asian region who participated in the elections,
and hardly anyone from the community had a chance to serve on the Board.
While there are several reasons for this, this time, the Board and WMF are
very keen on encouraging and providing support to potential candidates from
historically underrepresented regions. This is a good chance to change the
historical problem of representation from the South Asian region in
high-level governance structures.
Ten days after the call for candidates began, there aren't any candidates
from South Asia yet[2], there are still 10 days left! I would like to ask
community members to encourage other community members, whom you think
would be potential candidates for the Board. While the final decision is
completely up to the person, it can be helpful to make sure that they are
aware of the election and the call for candidates.
Let me know if you need any information or support.
Best
--
Krishna Chaitanya Velaga (he/him)
Board Governance Facilitator, Wikimedia Foundation
[1] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_elections/2021
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_elections/2021/Candida…>
[2]
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_elections/2021/Candida…
Hello all,
The 2021 Board of Trustees election[1] is coming soon. Candidates from the
community are needed to fill the available seats.
The Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees oversees the Wikimedia
Foundation's operations. Community trustees and appointed trustees make up
the Board of Trustees. Each trustee serves a three-year term. The Wikimedia
community has the opportunity to vote for community trustees.
Wikimedia contributors will vote to fill four seats on the Board in 2021.
This is an opportunity to improve the Board's representation, diversity,
and expertise as a team.
For potential candidates:
- *Traits:* Wikimedia is a global movement and seeks candidates from the
broader community. Candidates should think about what experiences and
perspectives they will bring to the Board. Ideal candidates align with the
Wikimedia mission and are thoughtful, respectful, and community-oriented.
The Board would like to find perspectives and voices that are
under-represented and essential for our movement. They should bring what
Wikimedia needs from a new Trustee.
- *Commitment: *Trustees serve a three-year term and can serve up to
three consecutive terms. The time commitment is about 150 hours per year,
excluding travel. This time is not evenly spread throughout the year. The
time is concentrated around meetings. The expectation is that Trustees
serve on at least one of the Board’s committees.
- *Requirements*[2]: English is the language of business for the Board.
Candidates need a basic understanding of English, but support and training
are part of onboarding. Candidate applications will be translated into
several languages to reach a broad audience of voters.
- *Apply*[3]: Candidates from all projects and communities who meet the
needs of Wikimedia Trustee are welcome. If you know someone who could be a
good trustee, encourage them to run for election. Candidates can find
information and submit their nomination on the Apply to be a Candidate page.
- *Resources*[4]: A toolkit has been developed for community members who
are considering submitting their candidacy for the Wikimedia Foundation
Board of Trustees, and who want to better understand what to expect and how
to prepare for the role.
Thank you for your support,
The Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
[1]
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Wikimedia_Foundation_ele…
[2]
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Wikimedia_Foundation_ele…
[3]
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_elections/2021/Apply_t…
[4]
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_elections/Candidate_Re…
--
Krishna Chaitanya Velaga (he/him)
Board Governance Facilitator, Wikimedia Foundation
Dear Wikimedians,
As part of its ongoing program to support Wikimedians in India during the COVID-19 pandemic, CIS-A2K will provide support with access to counselling services to community members, in order to address mental health concerns resulting from the stress and anxiety of coping with the pandemic The A2K team has collaborated with the Institute of Psychological Health <https://www.healthymind.org/> to provide the counselling support. A2K would endeavour to provide support under this component of the programme as follows :
1) *Awareness/Orientation Session on Mental Health and the Pandemic. This session will be organised online and will be open to all Wikimedians in India looking to understand more about mental health concerns that are prevalent at the present time, due to pandemic-related anxiety, stress and trauma. The details of the session will be announced here shortly, with a link to a separate event page.
2) *Individual Counselling Sessions Interested Wikimedians who wish to apply for this support may fill out this application form. https://forms.gle/WXLj2cR4jie6r1pc6
For more details of this programme, please visit this meta page -
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/COVID-19_support_for_Wikimedians/India/COVI…
With best wishes,
Jayanta Nath
On behalf of A2K team,
Centre for Internet & Society - Access to Knowledge Programme