[Foundation-l] Community of the Wikimedian Projects

Geoffrey Plourde geo.plrd at yahoo.com
Sun Apr 27 02:25:50 UTC 2008 

Forgive me if I am missing something... but isn't this kind of bureaucratic?


----- Original Message ----
From: Milos Rancic <millosh at gmail.com>
To: Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List <foundation-l at lists.wikimedia.org>
Sent: Saturday, April 26, 2008 9:20:01 AM
Subject: [Foundation-l] Community of the Wikimedian Projects

As the previous proposal failed, I am able to make a different approach to
the issue related to the common body of Wikimedian projects. Proposal below
is at the Meta page [[Community of the Wikimedian
Projects<http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Community_of_the_Wikimedian_projects>]].
Of course, it is a draft. According to my proposal, we have time until the
end of June to decide what to do with the proposal.

* * *

As the creation of Volunteer
Council<http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikicouncil>(named as
Wikicouncil at the beginning) failed (Board
didn't want to create such
body<http://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/foundation-l/2008-April/041917.html>),
there is a possibility for changing the approach for the creation of the
common body for the Wikimedian projects. Proposal on this page describes the
Community of the Wikimedian Projects (CWP).

In short, projects interested in coordination of their activities would
would be able to opt-in the body where they would be able to make decisions
related to all projects. Examples of such decisions may be granting bot
status at one place, increasing communication level between projects,
coordinating activities around particular WikiProjects and whatever else
which some or all projects from this group see as their common interes.

Coordination between projects is almost non-existing. While it works inside
of language boundaries, it is rare out of them. And we have a lot of tasks
which are common to all projects, especially if we are talking about the
same project types (like Wikipedia is). We are wasting a lot of resources
and efforts by doing one task a number of times. Instead of that, we should
start to work on the common goals together.
Opting in

Opting in CWP should be done by making a community decision inside of the
particular project. The process of the community decision is up to a
particular community and their own rules and customs. Sometimes it is simple
majority, sometimes it is 2/3 majority and sometimes it is consensus-lik 80%
majority. Before opting in, community of a particular project should
describe its own process for making decisions which affect the whole
project.

Community which opts in should make the next decisions at the time of opting
in:

  -

  To adopt all decisions already made by CWP. (If the project is opting
  in at the time of CWP's creation, it should adopt only the initial
  document.)
  -

  To delegate at least one person for coordination inside of the CWP.
  -

  To decide how it will make decisions: only on project-wide referendum,
  by a special body which represents the projects, by a single representative
  or a group of representatives; or in combination of all of them.

Full members and observers

Project with at least 10 very active contributors is qualified to become a
full member. Projects with less than 10 active contributors are able to make
project groups. Project group with at least 10 very active contributors is
qualified to become a full member.

Full member projects are able to vote in the decision making process, while
observing projects are not able. In all other cases rithgs of observing
projects are equal to the rights of full member projects.
Constituting the CWP

CWP will be constitued at the time when 10 projects (or groups of projects)
with the right to vote join the CWP.
CWP bodies

  -

  Decision-making body:
  -

      Council of the Wikimedian Projects is the body which is
      consisted of the representatives or delegates of all full member projects.
      -

  Working bodies
  -

      The Secretariat is the main coordinating body. Its role is to
      coordinate activities of CWP. The Secretariat is giving reports
to the CWP
      quarterly.
      -

      Working groups are permanent or non-permanent CWP bodies made to
      address a particular issue.

All members of CWP's bodies have to be Wikimedians, while they don't need to
be members of the project-member.
Decision making process

All of the decisions should be made with clearly support of all
project-members. Projects are able to decide how it would be made. They may
choose to make all of the decisions inside of their communities or to elect
one or more persons to represent their will. All proposals should consider
that fact and leave enough of time for decision.

Council of Wikimedian Projects may delegate to the working bodies power to
make a particular decision.
CWP's first tasks

  -

  Chosing the Secretariat of the CWP.
  -

  Addressing common issues, like centralized bot flags are.
  -

  Translating and analyzing rules made by communities.
  -

  Making a program for self-education of the community members according
  to the projects needs.

Transitional notes

  -

  This proposal is on discussion until the June 30th, 2008. Until that
  time the next tasks should be done:
  -

      The document should be finished in details.
      -

      Provisional Secretariat, a body which should made the rest of
      the job should be formed by volunteers interested in this issue.
      -

  During another three months (until September 30th, 2008) the next
  tasks should be done:
  -

      Provisional Secretariat should make an analysis statistics and
      define which projects are egliable to be the full members and whichmay be
      observing members (or need to make a group of projects to have
the right to
      vote).
      -

      Provisional Secretariat should contact all Wikimedian projects
      and present to them this proposal.
      -

      Projects should opt in.
      -

      If CWP wouldn't be constitued in that time, Provisional
      Secretariat may give three months more grace period. If CWP wouldn't be
      constitued in that time, Provisional Secretariat should declare that the
      constitution of CWP didn't succeed.

End notes

  -

  The main idea behind CWP is to make a body which would be able to
  address common issues on the existing projects. Its primary goal is not to
  deal with non-existing projects or the global structure of Wikimedian
  community.
  -

  CWP may decide to take care about the projects which don't have very
  active contributors. However, it may be done only in coordination with the
  Board of Trustees of Wikimedia Foundation.
  -

  As CWP is an opt-in body, until it doesn't represent the clear
  majority of the Wikimedian community, it shouldn't be able to make decisions
  related to make any meta decisions, including aproving or disaproving new
  projects, stewards or any other global Wikimedian body. However, if the
  project members of CWP decides so, it may be able to approve Arbitration
  Committees or similar bodies inside of the member projects.
  -

  CWP may decide to act as an intermediate body between project members
  communities and Wikimedia Foundation.

Volunteers willing to be members of the Provisional Secretariat

If you are willing to become a member of the Provisional Secreatirat, sign
here.

  -

  ~~~
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