[Wikimedia-l] Your support is wanted: The WMF Board of Trustees is looking for a new Board member

[Anders Wennersten]

I would like to promote the idea that this person should be a supporter 
of counties/language that is less fortunate then most of us, ie where 
free expression of speech is in threat and where we now see an 
unfortunate trend to limit the free Internet access.

I have spoken with colleagues from Russia and Ukraine and am utterly 
impressed by their perseverance and idealistic drive in a real tough 
environment. I also see the success of the Arabic wp as one of the major 
achievement the last coupe of years. I have no idea what it looks like 
in Uzbek Wikipedia or Aszerbadjan wikipedia and wonder what is just now 
happening in the Georgians one who have had success.

With a Board member who knows of these realties from inside (being an 
experienced wikipedian?) I could hope that we as a Movement could act 
more provocative to promote Free Knowledge for All even where it now 
seems there are powers wanting to sabotage this our vision

Anders







Alice Wiegand skrev 2013-02-17 00:55:
> Hi everyone,
>
> as you know, we have one vacant appointed seat on the Board of Trustees. We
> have asked m/Oppenheim Associates to assist us in finding a new board
> member and and we are reaching out to the community for suggestions and
> nominations.
>
> The Board functions as a governance body that is ultimately responsible for
> the Wikimedia Foundation and its activities, supervises the disposition and
> solicitation of donations, and evaluates the organization’s Executive
> Director who leads all Foundation staff. As arguably the most influential
> and respected organization in the free knowledge movement, the Wikimedia
> Foundation and its Board have a great responsibility for setting policy
> deliberately and with due consideration for the diverse interests of a
> truly global community. To find out more about the responsibilities and
> workings of the board you can have a look at the Board
> manual<http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia_board_manual>
> .
>
> As with any search process we will be communicating with a lot of potential
> candidates to see if we are a good match. The Board’s objective is to use
> this search to strengthen its competence with regards to board governance,
> grantmaking, strategy, and expertise with regions where Wikimedia is trying
> to make rapid strides in the growth of our projects.
>
> Board terms are for a two year period. Compared to other boards the time
> commitment is very significant. The Board of Trustees meets four times a
> year, twice in San Francisco and twice in changing locations around the
> globe. Meetings take two days and travel can add another two days to each
> meeting. In addition, the Board communicates frequently by email and
> Internet Relay Chat (IRC) as it navigates policy issues. This can absorb
> 4-10 hours weekly. Board members also regularly engage with the Community
> through wiki pages.
>
> We think that the WMF would benefit from a Board member who has experience
> with organizations that have grown and evolved rapidly, and who understands
> how boards can evolve to provide appropriate governance support in these
> changing circumstances. Experience with international, community-driven,
> consensus organizations is also important as the Foundation would not exist
> without the community.
>
> We would like to call upon you to help us out with finding the right
> individual. A complete position description can be found
> here<http://moppenheim.com/searches/links/Wikimedia%20Foundation%20-%20Board%20Member%20position%20description%20-%20final.pdf>and
> additional information can be found at
> www.moppenheim.com and www.wikimediafoundation.org. Your suggestions and
> nominations are very welcome. Please feel free to reach out to your
> networks and distribute this note as you deem appropriate.
>
> Interested individuals should contact Lisa Grossman  lisag at moppenheim.com
>