tl;dr Self-nominations invited for four Board-appointed members of the FDC. Nominate here.[3]
Dear members of the Wikimedia community,
The Funds Dissemination Committee Advisory Group (FDC AG) met recently in Frankfurt to recommend to the Executive Director (ED) of the Wikimedia Foundation whether the FDC - the nine member volunteer committee reviewing annual plan grants or allocations for Wikimedia and allied organisations - should continue or not, after the first two years of its existence.[1] The detailed recommendations of the FDC AG will be shared with the Executive Director and the community shortly, but we are happy to announce that the AG recommends that the FDC continues to exist with some suggested improvements to the process.
The final decision on the FDC will be taken by the ED and the Board of WMF over the next few months (the FDC Framework’s timeline suggests August), but the AG’s overall recommendation is a testimony to the deep commitment and energy of the current FDC and the community members who have participated in this unique peer-review grantmaking process. Thank you.
Without anticipating the ED and Board’s decision, we would like to move forward with the process of renewing the current FDC with four Board-appointed members of the FDC so that a full FDC is in place by August 2014. As per the Framework,[2] four of the current committee members will be ending their two year terms in July, and four new members will be appointed by the WMF Board to fill these vacancies.
I write to ask those of you interested in joining the FDC to signal your interest on Meta by self-nominating by end of day UTC June 15.[3] The schedule for the nominations process is as follows:
* May 30 - June 15: Self nominations to join the FDC. Candidates indicate their interest through a short paragraph about themselves, and respond to an initial set of questions from the FDC staff
* June 1 - June 30: Public question and answer [4] from community members to candidates
* June 24 - July 3: FDC staff in consultation with the FDC Board representatives (Bishakha Datta and Patricio Lorente) interview a sub-set of nominated candidates
* July 3: Shortlist of candidates announced
* July 4 - 10: Decision on final four FDC candidates by the Board reps in consultation with the full Board
* July 11: Public announcement to community of the four new members
* August: Based on the ED and Board’s decision on the FDC’s existence, orientation of the new FDC at Wikimania
To be eligible to join the FDC, members need to meet the requirements below, as outlined by the Framework.[5] They must:
* have sufficient time and dedication to commit to this time-heavy process, including attending two 4-6 day face-to-face meetings (likely in mid-May and mid-November) and be able to meet the expectations outlined in more detail on the nominations page
* have a track record of constructive engagement in community discussions and an orientation toward collaborative problem solving
* be able to set aside any conflicts of interest and work towards the mission goals of the Wikimedia movement without considering individual or organizational interests
* be over 21 years in age and over the age of majority in their home country
* be able to work effectively in English (note that full fluency is not required)
* present to WMF appropriate personal identification
* Staff / board members of entities requesting funds from the FDC may serve on the FDC;
however, they must recuse themselves from deliberations pertaining to their entity's application.
The *skills and attributes* being sought for in FDC members include:
* Experience directing or evaluating programs;
* Grant-making expertise (either as a grantee or grantor of funds);
* Exposure to, understanding of, and personal credibility in the Wikimedia movement (experience across different Wikimedia projects as well as experience in programs, chapters, or administrative roles within the Wikimedia movement);
* Gender, geographic and linguistic diversity.
There are no term limits for FDC members, and current members may choose to re-apply for the FDC. The members whose terms end this July are Anders Wennersten, Arjuna Rao Chavala, Mike Peel (current Secretary), and Yuri Perohanych. The members who continue on the FDC for another year are Ali Haidar Khan (current Vice-Chair), Dariusz Jemielniak (current Chair), Cristian Consonni, Delphine Ménard and Sydney Poore. More information about the Committee’s roles is available on Meta.[6]
We’ll hold IRC office hours to answer questions, particularly for those of you interested in joining the committee. Current FDC members may join these office hours, based on their availability. Office hours will be held on the #wikimedia-office channel on Wednesday, June 4 at 0:00 UTC and again later that day at 16:00 UTC.[7]
Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me and my FDC staff colleagues at FDCsupport@wikimedia.org. We’d be happy to answer any questions you may have about joining the committee.
Warmly,
Anasuya
[1] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Funds_Dissemination_Committee_Advisory_Group...
[2] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Grants:APG/Funds_Dissemination_Committee/Fra...
[3] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Grants:APG/Funds_Dissemination_Committee/Nom...
[4] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Grants:APG/Funds_Dissemination_Committee/Nom...
[5] http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Grants:APG/Funds_Dissemination_Committee/Fram...
[6] http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Grants:APG/Funds_Dissemination_Committee#Role...
[7] http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/IRC_office_hours