Brazil Program/Reports/February Report 2013

Institutional

Institutional Partnerships

A research on possible partners for the Wikimedia Foundation Brazil Catalyst Program has been carried out since October. This is part of the narrowing focus strategy and implies the Brazil Catalyst program to shift into the grantmaking strategy model.

Ação Educativa and Coletivo Digital were considered the most likely institutions for Wikimedia Foundation to set an institutional partnerhsip and host the development of the Catalyst project in Brazil. Anasuya Sengupta, consultants from Brazil and two community volunteers visited those institutions during her visit to Brazil. The meetings were good and clarifying. The results can be check here:

• Meeting with Ação Educativa
• Meeting with Coletivo Digital

Next steps include: developing a medium term strategy with partners and community and skype meetings to make final decisions and define terms and governance of this partnership.

Hirings and positions

• Arriving: Hiring and onboarding of Henrique Andrade and Jonas Xavier
• Leaving: Everton announced he’ll be leaving WMF for Open Knowledge Foundation soon. We’re working on the transition (he’ll be working part time for WMF until May or June) and on the opening of the job position. More in March.

Data & Experiments

Analysis

• Data analysis -Comparison year-over-year from 2009 to 2012. The Portuguese Wikipedia is still under a decrease in editors and edits, but this descrease in 2012 was much lower than in 2011. We may be reverting the decrease trend, little by little, but it’s hard to say yet. One more year is key to analyze it.

Staff & Community work

• Henrique’s and Jonas’ onboarding: access to data, tools, toolserver, guidance on the use of them, how tos, introducing to people, sharing plans, targets etc. Both worked on a draft execution detailed plan to be published and discussed by the community.

• IRC with community: agenda covered toolserver-Wikimedia Labs transition, methodologies to work on measures in Wikipedia, data portal (ideas, objectives, structure and target), demand for data on editors and edits per regions.

Workshop Surveys

• Creation of survey forms to be sent to every participant of offline activities developed by us and by the community.

Education

Partnerships with universities

• FGV SP (Getulio Vargas Foundation): group of professors developing a methodology in collaboration aiming at the second semester of 2013. Professors plan to have class assignment activities as well as a group of students who will be working throughout the semester on Wikipedia.

• UGF - Gama Filho University: partnership with the coordination of translation courses post graduation. Great part of their students are in their e-learning/distance learning program. Professors in the course are expected to assign students with translations of Wikipedia articles in English and Spanish into Portuguese. Oona and Everton have recorded a video interview in the University with Sanchez (the coordinator), to invite students to participate in the program and engage in Wikipedia activities. Activities will start in April.

• UFBA - Federal University of Bahia: Presentation to professors and to the university publisher: potential involvement in the Education program and potential partnership on Wikibooks, Wikisources and Commons through open educational resources.

Class assignments

• Everton contacted professors who will continue the program in their courses: Iara (Faculdades Integradas Rio Branco), Rafael, (UFRGS), Yury (UFES), Rubens (UNESP), Maria Paula (UNESP), Regina (USP), Sanchez + 4 professors (UGF), and to be finalized during this semester: Edivaldo (UFRJ), Juliana (UNIRIO), Viktor (UFF), Ricardo (UFPR), Leni (UFES)

Medicin Wikiproject

• Bot: Jonathan has finalized the bot to invite new contributors to edit the Medicin Wikiproject and Everton submitted the request for approval by the Portuguese community. Jonas has worked on final developments customizing categories and criteria for trigger.

Community and High School

• Making bridges between and engaging in conversation with 2 high school teachers who looked for WMF and community volunteers who are developing a project to be deployed in high schools.

Meet-ups

• Digitália (Jan/Feb): Digital Culture debate and Wikipedia editing workshop with 20 new editors. Usuário:Eduardofeld has led the workshop and has adopted 10 new users (http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usu%C3%A1rio:Eduardofeld). Oona and Everton organized, promoted and led the activities on the mission of Wikimedia projects. Oona was also one of the speakers in the opening session

• Wiki meet up in Bahia: participation of 3 editors from Bahia and one editor from Natal, who adopted 10 new users from the Workshop to mentor them.

• 2 Wiki meet-ups in São Paulo: Feb, 02 (fully community driven), and Feb, 23 (on the occasion of Anasuya’s visit).

Catalyzing Wikipedia

Tests pages

http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikip%C3%A9dia:Esplanada/geral/Boa_not%C3%ADcia:_muitos_usu%C3%A1rios_utilizando_as_p%C3%A1ginas_de_testes_pessoais_(18fev2013)