Cross-Project Collaboration Initiative

The Cross-Project Collaboration Initiative (CPCI) is a group of volunteers spanning Bosnian, Croatian, Montenegrin, Serbian and Serbo-Croatian Wikimedia projects. It is focused on strengthening communication between the communities, organizing joint edit-a-thons, coordinating joint ventures and reducing redundant work through better knowledge and experience sharing across all the projects involved.

This is possible as the users of Bosnian, Croatian, Montenegrin, Serbian and Serbo-Croatian Wikimedia projects use regional language variants that are all mutually intelligible as part of the same pluricentric language.

The initiative is supported by a considerable number of users, among whom are many administrators of the involved projects. The CPCI also has the support of the Wikimedia Foundation's Movement Strategy and Governance team of community facilitators for Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia (CEE-CA).

Structure edit

The group enjoys a flat structure where all members have a voice and are encouraged to bring up topics and discuss them with the rest of the group. The discussions have resulted in specific proposals taken to the local communities, technical implementations, and connections with the wider Wikimedia community.

The group and its members have so far enjoyed wide support from Wikimedia Foundation, and global community members who have expressed their sympathies for the cause. As such, the group is on track to realize its objectives. This page will be updated with specific examples as these are realized.

Aims edit

The aims of the project are as follows:

  • Connecting editors from different communities
  • Sharing knowledge and experiences for the benefit of all projects involved
  • Strengthening the local administrative system and organization of communities
  • Connecting the local administrative structures of communities
  • Raising awareness of the importance of collaboration and communication

Objectives edit

The objectives of the groups are as follows:

  • Organizing joint editorial competitions, marathons (edit-a-thons) and thematic weeks
  • Creating a centralized communication platform
  • Writing uniform policies and guidelines
  • Establishing an independent regional body to assist in the arbitration and enforcement of the Universal Code of Conduct (UCoC)
  • Encouraging discussion in the communities about collaboration and administration

Members edit

Member Join date Main projects Focus within the initiative
Aca (talk · contribs) March 25, 2023 sr, sh
Acaalexaca (talk · contribs) sr
Arnel (talk · contribs) bs
Deni (talk · contribs) sh Point-of-contact
ImperatorkA (talk · contribs) sr
ImStevan (talk · contribs) sr
Inokosni organ (talk · contribs) sh
Ivi104 (talk · contribs) hr
Koreanovsky (talk · contribs) hr
MirkoS18 (talk · contribs) sr
Vilena66 (talk · contribs) sr
Vipz (talk · contribs) sh Communication platforms
Z1KA (talk · contribs) bs

Supporters edit

Supporter Date Main projects Notes
BPipal (WMF) (talk · contribs) March 23, 2023
Janbery (talk · contribs) August 15, 2023 cswiki

Membership edit

Membership of the CPCI is obtained through the nomination of an existing member, who submits it to the rest of the group, along with the (assumed) motivations of the nominee. This is then discussed within the group, and, if a positive consensus is formed, an invitation is extended.

The CPCI is looking for members who show a sincere interest in contributing to the wider community behind the target projects as a whole and using the Wikimedia projects to spread free knowledge to all of the approximately 19 million speakers across the language spectrum.

Anyone is welcome to submit a membership request. This is done through the group's point-of-contact (currently Deni) by informally sharing their motivation for wanting to join them.

Expectation of activity edit

Members are expected to participate in the work of the group, and at a minimum attend its meetings to the extent they are able to. To make sure that group members are updated on the group’s activities and the perspective of other members, an effort is made to communicate with individual members on what they need to stay engaged. Members with personal circumstances are encouraged to take breaks away from the group as needed and welcome back if/when their situation allows.

Membership criteria edit

The group welcomes new members who sincerely wish to contribute to strengthening the collaboration between the group’s target projects and will evaluate candidates on a case-by-case basis taking into account the above considerations and what best compliments the group’s existing skills.

The following weighs positively when evaluating prospective candidate members. The candidate member:

  • must be a constructive editor who has not participated in nationalist POV pushing
  • should not have active blocks on targeted projects
  • must adhere to the Universal Code of Conduct and Terms of Use
  • has not participated in spreading disinformation, gaslighting or any other misconduct

Despite the above guidelines, the group is free to accept or deny any candidate based on their previous conduct, the current group dynamic, and other factors. A consensus of the current members will ultimately decide whether or not a candidate is accepted into the group.