Grants:Project/Rapid/Cbrescia/Wiki Loves Andes Edit-a-thon 2019/Report

Report accepted
This report for a Rapid Grant approved in FY 2018-19 has been reviewed and accepted by the Wikimedia Foundation.

Goals edit

Did you meet your goals? Are you happy with how the project went?

We are very happy with how the project went. We are very happy too because we have twice received the support from Wikimedia Foundation. We have reached most of the targets and made a small but significant step in order to reach them in the middle term. 18 new articles were created during the Editathon in July and 16 more were created afterwards. This is the second edition and we have more lessons learned about the dynamics related to wikimedia events and the local context. Some of these are:

  • Partnerships are crucial: without the support of the students, Arte+Feminismo Peru, the National University Santiago Antunez de Mayolo (UNASAM), the Regional Officie of the Ministry of Culture, the Eleazar Guzman Barron Institute and more, a wikimedia event couldn´t be possible here;
  • Participation: although the number of participants was not large, the contribution and commitment of the persons that supported and participated the events was critical for achieving the goals and targets;
  • Prizes: for the second edition we had prizes for the best contributors in Wikipedia in Spanish and Wikimedia Commons, they are not crucial for participation; and
  • Photo walk: for the first edition we focused on nature photography while for the second one we focused on environmental liabilities (especifically mine tailings). Although participation in numbers was less, commitment was higher. This topic was suggested last year by members of the Red Universitaria Ambiental (Environmental University Network).

The original goals where:

Goal 1.- Recruit and increase skills of new editors for the Spanish Wikipedia

9 new editors were recruited for the Spanish Wikipedia, 13 participated in the Editathon. We had two experienced Wikipedia in Spanish editors participating not presentially.

Goal 2.- Add or improve content in articles about the Andes in the city of Huaraz, Peru

34 new articles were created for the Spanish Wikipedia:
Type Articles Total
Plants Clinopodium sericeum, Loricaria ferruginea, Peperomia inaequalifolia, Ageratina glechonophylla, Clinopodium speciosum, Nasa grandiflora, Geranium ruizii, Schkuhria pinnata 8
Lakes Laguna Ahuac, Laguna Aquilpo, Laguna Auquiscocha, Laguna Cullicocha, Laguna Mullaca, Laguna Willkacocha, Laguna Llaca, Laguna Minoyo 8
Mountains Pucajirca, Huamashraju, Puka Hirka, Milluacocha, Condorhuain, Condorhuayi , Shacsha, Urus, Caraz, Rurec 10
Archaeological
sites
Rapayán, Pójoc 2
Environmental
liabilities
Relave de Mesapata, Relave de Huancapetí, Desmonte de Santo Toribio, Relave de Chahuapampa, Relave de Ticapampa 5
Other Museo Municipal de Caraz, Comunidad Campesina de Vicos, Sociedad Peruana de Derecho Ambiental 1
Extras:
25 new Wikidata pages were created: Lake Minoyo‎, Waullac, Pójoc, Caraz Museum, Sociedad Peruana de Derecho Ambiental, Rapayán, Waman wain, Santo Toribio Mine Strippings, Chahuapampa Mine Tailings, Cullicocha, Lake Mullaca, Willcacocha, Llaca lake, Lake Aquilpo, Mesapata Mine Tailings, Huancapeti Mine Tailings, Ticapampa Mine Tailings, Puru, Lake Tararhua, Shoqma, Wiskur Danza, Lake Huallcacocha, Lake Radian, Comunidad campesina de Vicos, Comunidad campesina
21 new Wikispecies pages were created: Valeriana henrici , Pouteria subsessilifolia, Nasa grandiflora, Phlegmariurus crassus, Jatropha macrantha, Gynoxys caracensis, Pouteria capacifolia, Pouteria pachycalyx, Pouteria pallens, Pouteria polysepala, Pouteria euryphylla, Pouteria gigantea, Pouteria espinae, Polylepis subtusalbida, Polylepis sericea, Polylepis pacensis, Polylepis weberbaueri, Polylepis multijuga, Polylepis reticulata, Hypericum struthiolifolium, Hypostomus spiniger
12 new Wikimedia Commons categories were created: Choquerecuay, Chahuapampa mine tailings, Mesapata mine tailings, Mine tailings in Recuay province, Marcajirca, Willcacocha, Honcopampa, Ticapampa mine tailings, Nasa grandiflora, Gynoxys caracensis, Barnadesia dombeyana, Cueva de Guitarrero
8 articles were improved for the Spanish Wikipedia:
Type Articles Total
Plants Species Lupinus weberbaueri, Barnadesia dombeyana 2
Mountains Salcantay, Andavite 2
Lakes Laguna 513 1
Archaeological
sites
Marcajirca, Choquerecuay, Honcopampa 3
18 new images were provided for the following articles:
Type Articles Total
Plants Barnadesia dombeyana, Cestrum auriculatum, Loricaria ferruginea, Nasa grandiflora, Geranium ruizii, Clinopodium speciosum 6
Mountains Rurec, Huantsán 2
Lakes Laguna Minoyo, Laguna Willkacocha, Laguna Ahuac, Laguna Cullicocha 4
Archaeological
sites
Choquerecuay, Marcajirca, Honcopampa 3
Environmental
liabilities
Relave de Mesapata, Relave de Chahuapampa, Relave de Ticapampa 3

Goal 3.- Promote the participation of academics into creating and improving articles in Wikimedia projects

This is a long-term goal. No local academics participated in the creation and improvement of Wikipedia in Spanish articles. But we did have the participation of an important academic for the photo walk! Not only an excellent professor but he was a former member of the Glacier and Mountain Ecosystems Research Institute (INAIGEM) and former Chief of the Huascaran National Park. His guidance during the walk to all of us made a big difference. Two scholars from the Archaeology School of the UNASAM contributed with comments about the articles and helped to promote the events.

Outcome edit

Please report on your original project targets.


Target outcome Achieved outcome Explanation
TARGET 1
Number of events: 4
Number of events: 4 Six events were planned and four implemented:
Implemented:
i. Wikipedia Editing Workshop (July 12th); ii. II Editathon (July 13th); iii. Photo walk (July 20th); and iv. Results presentation and discussion (August 23rd).
To be Implemented:
v. Wikipedia Editing Workshop (September, 20th); vi. III Editathon (September, 21st).

On-line events in Facebook were created:

Events v. and vi. had to be posponed to September 2019 as tourism students and guides of the institute were on holidays during July and August (and also it is the high season for them).

TARGET 2
Number of participants: 20-40
Number of participants: 38 We reached the target number for participants during the four events planned and implemented. Still, the target number was not very high: for the photo walk we were full but for the editing workshop and editathon we could have have 10 more students as there was capacity for that (tutors and physical space).
TARGET 3
Number of new editors: 20
Number of new editors: 9 We only had 9 new editors: 6 in the Wikipedia in Spanish articles and 3 in Wikimedia Commons. Last year, all of the new editors were from the Environmental Engineering School, this year we had two new editors from the Archaeology School: this is good, both enjoyed and commented that more editors from that department would join if there was a coordination with the professors there. Still, we expected more new editors (last year we had 17 new editors) and reasons for not reaching the target here are varied: there was another event going on when we organized the editing workshop and maybe during the dry season (good weather from June through August) is not very attractive to stay a full Saturday in a classroom.
TARGET 4
Number of articles created or improved: 30
Number of articles created or improved: 37/9 We created 21 new articles for the Spanish Wikipedia on July 13th (Editathon day at the UNASAM). The other articles were created during the months of July and August by 3 editors. Last year most of the articles were plants but this year editors focused also in lakes and mountains.
TARGET 5
Number of repeat participants (for projects that include a series of events): 15
Number of repeat participants: 4 We expected the presence of more repeat participants. This number was inferior than in the 2018 events. From the 2018 events, only two participated again and created more articles this year than the first time last year (in total, 2 in 2018 vs 6 in 2019). As in the 2018 events, the persons that participated in the photo walks didnt participate presentially in the editing workshop and editathon.


Promotional Flyers, Editing Workshops and Editathon
edit
Mine tailings Photo walk & Plant photography
edit

Learning edit

Projects do not always go according to plan. Sharing what you learned can help you and others plan similar projects in the future. Help the movement learn from your experience by answering the following questions:

  • What worked well?
Again, our alliance with Arte+Feminismo Peru was instrumental as we used their know-how and lessons learned based in real experience organizing editathons for five years. They participated facilitating the editing workshops and tutoring new editors during the Editathon.
Also, the alliance with the UNASAM (National University Santiago Antunez de Mayolo) was very important as they provide the physical spaces (conference room and computer lab) in order to organize the events. Also the alliance with the Ancash Regional Office of the Ministry of Culture legitimates the activities and provides us also with physical spaces to run the events.
Again, working with students from the University was motivating as they easily understood the basics, learned the skills and initiated the articles in relation to the editathon (lakes, plants, mountains, archaeological sites). As mentioned earlier, we had two new editors from the Archaeology School and it may be possible to have a future editathon at this school to develop many relevant archaeological sites from the region.
Also, we created new and unexpected partnerships with the Viral Communications Circle of the Communicational Sciences School of the UNASAM and with the Eleazar Guzman Barron Institute. On September we are going two organize two events at the institute: an editing workshop and an editathon with the Tourism Studies students and guides.
The participation of one of the professors from the Environmental Engineering School from UNASAM accompanying us in the photo walk was great, this is a first step that can open a path for more academics participating. It was great that through the Wikimedia event the professor got acquainted with the Communicational Sciences School students and viceversa. They discussed the possibility of inviting him to participate in a round-table organised by the Viral Communications Circle.
For the photo walk, we invited a professional photographer to participate in taking pictures of the sites visited. His contributions were great and they have been uploaded to Wikimedia Commons. Now any person can use them following the guidelines of use there, for example: a student, a researcher, a media organisation. Last year, our professional photographer that facilitated the botanical photography workshop and accompanied us in the photo walk was more focused on teaching students about nature photography. As the students that accompanied us where from the Communicational Sciences School, they already had some experience in photography.
  • What did not work so well?
Maybe participation in terms of number of persons participating in the events. Still, we arrived to the targets and there is more people now, not only in Huaraz but also in Pery and beyond, that know about the importance of Wikipedia as a way to conserve and communicate about our natural and cultural heritage, about wikis and that everybody can edit it following the policies and guidelines.
Also, we learned that the prizes were not instrumental in attracting students to participate in the events. More important were personal relations and how we told the story about the project to others: making it fun, making it matter, making it academic.
Things that didnt work so well like participation is a very important issue to think about and discuss. It has to do with putting yourself on the service of providing relevant knowledge about the local realities that surround you. It has to do with being present and connecting to your environment, to your heritage and yourself. These are relevant topics and how to make students think on how they can help their society is very important. For example, during the photo walk we visited environmental liabilities that pollute the river with heavy metals such as lead and arsenic beyond the permissible limits. We had a great discussion with the Communicational Sciences students and the Environmental Engineering professor about this: that in order to unpollute a river, we have to identify the sources of pollution. Taking pictures, getting acquainted with these mine tailings and developing Wikipedia articles was a way to to do it. How can we know about the river pollution if this situation is not being told nowhere?
  • What would you do differently next time?
I would organise again an editathon with the Environmental Engineering School but also another a couple more with the Archaeology School and the Communicational Sciences School from the UNASAM. As we have more events in September with Tourism students and guides, we will get some lessons from that experience as these students are not from the university but from a local educational institute. Essentially, the idea would be to explore new possibilities working with students from different disciplines.
Also, I would like to expand the scope of the project and instead of applying again to Rapid Grants, apply for a Project Grant. The main idea will be to first train a small group of 12 students from the local University in Wikipedia policies and guidelines, creating and improving articles, and in facilitating editing workshops and editathons. Secondly, run like a rotatory paid internship program where each of the students (2 groups of 6) will work part-time one month on specific tasks related to organising events and contributing to Wikipedia in Spanish articles about natural and cultural heritage from the Andes. Not only in the city of Huaraz but in cities located in the north of Peru (Casma, Trujillo, Chimbote, Piura, Chiclayo, etc.). The project can last about 8 months and offline and online impact will be significant.

Finances edit

Grant funds spent edit

Please describe how much grant money you spent for approved expenses, and tell us what you spent it on.

# Description Planned
Budget
(USD)
Actual
Cost
(USD)
Actual
vs
Planned
%
Comments
1 Printing of affiches 50 80 160,00%
2 Prizes for best editors (set of books about Andean ecosystems) 150 145,7 97,13%
3 Tshirts memorabilia 20 40 200%
4 Food and drinks for coordination meetings 60 60 100%
5 Food and drink for 1 workshop training and 2 editathons, 30 people per event 100 103,79 103,79%
6 Food and drink for 1 photo walk, 15 people approx. 100 83,82 83,82%
7 Fee for opening lab in weekends 40 45,45 113,64%
8 Bus rental for Photo Walk in Natural Area 100 106,06 106,06%
9 Bus transport from Lima to Huaraz (and return) of Arte+Feminismo partners (2 persons) 150 134,24 89,49%
10 Accommodation and board for Arte+Feminismo partners (2 persons x 4 days) 200 159,70 79,85%
11 Honoraries for trainers from Arte+Feminsmo 200 200 100%
12 Honoraries for Video recording of the events, including edition, camera, tripod and audio equipment rental 250 250 100%
13 Local transport and printing (coordination activities) 50 52,67 105,33%
14 International bank transfer 50 59 118.00 %
Cost grand total 1520 $ 1520 $ $ Not spent

Total amount requested from WMF: 1520 $ (USD)

Total amount received from WMF: 1059 $ (USD)

Total amount not spent from 2018: 461 $ (USD)

Total amount spent on the project: 1520 $ (USD)

Remaining funds edit

Do you have any remaining grant funds?

We dont have any remaining grant funds.


Anything else edit

Anything else you want to share about your project?

We are very happy and grateful with the experience and we would like to continue organising events, expanding the type of pages created and improved beyond the topics already developed (plants, lakes, mountains, archaeological sites, environmental liabilities) and organise events in partnership with Arte+Feminismo in other places beyond Lima and Huaraz.