Strategy/Wikimedia movement/2018-20/Transition/Discuss/Cluster F

Transition

Global events

Recommendations

Design

FAQ

Discussion of priorities: Cluster A - 22. Movement Charter + 23. Interim Global Council + 24. Global Council • Cluster B - 9. Methodology to improve the Wikimedia platform UX + 11. Resources for newcomers • Cluster C - 31-33: Invest in Skills and Leadership Development • Cluster D - 25. Regional & thematic hubs • Cluster E - 2. Funding for underrepresented communities • Cluster F - 3. Increased awareness about the Wikimedia Movement • Cluster G - 8. Align with environmental sustainability initiatives • Cluster H - 36-38: Identify Topics for Impact

This page contains a summary of discussions from the Movement Strategy 5-6 December Global Conversations regarding the implementation of the initiatives: 3. Increased awareness about the Wikimedia Movement. Feel free to continue the conversation on Meta by adding your thoughts and comments in the talk page.

Events summary

5 December

Video summary of the discussion (same as the written points, recorded during the events).

Round 1

Key actions (full notes on Etherpad):

1. Establish more partnerships, better collaborations with schools, universities - Support relationships and connections between the Wikimedia Foundation, media, academic institutions
2. Develop a network with communities on the ground to encourage more volunteers to share about our free model, reliable sources, independence
3. Engage people on the ground to do outreach community programs - to share relevant information and create connections

Video summary of the discussion (same as the written points, recorded during the events).

Round 2

Key actions (full notes on Etherpad):

1. Partner with schools and academic institutions and reach out to teachers and professors. Issues: 1. Most people know Wikipedia, but not Wikimedia; and 2. People, especially teachers, doubt its credibility.
2. Partner and reach out out more widely to GLAMs.
3. Address misconceptions around credibility, paid editing and open source.

6 December

Video summary of the discussion (same as the written points, recorded during the events).

Round 1

Key actions (full notes on Etherpad):

1. Establish partnerships and collaboration with schools, universities, museums, libraries and all institutions that share knowledge should be aware of the Wikimedia movement.
2. We also need to develop the network with the communities on the ground to encourage more volunteers to share and free the knowledge, as well as to use Wikipedia.
3. Find people who have good performance in outreach to communities.

Round 2

Video summary of the discussion (same as the written points, recorded during the events).

Key actions (full notes on Etherpad):

1. Agree on awareness metrics (both globally-shared ones, and contextualized ones) to set goals and measure progress.
2. Create more clarity around the image of Wikimedia and Wikipedia. Better communicate what we actually do as a movement, towards civil society in general and donors in particular.
3. Fund pilot awareness programs, such as an "ambassadors program".
4. Create a "raise awareness guidebook" for all affiliates to share best practices. For example, advise affiliates to look into their country's development agenda, in order to benefit from institutional programs through partnerships and government support.

Detailed input

The rich input from the December Global Conversations, in addition to feedback from other discussions has been further organized by the Support Team into a more coherent template. The objective of this template is to clarify the proposals that have already emerged in the discussions, and to serve as a basis to continue the conversation around the implementation of the Movement Strategy recommendations. The eventual goal is to develop it into a “draft implementation plan” that will be presented to the whole movement and the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees in February 2021. The current template is put forward to serve as the baseline for the upcoming follow-up discussions in January.

The information below has been directly taken from the minutes of the Global Conversations and occasionally edited or rephrased for clarity, so it is not necessarily verbatim.

Defining the scope

• Raising awareness: does it mean making people "aware" that Wikipedia exists? Or making them understand how the movement works?.
• The rebranding project is controversial, but we still need to be less confusing to outsiders
• According to 2017 research, awareness is mainly an issue of the Global South (only 20%, with four times that in the Global North).

Who should be involved

• Both new and older users: Contact between them is crucial for better inclusion.
• Sister wikiproject communities: Many people know Wikipedia, but they aren't aware of other Wikimedia projects.
• Institutions that share knowledge should be aware of the Wikipedia movement.
• School students and teachers:
  • Connecting to students and matching them to projects that they are interested in.
  • Motivating students to contribute (instead of focusing on them just using the knowledge).
  • Teachers are main critics of Wikipedia, training can help them understand how Wikipedia works.  Those teachers are also the entry point to discuss Wikipedia with their students, who are a crucial audience of Wikipedia.
• Inform donors about what we do with the funds, our activities.

Immediate steps for the next 18 months

• Agree on awareness metrics (both global ones, and locally-contextualized ones) to set goals and measure progress.
• Make it clear that Wikipedia is coherently connected to other projects. Make sure people know about all the projects by providing more visibility of these projects in articles.
• By the next 18 months, have a strategic plan for communications:
  • Host events to attract media attention.
  • We need to be more flexible with formats and forums on where to engage the public in non-Western communities.
  • Conduct more social Media promotion: we are missing out on engaging the world of Youtube, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, etc.
  • Promotion of equal usage of information from Wikipedia in educational institutions.
  • Try to communicate what people actually care about and connect it to our movement.
  • Tell our stories, how we became members of this community. How we've grown over the years as members of the community.
• Tailor communications/ marketing to local audiences, people who are excluded.
• Create a guideline for engaging with potential partners.
  • Create a "raise awareness guidebook" for all affiliates to share best practices.
• Connect global and local work together: For example, create global partnerships that can be replicated at a local level.
  • Network marketing: making referrals and allowing people to connect to people already in the community.
• Create awareness programs to target universities. A lot of people and academicians know and use Wikipedia but there is this notion that it is not credible.
• Document our impact (link with Identify Impact) so that people are aware about what we do.
  • Share case studies to encourage following the examples of others (e.g. the British Museum Wikimedian in Residence first experience).
• Clear out Misconceptions that prevent new contributors from joining , including:
  • That Wikipedia belongs to Google. When you search anything on Google, it diverts to Wikipedia because Wikipedia belongs to Google.
  • that Wikimedia has paid editors regularly updating the content.
  • Promote the credibility of Wikipedia.

Needs for resources and support

• Create an "ambassadors" program to have volunteers doing advocacy, raising awareness in various countries (eg. "each one teaches one") with a symbolic incentive for the ambassadors.

Interested communities and affiliates

Based on local, regional, and thematic priorities (please see table and map):

WM Morocco, Santali UG, WMDE - community, UG Senegal, WM Algeria, UG Côte d'Ivoire, Sudan, San Diego, Malaysia, Hablon UG, Tanzania UG, Celtic Knot, Myanmar UG, Uganda UG, Arabic-speaking community

Interested in implementation

Sign below (in whatever capacity or affiliation you like) if you are interested in contributing to the implementation of this cluster:

1. DaSupremo (talk) 22:24, 25 December 2020 (UTC)
2. TaronjaSatsuma (talk) 08:12, 20 January 2021 (UTC)
3. PDiazR (WMCL) (talk) 17:41, 26 January 2021 (UTC)
4. Luisina Ferrante (WMAR) (talk) 15:51, 3 March 2021 (UTC)
5. Musa Vacho77 (talk) 15:41, 22 May 2021 (UTC)
6. Din-nani1 (talk) 10:13, 8 June 2021 (UTC)