Wikimedia Community User Group Uganda/Uganda Society at 100 years

The Uganda Society, established in 1923, was formerly known as the Uganda Literary and Scientific Society and later adopted its current name in 1933. This organization was founded with the primary objectives of promoting literary and scientific knowledge among individuals interested in Uganda and establishing a permanent institution to fulfill this purpose.

Copy of the Uganda Journal, 1934

The Society celebrated 100 years in October 1923 and GLAM-Wiki will be commemorating this milestone by adding information about its past leaders, publications and images to Wikimedia projects such as Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons.

Objective

The project will be carried out 3 phases but at the end, these are the associated aims :

1. Increase the information about the Uganda Society on various Wikimedia projects such as Wikimedia Commons, Wikidata & Wikipedia  ;
2. Increase the quality of new and existing content on the said entities on the given platforms ;
3. Upskill the contributors in using QuickStatements for mass uploads on Wikidata as well as how to profile cultural organizations and publications on Wikipedia;
4. Create visibility for the user group’s GLAM project , the user group in general, the individual contributors and the entities profiled among others ;
5. Create a sense of ownership for Ugandan-related content

Day 1 Programme

Saturday 13 Jan 2024

Time	Activities	Lead(s)
8:00 am - 8:30 am	Registration and Welcome Welcoming participants and providing an overview of the day's agenda. Introducing the project goals and objectives. Distributing materials and resources.	Micheal Kaluba
8:30 am - 9:00 am	Introduction to GLAM-Wiki and the Uganda Society Providing background information on GLAM-Wiki and its mission. Give an overview of the Uganda Society, its history, and significance. Discuss the importance of contributing to Wikimedia projects for cultural institutions.	Alice Kibombo Wartson Atukwatse
9:00 am - 10:30 am	Training Session 1 - Wikipedia Editing Basics Basic introduction to Wikipedia editing. Hands-on training on how to create and edit Wikipedia articles. Emphasizing the significance of reliable sourcing and citation.	Micheal Kaluba
10:30 am - 10:45 am	Morning Break
10:45 am - 12:15 pm	Training Session 2 - Wikidata and QuickStatements Overview of Wikidata and its role in linking structured data. Practical training on using QuickStatements for mass uploads on Wikidata. Discuss the importance of accurate data representation.	Micheal Kaluba Alice Kibombo
12:15 pm - 1:15 pm	Lunch Break
1:15 pm - 2:45 pm	Hands-on Editing Session 1 - Wikipedia Articles Participants start creating and editing Wikipedia articles related to the Uganda Society. Leads providing assistance and guidance. Emphasize quality, neutrality, and verifiability in content creation.	Micheal Kaluba Alice Kibombo
2:45 pm - 3:00 pm	Afternoon Break
3:00 pm - 4:00 pm	Hands-on Editing Session 2 - Wikidata Uploads Participants use QuickStatements to upload data about the Uganda Society on Wikidata. Mentors provide support and address any issues. Discuss strategies for maintaining and updating information over time.	Micheal Kaluba Alice Kibombo
4:00 pm - 4:30 pm	Closing Session A recap of the day's activities. Collecting feedback on the training sessions and the overall experience. Provide information on future opportunities for involvement in GLAM-Wiki projects.	Alice Kibombo Wartson Atukwatse

Day 1 Participants

No.	Name	Organisation	Username
1	Micheal Kaluba	Wikimedia Community User Group Uganda	Micheal Kaluba
2	Macholi Chris Benard	Wikimedia Community User Group Uganda	Macholi
3	Alice Kibombo	Wikimedia Community User Group Uganda	AKibombo
4	Margaret Kabanda	Wikimedia Community User Group Uganda	Pine12k
5	Evalyn Mulungi	Wikimedia Community User Group Uganda	MEvalyn
6	Atukwatse Wartson	The Uganda Society	Wartson
7	Nankinga Caroline	Wikimedia Community User Group Uganda	Cn22760

Day 2 Programme

TBC

Time	Activities	Lead(s)
8:00 am - 8:30 am	Registration and Welcome
8ː30 am - 9ː30 am	Categorization of Wikipedia Articles
9ː30 am - 10ː30 am	Creating More Wikipedia Articles
10:30 am - 10:45 am	Morning Break
10ː45 am - 11ː15 am	Finalizing the Pending Wikipedia Articles
11ː15 am - 12ː15 am	Cleaning Wikidata and Visualization of the Timeline
12:15 pm - 1:15 pm	Lunch Break
1ː15 pm - 2ː30 pm	Publication and Promotional Planning for the Project

Link to dashboard

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Experience and challenges

1. A number of images were deleted for no not really clear reasons, we feel that the criteria for deletion was applied selectively and the decision not really explained well and yet other images were not deleted (See example 1,example 2, sample response)
2. Most of the crucial information could only be obtained verbally as we had to rely on the curator ;
3. The age and conditions of some of the sources was not really good and we therefore could not use them.
4. We attempted to create new categories as per Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons guidelines but they were contested and this may make finding information a challenge (see communication here)

Achievements

1. Creation of new categories which made finding some information relatively easy (See outcomes below) ;.
2. Editors involved were introduced and trained on how to use Quick Statements and mass uploads of data.
3. Editors learnt how to use mobile phone photography to take quality images.
4. A partnership with a key GLAM-Wiki partner was established.
5. The partnership established gave us access to not-easy-to find resources and information.
6. Working with a smaller team ensured that we had less administrative work to do ;

Outcomes

1. At least 14 images of past presidents were added to Wikimedia Commons and were used to improve existing articles. Follow this link to Wikimedia Commons Category : The Uganda Society
2. At least 10 new articles were created on English Wikipedia while others were improved by adding an image. Follow this link to Wikipedia Category : Presidents of the Uganda Society
3. At least 32 unique items were created on Wikidata to satisfy the elected position of president of the Uganda Society. Follow this link to the query for results on Wikidata