Wikimedia chapters/Reports/Wikimedia Österreich/June 2015

June 2015
Report

Community Support

Wiki Loves Earth 2015

Austria participated in WLE for the second time. 3637 images were uploaded from May 1st to June 30th. Concerning the number of images, Austria ranks 9th among the 28 nations participating in 2015. The close and effective collaboration between WMAT board and staff, external contractor and wider community was based upon years of experience with the successful organizing of WLM in Austria. 54 retained editors and 153 new editors contributed to the Austrian competition. The number of newbies is above our target (150 new editors for both WLE and WLM in 2015). We believe this is direct result of our extensive public relations work. We used our new media database for a press campaign and sent information material to numerous nature organizations in Austria. Two of them, the World Wildlife Fund and the Austrian Alpine Society, were also represented in our jury.

Image usage in Wikimedia projects (date: 2015-07-02)
Total image usages – all namespaces	699	Distinct images used – all namespaces	675 (of 3637)
Total image usages – main namespace only	693	Distinct images used – main namespace only	673 (of 3637)

Selected images from Wiki Loves Earth 2015 in Austria

Individuals involved: 211 (active editors: 55, new editors: 153, WMAT staff: 2, contractor: 1). – WMAT support: organization, promotion.

→ wikilovesearth.at

→ Images on Wikimedia Commons

→ Interview with Ms Reitler from our WLE Partner the Austrian Alpine Club

WikiDienstag

The WikiDienstag (“WikiTuesday“) is a weekly meet-up in the WMAT office. Volunteers share their knowledge and work together on improving the content of Wikimedia projects.

Topics in June:

June 1st: Preparatory meeting for Wiki Takes Nordtiroler Oberland.
June 9th: Wiki Loves Pride (excursion).
June 17th: Workshop "How to do simple and sustainable projects"
June 23rd: Report on the 3rd Guide Camp.
June 30th: Wikimania preparatory meeting.

Individuals involved: 39 (active editors: 38, WMAT staff: 1). - WMAT support: infrastructure, co-organisation, promotion.

→ WikiDienstag in the German-language Wikipedia

Free Content Generation

Wiki takes Nordtiroler Oberland

The Tyrolean Oberland (Nordtiroler Oberland) is a remote mountain area in the Austrian alps. It was one the last regions in Austria of which the number and quality of free images for Wikipedia articles was very unsatisfying, especially concerning cultural and natural monuments. A group of Austrian Wikimedians changed this situation completely by organizing a "Wiki Takes" to the region. They also invited German and Swiss Wikimedia photographers to join them. WMAT assisted in the overall organization and covered the general organization costs as well as the travel costs for the Austrians, whereas WMDE and WMCH paid for the travel costs of the German and Swiss participants. In order to exploit financial and human synergies, WMAT decided to hold its annual General assembly in the city of Imst. WMAT conducted a press campaign about "Wiki Takes Nordtiroler Oberland", informed the municipalities in the region about the project and asked them for help concerning undiscoverable objects. The project focussed not only on photography but also on written content, resulting in 25 new articles and 56 improved articles (lists on cultural and natural monuments) about the Tyrolean Oberland.

Image usage in Wikimedia projects (date: 2015-07-02)
Total image usages – all namespaces	443	Distinct images used – all namespaces	389 (of 2096)
Total image usages – main namespace only	422	Distinct images used – main namespace only	377 (of 2096)

Selected images from Wiki Takes Nordtiroler Oberland

Individuals involved: 13 (active editors: 11 (engaging 2 active editors who have formerly not or very rarely been active WMAT volunteers into the planning and/or executing; retaining 1 active editors who became a new active WMAT volunteer in 2014 into the planning and/or executing), WMAT staff: 2). – WMAT support: travel and accomodation costs for 5 volunteers, co-organization, literature, photography equipment, other materials.

→ Project page in the German-language Wikipedia

→ Images on Wikimedia Commons

Progress report: Media files supported by Wikimedia Österreich

Former blast furnace in Puerto de Sagunto, Spain. Featured picture on Wikimedia Commons by Diego Delso supported by Wikimedia Österreich

Number and usage of media files supported by Wikimedia Österreich
	2014-12-31	Growth	2015-06-30
Total number of files	135709	+ 21032	156741
Distinct images used (main namespace only)	22651	+ 2449	25100

Decorations for media files supported by Wikimedia Österreich
	2014-12-31	Growth	2015-06-30
Featured pictures on Wikimedia Commons	15	+ 41	56
Quality images	1325	+ 2025	3350
Valued images	23	+ 53	76
Featured pictures on Wikipedia, English	3	+ 6	9
Featured pictures on Wikipedia, German	9	+ 4	13
Featured pictures on Wikipedia, Persian	8	+ 3	11
Featured pictures on Wikipedia, Slovenian	1	+ 1	2
Featured pictures on Wikipedia, Hindi	0	+ 1	1
Total	1384	+ 2134	3518

Reach / Free Knowledge Awareness

Exhibition "War On the Wall"

Exhibition War On the Wall

In the context of our Wikiversity pilot project with the communication studies departement of the University of Vienna, we co-hosted an exhibition on WWI propaganda posters in the university library. The posters were provided by a Viennese collector who contributed his background knowledge and sources for articles around this kind of propaganda.

Individuals involved: 40 (active editors: 4, WMAT staff: 2, other guests: 34). – WMAT support: organisational support, promotion, catering, information material.

→ Wikiversity page on the exhibition (in German)

→ Images on Wikimedia Commons

wikimedia.at relaunch

WMAT updated and relaunched its website, as the old site was outdated and static and not really a place were we would be comfortable to direct interested stakeholders to. As the community mainly uses the members wiki, we wanted the new site to be an attractive source of information for external (project) partners, sponsors, donors and press. We started with a kick-off workshop to collect the needs and requirements. The project team comprised volunteers and staff members and there were feedback loops with external experts during the process of design and implementation. The result is a responsive website that offers abundant possibilities to use the magnificent photos made by our volunteers and extensive information on the chapter and our work.

Individuals involved: 7 (active editors: 2, WMAT staff: 3, contractors: 2).

→ wikimedia.at

Freedom of Panorama campaign

Freedom of Panorama Campaign

Due to unexpected developments in the European Parliament in the context of the so-called Reda report, a dicussion emerged throughout Europe concerning the Freedom of Panorama (Fop): The subject was an ammendmend to the report which would restrict the FoP in EU member states to non-commercial use, which would have legal implications for Wikimedia projects and of course for the volunteers and their photography projects. Especially in countries like Austria and Germany, which currently enjoy a very liberal version of FoP. Hence, the German-speaking community started a campaign on Wikipedia to raise awareness and to collect signatures for an open letter to the European Parliament demanding to retain the current state of FoP. WMAT supported this with an accompanying press campaign, providing background information over our newly established press channels. The campaingn was developed in close cooperation wth the EU advocacy group. The campaign resulted in extensive press coverage in Austria and beyond (i.e. mainly big German newspapers, as WMAT was the only Wikimedia organization in the German-speaking countries which provided public press material and background information at the early stages of the public discussion).

Individuals involved: 7,137 (active editors: 5, WMAT staff: 2, partners: 3, social media: 7,127).

Progress report: Free Knowledge Advocacy Group EU

The Free Knowledge Advocacy Group EU (FKAGEU) has engaged in collaborative advocacy around EU copyright reform, involving additional Wikimedia contributors and volunteers, and working closely with WMAT and other Wikimedia chapters organised in the FKAGEU and other net policy allies. 11 Wikimedia volunteers have established contacts (= any conversation that resulted in at least one answer and a second message or alternatively a direct face-to-face meeting) with more than 20 MEPs. An EU advocacy contact database with 202 entries is available for Wikimedians. Due to data protection regulations in Belgium and the EU, only single contacts for volunteers/chapters can be copied when necessary. Policy brochures in at least 3 different languages are in preparation (not published yet). FKAGEU has participated in all EU level dialogues, meetings and consultations that may affect the Copyright Dossier of the European Commission, not missing a single relevant event dealing with copyright in Brussels so far. A conservative count puts the number of dialogues, meetings and consultations beyond the 88 mark. FKAGEU has co-organised a film screening and a FoP Expert Seminar inside the European Parliament, both hosted by MEPs (3 MEPs from 3 different political groups). One volunteer Wikimedian from WMIT participated in the “Wikimedian in Brussels” work stipend so far.

FKAGEU developed additional partnerships with like-minded open source and free knowledge organizations active in EU net policy advocacy, and works with them on joint positioning and projects:

Membership of Communia (cooperation platform for advocating for the public domain where OKFN, Creative Commons and Kennisland are the lead partners); about 7 active non-Wikimedia participants as partners in lobbying for Free Knowledge
Cooperated with Right to Research Coalition/SPARC on drafting plans to jointly lobby for real open access (i.e. cc-by or compatible) in the EU’s Horizon 2020 funding programme; 3 non-Wikimedia individuals as partners
Organised event with Trans-Atlantic Consumer Dialogue, invited to advise the organisation of OpenCon in Brussels
Co-signed an open letter to the IPR Reform Working Group in the European Parliament with a wide range of industry and civil society organisations
Organised a NGO Networking Lunch together with EDRi and Amnesty International; 18 non-Wikimedia participants
Position Paper on Copyright Reform was co-signed by 18 non-Wikimedia organisations
Advised the Mozilla Foundation on its Brussels activities, goals and on opening its Brussels representation.

Individuals involved: 11 (active editors: 11). - WMAT support: financial support.

Movement Sustainability

General assembly

Participants of the general assembly in Imst

WMAT usually designes its general assemblies as outreach events to our local groups of volunteers: as many events and projects during the year take place in and around Vienna, the general assembly "travels" to a different federal state each year, in order to give the local communities a chance to meet the board and other volunteers and get first hand information on our activities. This year the general assembly was embedded in a photography project "Wiki Takes Nordtiroler Oberland" (see above), so we decided to host the event in the same hotel were most of our volunteers stayed during their tour in Tyrol. As most people had to stay overnight, we combined the general assembly with a more informal meet-up in a local pub the evening before. The project and the event attracted not only some local volunteers but due to its geographical location in Western Austria also WMAT members from bordering countries (Germany and Switzerland). The result was a constructive and lean event (it took us only a few hours in the morning, so the afternoon could be used for photographing), with a diverse group of participants. In the context of the assembly, Arno Grumbeck who was co-opted by board in April, was affirmed in his position by the general assembly.

Individuals involved: 16 (active editors: 13, WMAT staff: 3). – WMAT support: organization and coordination, venue, catering.

→ Minutes in members wiki (in German)

→ Images on Wikimedia Commons

Mission statement

In the context of our general assembly WMAT's mission statement was passed. In order to create the mission statement we engaged in an extensive dialogue with all our stakeholders (please also see our report from April and the respective learning pattern). The result will now serve as a basis for revising WMAT's three year strategy.

Individuals involved: 8 (active editors: 5 (engaging 1 active editor who has formerly not or very rarely been an active WMAT volunteer into the planning and/or executing), WMAT staff: 2, external consultant: 1).

→ Mission statement

Learning Pattern

Grants:Learning patterns/Wiki Takes ... and those getting taken

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