Re: [Wikimedia-l] Upcoming Changes to Community Engagement

[Kat Walsh]

Luis, I am very sorry to see you depart, and not only because I accept
the blame for the introduction. :-) Thanks for everything you brought
to WMF; I look forward to our continued path-crossing in the future.

-Kat

On Mon, Feb 8, 2016 at 12:31 PM, Luis Villa  wrote:
> Hi, all-
> This is a bittersweet email to send. I still, and will always, love this
> place and this movement, but it was also time for me to go.
>
> Working with so many awesome Wikimedians (including WMF's staff) has been
> an honor and a privilege, and has given me many great experiences,
> memories, and a long watchlist ;) that I'll treasure for a long time. The
> list of people who I'd like to thank is long, so I won't bore everyone with
> it. However, I do want to particularly thank Kat, who introduced me to
> Geoff during his first week with WMF. That was ultimately the opportunity
> that led me to this incredible ride - so I quite literally owe it all to
> her. Many, many other people have been welcoming and friendly along the
> way, and I can't ask formore than that.
>
> I'm not going too far! I'll continue to be around the movement, both as a
> contributor, and to support Maggie and the rest of the department during
> the transition. I look forward to seeing where Community Engagement goes
> next - I believe the department will continue to support contributors in a
> healthy way, and I'm sure Maggie and my long-term successor will continue
> to build exciting things on the foundation we laid over the past year.
>
> Professionally, I have no firm plans yet. I plan to to take a few deep
> breaths and then explore some new opportunities in the legal, community,
> and tech spaces, as well as becoming a parent in May.
>
> If you want to be in touch (to talk about interesting opportunities, flame
> me for old time's sake, or just chat) I'm pretty easy to find: lu.is,
> @tieguy on Twitter, LinkedIn, and of course on my enwiki talk page.
>
> See you on the wikis-
> Luis
>
>
> On Mon, Feb 8, 2016 at 12:16 PM, Lila Tretikov  wrote:
>
>> Dear all,
>>
>>
>> I am sad to let you know that Luis Villa, our lead for the Community
>> Engagement department, will be leaving the Wikimedia Foundation. A year
>> ago, Luis took on a big challenge, transitioning from the Legal Department
>> to lead the newly created  Community Engagement organization. In that role,
>> Luis and our teams were tasked with many recent community initiatives, such
>> as the creation of the Community Tech team, gender-related and
>> anti-harassment programs, and improved alignment of WMF annual planning
>> with the Funds Dissemination Committee. Prior to that, as Deputy General
>> Counsel he was responsible for a number of legal initiatives, including
>> licensing, contracts, and product counseling. I’m grateful for his counsel,
>> and his leadership in the WMF movement throughout these years.
>>
>> Later this month, Luis will transition out of his current position with the
>> Wikimedia Foundation to pursue other opportunities. He will remain in a
>> consulting role with the Foundation over the next few months, continuing to
>> support our ongoing strategy and annual planning processes.
>>
>> I want to thank Luis for his commitment to the WMF mission, and for the
>> inspired energy and contributions he has brought to our movement. I’m
>> looking forward to his future accomplishments and staying in close touch as
>> he grows in his career.
>>
>> Maggie Dennis will step in as the interim director for the CE team
>> effective immediately. Her deep community background, passion for our
>> mission, and outstanding teamwork are great assets in this transition. She
>> will also continue to serve as Director of Support and Safety. Maggie is a
>> respected leader, colleague, and community member. I am confident she will
>> bring critical insights, especially now as we plan for our next year.
>>
>> The work of of the CE department will continue as planned, and the overall
>> structure of the department (including the Community Tech team, which will
>> continue to report into the Product organization) will stay on-course. Our
>> goal is to ensure a smooth transition as we continue our progress to
>> improve the WMF support for our communities.
>>
>> It is my priority that the WMF continues to build upon the initiatives we
>> started in 2015 in support for the global Wikimedia community. Continued
>> leadership of the Community Engagement department at executive level in the
>> WMF is a part of delivering on those commitments. We will be looking to
>> fill the Community Engagement leadership role with someone with a strong
>> background in community programs, and an understanding of the Wikimedia
>> movement. We will also look to engage with you to find the right person for
>> this role. We will send an update on the next steps and the job description
>> shortly, which will include a further discussion of the role on-wiki.
>>
>>
>> Lila
>> ___
>>

Re: [Wikimedia-l] Community Engagement reorg - the official announcement

[Leigh Thelmadatter]

Im curious to see how this might affect Wiki Learning Tec de Monterrey, as we 
are both an education program and an affiliate.


> Date: Wed, 10 Feb 2016 16:19:17 -0800
> From: mc...@wikimedia.org
> To: wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org
> Subject: Re: [Wikimedia-l] Community Engagement reorg - the official  
> announcement
> 
> Hi all,
> to follow up on Maggie's email, I wanted to share that Program Capacity and
> Learning team is reaching out to community members to comment on our draft
> roadmap [1]. In this coming year, we look forward to our shared learning
> and support to leaders across the movement.
> 
> Importantly, we could use some help in defining what that year looks like!
> Between now and February 19th, we are asking for your input in prioritizing
> support to program leaders and affiliates through our newly integrated
> Program Capacity and Learning Team. Our new team, in addition to supporting
>  education programs, libraries, and learning and evaluation, will also
> support GLAM and Affiliate Partnerships. We have been consulting with
> different program and community leaders and have developed a few ideas for
> which we would like your input [1].  Please share your views on our
> criteria for resources as well as concepts for support. Your input will
> help guide our 2016-2017 Annual Plan submission. We will host office hours
> on IRC on Tuesday, February 16, at 8 am PST. Sign up to the event via
> Google [2] or Facebook [3].
> 
> Hope to see many of you on Meta!
> 
> Best,
> 
> 
> *María Cruz * \\  Communications and Outreach Coordinator, PC&L Team
> \\ Wikimedia
> Foundation, Inc.
> mc...@wikimedia.org  |  :  @marianarra_ 
> [1] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Program_Capacity_and_Learning
> [2] https://plus.google.com/events/c2u2adh301qqtdp137glrl09qqk
> [3] https://www.facebook.com/events/970720156351099/
> 
> On Mon, Feb 8, 2016 at 7:15 PM, Maggie Dennis  wrote:
> 
> > Hello, all.
> >
> > As some of you know, Community Engagement had a small realignment last
> > quarter. Now that it’s further along, we thought it was a good time to
> > formally share. :)
> >
> > So, welcome to the reformed Community Engagement!
> >
> > What’s the major change?
> >
> > We've restructured Community Engagement, to four primary groups:
> >
> >-
> >
> >Program Capacity and Learning (integrating Learning & Evaluation,
> >Education, and Library), under Rosemary Rein, tasked with supporting
> > community partnerships, programs and learning.
> >-
> >
> >Resources, under Siko Bouterse, tasked with supporting community-led
> >impact through grants and other resources.
> >-
> >
> >Support & Safety (formerly known as Community Advocacy), under me
> >(Maggie Dennis), tasked with helping improve trust, safety and
> > collegiality
> >within our projects as well as facilitating communication and
> > understanding
> >broadly between the WMF and contributors,
> >-
> >
> >Technical Collaboration (grouping Community Liaisons and Developer
> >Relations), under Quim Gil, tasked with improving collaboration between
> >software development teams, Wikimedia contributors, readers, and
> > volunteer
> >developers.
> >
> > Four people within Community Engagement have changed which teams they
> > report to: Floor and Jake (to Program, Capacity, and Learning), Haitham (to
> > Support and Safety), and Sati (to Resources). This will more closely align
> > their leadership and reporting structure with the work they’re doing.
> > Rachel will also be stepping back from leadership of the Liaisons team and
> > supporting Quim in annual plan and strategic work.
> >
> > Why did we do this?
> >
> > For most people outside of the department, this will have very little
> > impact on your day-to-day relationships with Community Engagement, but
> > we’re hoping for major impact within our department! The main goal of the
> > reorganization was more responsive leadership, decision making and improved
> > lines of communication within, into and out of the department, with a
> > strong secondary goal of giving the affected teams more flexibility and
> > clarity around their missions, so that they can adapt better to our
> > evolving work. When we began this transformation last quarter, we expected
> > that it would mean most teams (and especially the affected leaders) would
> > be more engaged, receive more day-to-day mentorship, and that they'd be
> > able to work more constructively with peers to better craft shared goals
> > and projects. At the same time we hoped that the team executive would be
> > able to put more into handling upcoming planning efforts like the strategic
> > and annual plans. While we are still fine-tuning, this seems to be bearing
> > out, and we hope that it will continue.
> >
> > Our ultimate goal, of course, is to figure out the best ways to serve our
> > communities and our movement through better internal and external
> 

Re: [Wikimedia-l] Community Engagement reorg - the official announcement

[Maria Cruz]

Hi all,
to follow up on Maggie's email, I wanted to share that Program Capacity and
Learning team is reaching out to community members to comment on our draft
roadmap [1]. In this coming year, we look forward to our shared learning
and support to leaders across the movement.

Importantly, we could use some help in defining what that year looks like!
Between now and February 19th, we are asking for your input in prioritizing
support to program leaders and affiliates through our newly integrated
Program Capacity and Learning Team. Our new team, in addition to supporting
 education programs, libraries, and learning and evaluation, will also
support GLAM and Affiliate Partnerships. We have been consulting with
different program and community leaders and have developed a few ideas for
which we would like your input [1].  Please share your views on our
criteria for resources as well as concepts for support. Your input will
help guide our 2016-2017 Annual Plan submission. We will host office hours
on IRC on Tuesday, February 16, at 8 am PST. Sign up to the event via
Google [2] or Facebook [3].

Hope to see many of you on Meta!

Best,


*María Cruz * \\  Communications and Outreach Coordinator, PC&L Team
\\ Wikimedia
Foundation, Inc.
mc...@wikimedia.org  |  :  @marianarra_ 
[1] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Program_Capacity_and_Learning
[2] https://plus.google.com/events/c2u2adh301qqtdp137glrl09qqk
[3] https://www.facebook.com/events/970720156351099/

On Mon, Feb 8, 2016 at 7:15 PM, Maggie Dennis  wrote:

> Hello, all.
>
> As some of you know, Community Engagement had a small realignment last
> quarter. Now that it’s further along, we thought it was a good time to
> formally share. :)
>
> So, welcome to the reformed Community Engagement!
>
> What’s the major change?
>
> We've restructured Community Engagement, to four primary groups:
>
>-
>
>Program Capacity and Learning (integrating Learning & Evaluation,
>Education, and Library), under Rosemary Rein, tasked with supporting
> community partnerships, programs and learning.
>-
>
>Resources, under Siko Bouterse, tasked with supporting community-led
>impact through grants and other resources.
>-
>
>Support & Safety (formerly known as Community Advocacy), under me
>(Maggie Dennis), tasked with helping improve trust, safety and
> collegiality
>within our projects as well as facilitating communication and
> understanding
>broadly between the WMF and contributors,
>-
>
>Technical Collaboration (grouping Community Liaisons and Developer
>Relations), under Quim Gil, tasked with improving collaboration between
>software development teams, Wikimedia contributors, readers, and
> volunteer
>developers.
>
> Four people within Community Engagement have changed which teams they
> report to: Floor and Jake (to Program, Capacity, and Learning), Haitham (to
> Support and Safety), and Sati (to Resources). This will more closely align
> their leadership and reporting structure with the work they’re doing.
> Rachel will also be stepping back from leadership of the Liaisons team and
> supporting Quim in annual plan and strategic work.
>
> Why did we do this?
>
> For most people outside of the department, this will have very little
> impact on your day-to-day relationships with Community Engagement, but
> we’re hoping for major impact within our department! The main goal of the
> reorganization was more responsive leadership, decision making and improved
> lines of communication within, into and out of the department, with a
> strong secondary goal of giving the affected teams more flexibility and
> clarity around their missions, so that they can adapt better to our
> evolving work. When we began this transformation last quarter, we expected
> that it would mean most teams (and especially the affected leaders) would
> be more engaged, receive more day-to-day mentorship, and that they'd be
> able to work more constructively with peers to better craft shared goals
> and projects. At the same time we hoped that the team executive would be
> able to put more into handling upcoming planning efforts like the strategic
> and annual plans. While we are still fine-tuning, this seems to be bearing
> out, and we hope that it will continue.
>
> Our ultimate goal, of course, is to figure out the best ways to serve our
> communities and our movement through better internal and external
> collaboration and through well-defined roles, responsibilities and
> processes that are clear and work well for everyone. While this is one step
> towards that goal, we are working on others through the strategic process
> and the upcoming Annual Plan and through other conversations with you.
>
> We are hosting an office hour on IRC on Friday February 12th at 1900 UTC to
> talk over the reorganization and also to discuss the qualities we should be
> looking for in a new department lead.[1] (As announced earlier today

Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[John Mark Vandenberg]

On Thu, Feb 11, 2016 at 2:28 AM, Itzik - Wikimedia Israel
 wrote:
> If we want to talk about the cost of Wikimania it will be great if the WMF
> and the local team will share the costs.
>
> Until now Wikimania London didn't published anything:
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimania_2014/Budget
>
> And also Mexico:
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimania_2015/Budget
>
> Maybe I missed something, but it's strange that such discussion takes place
> without a real budget breakdown. To summarize 2 huge event to "1$ million
> USD" does not make sense.

I agree.  Without public data, how can there be an informed public consultation.

I've asked for similar data at:

https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Grants_talk:IdeaLab/Towards_a_New_Wikimania#Analysis_on_repeat_funded_attendees

-- 
John Vandenberg

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Re: [Wikimedia-l] Upcoming Changes to Community Engagement

[Luis Villa]

Thanks, Katie! I'd definitely love to finally make it to a state of the map
one of these days; I do think database issues will continue to be an issue
for the entire broader movement and I hope Wikimedia will be able to keep
working to integrate maps and other structured data in a healthy way.

(and thanks, of course, to the many, many other people who have been in
touch with kind words. Katie gets an on-list response because this is an
important, topical issue I'd like to remain involved in.)

Luis
On Mon, Feb 8, 2016 at 9:31 PM, Luis Villa  wrote:

> Hi, all-
> This is a bittersweet email to send. I still, and will always, love this
> place and this movement, but it was also time for me to go.
>
>
Luis,

:'-(  You will very much missed :(

It has been a huge help to get some clarification on topics like database
rights (even if some part remain unclear).  As well, your understanding of
technical issues has been invaluable.

I hope to still see you around in the broader open source community and
maybe at events like State of the Map.

Cheers,
Katie



> Working with so many awesome Wikimedians (including WMF's staff) has been
> an honor and a privilege, and has given me many great experiences,
> memories, and a long watchlist ;) that I'll treasure for a long time. The
> list of people who I'd like to thank is long, so I won't bore everyone
with
> it. However, I do want to particularly thank Kat, who introduced me to
> Geoff during his first week with WMF. That was ultimately the opportunity
> that led me to this incredible ride - so I quite literally owe it all to
> her. Many, many other people have been welcoming and friendly along the
> way, and I can't ask formore than that.
>
> I'm not going too far! I'll continue to be around the movement, both as a
> contributor, and to support Maggie and the rest of the department during
> the transition. I look forward to seeing where Community Engagement goes
> next - I believe the department will continue to support contributors in a
> healthy way, and I'm sure Maggie and my long-term successor will continue
> to build exciting things on the foundation we laid over the past year.
>
> Professionally, I have no firm plans yet. I plan to to take a few deep
> breaths and then explore some new opportunities in the legal, community,
> and tech spaces, as well as becoming a parent in May.
>
> If you want to be in touch (to talk about interesting opportunities, flame
> me for old time's sake, or just chat) I'm pretty easy to find: lu.is,
> @tieguy on Twitter, LinkedIn, and of course on my enwiki talk page.
>
> See you on the wikis-
> Luis
>
>
> On Mon, Feb 8, 2016 at 12:16 PM, Lila Tretikov  wrote:
>
> > Dear all,
> >
> >
> > I am sad to let you know that Luis Villa, our lead for the Community
> > Engagement department, will be leaving the Wikimedia Foundation. A year
> > ago, Luis took on a big challenge, transitioning from the Legal
> Department
> > to lead the newly created  Community Engagement organization. In that
> role,
> > Luis and our teams were tasked with many recent community initiatives,
> such
> > as the creation of the Community Tech team, gender-related and
> > anti-harassment programs, and improved alignment of WMF annual planning
> > with the Funds Dissemination Committee. Prior to that, as Deputy General
> > Counsel he was responsible for a number of legal initiatives, including
> > licensing, contracts, and product counseling. I’m grateful for his
> counsel,
> > and his leadership in the WMF movement throughout these years.
> >
> > Later this month, Luis will transition out of his current position with
> the
> > Wikimedia Foundation to pursue other opportunities. He will remain in a
> > consulting role with the Foundation over the next few months, continuing
> to
> > support our ongoing strategy and annual planning processes.
> >
> > I want to thank Luis for his commitment to the WMF mission, and for the
> > inspired energy and contributions he has brought to our movement. I’m
> > looking forward to his future accomplishments and staying in close touch
> as
> > he grows in his career.
> >
> > Maggie Dennis will step in as the interim director for the CE team
> > effective immediately. Her deep community background, passion for our
> > mission, and outstanding teamwork are great assets in this transition.
> She
> > will also continue to serve as Director of Support and Safety. Maggie is
> a
> > respected leader, colleague, and community member. I am confident she
> will
> > bring critical insights, especially now as we plan for our next year.
> >
> > The work of of the CE department will continue as planned, and the
> overall
> > structure of the department (including the Community Tech team, which
> will
> > continue to report into the Product organization) will stay on-course.
> Our
> > goal is to ensure a smooth transition as we continue our progress to
> > improve the WMF support for our communities.
> >
> > It is my priority that the WMF continu

Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[Samuel Klein]

Itzik writes:

> If we want to talk about the cost of Wikimania it will be great if the
WMF and the local team will share the costs.
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimania_2014/Budget
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimania_2015/Budget
> Maybe I missed something, but it's strange that such discussion takes
place without a real budget breakdown.
> To summarize 2 huge event to "1$ million USD" does not make sense.

Agreed 1million%.  It would be important to see a rough cost breakdown, &
compare that to the best-budgeted Wikimanias.


On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 9:52 AM, Tomasz Ganicz  wrote:

> 2016-02-10 6:06 GMT+01:00 Samuel Klein :
>
> > FUDCons
>
> Also it is hard to compare Wikimanias with FUDCons as it is
> a) much  smaller (usually bo more than 200 attendees)
> b) divided by regions - for example in 2015 there were 3 FUDCons
> (Argentina, India, Spain) and 2 Flocks (NY and Kraków) -  so they are
> rather like our Iberecop or CEE meetings than the global conferences.
>

Thanks.  Similar to regional events perhaps, not Wikimania.  Still worth
comparing budgets perhaps, if available.

But I was wondering about the trend over time: whether extensive funding
during the RedHat days made the events less useful, in the years after that
funding was reduced.



> And also Fedora developers have many potential sources of external funding
> - mainly from IT companies which uses free software and want to apply for
> their specific needs and for whom they quite often work.
>

True.  But attendees to GLAM or education conferences also tend to have
many potential sources of funding - mainly from archives or educational or
technical companies who curate knowledge or develop education tools. And we
have IT industry partners who are similarly willing to support Wikimanias.
Not entirely dissimilar.


> But anyway, Fedora offers scholarships for attendees, see:
>

Yes, wiki conferences should as well - that part of conference funding is
important.  Even early Wikimanias with almost no WMF support had
significant scholarship pools.

S
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Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[Robert Fernandez]

I just want to clarify something.  I apologize in advance for being
pedantic.

In the US the term Latino is also applied to those of us who live in the
United States who have cultural and ethnic ties to Latin America.  Based on
my reading of the selection process those Latinos would not be preferred
applicants.

On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 11:27 AM, Béria Lima  wrote:

> Hi Andrew,
>
> *For the last few years I’ve held my tongue as American applicants get a
> > fraction of 10% of all the funding for Wikimania scholarships.*
> >
>
> Actually you are looking at the old numbers. Both Wikimanias 2015 and 2016
> uses a new method of selection. Now, the Global North*[1]  *has 25% of all
> scholarships, and the Global South*[2]* has 75%. Now that you have to
> compete with most of the rich countries in the world. And is not all: If
> you get into the final 10% of the "cutoff",your place may be taken away by
> a woman (or transgender) or a Latino, since that is the policy now*[3]*.
>
> And I for one agree with the new policy. The effort made by a European (or
> American, or Canadian) to travel to a Wikimania, is something like one
> month of salary. For a woman from the same place will probably be 2 months
> (pay gap at its finest!) and for a Latino, African, or Asiatic the effort
> starts at 6 months and go on to even a decade*[4]* (A full decade of your
> salary to go to Wikimania).
>
> So no, I don't feel sorry that most of the scholarships don't go to
> Americans, I'm not denying that there is poor people in rich countries but
> the level of poverty is *way* too different.
>
> ​
> Béria L
> ​. de Rodríguez (a Latino Woman 😉)
>
> ___
> *References:*
>
> [1]: Australia, Canada, Israel, Hong Kong, Macau, New Zealand, Japan,
> Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, the United States and all of Europe
> (including Russia, but excluding Turkey) (source
> )
> [2]: Asia (with the exception of Japan, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, South
> Korea and Taiwan), Turkey, Central America, South America, Mexico, Africa,
> and the Middle East (with the exception of Israel) (source
> )
> [3]: For applicants within 10% of the "cutoff", preference will be* first*
> given to the* non-male* applicant, and *secondary* preference to applicants
> from* Latin America*.(source
> 
> -
> enfasis added by me)
> [4]: Venezuela for example has a exchange rate Bolivar-US dolar of 1026 BSF
> to 1 dolar. Their average salary is 9,500 BSF (about $ 9,00) at that pace
> their probability to attend Wikimania on their own tends to zero. (source
> for the exchange rate )
>
> _
>
> *​​**Imagine um mundo onde é dada a qualquer pessoa a possibilidade de ter
> livre acesso ao somatório de todo o conhecimento humano. Ajude-nos a
> construir esse sonho.*
>
> 2016-02-10 13:43 GMT-02:00 Andrew Lih :
>
> > GerardM,
> >
> > As much as I agree with you on many things related to Wikimania, your
> > statement about en.wp and USA being “over subsidized” is off base.
> >
> > For the last few years I’ve held my tongue as American applicants get a
> > fraction of 10% of all the funding for Wikimania scholarships. That’s
> > because 10% is allocated to all of North America, so US based folks
> compete
> > with Canadians for that small slice of the pie. Indeed, key community
> > members from the US could not afford to go to Wikimania, and did not,
> > because of the limited funding. We also do not have a strong chapter
> system
> > to make up for that shortcoming, where European chapters can, and do,
> > underwrite their local members with other funds.
> >
> > I am not against the bulk of the scholarship money going to
> > underrepresented developing markets and giving new voices a chance to
> > attend. But I wanted to dispel the myth that Americans are always gorging
> > at the trough.
> >
> >
> >
> https://wikimania2013.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Scholarship_selection_process
> > https://wikimania2014.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Selection_process
> >
> >
> > -Andrew
> >
> > On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 6:49 AM, Gerard Meijssen <
> > gerard.meijs...@gmail.com>
> > wrote:
> >
> > > Hoi,
> > > Pine with all due respect, the USA is not the problem and English
> > Wikipedia
> > > has been overly subsidised, given way too much attention. Indeed having
> > > more people from the USA attend Wikimania is not a good value
> > proposition.
> > > The USA and Britain is overrepresented as it is.
> > > Thanks,
> > >  GerardM
> > >
> > > On 10 February 2016 at 10:13, Pine W  wrote:
> > >
> > > > From a US perspective, even here in the global north we have plenty
> of
> > > > students and middle-class participants for whom $1500 in travel, food
> > and
> > > > lodging plus 5 days away from work, family, or school amounts to a
> > > > significant or impossible sac

[Wikimedia-l] Community Engagement office hour

[Karen Brown]

Hi everyone,

The Community Engagement department will be hosting an IRC office hour this
Friday, the 12th of February, at 1900 UTC. The topic of this office hour
will be the department's recent reorganization and personnel changes,
including discussion of what characteristics we should be seeking out in a
new department head. As usual, the office hour will be taking place in the
#wikimedia-office channel on the Freenode IRC network.

For more information on office hours, as well as a listing of upcoming
office hours and links to convert from UTC time to your local time, please
see https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/IRC_office_hours).

Best,
Karen
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Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[Sydney Poore]

February is a very busy month with record number of events planned through
out the United States.

Additionally, The Wiki Ed Foundation works with university based education
programs including parts of the United States outside regions covered by
the U.S. Chapters and User groups.

So, although we are doing it differently in the U.S. than other parts of
the whole, it seems to be working pretty well today and has the potential
to grow as more areas are covered by User Groups.

Sydney

Sydney Poore
User:FloNight
Wikipedian in Residence
at Cochrane Collaboration

On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 12:51 PM, Pharos 
wrote:

> Hi Wikimedians,
>
> The "chapter system" in the US and North America is a work in progress.
>
> In addition to the two full regional chapters (New York City - where I am,
> and Washington, DC), there are also usergroups for the New England,
> Cascadia/Northwest, and North Carolina Triangle regions, with other groups
> still in the process of formation.
>
> There is a historical difference from the large-budget Western European
> chapters and the US situation, which has been more grassroots and never
> participated in things like fundraiser payment-sharing, and the funding for
> WMF HQ in San Francisco indeed shouldn't be conflated with funding of US
> volunteer-based activities.
>
> If anyone else is interested in organizing regionally in any part of the US
> / North America, feel free to get in touch; Wikimedia NYC and others would
> be very glad to help you :)
>
> Thanks,
> Pharos
>
> On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 11:15 AM, Robert Fernandez  >
> wrote:
>
> > The US may be too geographically spread out to develop a robust chapter
> > system.  We have vibrant chapters in a few dense population areas.
> > Wikimedia District of Columbia is particularly awesome.  But for most US
> > editors there isn't a critical mass of editors in some areas.  Often we
> > work with with chapters that are geographically distant.  There's at
> least
> > two of us on the Board of Directors of WMDC who don't live particularly
> > close to DC.
> >
> > On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 11:00 AM, Jane Darnell 
> wrote:
> >
> > > "We also do not have a strong chapter system"
> > >
> > > This has always puzzled me, because I am a firm believer in the chapter
> > > system, despite its faults and limitations. Isn't it time to address
> this
> > > for the more active areas of the USA?
> > >
> > > On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 10:43 AM, Andrew Lih 
> > wrote:
> > >
> > > > GerardM,
> > > >
> > > > As much as I agree with you on many things related to Wikimania, your
> > > > statement about en.wp and USA being “over subsidized” is off base.
> > > >
> > > > For the last few years I’ve held my tongue as American applicants
> get a
> > > > fraction of 10% of all the funding for Wikimania scholarships. That’s
> > > > because 10% is allocated to all of North America, so US based folks
> > > compete
> > > > with Canadians for that small slice of the pie. Indeed, key community
> > > > members from the US could not afford to go to Wikimania, and did not,
> > > > because of the limited funding. We also do not have a strong chapter
> > > system
> > > > to make up for that shortcoming, where European chapters can, and do,
> > > > underwrite their local members with other funds.
> > > >
> > > > I am not against the bulk of the scholarship money going to
> > > > underrepresented developing markets and giving new voices a chance to
> > > > attend. But I wanted to dispel the myth that Americans are always
> > gorging
> > > > at the trough.
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > >
> >
> https://wikimania2013.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Scholarship_selection_process
> > > >
> > https://wikimania2014.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Selection_process
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > -Andrew
> > > >
> > > > On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 6:49 AM, Gerard Meijssen <
> > > > gerard.meijs...@gmail.com>
> > > > wrote:
> > > >
> > > > > Hoi,
> > > > > Pine with all due respect, the USA is not the problem and English
> > > > Wikipedia
> > > > > has been overly subsidised, given way too much attention. Indeed
> > having
> > > > > more people from the USA attend Wikimania is not a good value
> > > > proposition.
> > > > > The USA and Britain is overrepresented as it is.
> > > > > Thanks,
> > > > >  GerardM
> > > > >
> > > > > On 10 February 2016 at 10:13, Pine W  wrote:
> > > > >
> > > > > > From a US perspective, even here in the global north we have
> plenty
> > > of
> > > > > > students and middle-class participants for whom $1500 in travel,
> > food
> > > > and
> > > > > > lodging plus 5 days away from work, family, or school amounts to
> a
> > > > > > significant or impossible sacrifice.
> > > > > >
> > > > > > Perhaps someone could tell us the statistics for how many people
> > have
> > > > > > attended Wikimania each year who were not WMF employees, FDC or
> WMF
> > > > Board
> > > > > > members, scholarship recipients, or financially sponsored by WMF
> > > > > affiliates
> > > > > > or WEF. 

Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[Pharos]

Hi Wikimedians,

The "chapter system" in the US and North America is a work in progress.

In addition to the two full regional chapters (New York City - where I am,
and Washington, DC), there are also usergroups for the New England,
Cascadia/Northwest, and North Carolina Triangle regions, with other groups
still in the process of formation.

There is a historical difference from the large-budget Western European
chapters and the US situation, which has been more grassroots and never
participated in things like fundraiser payment-sharing, and the funding for
WMF HQ in San Francisco indeed shouldn't be conflated with funding of US
volunteer-based activities.

If anyone else is interested in organizing regionally in any part of the US
/ North America, feel free to get in touch; Wikimedia NYC and others would
be very glad to help you :)

Thanks,
Pharos

On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 11:15 AM, Robert Fernandez 
wrote:

> The US may be too geographically spread out to develop a robust chapter
> system.  We have vibrant chapters in a few dense population areas.
> Wikimedia District of Columbia is particularly awesome.  But for most US
> editors there isn't a critical mass of editors in some areas.  Often we
> work with with chapters that are geographically distant.  There's at least
> two of us on the Board of Directors of WMDC who don't live particularly
> close to DC.
>
> On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 11:00 AM, Jane Darnell  wrote:
>
> > "We also do not have a strong chapter system"
> >
> > This has always puzzled me, because I am a firm believer in the chapter
> > system, despite its faults and limitations. Isn't it time to address this
> > for the more active areas of the USA?
> >
> > On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 10:43 AM, Andrew Lih 
> wrote:
> >
> > > GerardM,
> > >
> > > As much as I agree with you on many things related to Wikimania, your
> > > statement about en.wp and USA being “over subsidized” is off base.
> > >
> > > For the last few years I’ve held my tongue as American applicants get a
> > > fraction of 10% of all the funding for Wikimania scholarships. That’s
> > > because 10% is allocated to all of North America, so US based folks
> > compete
> > > with Canadians for that small slice of the pie. Indeed, key community
> > > members from the US could not afford to go to Wikimania, and did not,
> > > because of the limited funding. We also do not have a strong chapter
> > system
> > > to make up for that shortcoming, where European chapters can, and do,
> > > underwrite their local members with other funds.
> > >
> > > I am not against the bulk of the scholarship money going to
> > > underrepresented developing markets and giving new voices a chance to
> > > attend. But I wanted to dispel the myth that Americans are always
> gorging
> > > at the trough.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
> https://wikimania2013.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Scholarship_selection_process
> > >
> https://wikimania2014.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Selection_process
> > >
> > >
> > > -Andrew
> > >
> > > On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 6:49 AM, Gerard Meijssen <
> > > gerard.meijs...@gmail.com>
> > > wrote:
> > >
> > > > Hoi,
> > > > Pine with all due respect, the USA is not the problem and English
> > > Wikipedia
> > > > has been overly subsidised, given way too much attention. Indeed
> having
> > > > more people from the USA attend Wikimania is not a good value
> > > proposition.
> > > > The USA and Britain is overrepresented as it is.
> > > > Thanks,
> > > >  GerardM
> > > >
> > > > On 10 February 2016 at 10:13, Pine W  wrote:
> > > >
> > > > > From a US perspective, even here in the global north we have plenty
> > of
> > > > > students and middle-class participants for whom $1500 in travel,
> food
> > > and
> > > > > lodging plus 5 days away from work, family, or school amounts to a
> > > > > significant or impossible sacrifice.
> > > > >
> > > > > Perhaps someone could tell us the statistics for how many people
> have
> > > > > attended Wikimania each year who were not WMF employees, FDC or WMF
> > > Board
> > > > > members, scholarship recipients, or financially sponsored by WMF
> > > > affiliates
> > > > > or WEF. Of those people who pay 100% of their own costs plus the
> cost
> > > of
> > > > > admission tickets, my guess is that many live within a day's travel
> > > time
> > > > by
> > > > > train, car, or bus.
> > > > >
> > > > > I would hypothesize that thematic conferences also have a low
> > > percentage
> > > > of
> > > > > people who pay 100% of their own costs, but that regional
> conferences
> > > > which
> > > > > have lower travel costs for the average attendee receive modestly
> > > higher
> > > > > percentages of unsubsidized attendance.
> > > > >
> > > > > It seems to me that WMF finacial support for conferences, including
> > > > > regional and thematic conferences, will continue to be the norm.
> > > > >
> > > > > Whether $1 million is appropriate for Wikimania and whether a more
> > > modest
> > > > > budget would be appropr

Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[Milos Rancic]

On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 6:06 AM, Samuel Klein  wrote:
> I found this the most interesting part of the recent IdeaLab discussion
> about changing the Wikimania framework.
>   https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Grants:IdeaLab/Towards_a_New_Wikimania
>
>   "*The total spend by WMF for Wikimania 2014 in London and 2015 in Mexico,
> including all travel, accommodations, scholarships, staff support and
> direct conference expenses, was ~$1 million USD*"
>
> This is a pity. Small grants to support a con is one thing, but this is too
> much.
>
> Please let's stop encouraging conferences that do not cover their own
> costs. A good conference series pays for itself, including its scholarship
> pool. There are plenty of communities our size or larger with wonderful,
> regular conferences of hundreds or thousands of people, which break even or
> turn a small profit.
>
> FUDCons are an interesting case in point.  As I understand it, there was a
> time when RedHat basically sponsored the events, with scholarships for all
> active contributors and extensive grants. This was ok, but skewed
> participation.  Then the lavish sponsorship stopped. Attendance dropped;
> community members felt unloved. Then after a time, this passed, and
> everyone attended again. (Perhaps a core Fedora contributor can describe
> this more accurately!)

I have to say I totally disagree with your approach because of a
number of issues:

* Wikimedia movement is not consisted [solely] of highly paid folk
from the tech industry.
* Wikimania is not an opportunity to find a job or to make business contacts.
* Wikimedia movement is not the group of enthusiasts gathering because
of their hobby, mostly relevant just to themselves.
* Wikimedia movement is consisted of real people, not just of servers
and bytes. Consequently, financially independent Wikimedia
stakeholders (WMF and at least one chapter) should spend money not
just on servers and bytes, but on people, as well.
* While I am not against market per se, our core shouldn't be for
sale. I am sure there are the ways how to make Wikimania more
sustainable, but there are numerous things which shouldn't be done and
it has to be carefully analyzed. (One of those being "we can't support
that much of people".)
* It's expensive to have a global movement. It will be just more
expensive. That's the fact, not something to be negotiated.
* Going into contraction without being inside of the financial crisis
is something very common inside of the Wikimedia movement and utterly
stupid.

-- 
Milos

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Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[Andrew Lih]

Béria L,

Yes, I was heartened to see that the formula had changed in 2015. But the
complexity of the algorithm made it hard to discern what the eventual
impact and numbers were for US-based editors. If you have good stats on
this, I’d appreciate a pointer.

Again, I agree that Wikimania should have massive outreach goal with the
bulk of the scholarships should be used to recruit new key members to our
community and evangelizing the mission outside the US. When I was based in
Asia, I was a big advocate for Wikimania being a way to engage new language
groups.

However, I wanted to push back against the oft-heard refrain that the US is
“overly subsidized” when in fact most metrics show this is not the case.

Thanks!
-Andrew

On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 11:27 AM, Béria Lima  wrote:

> Hi Andrew,
>
> *For the last few years I’ve held my tongue as American applicants get a
> > fraction of 10% of all the funding for Wikimania scholarships.*
> >
>
> Actually you are looking at the old numbers. Both Wikimanias 2015 and 2016
> uses a new method of selection. Now, the Global North*[1]  *has 25% of all
> scholarships, and the Global South*[2]* has 75%. Now that you have to
> compete with most of the rich countries in the world. And is not all: If
> you get into the final 10% of the "cutoff",your place may be taken away by
> a woman (or transgender) or a Latino, since that is the policy now*[3]*.
>
> And I for one agree with the new policy. The effort made by a European (or
> American, or Canadian) to travel to a Wikimania, is something like one
> month of salary. For a woman from the same place will probably be 2 months
> (pay gap at its finest!) and for a Latino, African, or Asiatic the effort
> starts at 6 months and go on to even a decade*[4]* (A full decade of your
> salary to go to Wikimania).
>
> So no, I don't feel sorry that most of the scholarships don't go to
> Americans, I'm not denying that there is poor people in rich countries but
> the level of poverty is *way* too different.
>
> ​
> Béria L
> ​. de Rodríguez (a Latino Woman 😉)
>
> ___
> *References:*
>
> [1]: Australia, Canada, Israel, Hong Kong, Macau, New Zealand, Japan,
> Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, the United States and all of Europe
> (including Russia, but excluding Turkey) (source
> )
> [2]: Asia (with the exception of Japan, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, South
> Korea and Taiwan), Turkey, Central America, South America, Mexico, Africa,
> and the Middle East (with the exception of Israel) (source
> )
> [3]: For applicants within 10% of the "cutoff", preference will be* first*
> given to the* non-male* applicant, and *secondary* preference to applicants
> from* Latin America*.(source
> 
> -
> enfasis added by me)
> [4]: Venezuela for example has a exchange rate Bolivar-US dolar of 1026 BSF
> to 1 dolar. Their average salary is 9,500 BSF (about $ 9,00) at that pace
> their probability to attend Wikimania on their own tends to zero. (source
> for the exchange rate )
>
> _
>
> *​​**Imagine um mundo onde é dada a qualquer pessoa a possibilidade de ter
> livre acesso ao somatório de todo o conhecimento humano. Ajude-nos a
> construir esse sonho.*
>
> 2016-02-10 13:43 GMT-02:00 Andrew Lih :
>
> > GerardM,
> >
> > As much as I agree with you on many things related to Wikimania, your
> > statement about en.wp and USA being “over subsidized” is off base.
> >
> > For the last few years I’ve held my tongue as American applicants get a
> > fraction of 10% of all the funding for Wikimania scholarships. That’s
> > because 10% is allocated to all of North America, so US based folks
> compete
> > with Canadians for that small slice of the pie. Indeed, key community
> > members from the US could not afford to go to Wikimania, and did not,
> > because of the limited funding. We also do not have a strong chapter
> system
> > to make up for that shortcoming, where European chapters can, and do,
> > underwrite their local members with other funds.
> >
> > I am not against the bulk of the scholarship money going to
> > underrepresented developing markets and giving new voices a chance to
> > attend. But I wanted to dispel the myth that Americans are always gorging
> > at the trough.
> >
> >
> >
> https://wikimania2013.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Scholarship_selection_process
> > https://wikimania2014.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Selection_process
> >
> >
> > -Andrew
> >
> > On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 6:49 AM, Gerard Meijssen <
> > gerard.meijs...@gmail.com>
> > wrote:
> >
> > > Hoi,
> > > Pine with all due respect, the USA is not the problem and English
> > Wikipedia
> > > has been overly subsidised, given way too much attention. Indeed having
> > > more people from the USA attend Wikimania is not a good value
> > proposition.
> > > The U

Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[Béria Lima]

Hi Andrew,

*For the last few years I’ve held my tongue as American applicants get a
> fraction of 10% of all the funding for Wikimania scholarships.*
>

Actually you are looking at the old numbers. Both Wikimanias 2015 and 2016
uses a new method of selection. Now, the Global North*[1]  *has 25% of all
scholarships, and the Global South*[2]* has 75%. Now that you have to
compete with most of the rich countries in the world. And is not all: If
you get into the final 10% of the "cutoff",your place may be taken away by
a woman (or transgender) or a Latino, since that is the policy now*[3]*.

And I for one agree with the new policy. The effort made by a European (or
American, or Canadian) to travel to a Wikimania, is something like one
month of salary. For a woman from the same place will probably be 2 months
(pay gap at its finest!) and for a Latino, African, or Asiatic the effort
starts at 6 months and go on to even a decade*[4]* (A full decade of your
salary to go to Wikimania).

So no, I don't feel sorry that most of the scholarships don't go to
Americans, I'm not denying that there is poor people in rich countries but
the level of poverty is *way* too different.

​
Béria L
​. de Rodríguez (a Latino Woman 😉)

___
*References:*

[1]: Australia, Canada, Israel, Hong Kong, Macau, New Zealand, Japan,
Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, the United States and all of Europe
(including Russia, but excluding Turkey) (source
)
[2]: Asia (with the exception of Japan, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, South
Korea and Taiwan), Turkey, Central America, South America, Mexico, Africa,
and the Middle East (with the exception of Israel) (source
)
[3]: For applicants within 10% of the "cutoff", preference will be* first*
given to the* non-male* applicant, and *secondary* preference to applicants
from* Latin America*.(source
 -
enfasis added by me)
[4]: Venezuela for example has a exchange rate Bolivar-US dolar of 1026 BSF
to 1 dolar. Their average salary is 9,500 BSF (about $ 9,00) at that pace
their probability to attend Wikimania on their own tends to zero. (source
for the exchange rate )

_

*​​**Imagine um mundo onde é dada a qualquer pessoa a possibilidade de ter
livre acesso ao somatório de todo o conhecimento humano. Ajude-nos a
construir esse sonho.*

2016-02-10 13:43 GMT-02:00 Andrew Lih :

> GerardM,
>
> As much as I agree with you on many things related to Wikimania, your
> statement about en.wp and USA being “over subsidized” is off base.
>
> For the last few years I’ve held my tongue as American applicants get a
> fraction of 10% of all the funding for Wikimania scholarships. That’s
> because 10% is allocated to all of North America, so US based folks compete
> with Canadians for that small slice of the pie. Indeed, key community
> members from the US could not afford to go to Wikimania, and did not,
> because of the limited funding. We also do not have a strong chapter system
> to make up for that shortcoming, where European chapters can, and do,
> underwrite their local members with other funds.
>
> I am not against the bulk of the scholarship money going to
> underrepresented developing markets and giving new voices a chance to
> attend. But I wanted to dispel the myth that Americans are always gorging
> at the trough.
>
>
> https://wikimania2013.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Scholarship_selection_process
> https://wikimania2014.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Selection_process
>
>
> -Andrew
>
> On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 6:49 AM, Gerard Meijssen <
> gerard.meijs...@gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> > Hoi,
> > Pine with all due respect, the USA is not the problem and English
> Wikipedia
> > has been overly subsidised, given way too much attention. Indeed having
> > more people from the USA attend Wikimania is not a good value
> proposition.
> > The USA and Britain is overrepresented as it is.
> > Thanks,
> >  GerardM
> >
> > On 10 February 2016 at 10:13, Pine W  wrote:
> >
> > > From a US perspective, even here in the global north we have plenty of
> > > students and middle-class participants for whom $1500 in travel, food
> and
> > > lodging plus 5 days away from work, family, or school amounts to a
> > > significant or impossible sacrifice.
> > >
> > > Perhaps someone could tell us the statistics for how many people have
> > > attended Wikimania each year who were not WMF employees, FDC or WMF
> Board
> > > members, scholarship recipients, or financially sponsored by WMF
> > affiliates
> > > or WEF. Of those people who pay 100% of their own costs plus the cost
> of
> > > admission tickets, my guess is that many live within a day's travel
> time
> > by
> > > train, car, or bus.
> > >
> > > I would hypothesize that thematic conferences also have a low
> percentage
> > of
> > > people who pay 100% of

Re: [Wikimedia-l] Seddon joins the Advancement team

[Michael Maggs]

Congratulations Seddon!  I'm really glad that's worked out, and I'm 
looking forward to continuing to work with you in your new role.


All the best

Michael


Lisa Gruwell wrote:

Hi All-


I am happy to announce that Joseph Seddon (User:Seddon) has joined the
Advancement team to lead up our Community Engagement! Many of you have been
asking for us to add a position like this to our team and we are thrilled
that Seddon agreed to join us because he has both a deep understanding of
the community and of our team’s work.

Many of you may already know Seddon, as he has been a Wikipedian since
2006, twice former WMUK trustee, and has helped the Fundraising team as a
contractor (on and off) since 2011. Seddon will be a first point of contact
for the community on all fundraising and partnerships work.  Rest assured,
all of us on the fundraising team will still be engaged with the community
on meta, this list, etc.  Seddon will simply be leading the effort in terms
communication and collaboration and making us better.


Welcome (back) Seddon!


Best,

Lisa Gruwell

P.S. For those of you who have never met him, here's an intro is his own
words:

Having been involved in the chapters, online community or working for the
foundation in some shape or form since 2007, I have stood on pretty much on
all sides of all the fences and even found myself straddling one or two in
that time. That has given me a pretty unique perspective in terms of
fundraising within the movement and one that I hope will serve both the
community and my colleagues well going forward. On a more personal note,
I’m based near London but originally from Wales. Interests include Rugby,
Formula 1 and Cooking and prefer the hills to the city.

If you ever have any questions relating to any of the work the Advancement
department does then feel free to drop me a message on my talk page [1], by
email [2] or right here on this list.

[1] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/User_talk:Jseddon_(WMF)
[2] jseddon at wikimedia.org
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Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[Robert Fernandez]

The US may be too geographically spread out to develop a robust chapter
system.  We have vibrant chapters in a few dense population areas.
Wikimedia District of Columbia is particularly awesome.  But for most US
editors there isn't a critical mass of editors in some areas.  Often we
work with with chapters that are geographically distant.  There's at least
two of us on the Board of Directors of WMDC who don't live particularly
close to DC.

On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 11:00 AM, Jane Darnell  wrote:

> "We also do not have a strong chapter system"
>
> This has always puzzled me, because I am a firm believer in the chapter
> system, despite its faults and limitations. Isn't it time to address this
> for the more active areas of the USA?
>
> On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 10:43 AM, Andrew Lih  wrote:
>
> > GerardM,
> >
> > As much as I agree with you on many things related to Wikimania, your
> > statement about en.wp and USA being “over subsidized” is off base.
> >
> > For the last few years I’ve held my tongue as American applicants get a
> > fraction of 10% of all the funding for Wikimania scholarships. That’s
> > because 10% is allocated to all of North America, so US based folks
> compete
> > with Canadians for that small slice of the pie. Indeed, key community
> > members from the US could not afford to go to Wikimania, and did not,
> > because of the limited funding. We also do not have a strong chapter
> system
> > to make up for that shortcoming, where European chapters can, and do,
> > underwrite their local members with other funds.
> >
> > I am not against the bulk of the scholarship money going to
> > underrepresented developing markets and giving new voices a chance to
> > attend. But I wanted to dispel the myth that Americans are always gorging
> > at the trough.
> >
> >
> >
> https://wikimania2013.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Scholarship_selection_process
> > https://wikimania2014.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Selection_process
> >
> >
> > -Andrew
> >
> > On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 6:49 AM, Gerard Meijssen <
> > gerard.meijs...@gmail.com>
> > wrote:
> >
> > > Hoi,
> > > Pine with all due respect, the USA is not the problem and English
> > Wikipedia
> > > has been overly subsidised, given way too much attention. Indeed having
> > > more people from the USA attend Wikimania is not a good value
> > proposition.
> > > The USA and Britain is overrepresented as it is.
> > > Thanks,
> > >  GerardM
> > >
> > > On 10 February 2016 at 10:13, Pine W  wrote:
> > >
> > > > From a US perspective, even here in the global north we have plenty
> of
> > > > students and middle-class participants for whom $1500 in travel, food
> > and
> > > > lodging plus 5 days away from work, family, or school amounts to a
> > > > significant or impossible sacrifice.
> > > >
> > > > Perhaps someone could tell us the statistics for how many people have
> > > > attended Wikimania each year who were not WMF employees, FDC or WMF
> > Board
> > > > members, scholarship recipients, or financially sponsored by WMF
> > > affiliates
> > > > or WEF. Of those people who pay 100% of their own costs plus the cost
> > of
> > > > admission tickets, my guess is that many live within a day's travel
> > time
> > > by
> > > > train, car, or bus.
> > > >
> > > > I would hypothesize that thematic conferences also have a low
> > percentage
> > > of
> > > > people who pay 100% of their own costs, but that regional conferences
> > > which
> > > > have lower travel costs for the average attendee receive modestly
> > higher
> > > > percentages of unsubsidized attendance.
> > > >
> > > > It seems to me that WMF finacial support for conferences, including
> > > > regional and thematic conferences, will continue to be the norm.
> > > >
> > > > Whether $1 million is appropriate for Wikimania and whether a more
> > modest
> > > > budget would be appropriate and feasable are different questions that
> > > merit
> > > > careful reflection.
> > > >
> > > > Pine
> > > > ___
> > > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at:
> > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines
> > > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org
> > > > Unsubscribe:
> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l,
> > > > 
> > > >
> > > ___
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Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[Gerard Meijssen]

Hoi,
There is only one argument that I cannot refute about American money. It is
American money that gets us the bulk of our funding. The one obvious reason
is that the fund-raising is targeting the USA. When money is spend, it is
spend predominantly in the USA and targeted for Wikipedia and English
Wikipedia at that.

Arguably the WMF is a global organisation and spending is best allocated
based on where people live. When money is targeted on where we grow, we
would not spend as much on the needs of Wikipedia. We would recognise the
importance of projects like Wikisource and finally give it some attention.
It would benefit particularly benefit India. When the model they have
adopted is introduced elsewhere, it will make many, many more books
available. THAT would have a real impact educationally speaking.

Given the small size of many communities, it is important that they benefit
from the things we already have but the thing that is so easily forgotten
is the road to get there. That road is not a universal given and it is
dominated by the road English WIkipedia has taken. What I find is that
people are happy where we are at. Never mind the nay sayers.

You mention chapters and we have good chapters in Europe. Sadly their
impact on Wikipedia is neglible because they are "not part of the
community" and what they do is largely fringe.

Really English and Wikipedia is over served. IMHO the law of diminishing
returns applies.
Thanks,
  GerardM

On 10 February 2016 at 16:43, Andrew Lih  wrote:

> GerardM,
>
> As much as I agree with you on many things related to Wikimania, your
> statement about en.wp and USA being “over subsidized” is off base.
>
> For the last few years I’ve held my tongue as American applicants get a
> fraction of 10% of all the funding for Wikimania scholarships. That’s
> because 10% is allocated to all of North America, so US based folks compete
> with Canadians for that small slice of the pie. Indeed, key community
> members from the US could not afford to go to Wikimania, and did not,
> because of the limited funding. We also do not have a strong chapter system
> to make up for that shortcoming, where European chapters can, and do,
> underwrite their local members with other funds.
>
> I am not against the bulk of the scholarship money going to
> underrepresented developing markets and giving new voices a chance to
> attend. But I wanted to dispel the myth that Americans are always gorging
> at the trough.
>
>
> https://wikimania2013.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Scholarship_selection_process
> https://wikimania2014.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Selection_process
>
>
> -Andrew
>
> On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 6:49 AM, Gerard Meijssen <
> gerard.meijs...@gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> > Hoi,
> > Pine with all due respect, the USA is not the problem and English
> Wikipedia
> > has been overly subsidised, given way too much attention. Indeed having
> > more people from the USA attend Wikimania is not a good value
> proposition.
> > The USA and Britain is overrepresented as it is.
> > Thanks,
> >  GerardM
> >
> > On 10 February 2016 at 10:13, Pine W  wrote:
> >
> > > From a US perspective, even here in the global north we have plenty of
> > > students and middle-class participants for whom $1500 in travel, food
> and
> > > lodging plus 5 days away from work, family, or school amounts to a
> > > significant or impossible sacrifice.
> > >
> > > Perhaps someone could tell us the statistics for how many people have
> > > attended Wikimania each year who were not WMF employees, FDC or WMF
> Board
> > > members, scholarship recipients, or financially sponsored by WMF
> > affiliates
> > > or WEF. Of those people who pay 100% of their own costs plus the cost
> of
> > > admission tickets, my guess is that many live within a day's travel
> time
> > by
> > > train, car, or bus.
> > >
> > > I would hypothesize that thematic conferences also have a low
> percentage
> > of
> > > people who pay 100% of their own costs, but that regional conferences
> > which
> > > have lower travel costs for the average attendee receive modestly
> higher
> > > percentages of unsubsidized attendance.
> > >
> > > It seems to me that WMF finacial support for conferences, including
> > > regional and thematic conferences, will continue to be the norm.
> > >
> > > Whether $1 million is appropriate for Wikimania and whether a more
> modest
> > > budget would be appropriate and feasable are different questions that
> > merit
> > > careful reflection.
> > >
> > > Pine
> > > ___
> > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at:
> > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines
> > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org
> > > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l,
> > > 
> > >
> > ___
> > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines 

Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[Jane Darnell]

"We also do not have a strong chapter system"

This has always puzzled me, because I am a firm believer in the chapter
system, despite its faults and limitations. Isn't it time to address this
for the more active areas of the USA?

On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 10:43 AM, Andrew Lih  wrote:

> GerardM,
>
> As much as I agree with you on many things related to Wikimania, your
> statement about en.wp and USA being “over subsidized” is off base.
>
> For the last few years I’ve held my tongue as American applicants get a
> fraction of 10% of all the funding for Wikimania scholarships. That’s
> because 10% is allocated to all of North America, so US based folks compete
> with Canadians for that small slice of the pie. Indeed, key community
> members from the US could not afford to go to Wikimania, and did not,
> because of the limited funding. We also do not have a strong chapter system
> to make up for that shortcoming, where European chapters can, and do,
> underwrite their local members with other funds.
>
> I am not against the bulk of the scholarship money going to
> underrepresented developing markets and giving new voices a chance to
> attend. But I wanted to dispel the myth that Americans are always gorging
> at the trough.
>
>
> https://wikimania2013.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Scholarship_selection_process
> https://wikimania2014.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Selection_process
>
>
> -Andrew
>
> On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 6:49 AM, Gerard Meijssen <
> gerard.meijs...@gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> > Hoi,
> > Pine with all due respect, the USA is not the problem and English
> Wikipedia
> > has been overly subsidised, given way too much attention. Indeed having
> > more people from the USA attend Wikimania is not a good value
> proposition.
> > The USA and Britain is overrepresented as it is.
> > Thanks,
> >  GerardM
> >
> > On 10 February 2016 at 10:13, Pine W  wrote:
> >
> > > From a US perspective, even here in the global north we have plenty of
> > > students and middle-class participants for whom $1500 in travel, food
> and
> > > lodging plus 5 days away from work, family, or school amounts to a
> > > significant or impossible sacrifice.
> > >
> > > Perhaps someone could tell us the statistics for how many people have
> > > attended Wikimania each year who were not WMF employees, FDC or WMF
> Board
> > > members, scholarship recipients, or financially sponsored by WMF
> > affiliates
> > > or WEF. Of those people who pay 100% of their own costs plus the cost
> of
> > > admission tickets, my guess is that many live within a day's travel
> time
> > by
> > > train, car, or bus.
> > >
> > > I would hypothesize that thematic conferences also have a low
> percentage
> > of
> > > people who pay 100% of their own costs, but that regional conferences
> > which
> > > have lower travel costs for the average attendee receive modestly
> higher
> > > percentages of unsubsidized attendance.
> > >
> > > It seems to me that WMF finacial support for conferences, including
> > > regional and thematic conferences, will continue to be the norm.
> > >
> > > Whether $1 million is appropriate for Wikimania and whether a more
> modest
> > > budget would be appropriate and feasable are different questions that
> > merit
> > > careful reflection.
> > >
> > > Pine
> > > ___
> > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at:
> > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines
> > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org
> > > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l,
> > > 
> > >
> > ___
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> > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines
> > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org
> > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l,
> > 
> >
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Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[Andrew Lih]

GerardM,

As much as I agree with you on many things related to Wikimania, your
statement about en.wp and USA being “over subsidized” is off base.

For the last few years I’ve held my tongue as American applicants get a
fraction of 10% of all the funding for Wikimania scholarships. That’s
because 10% is allocated to all of North America, so US based folks compete
with Canadians for that small slice of the pie. Indeed, key community
members from the US could not afford to go to Wikimania, and did not,
because of the limited funding. We also do not have a strong chapter system
to make up for that shortcoming, where European chapters can, and do,
underwrite their local members with other funds.

I am not against the bulk of the scholarship money going to
underrepresented developing markets and giving new voices a chance to
attend. But I wanted to dispel the myth that Americans are always gorging
at the trough.

https://wikimania2013.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Scholarship_selection_process
https://wikimania2014.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Selection_process


-Andrew

On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 6:49 AM, Gerard Meijssen 
wrote:

> Hoi,
> Pine with all due respect, the USA is not the problem and English Wikipedia
> has been overly subsidised, given way too much attention. Indeed having
> more people from the USA attend Wikimania is not a good value proposition.
> The USA and Britain is overrepresented as it is.
> Thanks,
>  GerardM
>
> On 10 February 2016 at 10:13, Pine W  wrote:
>
> > From a US perspective, even here in the global north we have plenty of
> > students and middle-class participants for whom $1500 in travel, food and
> > lodging plus 5 days away from work, family, or school amounts to a
> > significant or impossible sacrifice.
> >
> > Perhaps someone could tell us the statistics for how many people have
> > attended Wikimania each year who were not WMF employees, FDC or WMF Board
> > members, scholarship recipients, or financially sponsored by WMF
> affiliates
> > or WEF. Of those people who pay 100% of their own costs plus the cost of
> > admission tickets, my guess is that many live within a day's travel time
> by
> > train, car, or bus.
> >
> > I would hypothesize that thematic conferences also have a low percentage
> of
> > people who pay 100% of their own costs, but that regional conferences
> which
> > have lower travel costs for the average attendee receive modestly higher
> > percentages of unsubsidized attendance.
> >
> > It seems to me that WMF finacial support for conferences, including
> > regional and thematic conferences, will continue to be the norm.
> >
> > Whether $1 million is appropriate for Wikimania and whether a more modest
> > budget would be appropriate and feasable are different questions that
> merit
> > careful reflection.
> >
> > Pine
> > ___
> > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at:
> > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines
> > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org
> > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l,
> > 
> >
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Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[Itzik - Wikimedia Israel]

If we want to talk about the cost of Wikimania it will be great if the WMF
and the local team will share the costs.

Until now Wikimania London didn't published anything:
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimania_2014/Budget

And also Mexico:
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimania_2015/Budget

Maybe I missed something, but it's strange that such discussion takes place
without a real budget breakdown. To summarize 2 huge event to "1$ million
USD" does not make sense.

Itzik



*Regards,Itzik Edri*
Chairperson, Wikimedia Israel
+972-(0)-54-5878078 | http://www.wikimedia.org.il
Imagine a world in which every single human being can freely share in the
sum of all knowledge. That's our commitment!


On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 7:06 AM, Samuel Klein  wrote:

> I found this the most interesting part of the recent IdeaLab discussion
> about changing the Wikimania framework.
>   https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Grants:IdeaLab/Towards_a_New_Wikimania
>
>   "*The total spend by WMF for Wikimania 2014 in London and 2015 in Mexico,
> including all travel, accommodations, scholarships, staff support and
> direct conference expenses, was ~$1 million USD*"
>
> This is a pity. Small grants to support a con is one thing, but this is too
> much.
>
> Please let's stop encouraging conferences that do not cover their own
> costs. A good conference series pays for itself, including its scholarship
> pool. There are plenty of communities our size or larger with wonderful,
> regular conferences of hundreds or thousands of people, which break even or
> turn a small profit.
>
> FUDCons are an interesting case in point.  As I understand it, there was a
> time when RedHat basically sponsored the events, with scholarships for all
> active contributors and extensive grants. This was ok, but skewed
> participation.  Then the lavish sponsorship stopped. Attendance dropped;
> community members felt unloved. Then after a time, this passed, and
> everyone attended again. (Perhaps a core Fedora contributor can describe
> this more accurately!)
>
> SJ
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Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[Tomasz Ganicz]

2016-02-10 6:06 GMT+01:00 Samuel Klein :

> FUDCons


Also it is hard to compare Wikimanias with FUDCons as it is
a) much  smaller (usually bo more than 200 attendees)
b) divided by regions - for example in 2015 there were 3 FUDCons
(Argentina, India, Spain) and 2 Flocks (NY and Kraków) -  so they are
rather like our Iberecop or CEE meetings than the global conferences.

And also Fedora developers have many potential sources of external funding
- mainly from IT companies which uses free software and want to apply for
their specific needs and for whom they quite often work.

But anyway, Fedora offers scholarships for attendees, see:

https://fedorahosted.org/fudcon-planning/wiki/FundingRequest


-- 
Tomek "Polimerek" Ganicz
http://pl.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Polimerek
http://www.ganicz.pl/poli/
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Re: [Wikimedia-l] Seddon joins the Advancement team

[Richard Symonds]

Congratulations Seddon! Ti'n seren!

Richard Symonds
Wikimedia UK
0207 065 0992

Wikimedia UK is a Company Limited by Guarantee registered in England and
Wales, Registered No. 6741827. Registered Charity No.1144513. Registered
Office 4th Floor, Development House, 56-64 Leonard Street, London EC2A 4LT.
United Kingdom. Wikimedia UK is the UK chapter of a global Wikimedia
movement. The Wikimedia projects are run by the Wikimedia Foundation (who
operate Wikipedia, amongst other projects).

*Wikimedia UK is an independent non-profit charity with no legal control
over Wikipedia nor responsibility for its contents.*

On 9 February 2016 at 19:27, Lisa Gruwell  wrote:

> Hi All-
>
>
> I am happy to announce that Joseph Seddon (User:Seddon) has joined the
> Advancement team to lead up our Community Engagement! Many of you have been
> asking for us to add a position like this to our team and we are thrilled
> that Seddon agreed to join us because he has both a deep understanding of
> the community and of our team’s work.
>
> Many of you may already know Seddon, as he has been a Wikipedian since
> 2006, twice former WMUK trustee, and has helped the Fundraising team as a
> contractor (on and off) since 2011. Seddon will be a first point of contact
> for the community on all fundraising and partnerships work.  Rest assured,
> all of us on the fundraising team will still be engaged with the community
> on meta, this list, etc.  Seddon will simply be leading the effort in terms
> communication and collaboration and making us better.
>
>
> Welcome (back) Seddon!
>
>
> Best,
>
> Lisa Gruwell
>
> P.S. For those of you who have never met him, here's an intro is his own
> words:
>
> Having been involved in the chapters, online community or working for the
> foundation in some shape or form since 2007, I have stood on pretty much on
> all sides of all the fences and even found myself straddling one or two in
> that time. That has given me a pretty unique perspective in terms of
> fundraising within the movement and one that I hope will serve both the
> community and my colleagues well going forward. On a more personal note,
> I’m based near London but originally from Wales. Interests include Rugby,
> Formula 1 and Cooking and prefer the hills to the city.
>
> If you ever have any questions relating to any of the work the Advancement
> department does then feel free to drop me a message on my talk page [1], by
> email [2] or right here on this list.
>
> [1] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/User_talk:Jseddon_(WMF)
> [2] jseddon at wikimedia.org
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Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[Gerard Meijssen]

Hoi,
Pine with all due respect, the USA is not the problem and English Wikipedia
has been overly subsidised, given way too much attention. Indeed having
more people from the USA attend Wikimania is not a good value proposition.
The USA and Britain is overrepresented as it is.
Thanks,
 GerardM

On 10 February 2016 at 10:13, Pine W  wrote:

> From a US perspective, even here in the global north we have plenty of
> students and middle-class participants for whom $1500 in travel, food and
> lodging plus 5 days away from work, family, or school amounts to a
> significant or impossible sacrifice.
>
> Perhaps someone could tell us the statistics for how many people have
> attended Wikimania each year who were not WMF employees, FDC or WMF Board
> members, scholarship recipients, or financially sponsored by WMF affiliates
> or WEF. Of those people who pay 100% of their own costs plus the cost of
> admission tickets, my guess is that many live within a day's travel time by
> train, car, or bus.
>
> I would hypothesize that thematic conferences also have a low percentage of
> people who pay 100% of their own costs, but that regional conferences which
> have lower travel costs for the average attendee receive modestly higher
> percentages of unsubsidized attendance.
>
> It seems to me that WMF finacial support for conferences, including
> regional and thematic conferences, will continue to be the norm.
>
> Whether $1 million is appropriate for Wikimania and whether a more modest
> budget would be appropriate and feasable are different questions that merit
> careful reflection.
>
> Pine
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Re: [Wikimedia-l] Farewell <3

[Natalia Szafran-Kozakowska]

Dear Anna! You have a great talent to inspire people. I can never tell you
how much Wikipedia magic I discovered thanks to you. You are a great
Wikipedian, a wonderful teacheer and a beautiful person. Hope that we will
still have a chance to meet on Wikimedia events.
I wish you many great adventures and I thank you for being such an
inspiration to us all.


Natalia Szafran-Kozakowska

2016-02-10 9:12 GMT+01:00 Greta Doçi :

> Oh :( this is so sad. You were such an inspiration for me. Thank you for
> everything that you have done to help Wikimedians of Albania and for me.
> All the best for the future <3,
> I hope to see you again.
> Many hugs,
> Greta
>
>
> On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 8:16 AM, Josh Lim 
> wrote:
>
> > Dear Anna,
> >
> > I can’t thank you enough for all the work you’ve done to help us get to
> > where we are today.  We wouldn’t have an Education Program, nor would we
> > have been able to effectively leverage our partnership with Smart
> > Communications here in the Philippines, if it weren’t for your efforts.
> > For that, Wikimedia Philippines is forever grateful.
> >
> > But at the same time, as a Wikipedian, I am eternally grateful for all
> the
> > advice, the stories, and lessons and, most especially, the laughs.  It
> was
> > definitely awesome seeing you at Wikimania.  I was certainly hoping to
> see
> > you this year if I get the chance to.  But either way, know that we will
> > always be here for you, as we hope you will be for us.
> >
> > If we had to look for examples of awesome Wikimedians, you definitely
> > count as one.  From the bottom of my heart, thank you for everything, and
> > we will definitely miss you.  Hopefully, somewhere, someday, our paths
> will
> > cross once again.
> >
> > Many hugs from Manila,
> >
> > Josh
> >
> > > Wiadomość napisana przez Anna Koval  w dniu
> > 10.02.2016, o godz. 01:49:
> > >
> > > Dear friends,
> > >
> > > During the past three years, I have been privileged to be a part of
> this
> > > movement and this organization.
> > >
> > > I have been honored to be your colleague and to work with you in
> service
> > of
> > > the sum of all knowledge.
> > >
> > > In particular, I wish to note particular projects that have inspired me
> > > very much.
> > >
> > >   - Working with Philippe Beautdette, Maggie Dennis, James Alexander,
> and
> > >   Jan Eisfeldt to keep our community safe from threats of harm. [1]
> > >   - Working with Patrick Earley, Nick Wilson, Erica Litrenta, Sherry
> > >   Snyder, Oliver Keyes, and James Forester on the rollout of
> > VisualEditor. [2]
> > >   - Working with Yana Welinder and Heather Walls to design a
> > user-friendly
> > >   trademark policy. [3] [4]
> > >   - Working with Siko Bouterse to support Individual Engagement Grants
> > and
> > >   movement diversity. [5] [6]
> > >   - Working with Jake Orlowitz to promote the Wikipedia Library and the
> > >   Wikipedia Adventure. [7] [8]
> > >   - Working with Jaime Anstee, Edward Galvez, Amanda Bittaker to
> > encourage
> > >   evaluation and learning. [9]
> > >   - Working with Asaf Bartov to encourage regional cooperation in
> Central
> > >   and Eastern Europe. [10]
> > >   - Working with Floor Koudijs. Tighe Flanagan, Kacie Harold, Samir
> > >   Elsharbaty, Rodney Dunican, Sage Ross, Jami Mathewson, and LiAnna
> > Davis on
> > >   the Wikipedia Education Program. [11]
> > >
> > > The Wikipedia Education Program is especially near and dear to my
> heart.
> > It
> > > is a means of educating readers, recruiting contributors, and creating
> > > quality content. Since 2014, the number of education initiatives around
> > the
> > > world has increased by 36%. [12] [13] And 25% of all education programs
> > are
> > > in one of the regions that I directly supported. [14] I am so proud of
> > what
> > > they have accomplished. And I am enthusiastic about what great things
> > they
> > > have yet to achieve.
> > >
> > > I want to thank and compliment my current manager, Floor Koudijs. She
> is
> > a
> > > competent, considerate, conscientious leader, and her diplomacy skills
> > are
> > > unsurpassed. I am confident that the education team and the education
> > > program will continue to excel under her leadership. They are in the
> best
> > > hands.
> > >
> > > I want to thank and compliment my hiring manager, Maggie Dennis. She
> had
> > > faith that, although I wasn’t an active community member, I could be
> > taught
> > > to be a good community advocate. I am so proud that I proved her right.
> > She
> > > taught me how to work in accordance with and to have the utmost respect
> > for
> > > the wiki way. [15]
> > >
> > > Wikipedia is a miracle, a monument to altruism. It is vital to the
> > internet
> > > ecosystem, and it is vital to the education system. I hope that more
> > young
> > > people especially will find their way to it and help out. And when they
> > do,
> > > I hope that they are met with wise mentorship from veteran community
> > > members, just as I was.
>

Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[Gnangarra]

While everyone keeps looking at the cost thats not the question we should
be asking, because even if the costs were reduced to 500,000, 100,00 or
even 10,000 ​that doesnt reflect the value we get from the in person
contacts, the global connections the sharing of experiences, learning of
concepts, even the moral support and reenergization that occurs.  When I
talk to people who have attended Wikimanias nobody says that was a waste of
my time, I learnt nothing, I wish I could get back those 5 days that is a
better indicator of its value to the community.




On 10 February 2016 at 17:13, Pine W  wrote:

> From a US perspective, even here in the global north we have plenty of
> students and middle-class participants for whom $1500 in travel, food and
> lodging plus 5 days away from work, family, or school amounts to a
> significant or impossible sacrifice.
>
> Perhaps someone could tell us the statistics for how many people have
> attended Wikimania each year who were not WMF employees, FDC or WMF Board
> members, scholarship recipients, or financially sponsored by WMF affiliates
> or WEF. Of those people who pay 100% of their own costs plus the cost of
> admission tickets, my guess is that many live within a day's travel time by
> train, car, or bus.
>
> I would hypothesize that thematic conferences also have a low percentage of
> people who pay 100% of their own costs, but that regional conferences which
> have lower travel costs for the average attendee receive modestly higher
> percentages of unsubsidized attendance.
>
> It seems to me that WMF finacial support for conferences, including
> regional and thematic conferences, will continue to be the norm.
>
> Whether $1 million is appropriate for Wikimania and whether a more modest
> budget would be appropriate and feasable are different questions that merit
> careful reflection.
>
> Pine
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>



-- 
GN.
President Wikimedia Australia
WMAU: http://www.wikimedia.org.au/wiki/User:Gnangarra
Photo Gallery: http://gnangarra.redbubble.com
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Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[Pine W]

From a US perspective, even here in the global north we have plenty of
students and middle-class participants for whom $1500 in travel, food and
lodging plus 5 days away from work, family, or school amounts to a
significant or impossible sacrifice.

Perhaps someone could tell us the statistics for how many people have
attended Wikimania each year who were not WMF employees, FDC or WMF Board
members, scholarship recipients, or financially sponsored by WMF affiliates
or WEF. Of those people who pay 100% of their own costs plus the cost of
admission tickets, my guess is that many live within a day's travel time by
train, car, or bus.

I would hypothesize that thematic conferences also have a low percentage of
people who pay 100% of their own costs, but that regional conferences which
have lower travel costs for the average attendee receive modestly higher
percentages of unsubsidized attendance.

It seems to me that WMF finacial support for conferences, including
regional and thematic conferences, will continue to be the norm.

Whether $1 million is appropriate for Wikimania and whether a more modest
budget would be appropriate and feasable are different questions that merit
careful reflection.

Pine
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Re: [Wikimedia-l] Farewell <3

[Greta Doçi]

Oh :( this is so sad. You were such an inspiration for me. Thank you for
everything that you have done to help Wikimedians of Albania and for me.
All the best for the future <3,
I hope to see you again.
Many hugs,
Greta


On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 8:16 AM, Josh Lim  wrote:

> Dear Anna,
>
> I can’t thank you enough for all the work you’ve done to help us get to
> where we are today.  We wouldn’t have an Education Program, nor would we
> have been able to effectively leverage our partnership with Smart
> Communications here in the Philippines, if it weren’t for your efforts.
> For that, Wikimedia Philippines is forever grateful.
>
> But at the same time, as a Wikipedian, I am eternally grateful for all the
> advice, the stories, and lessons and, most especially, the laughs.  It was
> definitely awesome seeing you at Wikimania.  I was certainly hoping to see
> you this year if I get the chance to.  But either way, know that we will
> always be here for you, as we hope you will be for us.
>
> If we had to look for examples of awesome Wikimedians, you definitely
> count as one.  From the bottom of my heart, thank you for everything, and
> we will definitely miss you.  Hopefully, somewhere, someday, our paths will
> cross once again.
>
> Many hugs from Manila,
>
> Josh
>
> > Wiadomość napisana przez Anna Koval  w dniu
> 10.02.2016, o godz. 01:49:
> >
> > Dear friends,
> >
> > During the past three years, I have been privileged to be a part of this
> > movement and this organization.
> >
> > I have been honored to be your colleague and to work with you in service
> of
> > the sum of all knowledge.
> >
> > In particular, I wish to note particular projects that have inspired me
> > very much.
> >
> >   - Working with Philippe Beautdette, Maggie Dennis, James Alexander, and
> >   Jan Eisfeldt to keep our community safe from threats of harm. [1]
> >   - Working with Patrick Earley, Nick Wilson, Erica Litrenta, Sherry
> >   Snyder, Oliver Keyes, and James Forester on the rollout of
> VisualEditor. [2]
> >   - Working with Yana Welinder and Heather Walls to design a
> user-friendly
> >   trademark policy. [3] [4]
> >   - Working with Siko Bouterse to support Individual Engagement Grants
> and
> >   movement diversity. [5] [6]
> >   - Working with Jake Orlowitz to promote the Wikipedia Library and the
> >   Wikipedia Adventure. [7] [8]
> >   - Working with Jaime Anstee, Edward Galvez, Amanda Bittaker to
> encourage
> >   evaluation and learning. [9]
> >   - Working with Asaf Bartov to encourage regional cooperation in Central
> >   and Eastern Europe. [10]
> >   - Working with Floor Koudijs. Tighe Flanagan, Kacie Harold, Samir
> >   Elsharbaty, Rodney Dunican, Sage Ross, Jami Mathewson, and LiAnna
> Davis on
> >   the Wikipedia Education Program. [11]
> >
> > The Wikipedia Education Program is especially near and dear to my heart.
> It
> > is a means of educating readers, recruiting contributors, and creating
> > quality content. Since 2014, the number of education initiatives around
> the
> > world has increased by 36%. [12] [13] And 25% of all education programs
> are
> > in one of the regions that I directly supported. [14] I am so proud of
> what
> > they have accomplished. And I am enthusiastic about what great things
> they
> > have yet to achieve.
> >
> > I want to thank and compliment my current manager, Floor Koudijs. She is
> a
> > competent, considerate, conscientious leader, and her diplomacy skills
> are
> > unsurpassed. I am confident that the education team and the education
> > program will continue to excel under her leadership. They are in the best
> > hands.
> >
> > I want to thank and compliment my hiring manager, Maggie Dennis. She had
> > faith that, although I wasn’t an active community member, I could be
> taught
> > to be a good community advocate. I am so proud that I proved her right.
> She
> > taught me how to work in accordance with and to have the utmost respect
> for
> > the wiki way. [15]
> >
> > Wikipedia is a miracle, a monument to altruism. It is vital to the
> internet
> > ecosystem, and it is vital to the education system. I hope that more
> young
> > people especially will find their way to it and help out. And when they
> do,
> > I hope that they are met with wise mentorship from veteran community
> > members, just as I was.
> >
> > I intend to remain a Wikipedian even after I am no longer a WMF staff
> > member. And, with that promise, I’ll see you on the wikis. [16]
> >
> > All the best,
> > Anna Koval, M.Ed.
> >
> > [1] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Threats_of_harm
> > [2] https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/VisualEditor
> > [3] https://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Trademark_policy
> > [4]
> >
> http://blog.wikimedia.org/2013/10/29/designing-a-user-friendly-trademark-policy/
> > [5] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Grants:IEG
> > [6] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Diversity_Conference
> > [7] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/The_Wikipedia_Library
> > [8] https://outreach.wi

Re: [Wikimedia-l] Reducing the net cost of Wikimania

[Gerard Meijssen]

Hoi,
To quote a Wikipedia maxim .. "citation needed".  It is one thing to say
that something is costly and, it is. It is another to say that Wikimania is
expensive. It is expensive when it does not provide a value relative to
costs.

When you compare with Red Hat, you talk about professional people in
relation to Red Hat. This is not what our community is. They are volunteers
and while some have the money to pay their own way, this is certainly
dependant on where people are from. Given that we suck at supporting the
"global south", I am afraid that your thinking is in terms of money and not
in terms of value and lost sight what our community is.

The comparison with Red Hat and your point is flawed.
Thanks,
   GerardM

On 10 February 2016 at 06:06, Samuel Klein  wrote:

> I found this the most interesting part of the recent IdeaLab discussion
> about changing the Wikimania framework.
>   https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Grants:IdeaLab/Towards_a_New_Wikimania
>
>   "*The total spend by WMF for Wikimania 2014 in London and 2015 in Mexico,
> including all travel, accommodations, scholarships, staff support and
> direct conference expenses, was ~$1 million USD*"
>
> This is a pity. Small grants to support a con is one thing, but this is too
> much.
>
> Please let's stop encouraging conferences that do not cover their own
> costs. A good conference series pays for itself, including its scholarship
> pool. There are plenty of communities our size or larger with wonderful,
> regular conferences of hundreds or thousands of people, which break even or
> turn a small profit.
>
> FUDCons are an interesting case in point.  As I understand it, there was a
> time when RedHat basically sponsored the events, with scholarships for all
> active contributors and extensive grants. This was ok, but skewed
> participation.  Then the lavish sponsorship stopped. Attendance dropped;
> community members felt unloved. Then after a time, this passed, and
> everyone attended again. (Perhaps a core Fedora contributor can describe
> this more accurately!)
>
> SJ
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