Belarusian Wikipedia Day in Lithuania
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| Date | 10 November 2013 |
|---|---|
| Location | Vilnius |
| Organizers | Belarusian National Memory, StudAlians, Tomasz Bladyniec |
| Languages | Belarusian, Polish |
| Website | Official site |
Belarusian Wikipedia Day in Lithuania – an event held in Vilnius on November 10, 2013, aimed to popularize the idea of editing and developing Belarusian-language Wikipedias among Belarusian speakers residing in Lithuania. The event was organized by StudAlians, Belarusian National Memory, and Polish Wikipedian Tomasz Bladyniec.
Goals
[edit]The workshop was a continuation of previous similar initiatives held in Warsaw and Prague in 2013. Their goal was to popularize the idea of editing and developing Belarusian-language Wikipedias among Belarusians living abroad. A second goal was to create a nucleus of a Belarusian-speaking Wikipedia community in Lithuania, which could become independent and strengthened over time. In a broader context, this would have a positive impact on the development of civil society among Belarusians. A third goal was to support, preserve, and popularize the Belarusian language, which is endangered.
Organizers and participants
[edit]The organizers were Uladzislau Hurynovich from the "StudAlians" organization, Anatol Michnawiec, chairman of the Belarusian National Memory organization operating in Poland, and Polish Wikipedian Tomasz Bladyniec. Ten people participated in the workshop, six of whom had no previous experience editing Wikipedia. Among those present were Khvedar Niunka, an activist of the Belarusian national minority in Lithuania, and Franak Viachorka, a Belarusian youth activist and journalist. Wikipedians from the Belarusian-language Wikipedia were invited to participate and assist with the workshop, but ultimately none of them made it.
The event
[edit]The Belarusian Wikipedia Day in Lithuania took place on November 10, 2013, at the European Humanities University in Vilnius. The event lasted from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Tomasz Bladyniec began by discussing the theoretical foundations of Wikipedia editing. Next, a practical session took place, during which participants independently edited articles under the supervision of more experienced colleagues. The workshop concluded with a video call to Minsk, where a Wikipedia training course organized by the "Falanster" group was taking place simultaneously.
Budget
[edit]The workshop was financed by the Student Affairs Section of the European Humanities University. Meals for participants and organizers amounted to 193 litas, and travel for the organizers and some participants from Warsaw to Vilnius and Minsk to Vilnius amounted to 400 litas. The university also covered the organizers' overnight accommodations.