Grants:Conference/Wikimedians of the Caribbean User Group / The Wiki Caribean Forum
gmail.com|SherryAntoinegmail.com]]Event overview[edit]
Purpose and vision
Please give a brief description of the event you are planning. What do you hope to accomplish during the event? Why is this event important for your community?
The purpose of the Wiki Caribbean Forum Online is to build capacity on the ground of new Wikimedia editors, and partners. It is an engagement conference for the existing Wikimedia community and for newcomers. The conference is broken down into 4 days. The first day will be a optional learning day specifically for new editors interested in learning how to edit. The secondday begins the main conference starting with a keynote speaker from the Caribbean community followed by plenary sessions in separate Zoom rooms dedicated to interest area tracks relating to the capacity building of the the Wikimedia movement in the Caribbean. Each of the 3 days of the conference will have three a maximum of three Zoom break out rooms with at least one specifically for newcommers seeking Wiki coaching with volunteer WIkimedians. The keynote speaker folowed by break out rooms model would be repeated for the second day with the final day featuring an edit-a-thon on the Caribbean. Throughout the conference, we will invite members of the larger Wikimedia movement to briefly describe their projects and opportunities for participation (which will be advertised on-Wiki during the conference forum). We hope to connect with partners at universities in areas where we have already held event or established partnerships. These fall on islands throughout the Caribbean although the event is open to all.
Our team, being comprised of a federation of sorts of Wikimedians from different parts of the Wiki community who have organized and lead events and other Wiki initiatives, and most of whom identify as part of the Caribbean context, we are passionate about this target audience and region and look forward to working to introduce participants to the wider community. The event is small, but aims to attract local and regional Caribbean participation to learn about participating in the Wikimedia community and helping others do the same.
We are going to focus not only on Wikipedia editing but Wikidata and other important areas of the Wikimedia movement like Wiki Commons. Our outreach survey showed that there are areas where many are interested in Wikimedia, but the editing numbers can be improved. We also want a greater representation of information from the Caribbean from people of the Caribbean and its diaspora. We propose the event be Wednesday May 19-Saturday to May 22 with opening session online on the evening of May 20. As an intermediate-scale event (conference forum for 50-80 people), the Forum will serve to connect the regionally-focused Wikimedia community.
Do you consider this to be a Regional; Thematic or Growth event? You can read more about each category here.
This is a REMOTE regional event, open to the wider world, that is both hinged on the unique perspectives from the region and focused on growing the nascent Wiki Community in the Caribbean -- across its many languages.
Is it a Remote, or in-person event?
This is remote only.
Important details
Please add key information to the table below. The dates, location and number of participants can be estimates and do not need to be finalized at this time.
| Proposed date(s) | May 19-22, 2021 |
| Proposed location | Online |
| Number of participants | 50-80 |
| Event page | Wikimedians of the Caribbean User Group |
| Primary contact person | Shanluan |
Background[edit]
Community input[edit]
Use the results from the community engagement survey to fill in the table below. Since you cannot cover all topics or meet all needs at one event, prioritisation is important. Please rank the priority of each topic, skill, project or problem as high, medium or low. Finally, please answer the questions in the table below, if any of the questions are not relevant leave it blank.
| Description | Priority | |
|---|---|---|
| Strategic discussions:
What are the top issues affecting your community that need to be discussed in person? |
|
Medium |
| Capacity development:
Are there important skills that many people in your community need to learn? |
|
High |
| Working groups:
Are there joint projects that need to be planned in person? |
|
Low |
| Community building:
Are there other in-person activities are important for community building? |
|
Medium |
Survey analysis:
1. How many people did you send the survey to? How many people responded to the survey?
- Over 3000 people responded to our Reader & Editor survey. The survey was served across the Caribbean, in 33 territories and in 3 languages; English, French and Spanish.
2. Did you see consensus around shared goals that this community wants to focus on in the next 12 months? What were the top 2 goals?
- What were the top 2 goals? Consensus gained from the survey focused on developing a more active presence across the Wikimedia Community. Caribbean authors help colour content about the region by those from the region
3. Based on survey responses, what are the most important things your community should do at the conference to achieve those goals?
- The most pressing needs emanating from the surveys would need an agenda set around ideas that transcend different stages of Wiki users. The themes would be such like Wikipedia in Education, Pedagogical measurement using Wiki Dashboards, Teaching WikiCode, Caribbean Feminism through the lens of Wikipedia, Knowledge-as-a-Service for the public good: Democratizing information for the purpose of encouraging fact-consciousness, the Caribbean experiences of COVID19. The user group considers the event to be the primary form of engagement. For this, the user group will use voluntary mailing list sign ups, and on-Wiki registration for further messaging and feedback. Additionally, the user group has already made inroads with establishing projects in some of the jurisdictions concerned. The user group intends to continue in building on this. We also intend to have WMF presence at the from the Events and Education Team and other like teams the foundation recommends in this remote setting. For example, we have noticed that the WIkimedia Foundation uses such people in larger scale planning discussions (the 2030 Transition Design meetings had such a person who did impressive work). Can we look into having the help of the Foundation for this item? We believe that these teams provide valuable advisory and training help that are uniquely germane to the issue.
Context[edit]
It is helpful to get an understanding of why this event is important to your community, and what experiences you have had in the past. Please answer the applicable questions below.
- 1. What inspired your community to begin planning this event?
- This conference was inspired by our recent successes including our experience organising sessions at Wiki Conference North America in 2019, Wiki Cari Earth Day and the recent online Wiki Cari Fest. It is being organised by the Wikimedians of the Caribbean User Group, which itself first came together at WikiConference North America in 2018. It was recognized that there is a broad community of Wikimedians both in the Caribbean and in the diaspora, but this community had not been able to come together before for a meeting or joint activities. A regional conference like WikiConference North America or Wiki Indaba or the CEE Conference could help to solidify a common feeling and help grow the network of connections and shared experiences between different parts of the Caribbean.
- 2. How does this event relate to other activities that your community is working on?
- We intend to drive growth and regional partnerships, building on previous activities in the region that include (but are not limited to) the recent WikiCari Festival, Emancipation Week, Wiki Caribbean Earth Day, Black Lunch Table activations in Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica, AfroCROWD’s edit-a-thons and training in Dominica through to presentations at Wikimania and Wiki Conference North America. The event hopes to capitalize on already-existing momentum and forge greenfield paths.
- 3. Do you have any Thematic or Regional committee or group? (Such as WISCom, CEE, Iberocoop, etc).
- The Wikimedians of the Caribbean User Group
Plan[edit]
Venue and Logistics[edit]
- 1. Do you have any proposed venue for the event? If so, please share details (such as: how far is it from the airport or transportation hub; how close is it to the hotel, do you anticipate any challenges with using the space for the event you are planning?)
- No, this is an online event.
- 2. Is the event venue and hotel accessible for people with physical disabilities?
- Simultaneous captioning
- 3. Are you planning to outsource some of the services? For example - a travel agency, an event production service?
- We may consider an online streaming consultant or service.
Friendly space policy[edit]
Please link to the friendly space policy that your community will be using for this event. We intend to use the guidelines similar to the Celtic Knot privacy policy .
Participation[edit]
It is crucial that most participants have a minimum level of Wikimedia experience so that they can engage actively in workshops and discussions. Please answer all applicable questions below.
- 1. Please describe the target audience for this conference or event.
- We are targeting a 50/50 mix of new Wikipedians and experienced Wikipedians. Of the new Wikipedians, most will comprise academics and students alike (composition of which is determined by applicant pool for scholarships and interested parties).
- A focus of the conference is to expand knowledge of the Wikimedia Movement to interested participants within the Caribbean. In doing so it also brings underrepresented groups in the global south in the movement and fosters new or nascent groups. Diversity and inclusion are a main thrust of the user group and we aim to drive participation in specific geographies and underrepresented groups. Scholarships will focus on both need and diversity in representation and inclusion. We also along with gender, race/ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, and culture, but we also plan to consider technological access, general access and disability in our scholarship application.
- 2. If your conference has an outreach component to also target non-wikimedian individuals or mission aligned institutions, can you explain your intention for this outreach (for example: how will you ensure engagement with these participants after the conference, and what impact do you see them having on the projects)?
- The user group considers the event to be the primary form of engagement. For this, the user group’s communications team will input participant data into a CRM platform; for further messaging and feedback. Additionally, the user group has already made inroads with establishing projects in some of the jurisdictions concerned.
- We intend to continue to engage participants with direct communication and a continuing offer of events like earth week and WikiCari Fest. We will also use social media, on-Wiki communication and messaging and in-network emails.
- 3. Are you thinking about collaborating with potential partners? Such as national; educational or thematic groups and organizations? If so, will this partnership be a financial one (such as sponsorship), or a visionary one (to collaborate in regards to the content of the event)? Please share some details if you have any.
- Yes. We intend to partner in shaping the vision of the organization’s work, with educational institutions like the University of the West Indies, Scholars, partners within Wiki Cari, partner in shaping the vision of the conference,
- 4. In which ways can WMF staff support your event onsite? If you would like support, please list the different capacities in which we can support, or describe how you would like WMF staff to be involved in the event. (Some examples of WMF support or involvement might be: for outreach and communication efforts; to lead specific sessions; for legal or safety reasons, etc).
- Yes, we intend to have WMF presence at the event, especially the Events, Education teams and other like teams the Foundation recommends. We believe that these teams provide valuable advisory and training help that are pertinent to the conference.
Scholarships[edit]
- 1. How many scholarships would you like to offer and what expenses will the scholarship cover?
- We propose 15-25 small scholarships to help regional guests gain online access to the conference. The scholarships will cover internet access.
- 2. How will scholarship recipients be selected?
- The application will be put out in the page linked to the central notice banner.
- It will be a google doc which will include questions that will gauge the interested party's need.
- 3. Do you plan to target or prioritize specific communities or participants?
- This is to be focused on underrepresented regions and participants with the greater need and lack of access.
- 4. How will you insure diversity and inclusion in your scholarship process?
- We plan to post information about the scholarships in several languages both on and offline (e.g. radio, via librarires) in diverse regions of the Caribbean. We plan to advertise that the online event is open to all, regardless of background, gender or exposure to technology or Wikipedia. We also budgeted for sign language interpreters.
Resources and risks[edit]
Describe the resource potential for successfully executing this project and the key risks/threats.
Resources[edit]
- Organizing team
| Team | User Names |
|---|---|
| WMF Liaison | Shanluan |
| Logistics | Shanluan |
| Conference Program | Guettarda / Shanluan |
| Scholarships | Shanluan / JamaicanEditor / Guettarda / Nikitag94 / Pharos |
| Communications | JamaicanEditor / Pharos/ AfricanadeCuba |
| Volunteer Coordinators | Nikitag94 |
| Team Members | [Shanluan / Guettarda / Nikitag94 / Fuzheado/ Pharos/ AfricanadeCubaJamaicanEditor / Siarus1074 / Haroldcardenaslema / MassiveEartha / Galahmm |
Risks[edit]
Examples of risks, along with how you would minimize or overcome them, are: Perceived Risks:
- Connectivity Issues owing to capacity issues being faced by telecoms providers globally
- Material aspects of which related KPIs cannot truly capture or lie outside the scope therein (general sentiment, multiplier effect, brand equity etc.)
Examples of how to minimize these risks include:
- Anticipatory/Compensatory Mechanisms:
- Recruiting volunteers with the requisite skill-sets.
- Enacting adequate cost controls.
- Working with the WMF Learning & Evaluation Team to develop an appropriate measurement and evaluation plan.
- Liaising with the Foundation’s as to developing thorough and necessary measurement and evaluation schemes.
During the conference[edit]
Interpretation at the event The Forum will engage a paid interpreters’ service for at least Spanish and another dominant language of the region. We will also encourage presenters to submit their presentations in advance for the text in the slides to be translated. We plan to use separate Zoom links for simulatneous translation by language where possible.
Multi-lingual slides Selected sessions will be live-streamed on YouTube with increase opportunities to participate.
After the conference[edit]
Evaluation Report
All conference participants will be invited to complete an evaluation survey - the result of which would be included in the report and published on Meta. The evaluation will be designed to measure whether the goals of the conference have been achieved in addition to the:
- Impact and relevance of the context of the conference
- The management of the conference
- The outcomes including opportunities for establishing regional and diasporan collaborations
- Reflections of safety and equity
The evaluation survey will message both qualitative and quantitative outcomes and outputs. The conference report will aim to include an executive summary translated into the languages in the region. We would like to translate the full report - budget permitting.
Communications
WikiCari will update the broader community through the Foundation and other like Ibercoop email lists, along with other relevant mailing lists, in addition to sharing in the relevant Wikiprojects and communities in the target language Wikimedia platforms. The filmed sessions will be published on Wikimedia Common, YouTube and other platforms under an open license. Filmed sessions will be transcribed, and ideally videos subtitled, in the dominant languages of the region. Audio from the conference will be incorporated into a podcast documenting the event which will be published by Wikimania 2021, in addition to being uploaded to Wikimedia Commons. We will submit a presentation to Wikimania themed around the learning from the WikiCari Forum.
Budget[edit]
Please provide a detailed breakdown of project expenses according to the instructions here. See Budget Guidelines.
- Event budget table
| Budget | ||
| Equipment & Materials (note that we plan to rent all items where possible) |
Notes: We plan to work with 5 Universities on 5 separate islands (Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, the Bahamas, and newly the Barbados) and one in the United States, New York University. The kits would be for each University. We want to work with professors and students we have connected with on these islands in the past to gain a greater perspective of their islands. We plan to use the VR cameras and Google Cardboard VR goggles to 360 degree images from the islands to enable a more 3 dimensional live learning experience for the participants of the conference and those who may watch recordings of the conference later. It also opens up wider opportunities for innovation in a remote setting. We plan to have 4 keynote speakers from the academic community especially, though not exclusively. The honorarium gifts will be bought items of less than $150 each plus taxes. |
2590 |
| Scholarships |
|
$4,500 |
| Event Planning & Support |
|
$11697 |
| Alternate sources of funding |
|
-$8,150
(marketing and speaker costs) |
| Total Budget |
|
$18,787 |
- Total cost of event
- $26,937 USD
- Total amount requested from the Conference and Event Grants program
- $18,787 USD
- Additional sources of revenue that may fund part of this event, and amounts funded
- We plan to reach out to potential sponsors of more internet access scholarships.
- Please confirm that you are aware that changes to the approved budget beyond 10% in any category must be approved in advance.
Yes
Discussion[edit]
Endorsements[edit]
Do you think this project should be selected for a Conference Grant? Please add your name and rationale for endorsing this project in the list below. Other feedback, questions or concerns from community members are also highly valued, but please post them on the talk page of this proposal.
- I believe this is a great idea, although as a part of the organising team, I may be biased :) Guettarda (talk) 16:16, 30 September 2020 (UTC)
- A positive project for an underserved region that could use more of this kind of outreach. I have been in touch with the organizers, but haven't been part of drafting this proposal.--Pharos (talk) 17:54, 11 November 2020 (UTC)