Grants:Programs/Wikimedia Community Fund/Black Lunch Table in 2022 and Beyond/Yearly Report (2023)
Report Status: Under review
Due date: 29 February 2024
Funding program: Wikimedia Community Fund
Report type: Yearly Learning Report (for multi-year fund recipients) , reporting year: 2023
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General information
[edit]This form is for organizations, groups, or individuals receiving multi-year Wikimedia Community Funds to report on their yearly results.
- Name of Organization: Black Lunch Table
- Title of Proposal: Black Lunch Table in 2022 and Beyond
Part 1 Understanding your work
[edit]1. Briefly describe how your proposed activities and strategies were implemented.
- In 2023, Black Lunch Table (BLT) continued its commitment to creating spaces for discussion, promoting the work of Black artists, and addressing systemic biases in the art world and how those reflect and create related gaps in information on platforms like Wikipedia and its related community.
Our regular WIki programs—Office Hours and BLT Bingo—occur on a monthly or bi-monthly basis, providing consistent opportunities for our audience to engage with BLT and access new content. We promote our events across multiple platforms, including our Wikipedia page, Meta page, Linktree, and website. When partnering with other organizations, we work closely with our hosts to tailor event promotion strategies to their specific communities, utilizing methods such as flyers, local advertisements, campus mailers, and more to ensure effective outreach. One of the significant additions to our programming this year has been a new workshop aimed at educating artists and public figures on how to effectively engage with their pages on Wikipedia. This workshop empowers participants with the knowledge and tools they need to manage their online presence, ensuring that their contributions to the cultural landscape are accurately represented and maintained. We also concluded a successful year-long partnership with PACE Gallery in New York, culminating in the exhibition "[action=query] Black Arts and Black Aesthetics," along with related talks and programming. This collaboration was a significant success, drawing in diverse audiences and fostering meaningful conversations around the themes explored in the exhibition. The partnership with PACE Gallery highlighted BLT's ability to connect with broader audiences and reinforce the importance of Black voices in contemporary art. Our BLT Photo Booth program remains one of our most popular offerings, consistently sought after by partners both during and after the pandemic. The Photo Booth program’s light footprint and ease of execution make it an accessible and approachable option for hosts. In 2023, we finalized the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for our Photo Booths, which includes a comprehensive kit sent to all hosts. Since a BLT team member is not always present at these events, the kit ensures that hosts are well-prepared. It includes permission forms, instructions, swag, information about the organization, and signage for use during the event. Looking ahead, we plan to formalize the SOPs for all our Wiki programs over the coming term to ensure consistency and quality across our initiatives.
2. Were there any strategies or approaches that you felt were effective in achieving your goals?
- One of the most effective strategies in achieving our goals has been the intentional broadening of who we deem our audience to be and how we engage with them. By expanding our focus beyond traditional methods of outreach, we have been able to address the knowledge gap around Black artists on Wikipedia more comprehensively. For example, directly educating artists about how to manage their Wikipedia pages through workshops has proven to be a valuable approach. While this strategy may not immediately result in the retention of new editors, it significantly reduces issues related to conflicts of interest (COI) and ensures that the information presented is accurate and reflective of the artists' contributions. This method not only empowers the artists themselves but also contributes to the larger goal of closing the knowledge gap by ensuring that existing content is maintained with integrity and care.
3. Would you say that your project had any innovations? Are there things that you did very differently than you have seen them done by others?
- Yes, our project had several key innovations that set it apart. One of the most notable is our approach of consistently reaching out to established arts organizations outside of the Wikipedia movement. By doing so, we intentionally create opportunities to expose these communities to the importance of Wikipedia and the critical need to address the knowledge gaps, particularly concerning Black artists.
As the most referenced encyclopedia, Wikipedia is a vital resource, yet a significant portion of the general public has no idea how to contribute or even how these pages are created. Our partnerships are innovative because they go beyond the simple act of writing a Wikipedia page. We engage with the entire process, from educating people about the importance of contributing to Wikipedia, to guiding them through the complexities of page creation, maintenance, and addressing issues like conflicts of interest. This holistic approach can be seen in our Wikimedia Fellow partnership with Pace Gallery over the 2022-2023 season, where we integrated Wikipedia into a broader art discourse, reaching new audiences and creating meaningful content. Another example is our new program, BLT Critics, which was seeded in 2023 and is coming to fruition this year in collaboration with Sixty Inches From Center. This program connects a publishing platform, critics, and artists whose practices need more reliable documentation in order to write well-cited Wikipedia articles. By touching on all related aspects of making a Wikipedia page, our approach ensures that the content is not only well-written but also well-supported and impactful.
4. Please describe how different communities participated and/or were informed about your work.
- We engaged with a diverse range of communities in various ways to inform and involve them in our work. At the college level, we connected with students and faculty through targeted programming that integrates Wikipedia into academic settings, fostering a deeper understanding of how the platform can be used as a tool for research and documentation.
Additionally, we reached out to both existing and aspiring Wikimedians through our monthly online programming. These sessions provided ongoing education and support, helping to build a stronger, more informed community of contributors who are committed to addressing the knowledge gaps on Wikipedia. Returning to in-person programming robustly at this stage in the pandemic, we partnered with community organizations across the nation to host in-person edit-a-thons and our popular Photo Booths. These events not only brought Wikipedia to new audiences but also created opportunities for direct engagement and collaboration, further broadening the impact of our work and ensuring that a wide variety of voices are represented on the platform.
5. Documentation of your impact. Please use the two spaces below to share files and links that help tell your story and impact. This can be documentation that shows your results through testimonies, videos, sound files, images (photos and infographics, etc.) social media posts, dashboards, etc.
- Upload Documents and Files
- Here is an additional field to type in URLs.
- N/A
6. To what extent do you agree with the following statements regarding the work carried out with the support of this Fund? You can choose “not applicable” if your work does not relate to these goals.
| A. Bring in participants from underrepresented groups | Agree |
| B. Create a more inclusive and connected culture in our community | Agree |
| C. Develop content about underrepresented topics/groups | Strongly agree |
| D. Develop content from underrepresented perspectives | Strongly agree |
| E. Encourage the retention of editors | Neither agree nor disagree |
| F. Encourage the retention of organizers | Neither agree nor disagree |
| G. Increased participants' feelings of belonging and connection to the movement. | Agree |
7. Is there anything else you would like to share about how your efforts helped to bring in participants and/or build out content, particularly for underrepresented groups?
- There has been a thread of conversation that has come greatly into focus in 2024 but has always existed about the role of thematic affiliates in the Movement and how they are supported by the Foundation and regarded by the community. It is a conversation about whether to form a hub or how to band together better, etc., seemingly beyond the work but one that in fact greatly affects the visibility and ability of thematic user groups like BLT to do their work and a conversation that we are actively engaged in.
Part 2: Your main learning
[edit]8. In your application, you outlined your learning priorities. What did you learn about these areas during this period?
- BLT has evolved from an artist project into a nonprofit, marking a significant milestone. Reflecting on our origins as an artist project remains integral, allowing us to stay flexible and challenge norms—values central to our mission. One core question is: What does it mean to ask artists to write their own history?
As a nonprofit, we continue pushing boundaries within the Wikimedia movement through innovative partnerships. Our 2022-2023 Wikipedia Fellowship with Pace Gallery addressed the underrepresentation of Black artists on platforms like Wikipedia. It showed that those directly involved in the arts are best equipped to address knowledge gaps, shaping a conversation outsiders might miss.
In 2023, we expanded this work with Sixty Inches From Center through "Crowdsourcing the Canon," a worker-led platform supporting artists, archival practices, and art history in Chicago and the Midwest. Our collaboration focuses on improving Wikipedia articles about Black artists by addressing a critical barrier: the availability of citable sources.
This initiative also supports emerging Black critics and writers in publishing on contemporary Black artists. By increasing citations, we bridge the gap between their careers and the critical discourse needed to meet Wikipedia's notability standards. Our commitment empowers artists to shape their own narratives and ensures their work is documented in the archive.
9. Did anything unexpected or surprising happen when implementing your activities?
- No.
10. How do you hope to use this learning? For instance, do you have any new priorities, ideas for activities, or goals for the future?
- The first time you run a program, the learning curve is steep, but it's also an incredibly valuable and exciting experience. Each step, from planning to execution, teaches you something new—whether it's about logistics, audience engagement, or the nuances of content delivery. We have set a baseline for both the BLT Critics program and our Wikimedia Fellowship that we plan to carry forward as an organization. We are really pleased to have brought them to fruition.
The lessons of shifting priorities and facing real time challenges were skills we sharpened during the pandemic, as we were forced to make many adjustments and pivot quickly between formats. We are looking forward to applying the insights gained to refine and grow the programs after their inaugural years. With each iteration, we aim to make our programs stronger, more impactful, and more aligned with our goals, building on the lessons learned from both our first attempts and the challenges we've overcome.
11. If you were sitting with a friend to tell them one thing about your work during this fund, what would it be (think of inspiring or fascinating moments, tough challenges, interesting anecdotes, or anything that feels important to you)?
12. Please share resources that would be useful to share with other Wikimedia organizations so that they can learn from, adapt or build upon your work. For instance, guides, training material, presentations, work processes, or any other material the team has created to document and transfer knowledge about your work and can be useful for others. Please share any specific resources that you are creating, adapting/contextualizing in ways that are unique to your context (i.e. training material).
- Upload Documents and Files
- Here is an additional field to type in URLs.
- N/A
Part 3: Metrics for Year 2
[edit]13a. Open and additional metrics data
| Open Metrics | Description | Target | Results | Comments | Methodology |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total partners | BLT brings artists and Institutions to the platform in unconventional ways, including through artist residencies, lectures, strong social media awareness, and published works. Our ability to engage these kinds of partners positively impacts the project as a whole.
Total partner targets in 2023 to remain unchanged. BLT: Branded Digital Events 45 Black Lunch Table Edit-a-thons and Photobooths 25 Black Lunch Table Regional Proxy Engagements 10 BLT contests: 2 |
82 | N/A | BLT: Branded Digital Events 0
Black Lunch Table Edit-a-thons and Photobooths 7 Black Lunch Table Regional Proxy Engagements 0 BLT contests: 0 |
BLT event archive, Outreach Dashboard |
| Social media views, retweets | BLT: Branded Digital Events 2000
Black Lunch Table Edit-a-thons and Photobooths 0 Black Lunch Table Regional Proxy Engagements 0 BLT contests: 150 For BLT Live we would measure the total number of views For BLT contests we would measure the number of likes and shares/retweets on our BLT Bingo Tip campaign |
N/A | 0 | In 2023 we did not run our BLT Live/Bingo campaigns as planned so are unable to count "new" views as written in our metrics. We did run previously created content via stories however as these posts disappear the total data for viewership is not available.
We decided to largely suspend posting/engagement on X, formerly Twitter, as the space has become increasingly hostile and not a social media platform we see as reaching our target audience. Where applicable we moved this content to IG, however shares and likes are not visible in the same way. In general the world of social media moves much faster than this yearly reporting and it is advisable for us to use other metrics in the future to measure reach. |
N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
13b. Additional core metrics data.
| Core metrics | Description | Target | Results | Comments | Methodology |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of participants | BLT: Branded Digital Events 350 this includes live and asynchronous viewing of recordings
Black Lunch Table Edit-a-thons and Photobooths 200 Black Lunch Table Regional Proxy Engagements 100 BLT contests: 75 Each of these metrics has increased except the regional proxy engagement numbers. For 2023 we expect to have fewer proxies overall and have instead decided to invest more funds and attention to fewer total proxies. We hope this translates to more return editors and participants in those communities and a deeper engagement with our tasks. |
N/A | BLT: Branded Digital Events 273 this includes live and asynchronous viewing of recordings
Black Lunch Table Edit-a-thons and Photobooths 167 Black Lunch Table Regional Proxy Engagements 0 BLT contests: 10 |
||
| Number of editors | BLT: Live*: 0
Black Lunch Table Edit-a-thons and Photo Booths* new 60 returning 35 *Photo Booths track for participants but not for editors, because everyone who has their photo taken does not necessarily edit/upload individually. Black Lunch Table Regional Proxy Engagements new 25 returning 75 BLT contests: 15 new entrants and 35 returning entrants |
N/A | BLT: Live*: 0 *BLT digital events are not necessarily editing events, so we have zeroed out that number here,
Black Lunch Table Edit-a-thons and Photo Booths* new 39 returning unclear, we do not have a system in place to track this consistently *Photo Booths track for participants but not for editors, because everyone who has their photo taken does not necessarily edit/upload individually. Black Lunch Table Regional Proxy Engagements 0 BLT contests: 7 new entrants and 3 returning entrants |
||
| Number of organizers | N/A The work that BLT does is organized by our team. There are two staff members who contribute to the realization of events, though it is largely the responsibility of the Wikimedia Director and Wikipedia Assistant (the departures of Heather Hart and jina valentine at the end of 2022 reduced Wiki programming staff from four to two. As our new ED becomes versed in Wiki our staff will increase to three).
Please advise if this should be written as those that we partner with to realize institutional or community engagements. |
N/A | N/A The work that BLT does is organized by our team. In 2023 we added one staff member who can contribute to the realization of Wiki events raising the number to 3, though it is largely the responsibility of the Wikimedia Director and Wikipedia Assistant. |
| Wikimedia Project | Description | Target | Results | Comments | Methodology |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wikipedia | We are defining this metric as completely new articles created across all of our programming. In 2023 we are excited to include our Wiki Fellow as part of these metrics and will not be breaking them out by program. We hope that we have more editors who participate in a network of our programs building our editorship and total impact. | 400 | 28 | N/A | Outreach Dashboard |
| Wikimedia Commons | We are defining this metric in 2023 in two parts. New commons uploads used in articles and new Photo Booth uploads to Commons
Photo Booth: 100 Commons to articles: 400 |
500 | N/A | New Photo Booth uploads to Commons Photo Booth: 139
Commons to articles: 4 (This metric of 400 was clearly vastly overestimated, I am not sure of our logic in assessing more items than we uploaded would be used in articles) |
N/A |
| Wikidata | We have historically undercut our Wikidata contributions as measured by outreach dashboard. As we continue to shift our training focus to include Wikidata we want to reach 1000 new Wikidata items in 2023. | 1000 | 228 | Our training has not shifted towards Wikidata as quickly as we had hoped but we are still making progress. | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
14. Were there any metrics in your proposal that you could not collect or that you had to change?
- Yes
15. If you have any difficulties collecting data to measure your results, please describe and add any recommendations on how to address them in the future.
- N/A
16. Use this space to link or upload any additional documents that would be useful to understand your data collection (e.g., dashboards, surveys you have carried out, communications material, training material, etc).
- Upload Documents and Files
- Here is an additional field to type in URLs.
- N/A
Part 4: Organizational capacities & partnerships
[edit]17. Organizational Capacity
| A. Financial capacity and management | This capacity has grown but it should be further developed |
| B. Conflict management or transformation | This has grown over the last year, the capacity is high |
| C. Leadership (i.e growing in potential leaders, leadership that fit organizational needs and values) | This has grown over the last year, the capacity is high |
| D. Partnership building | This has grown over the last year, the capacity is high |
| E. Strategic planning | This capacity is low, and we should prioritise developing it |
| F. Program design, implementation, and management | This has grown over the last year, the capacity is high |
| G. Scoping and testing new approaches, innovation | This capacity has grown but it should be further developed |
| H. Recruiting new contributors (volunteer) | This capacity is low, and we should prioritise developing it |
| I. Support and growth path for different types of contributors (volunteers) | This capacity is low, and we should prioritise developing it |
| J. Governance | This capacity has grown but it should be further developed |
| K. Communications, marketing, and social media | This capacity has grown but it should be further developed |
| L. Staffing - hiring, monitoring, supporting in the areas needed for program implementation and sustainability | This capacity has grown but it should be further developed |
| M. On-wiki technical skills | This capacity has grown but it should be further developed |
| N. Accessing and using data | This capacity is low, and we should prioritise developing it |
| O. Evaluating and learning from our work | This capacity has grown but it should be further developed |
| P. Communicating and sharing what we learn with our peers and other stakeholders | This capacity is low, and we should prioritise developing it |
| N/A | |
| N/A |
17a. Which of the following factors most helped you to build capacities? Please pick a MAXIMUM of the three most relevant factors.
- Peer to peer learning with other community members in conferences/events, Peer to peer learning with other community members (but that is not continuous or structured), Using capacity building/training resources online from sources WITHIN the Wikimedia Movement
17b. Which of the following factors hindered your ability to build capacities? Please pick a MAXIMUM of the three most relevant factors.
- Lack of staff time to participate in capacity building/training, Lack of training that fits contextual needs and interests
18. Is there anything else you would like to share about how your organizational capacity has grown, and areas where you require support?
- N/A
19. Partnerships over the funding period.
| A. We built strategic partnerships with other institutions or groups that will help us grow in the medium term (3 year time frame) | Strongly agree |
| B. The partnerships we built with other institutions or groups helped to bring in more contributors from underrepresented groups | Strongly agree |
| C. The partnerships we built with other institutions or groups helped to build out more content on underrepresented topics/groups | Strongly agree |
19a. Which of the following factors most helped you to build partnerships? Please pick a MAXIMUM of the three most relevant factors.
- Permanent staff outreach, Partners proactive interest
19b. Which of the following factors hindered your ability to build partnerships? Please pick a MAXIMUM of the three most relevant factors.
- Lack of staff capacity to respond to partners interested in working with us
20. Please share your learning about strategies to build partnerships with other institutions and groups and any other learning about working with partners?
- BLT’s visibility continues to grow, with both our Wikipedia initiatives and our unique archive reaching beyond our immediate sphere. It's incredibly encouraging to see organizations and institutions actively seeking partnerships with us to document the lives and work of Black artists and their communities on Wikipedia. We view this as a powerful vote of confidence in our mission and platform. At this critical moment, we are focused on refining our mission to strengthen our partnerships and amplify their impact. Under the guidance of our new Co-Executive Director team, we are sharpening our goals to ensure that our work aligns even more effectively with our collaborators and makes a greater, lasting impact.
Part 5: Sense of belonging and collaboration
[edit]21. What would it mean for your organization to feel a sense of belonging to the Wikimedia or free knowledge movement?
- In general, BLT as an organization, along with our audience, has felt more involved in the Wikimedia movement than in previous years. While our inception did not occur during the pandemic, much of our growth and blossoming has happened in a time when in-person connections were limited. Despite these challenges, we persisted in building our presence and contributing to the movement. Now, with the ability to travel to events like Wikimania and gear up for the final Wikimedia Summit in 2024, we feel a renewed sense of connection and validation. These opportunities have reinforced that our input and work are seen, valued, and integral to the movement’s ongoing evolution. This newfound involvement has invigorated our commitment and strengthened our resolve to continue making an impact.
22. How has your (for individual grantees) or your group/organization’s (for organizational grantees) sense of belonging to the Wikimedia or free knowledge movement changed over the fund period?
- Somewhat increased
23. If you would like to, please share why it has changed in this way.
- N/A
24. How has your group/organization’s sense of personal investment in the Wikimedia or free knowledge movement changed over the fund period?
- Somewhat increased
25. If you would like to, please share why it has changed in this way.
- N/A
26. Are there other movements besides the Wikimedia or free knowledge movement that play a central role in your motivation to contribute to Wikimedia projects? (for example, Black Lives Matter, Feminist movement, Climate Justice, or other activism spaces) If so, please describe it below.
- N/A
Supporting Peer Learning and Collaboration
[edit]We are interested in better supporting peer learning and collaboration in the movement.
27. Have you shared these results with Wikimedia affiliates or community members?
- Partially
27a. Please describe how you have already shared them. Would you like to do more sharing, and if so how?
- As noted in previous reports, our Wiki initiative lead, eliza myrie, participates in two specific groups focused on supporting one another as affiliates/organizations/organizers in the Movement. eliza regularly joins the growing group of Wikipedia ED’s on a monthly basis as well as a smaller group of thematically focused groups, including A + F, AfroCROWD, Wiki Editoras LX and Whose Knowledge? We meet to discuss the successes and challenges of our organizations, questions of happenings in the Movement, and ways that we can progress the work that each of us are invested in.
At the moment this is a sufficient amount of sharing and support from/with other groups.
28. How often do you currently share what you have learned with other Wikimedia Foundation grantees, and learn from them?
- We do this occasionally (less than once a month)
29. How does your organization currently share mutual learning with other grantees?
- N/A
Part 6: Financial reporting and compliance
[edit]30. Please state the total amount spent in your local currency.
- 296846
31. Local currency type
- USD
32. Please report the funds received and spending in the currency of your fund.
- Upload Documents, Templates, and Files.
- Report funds received and spent, if template not used.
33. If you have not already done so in your budget report, please provide information on changes in the budget in relation to your original proposal.
- No significant changes.
34. Do you have any unspent funds from the Fund?
34a. Please list the amount and currency you did not use and explain why.
- $4,953.00 USD was our underspend for 2023. This small portion of the total grant remained as actual costs slightly differed than actual costs as written in our budget.
34b. What are you planning to do with the underspent funds?
- A. Propose to use the underspent funds within this Fund period with PO approval
34c. Please provide details of hope to spend these funds.
- These funds will be rolled into our 2024 spending within relevant categories already approved.
35. Are you in compliance with the terms outlined in the fund agreement?
As required in the fund agreement, please report any deviations from your fund proposal here. Note that, among other things, any changes must be consistent with our WMF mission, must be for charitable purposes as defined in the grant agreement, and must otherwise comply with the grant agreement.
36. Are you in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations as outlined in the grant agreement?
- Yes
37. Are you in compliance with provisions of the United States Internal Revenue Code (“Code”), and with relevant tax laws and regulations restricting the use of the Funds as outlined in the grant agreement? In summary, this is to confirm that the funds were used in alignment with the WMF mission and for charitable/nonprofit/educational purposes.
- Yes
38. If you have additional recommendations or reflections that don’t fit into the above sections, please write them here.