Grants:Programs/Wikimedia Community Fund/Rapid Fund/2026 Wikipedia events in various regions of Japan by User:海獺 （Racco） (ID: 23749494)
This is an automatically generated Meta-Wiki page. The page was copied from Fluxx, the web service of Wikimedia Foundation Funds, where the user has submitted their application. Please do not make any changes to this page because all changes will be removed after the next update. Use the discussion page for your feedback. The page was created by CR-FluxxBot.
Applicant Details
[edit]- Main Wikimedia username. (required)
海獺
- Organization
N/A
- If you are a group or organization leader, board member, president, executive director, or staff member at any Wikimedia group, affiliate, or Wikimedia Foundation, you are required to self-identify and present all roles. (required)
N/A
- Describe all relevant roles with the name of the group or organization and description of the role. (required)
Main Proposal
[edit]- 1. Please state the title of your proposal. This will also be the Meta-Wiki page title.
2026 Wikipedia events in various regions of Japan by User:海獺 （Racco）
- 2. and 3. Proposed start and end dates for the proposal.
2026-04-03 - 2027-04-02
- 4. Where will this proposal be implemented? (required)
Japan
- 5. Are your activities part of a Wikimedia movement campaign, project, or event? If so, please select the relevant project or campaign. (required)
Other (please specify) Lectures and editing workshops for students. Wikipedia editathon. Wikigap. Editing workshops for library staff.
- 6. What is the change you are trying to bring? What are the main challenges or problems you are trying to solve? Describe this change or challenges, as well as main approaches to achieve it. (required)
I have received support from the Rapid Fund in 2023 (https://w.wiki/CTkG), 2024 (https://w.wiki/9dSV), and 2025 (https://w.wiki/H8Cj). Over these three years, I have used the Rapid Fund to help make Wikipedia-related events possible in regions across Japan where there is local interest but where organizers have difficulty covering the necessary expenses—such as my travel and accommodation costs from Tokyo—on their own.
In 2026, I would like to continue these efforts by carrying out activities that support the use of Wikipedia and promote information literacy in a wide range of settings, including educational institutions, libraries, and local community organizations.
In addition, since the year before last, I have been intermittently involved in initiatives to encourage events focused on improving Wikipedia articles related to children’s literature and picture books. On the Japanese-language edition of Wikipedia, coverage of children’s literature and picture books remains limited. By properly documenting this cultural domain, I believe these efforts can provide meaningful value for children.
- 7. What are the planned activities? (required) Please provide a list of main activities. You can also add a link to the public page for your project where details about your project can be found. Alternatively, you can upload a timeline document. When the activities include partnerships, include details about your partners and planned partnerships.
As in recent years, I am planning events in various regions in collaboration with local organizers. Requests have again been received from many areas that are at a distance from my place of residence in Tokyo and require overnight stays in order for events to be held. These include Hokkaido; Aomori, Iwate, and Akita; Toyohashi and Nagoya; and Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, Kumamoto, Oita, and Kagoshima.
While these plans have not yet been fully finalized, they will be gradually documented in the following spreadsheet: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ChMdwbSKZLTfc-ZLB_4Guy_I-5Z11Mx99GD4fNk2AbY/edit?gid=1567098910#gid=1567098910
At present, the figures shown are preliminary estimates.
All of these plans assume the use of grant funding to cover transportation and accommodation costs. This also includes travel expenses for locally based Wikimedians who have been asked to participate as facilitators. If the grant application is not approved, all of these plans will have to be canceled.
Grant funds will be used only for activities that require travel and overnight stays due to physical distance and scheduling constraints from my residence. Other expenses, such as reference materials and Wi-Fi rental, will be kept to a minimum whenever possible.
- 8. Describe your team. Please provide their roles, Wikimedia Usernames and other details. (required) Include more details of the team, including their roles, usernames, Wikimedia group, and whether they are salaried, volunteers, consultants/contractors, etc. Team members involved in the grant application need to be aware of their involvement in the project.
At present, I am working alone. In Japan, the annual cycle typically runs through the end of March, with a new cycle beginning in April. For this reason, specific plans have not yet been finalized. However, many potential organizers have expressed strong interest in moving forward if the grant application is approved.
These prospective initiatives include librarian circles at school libraries, organizations dedicated to preserving local culture, and article-writing projects within educational institutions, among others.
- 9. Who are the target participants and from which community? How will you engage participants before and during the activities? How will you follow up with participants after the activities? (required)
Target audiences vary depending on the type of event.
For Wikipedia article-editing events held at libraries, activities include training sessions on Wikipedia for library staff, as well as edit-a-thons open to the general public. At educational institutions, participants include school staff and students. Events involving minors are conducted exclusively within the facilities of the respective educational institutions. Wikipedia editing events organized by local community groups are open to local residents.
While all events place Wikipedia at their core, they are designed as comprehensive programs that also address information literacy and coexistence with AI. Through these activities, I emphasize the significance and social role of Wikipedia to participants.
After each event, online follow-up activities are conducted in coordination with the local organizers.
- 10. Does your project involve work with children or youth? (required)
Yes
- 10.1. Please provide a link to your Youth Safety Policy. (required) If the proposal indicates direct contact with children or youth, you are required to outline compliance with international and local laws for working with children and youth, and provide a youth safety policy aligned with these laws. Read more here.
Young people’s participation in my activities is limited to schools. Since the venue is also a school, the activities are conducted under the supervision of the school.
- 11. How did you discuss the idea of your project with your community members and/or any relevant groups? Please describe steps taken and provide links to any on-wiki community discussion(s) about the proposal. (required) You need to inform the community and/or group, discuss the project with them, and involve them in planning this proposal. You also need to align the activities with other projects happening in the planned area of implementation to ensure collaboration within the community.
As I am the primary person responsible for carrying out these activities, I work closely with each event organizer in advance to conduct detailed planning and to design each event for maximum effectiveness.
Records of the events are documented on Wikipedia (https://w.wiki/3ya ) as well as on my personal blog (https://note.com/racco_wp ). These records are made accessible in multiple languages through the use of translation features.
- 12. Does your proposal aim to work to bridge any of the content knowledge gaps (Knowledge Inequity)? Select one option that most apply to your work. (required)
Cultural background, ethnicity, religion, racial
- 13. Does your proposal include any of these areas or thematic focus? Select one option that most applies to your work. (required)
Culture, heritage or GLAM
- 14. Will your work focus on involving participants from any underrepresented communities? Select one option that most apply to your work. (required)
Age (diversity of age groups)
- 15. In what ways do you think your proposal most contributes to the Movement Strategy 2030 recommendations. Select one that most applies. (required)
Innovate in Free Knowledge
Learning and metrics
[edit]- 17. What do you hope to learn from your work in this project or proposal? (required)
I consistently find it rewarding to observe changes in participants’ attitudes toward information and Wikipedia over the course of these events.
In Japan, librarians of a certain generation were taught to regard Wikipedia as an unreliable source of information. As we enter an era in which the information landscape is being reshaped by AI, I aim to foster a deeper understanding of Wikipedia’s simple yet powerful model: building a high-quality encyclopedia through the collective efforts of many individuals.
- 18. What are your Wikimedia project targets in numbers (metrics)? (required)
| Other Metrics | Target | Optional description |
|---|---|---|
| Number of participants | 500 | When school lectures and similar activities are included, the total number of participants becomes quite large. Within this broader audience, I focus on cultivating individuals who develop a genuine interest in Wikipedia editing and related initiatives and who go on to participate on an ongoing basis. |
| Number of editors | 100 | By including hands-on activities such as basic citation editing, I help participants create accounts and provide them with an initial opportunity to begin contributing to Wikipedia, thereby increasing the number of new contributors. |
| Number of organizers | 20 | Each event has its own organizer and designated contact person. I plan to carry out at least 20 events in total. |
| Wikimedia project | Number of content created or improved |
|---|---|
| Wikipedia | 100 |
| Wikimedia Commons | 20 |
| Wikidata | 10 |
| Wiktionary | |
| Wikisource | |
| Wikimedia Incubator | |
| Translatewiki | |
| MediaWiki | |
| Wikiquote | |
| Wikivoyage | |
| Wikibooks | |
| Wikiversity | |
| Wikinews | |
| Wikispecies | |
| Wikifunctions or Abstract Wikipedia |
- Optional description for content contributions.
Based on last year’s results.
- 19. Do you have any other project targets in numbers (metrics)? (optional)
No
| Main Open Metrics | Description | Target |
|---|---|---|
| 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 |
- 20. What tools would you use to measure each metrics? Please refer to the guide for a list of tools. You can also write that you are not sure and need support. (required)
EventMetrics will be used.
https://eventmetrics.wmcloud.org/programs/1227
Financial proposal
[edit]- 21. Please upload your budget for this proposal or indicate the link to it. (required)
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ChMdwbSKZLTfc-ZLB_4Guy_I-5Z11Mx99GD4fNk2AbY/edit
- 22. and 22.1. What is the amount you are requesting for this proposal? Please provide the amount in your local currency. (required)
780000 JPY
- 22.2. Convert the amount requested into USD using the Oanda converter. This is done only to help you assess the USD equivalent of the requested amount. Your request should be between 500 - 5,000 USD.
4992 USD
- We/I have read the Application Privacy Statement, WMF Friendly Space Policy and Universal Code of Conduct.
Yes
Endorsements and Feedback
[edit]Please add endorsements and feedback to the grant discussion page only. Endorsements added here will be removed automatically.
Community members are invited to share meaningful feedback on the proposal and include reasons why they endorse the proposal. Consider the following:
- Stating why the proposal is important for the communities involved and why they think the strategies chosen will achieve the results that are expected.
- Highlighting any aspects they think are particularly well developed: for instance, the strategies and activities proposed, the levels of community engagement, outreach to underrepresented groups, addressing knowledge gaps, partnerships, the overall budget and learning and evaluation section of the proposal, etc.
- Highlighting if the proposal focuses on any interesting research, learning or innovation, etc. Also if it builds on learning from past proposals developed by the individual or organization, or other Wikimedia communities.
- Analyzing if the proposal is going to contribute in any way to important developments around specific Wikimedia projects or Movement Strategy.
- Analysing if the proposal is coherent in terms of the objectives, strategies, budget, and expected results (metrics).