Grants:Programs/Wikimedia Community Fund/Rapid Fund/Fante Wikimedians Community Team and Community Engagement Activities (ID: 21984878)/Final Report
Report Status: Under review
Due date: 2023-04-30T00:00:00Z
Funding program: Rapid Fund, Wikimedia Community Fund
Report type: Final
This is an automatically generated Meta-Wiki page. The page was copied from Fluxx, the grantmaking web service of Wikimedia Foundation where the user has submitted their midpoint report. 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.General information[edit]
- Title of Proposal: Fante Wikimedians Community Team and Community Engagement Activities
- Username of Applicant: Robertjamal12
- Name of Organization: N/A
- Amount awarded: 4371.82
- Amount spent: 4371.82 USD, 61194 GHS
Part 1 Understanding your work[edit]
1. Briefly describe how your proposed activities and strategies were implemented
Our project aimed to increase engagement with the Wikimedia community in Ghana and the Fante Wikimedians Community. To achieve this, we organized a total of six in-person events across three different cities - Takoradi, Cape Coast, and two university campuses in Winneba - to engage with the culturally diverse and widespread community. Additionally, we held four online events to discuss ongoing and future projects, provide volunteer support and offer office hours.
To enhance the leadership and Wikimedia project skills of selected volunteers, our team organized a two-day training program called "Train the Trainers," which focused on building leadership skills, Wikimedia projects refreshing training and building soft skill sets so they can effortlessly train others. This event was led by User:Robertjamal12 and Dnshitobu, a community leader for the Dagbani Wikimedians Community.
We also organized two photowalks to educate the community on basic Wikimedia Commons knowledge
2. Were there any strategies or approaches that you felt were effective in achieving your goals? Please describe these strategies and approaches.
Yes, all the strategies that were implemented both in-person and online effectively achieved our goals. We also utilized a learner-centred approach which was purely hands-on.
The "Train the Trainers" program was particularly effective as participants were equipped with the necessary skills to train others and other communities and group leaders were asking us to share some of our resources from the program. Some of the requests for "Train the Trainers" program resources can be found on the discussion page here:https://www.facebook.com/groups/wikipediaweekly/permalink/5686204711427313/
Additionally, two photowalks were organized to introduce community members to Wikimedia Commons and capture scenes from notable traditional festivals in Ghana namely The Ohum Festival and The Takoradi Masquerade festival, which were used to update corresponding Wikipedia articles.
We adopted these strategies because as a new community grows rapidly, we seek to improve the retention rate and continuous engagement of new and experienced editors to edit Wikimedia projects, as well as train selected volunteers on leadership skills to take up leadership roles in the future and help us achieve our goals. In order to assist members in maintaining their activity levels, they were granted data allowances to cover the costs of their internet data usage.
3. Please use this space to upload media and other files that help tell your story and impact.
Field to type in URLs.
1. Program and event dashboard link: https://outreachdashboard.wmflabs.org/campaigns/fante_wikimedians_community_content_creation_drive_programs_/programs
2a. Link to photowalk photos: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Takoradi_Masquerade_Festival_Photowalk
b. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Ohum_Festival_Photowalk
https://www.facebook.com/groups/wikipediaweekly/permalink/5686204711427313/
https://twitter.com/FanteCommunity/status/1614563687649484802?s=20
4. 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 | Strongly agree |
| B. Create a more inclusive and connected culture in our community | Strongly agree |
| C. Develop content about underrepresented topics/groups | Strongly agree |
| D. Develop content from underrepresented perspectives | Strongly agree |
| E. Encourage the retention of editors | Agree |
| F. Encourage the retention of organizers | Agree |
5. 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?
Our efforts to introduce Wikipedia to the Fante community have been successful in bringing in more participants who are interested in contributing to their local wiki. We targeted natives, students, and lecturers in various language universities to create a community of volunteers for the Fante language. The Fante Wikipedia Incubator has received contributions from participants who know the language and are eager to contribute.
Our strategy to build the capacity of community members, improve retention rates, engage new and experienced editors, and train selected volunteers on leadership skills has effectively brought these groups together to contribute and learn more about the Wikimedia movement. We have also aimed to expand community engagement in Ghana.
However, there are barriers that hinder community members' ability to contribute. One significant barrier is the high cost of living in Ghana, which affects students in particular, as they make up a significant portion of the community. This increase in data cost prevents community members from contributing in their volunteer time. Additionally, IP blocks have affected some community members.
Part 2: Your main learning[edit]
6. In your application, you outlined your learning priorities. What did you learn about these areas during this period?
One effective strategy we utilized for training selected volunteers on leadership skills to prepare them for future leadership roles in the community was to invite experienced community leaders from neighbouring Affiliates to provide training and share success stories and resources with our community.
We discovered that hosting in-person events was the most effective approach for training new members of the Fante Community and encouraging them to become active Wikidata and Wikipedia editors. Participants were engaged and enthusiastic about being part of the community when attending in-person events compared to online events.
As a result, community members were made aware of the various ways they could contribute to Wikimedia, and many other participants contributed to Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons. Participants were trained to edit other Wikipedia projects and given data scholarships to enable them to contribute throughout the project period, thereby equipping new and existing editors with the necessary skills and motivation to continue contributing to Wikimedia projects.
Additionally, we established new partnerships, including a partnership with Wiki World Heritage, Art + Feminism, Feminism and Folklore, Wiki Loves Folklore among others and invited existing partners to collaborate with us again.
7. Did anything unexpected or surprising happen when implementing your activities?This can include both positive and negative situations. What did you learn from those experiences?
During our project, we were delighted to discover that other communities showed a keen interest in our "Train the Trainer" project resources, which we willingly shared with them. This experience has motivated us to further engage our community and create useful resources that can be shared and utilized by other communities (as seen here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/wikipediaweekly/permalink/5686204711427313/).
Another positive outcome of our project was the unexpectedly high level of interest and participation from individuals eager to contribute and join our community. This surge in participation was both exciting and surprising
8. 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 Fante Community aims to expand and share knowledge by creating valuable resources that can be shared with other communities. With the success of our "Train the Trainer" project, we aim to use our learnings to effectively manage the community and plan for future events.
As a new community, we prioritize making knowledge accessible in the Fante Language across Wikimedia projects and will continue to build the capacity of our members through workshop trainings for both community members and team leads.
9. Documentation of resources: Use this space to upload any documents that would be useful to share with others (e.g. communications material, training material, presentations).
Here is an additional field to type in URLs.
Link to resources from the Train the Trainers program: https://drive.google.com/drive/u/1/folders/11UC5VIxAshUJDUliqyy0ujHbLhp1JT2F
Part 3: Metrics[edit]
10a. Open Metrics reporting
In your application, you defined some open metrics and targets (goals). You will see a table like the one below with your metric in the title and the target you set in your proposal automatically filled in. Use the tables to report the result. Use the comments column to describe any aspects of this result that you find relevant. If the results were different from the initial target (goals) then you can explain why and what you learned from this. You can also provide any qualitative analysis regarding these results. In the last column please describe the tools and methodology used to collect this data and any difficulties you might have had.
| Open Metrics | Description | Target | Results | Comments | Methodology |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
10b. Core Metrics reporting
In your application, you defined targets for some core metrics and targets (goals). You will see a table like the one below with each core metric in the title and the target you set in your proposal automatically filled in. Use the tables to report the result. Use the comments column to describe any aspects of this result that you find relevant. If the results were different from the initial target (goals) then you can explain why and what you learned from this. You can also provide any qualitative analysis regarding these results. In the last column please describe the tools and methodology used to collect this data and any difficulties you might have had. Note: a table will appear for each Wikimedia project content contribution you defined in your proposal.
| Core metrics | Description | Target | Results | Comments | Methodology |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of participants | Volunteer editors to meet up | 80 | 145 | The number of participants who attended both online and offline events was noteworthy, with a total of 145 individuals taking part. Of these participants, 85 had previously attended events, while 60 were attending for the first time. | https://outreachdashboard.wmflabs.org/campaigns/fante_wikimedians_community_content_creation_drive_programs_/overview |
| Number of editors | Volunteer editors who will continue editing during the project period | 40 | 65 | 65 editors were kept and remained engaged in editing activities throughout the duration. | https://outreachdashboard.wmflabs.org/campaigns/fante_wikimedians_community_content_creation_drive_programs_/overview |
| Number of organizers | Groups to meet for the training, including the trainer of trainees and the four communities spread around | 4 | 4 | Groups that met for the training, including the trainer of trainees and the four communities spread around | Outreachdashboard. |
| Wikimedia Project | Description | Target | Results | Comments | Methodology |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Incubator | The articles created or improved on the Fante Language Incubator | 360 | 909 | During this campaign, the participants who joined the dashboard demonstrated exceptional dedication by producing a remarkable 909 articles in the Incubator. | Outreachdashboard. |
| Wikidata | The Wikidata items to be created or improved | 250 | 251 | 4.24K descriptions Added, 446 interwiki links added, 251 items created, and 457 labels added during the campaign. | Outreachdashboard. |
| Wikimedia Commons | Wikimedia commons images to be uploaded or depicted | 200 | 404 | The total number of images uploaded to Wikimedia Commons during the campaign was 404 | Outreachdashboard. |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
12. Did you have any difficulties collecting data to measure your results? This could include things like a lack of time or resources, or the expertise in your team to collect this data. It could also include difficulties with particular data collection tools.
No
12a. State what difficulties you had.
N/A
12b. How do you hope to overcome these challenges in the future? Do you have any recommendations for the Foundation to support you in addressing these challenges?
N/A
13. Use this space to upload any documents and provide links to any tools you have used that would be useful to understand your data collection (e.g., surveys you have carried out, communications material, training material, program and event dashboard link, project page on Meta).
Here is an additional field to type in URLs.
1. Program and event dashboard link: https://outreachdashboard.wmflabs.org/campaigns/fante_wikimedians_community_content_creation_drive_programs_/overview
- 2. Training material: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/11UC5VIxAshUJDUliqyy0ujHbLhp1JT2F
14. Have you shared these results with other Wikimedian communities (either affiliates, user groups, volunteers, etc., different to yours)? This can include things such as data and direct outcomes, lessons you have learned, or information on how to run or recreate your programs.
No
14a. If yes or partially, please describe how you have already shared them and if you would like to do more sharing, and if so how.
Part 4: Financial reporting and compliance[edit]
15. & 14a. Please state the total amount spent in your local currency.
61194 GHS
16. Please state the total amount spent in USD.
4371.82 USD
17. Please report the funds received and spending in the currency of your fund.
17a. Upload a financial report file.
17b. Please provide a link to your financial reporting document.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1UvPdR2JNQL4_mRd518OnRehRhmdysxXD63UfTGGX6SM/edit?usp=sharing
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.
17c. 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.
N/A
18. Do you have any unspent funds from the Fund?
No
18a. Please list the amount and currency you did not use and explain why.
N/A
18b. What are you planning to do with the underspent funds?
N/A
18c. Please provide details of hope to spend these funds.
N/A
19. Are you in compliance with the terms outlined in the fund agreement?
Yes
20. Are you in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations as outlined in the grant agreement?
Yes
21. 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
22. If you have additional recommendations or reflections that don’t fit into the above sections, please write them here.
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