Grants:Project/UG GLAM Macedonia/Wikipedian in Residence/Final

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Report accepted
This report for a Project Grant approved in FY 2016-17 has been reviewed and accepted by the Wikimedia Foundation.
  • To read the approved grant submission describing the plan for this project, please visit Grants:Project/UG GLAM Macedonia/Wikipedian in Residence.
  • You may still review or add to the discussion about this report on its talk page.
  • You are welcome to email projectgrants(_AT_)wikimedia.org at any time if you have questions or concerns about this report.



Welcome to this project's final report! This report shares the outcomes, impact and learnings from the grantee's project.

Part 1: The Project[edit]

Summary[edit]

User:GjorgjiP, WiR at the State Archives.
User:Gordi, WiR at the City Library.

In a few short sentences, give the main highlights of what happened with your project. Please include a few key outcomes or learnings from your project in bullet points, for readers who may not make it all the way through your report.

Generally, the Wikipedians in Residence at the State Archives of the Republic of Macedonia and City Library 'Braḱa Miladinovci' finished the project successfully and met the given goals stated prior establishing of the positions. They had successful and productive period, where they uploaded large number of files, trained new users on how to use and edit Wikipedia and Commons, held several edit-a-thons, challange and workshops. In short, the main outcome of the projects are:

  • The total number of uploaded files on Commons by the Wikipedian is 288. However, having in mind the fact that many of the files are pdf, the total number of scanned, processed and uploaded unit files reaches 408. (uploaded the files)
  • The total number of newly created categories by the Wikipedian is 27. In addition, numerous categories were reorganised and cleaned up. (newly created categories)
  • Decreased the content gap regarding the following topics: (1) Republic of Macedonia in the WW II, (2) Dimitar Vlahov, (3) Skopje National Theatre, (4) History of the Macedonian National Theatre, and (5) Photogrammetric maps of Macedonia.
  • Organised and held several workshops for training new users on: how to upload files on Commons; how to categorise new files; how to add references in existing articles; how to use Wikipedia.
  • Organised frour edit-a-thons, where 26 people took part in;
  • more than 90 new articles were created;
  • 6 existing articles were edited;
  • Added 301 totally new references in the articles on Wikipedia in Macedonian;
  • Held and organised a Wiki-Tour in the City Library where students were shown and introduced with Library and the employees;
  • Held and organised a Wiki Tour in the Skopje Department of the State Archives;
  • Organised and held a DARM Challenge (Participants);
  • Trained 8 new users to use and edit on Wikipedia, including how to add references and images.

Project Goals[edit]

Please copy and paste the project goals from your proposal page. Under each goal, write at least three sentences about how you met that goal over the course of the project. Alternatively, if your goals changed, you may describe the change, list your new goals and explain how you met them, instead.

Wkipedian in Residence at the State Archives of the Republic of Macedonia;
  • Continue with existing good collaboration on educating the GLAM employees about Wikimedia projects
The WiR continued nourishing the excellent collaboration between GLAM Macedonia and the State Archives. The employees again expressed willingness and readiness to take active part in the Wikimedia-related activities organised by GLAM Macedonia. Furthermore, they expressed desire to continue to work with GLAM Macedonia without any material support provided by WIkimedia Foundation. The trust and good professional cooperation with this Macedonian Institution have been established successfully.
  • help them to upload files on Commons, which are release for public domain;
As one of the main duties of the WiR, uploading new files was a major success of the overall productive 6 months period of engagement. The WiR, besides the other important duties and activities, scanned, processed and uploaded 408 files on Commons.
  • to create new articles or improve the existing ones, using the books and materials from the Archives
The WiR, through the training and the edit-a-thons helped to improve the existing articles on the Macedonian Wikipedia as well as creating new ones. Using the exiting printed materials owned by the Archives, the WiR substantially helped and facilitated the process of improving and creating new articles. More than 90 articles were created and numerous articles were improved.
  • WiR will be responsible for coordinating and organizing special events, such as edit-a-thons, Workshop, Wikipedian tours, which will bring Wikipedians on-site to work with staff on content creation and improvement. To host a contest (the third DARM Challenge)
Another aspect of the success of the WiR are the edit-a-thons, WikiTours, Workshops and DARM Challenge. The WiR successfully organised and help 3 edit-a-thons, where some 17 people took part in and 30 articles were created. In addition to this, large number of articles were improved and reorganised. Regarding the WikiTours, the WiR held two WikiTours, one in the State Archives and one in the Skopje Department of the State Archives. The visitors were introduced to the Institution, the nature of work, the staff and their main responsibilities. During the course of the project, the WiR held a workshop for the State Archives' employees. They were taught and trained how to use, upload and properly categorise files on Commons, as well as how to use the files on Wikipedia. At the end, the WiR organised and held a DARM Challenge, with a help of other members of GLAM Macedonia. The challenge is a competition where users are called/ invited to use the files uploaded by the WiR on existing articles across all Wikipedias, and if such articles do not exist, new to be created. People of various different countries and Wikipedias took part in the DARM challenge. Statistic results (some according to GLAMorgan tool):
  • 16 participants
  • from 12 different language wikis
  • more than 50 new articles created at the time of DARM Challenge 3
  • 40.83% of all images of category are used in articles

We noticed that there were editors who used the files in their home wiki articles, but they didn't sign themselves as participants. This is something we count as a success.

Wikipedian in Residence at the City Library
  • Educating the GLAM employees on Wikimedia projects, educate them to add references into articles, and to create new articles or improve the existing ones, using the books and materials from the Library
During the course of the project, the WiR trained and introduced the City Library's staff with Wikipedia and its related projects. Several employees were trained how to use Wikipedia, how to edit existing articles and how to add references to the existing articles. The staff was guided and trained how to use the Library's materials to improve the quality of the articles of the Macedonian Wikipedia.
  • WiR will be responsible for coordinating and organizing special events, such as edit-a-thon, Workshop, Wikipedian tours, which will bring Wikipedians on-site to work with staff on content creation and improvement.
The WiR successfully held an edit-a-thon, where 12 articles were created, 10 people took part in, of which, 3 were newly trained employees of the Library. It is also important to mention that many existing references were properly reorganised and edited, and some 15 references were added by the WiR herself. Another important and successfully held event was the WikiTour. The WiR introduced students to the Library, introduced them with the employees and their duties. Moreover, the students were introduced with the materials and books owned by the Library and how to use them in the future. At the end, the WiR held a workshop where several new users were trained how to use Wikipedia, how to edit existing articles and how to add references to the articles.
  • add references to articles on Macedonian Wikipdia
The WiR added 301 references to the existing articles on Wikipedia in Macedonian. Large number of references were improved and reedited.

Project Impact[edit]

Important: The Wikimedia Foundation is no longer collecting Global Metrics for Project Grants. We are currently updating our pages to remove legacy references, but please ignore any that you encounter until we finish.

Targets[edit]

  1. In the first column of the table below, please copy and paste the measures you selected to help you evaluate your project's success (see the Project Impact section of your proposal). Please use one row for each measure. If you set a numeric target for the measure, please include the number.
  2. In the second column, describe your project's actual results. If you set a numeric target for the measure, please report numerically in this column. Otherwise, write a brief sentence summarizing your output or outcome for this measure.
  3. In the third column, you have the option to provide further explanation as needed. You may also add additional explanation below this table.
Planned measure of success
(include numeric target, if applicable)
Actual result Explanation
at least two organized Wikipedian tours in the Archives and at least one organized Wikipedian tour in the Library 3 Wiki Tours were organized
two organized edit-a-thons in the Archives and one organized edit-a-thon in Library The two WiRs organised four edit-a-thons, where 26 people took part in;
at least three employees who will be active on Wikimedia projects in the Archives and at least two employees who will be educated to edit Wikipedia in the Library Trained 8 new users, four of them are active
500 files uploaded on commons and 100 references added to the existing articles 408 files uploaded in total (or 288, many of them with more than 2 pages) and 301 references added


Story[edit]

Looking back over your whole project, what did you achieve? Tell us the story of your achievements, your results, your outcomes. Focus on inspiring moments, tough challenges, interesting antecdotes or anything that highlights the outcomes of your project. Imagine that you are sharing with a friend about the achievements that matter most to you in your project.

  • This should not be a list of what you did. You will be asked to provide that later in the Methods and Activities section.
  • Consider your original goals as you write your project's story, but don't let them limit you. Your project may have important outcomes you weren't expecting. Please focus on the impact that you believe matters most.

Survey(s)[edit]

If you used surveys to evaluate the success of your project, please provide a link(s) in this section, then briefly summarize your survey results in your own words. Include three interesting outputs or outcomes that the survey revealed.

Other[edit]

Is there another way you would prefer to communicate the actual results of your project, as you understand them? You can do that here!

Methods and activities[edit]

Please provide a list of the main methods and activities through which you completed your project.


WiR at the State Archives of the Republic of Macedonia
  • The WiR at the State Archives kept developing the professional collaboration with the State Archives and its employees and established good ground for further future mutual collaboration. The Archives expressed the desire to keep collaborating with GLAM Macedonia and the WiR in the future, and after being informed that the WiR project is done they proposed to sign a contract and continue collaborating with the WiR and GLAM Macedonia even without WF material support. This is a unique case among the state institutions in Macedonia (having in mind the fact they are quite closed institutions).
  • The WiR uploaded 288 files on Commons. However, the total number of documents (or unit files) scanned, processed and uploaded on Commons is 408.
  • During the course of the project, the WiR created 27 new categories which were necessary for proper categorisation of the new files. Furthermore, the WiR reorganised and improved number of existing categories.
  • The WiR decreased the content gap regarding the following topics: (1) Republic of Macedonia in the WW II (66 new files added) , (2) Dimitar Vlahov (13 new files added), (3) Skopje National Theatre (10 new files added), (4) History of the Macedonian National Theatre (60 new files added, previously 0), and (5) Photogrammetric maps of Macedonia (12 new files added, previously 0).
  • The WiR organised and held a workshop for several employees of the State Archives, new users, and trained them how to use Commons, how to upload new files and how to categorise the files appropriately.
  • The WiR organised three edit-a-thons on various topics. A large part of the materials for the edit-a-thons were provided by the Institution. The WiR classified the materials and successfully held all three edit-a-thons. More than new 30 articles were created and many were improved and reedited. Old users and new users (mostly employees) took part in the edit-a-thons, or in other words, more than 16 people participated in these edit-a-thons.
  • The WiR successfully organised and held a WikiTour. Students were brought in Skopje Department of the State Archives. The students were introduced to the Institution itself, they were introduced to the staff and the role of the Archives. The employees were glad to answer all questions from the students and they have shown some of the most interesting documents and pictures they possess.
  • The WiR organised and held DARM Challenge. The challenge is a call for the Wikipedians to use the pictures uploaded by the WiR in the Wikipedia articles (in any language they choose) and create new articles in order to improve the number of total pages on the Wikipedias and to use the uploaded images. Users from different countries and language background participated in the Challenge.
WiR at the City Library 'Braḱa Miladinovci'
  • The total number of added new references in the articles on the Macedonian Wikipedia is 301.
  • A successful Wiki-tour was held in June. A group of students was introduced with the Library Departments and were introduced with the information of how to use the City Library for their needs. Moreover, the students were introduced to the employees and were informed on how to use the Library for their future engagements.
  • A workshop was held with the group of students that took part in the Wiki-tour. This was the first edit-a-thon organised by the Wikipedian in Residence. The students had the chance to prepare and add text to articles on the Macedonian Wikipedia. They used the books available in the Library. In addition, the students were trained how to add references in the articles on Wikipedia.
  • At the end of the period a successful, second, edit-a-thon was held. The number of participants that took part in the edit-a-thon was 9, of which 3 were trained by the WiR at the City Library. The total number of new articles created on this event was 12.
  • The WiR trained 5 new users to edit on Wikipedia and they have created 22 new articles, and 6 existing articles were edited with text.

Project resources[edit]

Please provide links to all public, online documents and other artifacts that you created during the course of this project. Even if you have linked to them elsewhere in this report, this section serves as a centralized archive for everything you created during your project. Examples include: meeting notes, participant lists, photos or graphics uploaded to Wikimedia Commons, template messages sent to participants, wiki pages, social media (Facebook groups, Twitter accounts), datasets, surveys, questionnaires, code repositories... If possible, include a brief summary with each link.


Learning[edit]

The best thing about trying something new is that you learn from it. We want to follow in your footsteps and learn along with you, and we want to know that you took enough risks in your project to have learned something really interesting! Think about what recommendations you have for others who may follow in your footsteps, and use the below sections to describe what worked and what didn’t.

What worked well[edit]

What did you try that was successful and you'd recommend others do? To help spread successful strategies so that they can be of use to others in the movement, rather than writing lots of text here, we'd like you to share your finding in the form of a link to a learning pattern.

In general, both Wikipedians had good and productive three months. The best thing so far was the collaboration with the employees of both Institutions. The employees of both, the State Archives and City Library, provided the necessary help for easier and successful accomplishment of the Wikipedian's tasks. They showed great interest in Wikipedia and the other Wikimedia projects and did not hesitate to provide both Wikipedians with the needed materials. Some of the empployees showed interest and willingness to be part of Wikipedia and Commons (as contributors) and they took part in the edit-a-thons and workshops held by the Wikipedians. On the other side, it is worth mentioning the fact that the new management of both Institutions also showed great interest and willingness to further collaborate and expand the collaboration with the Wikipedians and GLAM. At the end, the help and experience of the previous Wikipedians in Residence and the other GLAM members proved to be very useful and helpful in accomplishing the given tasks and goals.

  • Your learning pattern link goes here

What didn’t work[edit]

What did you try that you learned didn't work? What would you think about doing differently in the future? Please list these as short bullet points.

Generally speaking the Wikipedians in Residence had good and productive time in the Institutions they were assigned at. However, they met some difficulties and obstacles while they were doing their jobs, but they were mostly out of their sphere of influence. The difficulties/ obstacles they met with are the following:

Both Wikipedians in Residence were temporarily stopped from doing their jobs because of the heath wave that stroke Macedonia. The (Library's) edit-a-thon was once cancelled and rescheduled for another date. In addition to this, the Wikipedian in Residence at the State's Arvchives had technical problems with the scanner that is used for scanning the documents in the Archives. It took some days to fix the scanner and after that the WiR continued his normal duties. On the other hand, the WiR at DARM also had technical problems with the software that is used to create pdf files, which was fixed soon after a help was requested by the other members of GLAM Macedonia and the employees of the Institution.

The process of digitising the documents, cropping and preparing them for uploading on Commons is also time-consuming one, so it can be mentioned as one of the obstacles that one WiR can be faced up with. Other than the already mentioned ones, the WiR did not have any obstacles or problems of any kind.

Other recommendations[edit]

If you have additional recommendations or reflections that don’t fit into the above sections, please list them here.

Next steps and opportunities[edit]

Are there opportunities for future growth of this project, or new areas you have uncovered in the course of this grant that could be fruitful for more exploration (either by yourself, or others)? What ideas or suggestions do you have for future projects based on the work you’ve completed? Please list these as short bullet points.

The Wikipedian in Residence as the State Archives has completed all tasks and assignments according to the agreement and he has finished his work successfully, productively and professionally. Apart from that, the WiR established excellent working and professional relations with the State Archive's staff and management body. Therefore, we expect that the same high level of cooperation will continue in the future. As an indicator of this excellent cooperation, the State Archives decided to sign another contract for a period of one year with GLAM Macedonia. The plan is the State Archives to support the GLAM Member (Wikipedian) without any financial or material support by Wikimedia Foundation, so he/ she continues to come at the State Archive's offices, to involve the employees in GLAM Macedonia Wikipedia-related activities and help the employees to take substantially bigger part in those kinds of projects.

The Wikipedian in Residence at the Ciy Library has finished her project. Her three-month project was highly successful and because of that we are planning for renewal of the project starting from March 2018. Until then she is going to keep in touch with the Library's employees and she will be open to work with them and help or assist them anytime regarding Wikipedia and related Wikimedia projects. The employees have all the contacts (phones, emails, Wiikipedia accounts) necessary to do so and it is expected the same excellent collaboration to be continued in near future. In the meantime, WiR as a liaison between the Library and GLAM Macedonia, is in negotiation to organize open panel discussion in the Library "The need of digitization in 21 century", which has to happen in the end of January 2018.

Part 2: The Grant[edit]

Finances[edit]

Actual spending[edit]

Please copy and paste the completed table from your project finances page. Check that you’ve listed the actual expenditures compared with what was originally planned. If there are differences between the planned and actual use of funds, please use the column provided to explain them.

  • The funds were spent according to plan, and no changes were made by the end of the project.
Number Category Item description Unit Number of units Cost per unit Total cost Currency Notes
1 Wikipedian in Residence at the Library compensate 1 month 3 500 1500 EUR The compensation, including VAT and all taxes one has to pay monthly. The compensations are paid.
2 Wikipedian in Residence at the Archives compensate 1 month 6 500 3000 EUR The compensation, including VAT and all taxes one has to pay monthly. The compensations are paid.
3 Third DARM Challenge costs books for compensate a winners plus postal costs set of books 5 set of books 20 euros per set (100 EUR) + 20 euros postal costs 120 EUR Payment for books and postal costs.
4 Bank fees 45 EUR Bank fees
5 Total amount 4665 EUR

Remaining funds[edit]

Do you have any unspent funds from the grant?

Please answer yes or no. If yes, list the amount you did not use and explain why.

  • No

If you have unspent funds, they must be returned to WMF. Please see the instructions for returning unspent funds and indicate here if this is still in progress, or if this is already completed:

Documentation[edit]

Did you send documentation of all expenses paid with grant funds to grantsadmin(_AT_)wikimedia.org, according to the guidelines here?

Please answer yes or no. If no, include an explanation.

  • Yes

Confirmation of project status[edit]

Did you comply with the requirements specified by WMF in the grant agreement?

Please answer yes or no.

  • Yes.

Is your project completed?

Please answer yes or no.

  • Yes.

Grantee reflection[edit]

We’d love to hear any thoughts you have on what this project has meant to you, or how the experience of being a grantee has gone overall. Is there something that surprised you, or that you particularly enjoyed, or that you’ll do differently going forward as a result of the Project Grant experience? Please share it here!