Grants talk:Programs/Wikimedia Research Fund/Informing Memory Institutions and Humanities Researchers of the Broader Impact of Open Data Sharing via Wikidata

If possible, please keep your input concise. We'd particularly like feedback on the following questions:

1. From what perspective or in what role are you providing your input? (For example: a Wikipedia editor, a representative of a Wikimedia chapter, a member of a regional committee)
2. In what ways do you think this proposal can support members of the Wikimedia communities in their work on Wikimedia projects?
3. Is there a particular project or affiliate in your country/region/project that can benefit from the result of this proposal and/or you recommend that the applicants seek to coordinate or collaborate with? If so, please provide details including the name of the project or affiliate and a short description of the relevance of the proposal to the needs of the affiliate or project.
4. Do you have any other comments or feedback you would like to share with the Research Fund chairs?

Feedback from User:SFauconnier

From what perspective or in what role are you providing your input? (For example: a Wikipedia editor, a representative of a Wikimedia chapter, a member of a regional committee)

I am responding as an individual Wikimedian and as someone who occasionally works as a (paid) Wikimedian in Residence. Currently, I work as Wikimedian in Residence for a larger-scale Wikidata-focused project concerning Dutch design and digital culture. I offer this feedback in a personal capacity, not on behalf of my employer.

In what ways do you think this research can support members of the Wikimedia communities in their work on Wikimedia projects?

Better instruments for prioritizing and assessing impact of Wikidata-based work would be tremendously helpful for any Wikidata-focused project; indeed for projects in collaboration with cultural institutions and content partners, but also for volunteer-driven projects (e.g. WikiProjects).

Is there a particular project or affiliate in your country/region/project that can benefit from the result of this research and/or you recommend that the applicants seek to coordinate or collaborate with? If so, please provide details including the name of the project or affiliate and a short description of the relevance of the proposal to the needs of the affiliate or project.

Until the end of 2025, I will be working on the aforementioned Wikidata-focused project on Dutch design and digital culture. I would be very interested in collaborating with the researchers, particularly for general feedback and user testing. We mainly create and maintain Wikidata items for people and organizations who are/have been active creators/designers/artists in the past 100 years, including makers who are active today. The project has an important diversity angle (gender and geographic diversity, diaspora).

Do you have any other comments or feedback you would like to share with the Research Fund chairs?

The proposed output - a tool for contribution assessment - will presumably take the form of standalone web-based software. I am concerned about its long-term maintenance and sustainability. What are the submitters’ plans for further development and upkeep over the next five to ten years?

Historically, non-core software in the Wikimedia ecosystem, especially software designed for GLAM-Wiki use cases, tends to be at risk of abandonment. This often happens when the initiating organizations lack the funding to support long-term maintenance, or when individual developers move on. I would strongly recommend that the submitters consider involving the wider community in the development process from the start (e.g. recruit community co-maintainers from the start). Establishing a partnership with a Wikimedia hub or affiliate could also help ensure the tool’s future sustainability and integration into existing ecosystems.

In addition, I encourage the team to consider hosting the tool on Wikimedia technical infrastructure, like Toolforge, to align with Wikimedia infrastructure and community expectations. Ensuring usability for non-technical users—particularly smaller GLAM institutions with limited digital capacity—should be a key design priority. Lastly, I would suggest incorporating mechanisms for continuous community engagement, including feedback loops with GLAM-Wiki practitioners during the design and testing phases. This will help improve the tool’s relevance, adoption, and long-term impact.

Many thanks for this proposal. If it gets funded, I wish you lots of inspiration and fun working on it.

SFauconnier (talk) 15:13, 14 May 2025 (UTC)