Wikimedia Foundation/Communications/WikiCelebrate
The Wikimedia movement exists because of the contributions of countless volunteers and other Wikimedians from around the world, people from diverse backgrounds and life experiences contributing to the sum of human knowledge. The sheer magnitude of this global collaboration baffles most outside our movement. Many editors have long contributed independently without much acknowledgement, and some like it that way. For others, love and recognition from peers can go a long way to encourage and uplift. We are here to celebrate the exceptional people of Wikimedia, the pillars of our movement, the puzzle pieces of our ever-expanding universe of knowledge.
Celebrating Wikimedians
[edit]Barnstars are a beloved way of expressing gratitude for each other in the movement, but often without further public attention. We have no shortage of amazing contributors to celebrate and we are dedicating this space to them. WikiCelebrate is an easy, collaborative way to spotlight Wikimedians and their amazing work throughout the year. Each month we will celebrate a different Wikimedian and invite your help in further celebrating them! If you know them, share a great anecdote about your work with them. If there are others we should celebrate, please nominate them. In addition to your love and gratitude of course, the Celebrated Wikimedians will receive a limited edition barnstar, a small gift, and posts on Diff and social media.
Read about all the previous Celebrated Wikimedians!
We plan on presenting the Wikimedians of the Year in this space as well and will soon create an in memoriam page as we mark the passing of fellow Wikimedia friends and colleagues.
Mea Hanohano
[edit]The word 'wiki' is at the root of our nomenclature. That’s Hawaiian for quick. Honouring this quintessential term, we are calling this section hanohano for honour, distinction, and prestige, and adding mea to create mea hanohano, an honourable person. So, we are here to celebrate honourable Wikimedians of the highest distinction and prestige, Wikimedians of exceptional commitment and contribution.
This month we celebrate...
Loretta
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For Loretta, Wikimedia is a way to connect to the values she holds as a librarian: a belief in open access to knowledge, and the importance of developing a critical and conscious capacity for judgement – one that helps people recognise when information or knowledge is being misused or distorted.
She would like everyone to know that Wikimedia is “a great community, you can discover and learn about everything, you just need to be a little curious and proactive”.
To date, she has authored 164 Wikipedia articles on a kaleidoscope of topics – from the anti-Nazi cabarets in Munich in the 1930s to Burmese women writers and from the ancient Japanese nomadic puppeteers to the Querelle des femmes.
“I don’t like collecting edits, I like to take my time,” she says. “Most of my articles take a week to a couple of months to write. They’re rarely translations. I focus on little-known subjects and cultures.”
She has also lead many education projects on her home university. Over the course of three years, 317 students participated in those activities and over 400 articles were added to Wikipedia. “I am pleased to have given many students the opportunity to get to know Wikipedia and how it works. To shift from passive readers to active, shared approach to the production and use of knowledge, placing research, selection, and the use of reliable sources at the center of this work”, she reflects.
A commitment that continued even after reaching retirement, extending her collaboration to other schools and institutions in northern and central Italy, and this year, the University of Roma Tre, where the internship started with several students is about to conclude with the publication of a wikibook on the History of Italian Feminism.