Wikimedia Community Ireland/Meeting minutes 2026

Next meeting: 26 May 2026

Apologies: Shannon Eichelberger, Eugene Eichelberger, Laura Nugent, Kathryn Moore.

Amy opened the meeting and chaired in Shannon's absence.

Seachtain na Gaeilge Events:
- Bilingual Quiz: Success at Nancy Hands, Dublin; engaged new Irish speakers interested in future WCI meetings.
- FÍS Conference: Presence at the Convention Centre; captured photos of prominent figures for the "Na Gaeil" category of the Is breá le Vicí Béaloideas project.
- Bí an tEolas Hackathon (Cork): Focused on "Na Mná Gaelacha" (Women in Red). Sincere thanks to Antiqueight (talk · contribs) for support.
Reflections & Learnings: Outreach reach was high, but physical attendance was lower than ticket interest. Future strategy will involve deeper collaboration with established Irish-language bodies to bridge the gap.
International Networking:
- University of Bari: Week-long collaboration on Irish-language workshops with Wikimedia Italia.
- WMEU General Assembly: Amy and Laura to attend in Prague this April to align with European Wikimedia developments.

In addition to the above collaboration with Laura.
Collaborations: Art+Feminism (Hunt Museum), DRI Reproductive Justice Hackathon (led by Eugene), and Global Women's Conference (Waterford).
Open Knowledge: Attended Open Heritage Coalition (Amsterdam) and ENGAGED Project Launch (TCD).
Education: Guest lectures delivered at DCU (Translation), SETU (First Year Irish), and University of Galway (Media for Social Change).

Review of current administrators and bureaucrats.
Discussion on the historical decision-making structures of the Irish Wikipedia for the benefit of attendees.

Discussion on an "apprenticeship" model for admins involving screen sharing and graduated tasks.
Noted that the pathway to adminship is a movement-wide issue. WCI aims to support a clearer, more accessible onboarding pathway for Vicipéid.

Discussion of a new unregistered (IP) editor focusing on comic book articles. Alison is successfully mentoring via edits; the editor is receptive to feedback.

Issue: Missing navigation templates for plant species.
Constraint: Identified as a content gap rather than a technical one; Vicipéid lacks the volume of articles to support complex nav-boxes.
Opportunity: Conan to help identify missing species for the May community initiative (timed with Wiki Loves Earth).

Discussion on the "Suggested Edits" feature on the homepage as a tool for making contribution easier in shorter sessions and identifying tools for new editors.

Conan Wolff noted that small usability enhancements (maintenance tags/templates) are vital for editor retention.
WCI to explore a more active community management role on Vicipéid to alleviate the burden on active volunteer administrators.

Apologies: Kathryn Moore.

Chair Update: Shannon to create a document outlining the tasks of the Chair as recruitment for a successor begins.
Note-taking Policy: Decision on using AI for transcription deferred pending research on Irish-language accuracy.
Regional Meetups: Plans for in-person events on rail connections. Suggestions included an Irish Language cafe in the North and a meetup during the Fleadh in Belfast.
Vicipod: Launch of the podcast series on YouTube/Spotify focusing on Wiki concepts and tutorials.

Eugene: Archived 11 years of Meta talk page messages. Confirmed the Foundation now owns wikipedia.ie, which redirects to Vicipéid.
Wikimania: Meeting scheduled with Fáilte Ireland to start hosting discussions.
Community Manager: Outreach highlights including Art+Feminism with Hunt Museum and SETU Waterford presentations.

Chair Update: Introduction of the new team: Amy O’Riordan (Community Manager) and Laura Nugent (Irish Language Officer).
Q3 Initiative: Proposal to archive the organisation's talk page on Meta and clean up old dashboard items. Proposals carried.
Wikimania in Dublin: Proposal to express interest for 2028, 2030, or 2033 (Vicipéid's 30th Anniversary). Decision to move forward with the expression of interest. Proposal carried.

Community Manager: Planning for Wiki Loves Folklore (WLF) and the WikiTongues project.
Irish Language Officer: Overview of first month (onboarding, meeting stakeholders like CSO). Strategy focuses on the 2025–2030 plan with Irish as a central pillar.

Young Scientist Exhibition: Proposal to take part in 2027 in conjunction with Wiki Science Competition.
Copyright Query: Eugene clarified rules for uploading public domain maps from Trinity College to Commons.
Resource: Lingua Libre