2014 Activity Plan/Extending Reach

Lead member of staff

Daria Cybulska

Indicative budget amount

£10,000

Description and overall rationale

We seek to target groups and individuals normally under-represented in our community, by supporting outreach projects aimed at increasing participation in the Wikimedia movement (especially amongst women, or involving any minority ethnic, LGBT, linguistic or other community in the UK). We are working with our community to find opportunities to increase participation from the relevant groups, and improve the content in the under-represented areas on Wikimedia projects. This is done through outreach activities, partnerships with particular outreach institutions, on-wiki initiatives (such as Wiki Loves Monuments). These activities have parallel aims of improving content and attracting more participation from the target groups.

Additionally, we are working with scientists, scholars, learned societies and funders to help experts improve targeted content areas of Wikipedia and its sister projects, bringing that expertise to the widest possible public, in the stream of work called Expert Outreach. Many scholarly societies are, like Wikimedia UK, registered charities whose mission includes informing and educating the general public. These common goals are advanced with internal training events, publications and public events. This work complements WMUK's partnerships with GLAMs and Education sector.

For 2013 programme, please see here.

For the report of the Gender Gap project delivered by Roberta Wedge in Q3-4 of 2014, see here.

Timelines - i.e. what happens quarter by quarter

Throughout year, with the focus on particular events in the calendar - e.g. Women's History Month (Q1), Black History Month (Q3).

Success criteria and Metrics - overall and quarter by quarter breakdown if relevant

Goals

The quantity of Open Knowledge continues to increase :

• Quantity of content created during events - contributing to global targets of quantity for content (civi)

The quality of Open Knowledge continues to improve:

• Quality of content created during events - contributing to global targets of quantity for content (civi)

WMUK volunteers are highly diverse:

• Training workshops & editathons for underrepresented groups and themes - leading on the global targets of diversity activity units (civi)

We are perceived as the go-to organisation by UK GLAM, educational, and other organisations who need support or advice for the development of Open Knowledge:

• Projects with partners - Contributing to the total reputational score (This area can relate to projects run with Diversity organisations, but also Expert Outreach organisations) (civi)

Operationally, these goals could be delivered via, for example:

• holding 4 training sessions, attracting an average of 15 people each, 10 of whom will be new to editing. The programme succeeds in reaching people in target areas, and in covering the targeted topic areas on Wikimedia projects (wiki event page)
• Running the majority of the events and activities with partner organisations, such as Girl Geeks, and institutions within the Expert Outreach area e.g. AHRC, Cancer Research UK
• Running larger-scale initiatives (such as ‘Wiki Takes…’, “Wiki Loves...’) aimed at attracting new contributors, along the aims of Increasing Participation - 2-3 a year, involving 30 new contributors each (wiki event page)
• Expert Outreach - 1 expert training session delivered per quarter for 10 people new to Wikimedia (wiki event page)
• Expert Outreach - presence at 2 conferences a year; working relations with 5 scholarly or expert societies, (contacts on office wiki)

Risks

• There continues to be insufficient take-up.
• We fail to reach the identified groups.
• Our capacity is too limited to deliver the projects needed.