Submissions:2014/You're invited! Developing innovative models for participation


 * Title of the submission:


 * Themes (Proposal Themes - Community, Tech, Outreach, GLAM, Education): Community


 * Type of submission (Presentation Types - Panel, Workshop, Presentation, etc): Seminar


 * Author of the submission: Dominic McDevitt-Parks


 * E-mail address: dominic@wikimediadc.org


 * Username: User:Dominic


 * US state or country of origin: MD


 * Affiliation, if any (organization, company etc.): Wikimedia D.C. & U.S. National Archives


 * Personal homepage or blog:


 * Abstract (at least 300 words to describe your proposal):

Are there new/better ways to leverage interested chapters, GLAMs, universities, tech non-profits, etc. to stimulate Wikimedia's growth in mutually beneficial ways? I would like to facilitate a group discussion on developing new innovative models for inviting or sustaining participation in Wikimedia-related projects through partnerships with or allied external or community organizations. This will be a more open-ended and interactive session than most, but here is the hook: by the end of the session, if we can come up with a role which the National Archives could pilot and offer to Wikimedians, I will make it happen.

Most "Wikipedians in Residence" (the dominant participation model for partnerships) have been required to work full-time, have some skills in communication/outreach, event planning, community relations, copyright, and technical matters. That is, the institution brings a single expert Wikipedian in-house to organize all of their Wikipedia engagement. This model is not broadly appealing or applicable enough for all Wikipedians or cultural/academic institutions. It is time for new thinking, and I would like to facilitate a brainstorming session where we come up with new ideas. I plan to set the scene by giving examples of various participation models for context (Wikipedian in Residence, Wikipedia Affiliate, Campus Wikipedian, Campus/Online Ambassador, E-Volunteer, others?) and then open the floor to suggestions.

Questions we might try to answer:


 * Would we like to see institutions facilitate Wikimedia content contributions through their own official volunteer programs? Internships?
 * What sort of incentives are most meaningful to the community? (Formal recognition, academic credit, job reference, professional mentorship... Also, are any of these distasteful to the community?)
 * Would expanding these sorts of external affiliations be a good thing in general? How would we handle potential conflicts of interest? Does the community need to be involved in vetting or certifying opportunities or candidates?
 * What about Wikimedia-affiliated organizations (i.e. chapters/Wikimedia Foundation)? Do they have a role to play in offering these sorts of opportunities?
 * What about broader community roles, like a WikiProject organizer or a national Wikipedia Loves Libraries coordinator?

And, finally, can we write a concrete proposal that an organization could implement after the WikiConference USA? I want to go beyond the normal case study or and actually break new ground!


 * Length of presentation/talk (see Presentation Types for lengths of different presentation types): 30-60 minutes


 * Will you attend WikiConference USA if your submission is not accepted?: Likely


 * Slides or further information (optional):


 * Special request as to time of presentations:

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 * 1) Kosboot (talk) 20:07, 14 May 2014 (EDT)
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