2019/Submissions

WikiConference North America 2019 • Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S.

Registration • Travel Guide • Unconference

WikiConference North America 2019 will be taking place November 8-11 in Boston, Massachusetts. November 9th and 10th will serve as the conference's main programming days, filled with workshops, seminars, tutorials, panels, and presentations from the community and organizations affiliated with the movement.

To submit a proposal, first create an account (if you haven't already) and login. In the green box below, enter your session's title and click the "Create Submission" button. You will be directed to a self-explanatory form to fill out. To submit your proposal, please be sure to save the page.

If you have any questions about the process, you may leave them on the talk page.

Submit a Session Proposal
Note: You must create an account first.

Existing proposals may be viewed at Category:Submissions/2019.

Proposal Review Process

You will be notified about the Program Committee's decision regarding your submission via email after DATE. If your submission is not added to the preliminary schedule, please do not be discouraged. WikiConference North America will have time set aside in the schedule for participants and attendees to participate in self-organized talks and working groups during our lightning talks and unconference sessions.

Terms of Participation

By submitting a proposal, you agree that the text of your proposal, your presentation slides, and any video recordings can be distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License or a similar license compatible with Wikimedia projects.

You also agree that, under the terms of the license, recordings of your presentation may be broadcast live, recorded, and made available for download later. If you prefer not to be recorded, please contact one of the conference organizers, we are happy to accommodate your request.

Further, by submitting a proposal, you agree to abide by the terms of the Safe Space Policy.

Submission Notes

Academic Peer Review Option

We are seeking presentations addressing topics related to teaching with Wikipedia and/or the intersection between higher education and Wikipedia generally. Presenters have the option of submitting their proposals under Academic Peer Review, which will be evaluated by a subset of academics serving on the Program Committee. This option is entirely voluntary, and is intended primarily for academic-type presenters who require a peer review process for travel support through their home institutions.

Submitters for Academic Peer Review will automatically be considered for academic scholarships provided by the Wiki Education Foundation.

Presentation Types

Type	Description	Length
Panel	A facilitated discussion among three or more speakers on a pre-selected topic.	30–45 min.
Workshop	A facilitated group-wide discussion or hands-on tutorial/work session on a pre-selected topic.	30–75 min.
Presentation	A presentation on any topic within the themes covered by the conference.	15–30 min.
Unconference	Lightning talk, open space, and other informal formats.	Various

Proposal Themes

We invite attendees to submit proposals for panels, workshops, seminars, and other presentations in topics that fall under topics related to Wikipedia or free culture.

This year we have six themes for the conference, with a focus on reliability. Don't worry if your proposal does not exactly fit in one of the below categories; you are welcome to submit proposals on any relevant topic!

2019 Theme: Reliability This year, WikiConference North America's theme is the reliability of information. We're putting an emphasis on analyzing the current state of information reliability across Wikimedia projects and beyond, and how we can create solutions to improve this reliability. Some examples of topics that would fit fell in this track include: Wikidata workshops on structured metadata and/or modeling reliability and bias of sources 'In the News' current events articles and innovating talk page mechanisms Perennial sources - current state and future improvements Exploring the promises and pitfalls of white- and blacklisting of articles from academic and practitioner perspectives. What do signals or indicators for news quality look like?
Relationship Building & Support Topics under this theme may include: Building partnerships with external institutions GLAM partnerships (Galleries, Libraries, Archives, and Museums) Universities Research organizations Local community building and outreach events Affiliates and other organized groups Effective use of social media to promote chapter activities Grantmaking	Inclusion & Diversity Topic areas under this theme may include: Tools (identifying content gaps, recruitment, etc.) Research Organizing inclusive projects and events Case studies
Editor Recruitment & Retention Topic areas in this track may include: Online and offline outreach Case studies and research Organizing offline events Tools	Tech & Tools Topic areas in the cultural part of this track may include: Wikidata Contributing Structured Commons Integration with other projects Tools to edit Wikipedia Tools to edit Wikimedia Commons Tools in development Tools for offline events
Harassment, Civility, & Safety Topic areas in this track may include: Tools to combat harassment Guidance for dealing with harassment Research Safety considerations at events Protecting community members