Affiliations Committee/Candidates/2023/Emmanuel Obiajulu

Emmanuel Obiajulu

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  • User: Emmanuel Obiajulu (User account list / User page link)
  • Primary Wikimedia projects: Wikipedia, Wikidata, and Wiki Commons.
  • Language capabilities (language and level of proficiency): English (5), Igbo (5), Yoruba (4)
  • Regional experiences: Middle East and North Africa Northern America (US and Canada) Sub-Saharan Africa
  • What experience do you have participating on committees, within or outside the Wikimedia movement?
    I have participated in a number of working and organising committee. Most particularly I was part of the organising committee for the Wikimedia Nigeria Imo State Network SouthEast Edit-a-thon ; a zonal event that had in attendance participants from the 5 eastern states in Nigeria with aim to introduce and empower members of the network to Wikipedia and its sister projects. In the course of the planning I headed a subcommittee and was in charge of allocating and managing resources such as welfare, materials, manpower, and logistics required for the execution of the Edit-a-thon. In the process of working in this committee, I was able to gain valuable experience of learning to collaborate effectively with diverse personalities, leveraging each member's strengths, and working towards a common goal. And dealing with conflicts or disagreements constructively, learning negotiation and mediation skills to maintain harmony within all stakeholders.. Also, as the network coordinator for the committees of the different layers of work in the network I played an active role of setting up the itinerary of the committees, provide insight, information, and advice to aid the committees in working out modalities to engage community members. Additionally, I have also worked as a committee member of Nigeria Youth Decide; a transition committee charged to organise a smooth leadership transition of all Nigeria Youth Decide sub-chapters across the 27 LGA in Imo State. With the prior knowledge of the uniqueness and peculiarities of each sub-chapter, my team and I devised flexible strategies of engagement in order to achieve our desired objective which include setting up a working team to run the affairs of the sub-chapters.
  • What skills, experience, or perspective would you bring or contribute to the committee, if appointed?
    As someone coming from a smaller layer of community affiliated with Wikimedia Nigeria, I will bring a unique perspective relevant for understanding and supporting smaller and underrepresented communities in the Wikimedia movement. Additionally I will be bringing on board effective listening, communication, problem solving, collaboration and strong decision making skills gained from working on and with Wikimedia projects notably the Audiovisual of Igbo Dances (AID) Project. Beyond AID project, I have a wealth of experience in the culture of the Wikimedia movement garnered through community interactions on wikimedia projects including the WikiForHumanRights 2023 local campaign in Nigeria [| Wiki for Human Right 2023] , WPWP campaign and others. If appointed, I will be committed in contributing the aforementioned skills and experiences to foster more growth in the committee.
  • Is there any other pertinent information that you would like us to take into account when reviewing your application?
    "The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away". As an experienced Wikimedia I have found my gift in community engagement, and as the team lead of Wikimedia Nigeria Imo State Network, I have not only implemented this skill in organising series of Wikimedia campaigns and events, but also in contributing immensely to the Wikimedia community. This commitment is reflected in my earlier highlighted AID Project Audiovisual of Igbo Dances which was the first of its kind to be done in South East Nigeria. As well as other projects; WikiVibrance 2022 , and Wiki Loves Africa 2021. Looking ahead, I am excited about the prospect of contributing more substantially as an AffCom member. I aim to bring in my wealth of experience in helping Wikimedians across the globe self-organize into chapters, thereby fostering a spirit of collaboration and shared growth. This I believe will not only benefit our local/thematic community but also add value to the broader Wikimedia Foundation.
  • Which sub-committee are you interested in working with (Conflict Intervention, Recognitions)?:
    Either - wherever there's a need for
  • What do you think are the benefits and responsibilities of functioning as formal affiliates, and when is a group of Wikimedians ready to form an affiliate?
    A formal affiliate benefits includes, recognition, access to grants and funding for project and events, networking opportunities, and support from the Wikimedia Foundation. In forming an affiliate a group can be considered to be ready when they demonstrate active involvement in Wikimedia projects, have a clear plan for sustained activity, with established leadership, structure, and the ability to carry out events. Also, they have a responsibility to align with Wikimedia's principles of free knowledge dissemination and should aim to contribute positively to the Wikimedia movement.
  • Please describe your experience working with conflict resolution, and how you have helped build consensus and support diversity.
    During the field work that led to the production of the AID project, we got to a local community where we were to record various indigenous local dances. The dance troupe of a particular community on sighting our digital cameras and other production equipments; despite prior arrangement, was infuriated and was going to pull out of the production and also instigate others cultural troupes to do the same. They assumed we were going to shoot their dance into a movie and sell for our own personal gain, as such they created a tensed atmosphere and an unpleasant scene As the production manager, recognising the presence of all the dance troupe from different tribes with different backgrounds, ideologies, belief system, and identity I quickly moved into action to arrest the situation by employing strategies to settle our differences - dialogue for mutual understanding; first my team I gave everyone chance to air their views after which we explained in detail who we are, what we do, and the Wikimedia Open Licence Policy; we made sure all conversation found common ground in areas that do not offend cultural beliefs; we employed tolerance to accommodate individual differences and at the end, we were able to calm the situation and successfully recorded the local dances.

Endorsements (Emmanuel Obiajulu)

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  1. Emmanuel Obiajulu is up to the task every answer he gave is true and I can testify to it. He has done well in organizing various events within his immediate hub which I’m also a member of.
  2.   Strong support Emmanuel has the capacity. I strongly endorse him based on projects I've seen him carry and also worked with him #Chiziqa (talk) 05:40, 18 November 2023 (UTC)[reply]
  3.   Strong support Emmanuel is worth to be a part of Affcom. I practically learnt all I know about working on the Wikispace from him and I've seen him put his best into every Wikimedia project organized so far in my hub. I strongly endorse him based on his commitment to the Wikimedia Space.#Sommy kemdi (talk) 07:53, 18 November 2023 (UTC)[reply]
  4.   Strong support My Wiki tale can't be told completely without the supportive guide of Emmanuel. He has all the skills required to strive in the Affcom, so I strongly endorse him.#User:Aminwa 21 (talk)
  5.   Strong support Emmanuel has been a good and supportive leader in my network(Imo State) and been someone I have worked with on different areas such as projects and leadership of Imo State Network. He has supported many of our contributors in growing their experiences one way or other so I highly believe that he has the capacity to learn from Affcom and contribute greatly to it purpose Dolphyb (talk) 06:51, 19 November 2023 (UTC)[reply]
  6.   Strong support Emmanuel has the capacity. I strongly endorse him for the Affcom. His hardworking nature, excellent guidance, and unwavering dedication make him an invaluable asset. He consistently excels and doesn't relent when entrusted with tasks #Kulestjr (talk) 18:57, 19 November 2023 (UTC)[reply]
  7.   Strong support Emmanuel has the capacity and the skills for the roles. He is knowledgeable and hardworking. He will add value. I support him Ngostary2k (talk) 22:09, 19 November 2023 (UTC)[reply]