Grants:Programs/Wikimedia Community Fund/Wikimedia Poland Accelerated Service Growth/Yearly Report (2023)
Report Status: Accepted
Due date: 30 January 2024
Funding program: Wikimedia Community Fund
Report type: Yearly Learning Report (for multi-year fund recipients) , reporting year: 2023
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General information
editThis form is for organizations, groups, or individuals receiving multi-year Wikimedia Community Funds to report on their yearly results.
- Name of Organization: Stowarzyszenie Wikimedia Polska
- Title of Proposal: Wikimedia Poland Accelerated Service Growth
Part 1 Understanding your work
edit1. Briefly describe how your proposed activities and strategies were implemented.
- All planned activities were based on our strategy implemented at the end of 2022. Designing major programs from our 2023 grant application (Conflict Resolution Support and WikiLibrary) we focus to achieve three goals from our strategy:
Wikimedia projects are a recognized source of knowledge and information We form a friendly work and collaboration environment for our members, volunteers, staff members, and partners We are open and accessible. We lower the participation barriers on Wikimedia projects and in accessing free knowledge.
2. Were there any strategies or approaches that you felt were effective in achieving your goals?
- Being close to the community and open for the discussion. We kept focused on lowering the tensions within the community.
Noticing someone who was not noticed before. We were the first NGO in Poland providing supporting program for prime school libraries of that scale. Giving community a challenge. Breaking the record for longest edit-a-thon mobilized and motivated the community.
3. Would you say that your project had any innovations? Are there things that you did very differently than you have seen them done by others?
- Focusing on a forgotten group like school libraries might be kind of innovative. We (and probably others in Wikimedia movement) try to partner with big and famous galleries, museums and universities. Sometimes it works, sometime it doesn’t. For some big institutions, we are not a priority partner. But when you offer cooperation to someone who was forgotten, their willingness to work is bigger.
4. Please describe how different communities participated and/or were informed about your work.
- We communicate every day using social media channels, Discord, mailing lists, “café” space on Wikipedia. In 2023, we returned to publish a monthly bulletin. Communication efforts paid off. The attendance on our spring conference and general assembly was bigger than a year before. The “longest edit-a-thon” was a big success, bigger than we expected. We have noticed that live events were long awaited.
5. Documentation of your impact. Please use the two spaces below to share files and links that help tell your story and impact. This can be documentation that shows your results through testimonies, videos, sound files, images (photos and infographics, etc.) social media posts, dashboards, etc.
- Upload Documents and Files
- Here is an additional field to type in URLs.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/Biuletyn_Listopad_2023.pdf https://pl.wikimedia.org/wiki/Plik:Biuletyn_WMPL_Grudzie%C5%84_2023.pdf https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikimedia/pl/3/36/Biuletyn_WMPL_Wrzesie%C5%84_2023..pdf
6. To what extent do you agree with the following statements regarding the work carried out with the support of this Fund? You can choose “not applicable” if your work does not relate to these goals.
| A. Bring in participants from underrepresented groups | Agree |
| B. Create a more inclusive and connected culture in our community | Agree |
| C. Develop content about underrepresented topics/groups | Neither agree nor disagree |
| D. Develop content from underrepresented perspectives | Neither agree nor disagree |
| E. Encourage the retention of editors | Agree |
| F. Encourage the retention of organizers | Agree |
| G. Increased participants' feelings of belonging and connection to the movement. | Agree |
7. Is there anything else you would like to share about how your efforts helped to bring in participants and/or build out content, particularly for underrepresented groups?
- Personal training helped employees to understand better other's needs. We expanded the support services for people with disabilities and special needs, and at the end of 2023 we started to work in the Digital Activism project. It’s a cooperation of different organizations helping communities to deal with hate speech and disinformation. We’ll be working closely with trans community and immigrants. We’ll inform about the results next year.
Part 2: Your main learning
edit8. In your application, you outlined your learning priorities. What did you learn about these areas during this period?
- The barriers of entry to Wikimedia projects are still high, and the small number of new and young people on our meetings is visible. That is why we organized a live session about the problem, “confronting” young users and experienced ones. It was the most popular session during the spring conference. After this, we implement some of the thoughts to our contests and Conflict Resolution Program. We traced three major problems:
the layout (which we can’t do much about) the lack of multimedia materials on Wikipedia pages (which we can improve by e.g. contests) the language used by experienced users - hard to understand by new ones (which we can change by workshops and in other forms) We include the Conflict Resolution Support Report as a separate document due to its extensive form. Wiki Library program started to scale in the second year of running. The project became quite famous among librarians. We didn’t have to seek for participants for 2nd edition. They heard of us and came with own ideas and full of enthusiasm. We received much more applications for the second year than we could accept. The leaders of the pilot year run their own projects and encourage others. Chosen libraries are equipped with Wikipedia sofas loved by kids. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wikiteka_2022_nr_4.jpg
9. Did anything unexpected or surprising happen when implementing your activities?
- The record attendance on breaking the record in longest edit-a-thon. Unexpectedly, it became the biggest event in Wikimedia Poland history, with 127 participants. Editing took place in Warsaw, on working days, in September, after summer holidays. Second surprise: young editors showed up. Third surprise: lots of female editors. And one more: editors not seen in years came to edit.
10. How do you hope to use this learning? For instance, do you have any new priorities, ideas for activities, or goals for the future?
- We now have a proof that Wikipedians like to be challenged. And the more extreme challenge the better. They still like to meet and edit in larger groups in a quiet place. We’ll plan to use these observations in our 2024 meetings and contests (focused on adding multimedia materials to Wikipedia articles).
11. If you were sitting with a friend to tell them one thing about your work during this fund, what would it be (think of inspiring or fascinating moments, tough challenges, interesting anecdotes, or anything that feels important to you)?
- We’re sitting at the reception desk of longest edit-a-thon event. A man enters, and you can tell he’s not sure if it’s the place for him. We talk to each other: do you know this guy? Who is he? Eventually, he approaches us and says he wants to edit. We ask him if he edited before, or he needs a training. He says: yes, I edited. We ask him to write his nickname in the registration form. He does it. We look at the form and we see: Ciacho5. The man not seen in years. Emotions and screams were high!
12. Please share resources that would be useful to share with other Wikimedia organizations so that they can learn from, adapt or build upon your work. For instance, guides, training material, presentations, work processes, or any other material the team has created to document and transfer knowledge about your work and can be useful for others. Please share any specific resources that you are creating, adapting/contextualizing in ways that are unique to your context (i.e. training material).
- Upload Documents and Files
- Here is an additional field to type in URLs.
- N/A
Part 3: Metrics for Year 2
edit13a. Open and additional metrics data
| Open Metrics | Description | Target | Results | Comments | Methodology |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Safe community | We aim to lower the number of conflicts within the community | We want to train 20 volunteers on conflict response and improve general atmosphere in community | done | please check the uploaded report on Conflict Prevention program | please check the uploaded report on Conflict Prevention program |
| Open community | Introducing new methodology of training the trainers and lower the entry barriers for newcomers. We want to train 10 wiki-trainers to deliver knowledge to newcomers in a new, attractive and more efficient way and deliver a gamification platform for newcomers. | 10 | 10 | There was a special weekend training and meeting organized for the group of Wiki-trainers. We set our goals and have been elaborating on them since then. The gamification platform is ready (and Beta-tested) and we are about to recruit the first group of newcomers to use it. | N/A |
| Inclusive community | Attracting new participants from underrepresented groups; keeping whose already engaged with special needs. Women - at least half of participants in our actions. Improve user experience for the blind
and visually impaired. Include whose with special needs and financially disadvantaged. Tagret: % of female participants. |
50 | 45 | N/A | Analyzing the lists of participants on various events. |
| Resilient team and board | Providing anti-burnout program for employees and board members. Short term goal: lower the number of sick-leave. Long term goal: keep at least a middle level of engagement in Wikimedia Projects among board members when they leave the board. Tagret: number of anti-burnour programs implemented. | 1 | 1 | The sik-leaves have become extremely random in the organization. We have provided employees and board members with access to self-development tools and theraphy. We have also tested everyone with Gallup Talent methodology and conducted a workshop that helped us better understand our professional skills and needs. Everyone was offered Multi Sport cards and we have conducted 2 special workshops on work-life balance. | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
13b. Additional core metrics data.
| Core metrics | Description | Target | Results | Comments | Methodology |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of participants | General number of participants of planned events in 2023 | 1400 | |||
| Number of editors | Editors with more than one edtis/month | 14000 | |||
| Number of organizers | Community leaders, self-organizing volunteers, and people who can animate the community in line with community needs and Wikimedia Poland's mission | 5 |
| Wikimedia Project | Description | Target | Results | Comments | Methodology |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
14. Were there any metrics in your proposal that you could not collect or that you had to change?
- No
15. If you have any difficulties collecting data to measure your results, please describe and add any recommendations on how to address them in the future.
- N/A
16. Use this space to link or upload any additional documents that would be useful to understand your data collection (e.g., dashboards, surveys you have carried out, communications material, training material, etc).
- Upload Documents and Files
- Here is an additional field to type in URLs.
- N/A
Part 4: Organizational capacities & partnerships
edit17. Organizational Capacity
| A. Financial capacity and management | This capacity has grown but it should be further developed |
| B. Conflict management or transformation | This capacity has grown but it should be further developed |
| C. Leadership (i.e growing in potential leaders, leadership that fit organizational needs and values) | This capacity has grown but it should be further developed |
| D. Partnership building | This has grown over the last year, the capacity is high |
| E. Strategic planning | This has grown over the last year, the capacity is high |
| F. Program design, implementation, and management | This has grown over the last year, the capacity is high |
| G. Scoping and testing new approaches, innovation | This capacity has grown but it should be further developed |
| H. Recruiting new contributors (volunteer) | This capacity has grown but it should be further developed |
| I. Support and growth path for different types of contributors (volunteers) | This capacity has grown but it should be further developed |
| J. Governance | This has grown over the last year, the capacity is high |
| K. Communications, marketing, and social media | This has grown over the last year, the capacity is high |
| L. Staffing - hiring, monitoring, supporting in the areas needed for program implementation and sustainability | This has grown over the last year, the capacity is high |
| M. On-wiki technical skills | This capacity has grown but it should be further developed |
| N. Accessing and using data | This capacity has grown but it should be further developed |
| O. Evaluating and learning from our work | This has grown over the last year, the capacity is high |
| P. Communicating and sharing what we learn with our peers and other stakeholders | This has grown over the last year, the capacity is high |
| N/A | |
| N/A |
17a. Which of the following factors most helped you to build capacities? Please pick a MAXIMUM of the three most relevant factors.
- Formal training provided by the Wikimedia Foundation, Formal training provided by a Wikimedia Movement organizing group (i.e., Affiliates, Grantees, Regional or Thematic Hub, etc.), Formal training provided from outside the Wikimedia Movement, Peer to peer learning with other community members in conferences/events, Peer to peer learning with other community members (but that is not continuous or structured), Using capacity building/training resources onlinee from sources OUTSIDE the Wikimedia Movement, Using capacity building/training resources online from sources WITHIN the Wikimedia Movement
17b. Which of the following factors hindered your ability to build capacities? Please pick a MAXIMUM of the three most relevant factors.
- Lack of staff time to participate in capacity building/training
18. Is there anything else you would like to share about how your organizational capacity has grown, and areas where you require support?
- N/A
19. Partnerships over the funding period.
| A. We built strategic partnerships with other institutions or groups that will help us grow in the medium term (3 year time frame) | Agree |
| B. The partnerships we built with other institutions or groups helped to bring in more contributors from underrepresented groups | Agree |
| C. The partnerships we built with other institutions or groups helped to build out more content on underrepresented topics/groups | Neither agree nor disagree |
19a. Which of the following factors most helped you to build partnerships? Please pick a MAXIMUM of the three most relevant factors.
- Permanent staff outreach, Volunteers from our communities
19b. Which of the following factors hindered your ability to build partnerships? Please pick a MAXIMUM of the three most relevant factors.
- Difficulties specific to our context that hindered partnerships
20. Please share your learning about strategies to build partnerships with other institutions and groups and any other learning about working with partners?
- Direct contact and good collaboration proposal that is in line with the mission of the potential partner is crucial.
Part 5: Sense of belonging and collaboration
edit21. What would it mean for your organization to feel a sense of belonging to the Wikimedia or free knowledge movement?
- It’s about being together and feel the strength that comes from all the participants in the movement and its partners. The live events are the best moments to feel that strength.
22. How has your (for individual grantees) or your group/organization’s (for organizational grantees) sense of belonging to the Wikimedia or free knowledge movement changed over the fund period?
- Increased significantly
23. If you would like to, please share why it has changed in this way.
- The sense of belonging is stronger now, and it’s also thanks to Conflict Resolution Program of 2023 and Membership reconciliation process of 2022 funded by the grant. The mood in the community have changed. It’s warmer, nicer. People want to meet, do something together.
24. How has your group/organization’s sense of personal investment in the Wikimedia or free knowledge movement changed over the fund period?
- Somewhat increased
25. If you would like to, please share why it has changed in this way.
- It has grown but still we see that personal investment in the movement sometimes comes at the expense of private life more that we would like to.
26. Are there other movements besides the Wikimedia or free knowledge movement that play a central role in your motivation to contribute to Wikimedia projects? (for example, Black Lives Matter, Feminist movement, Climate Justice, or other activism spaces) If so, please describe it below.
- Feminist movement - we run a project with Museum of Female History
Supporting Peer Learning and Collaboration
editWe are interested in better supporting peer learning and collaboration in the movement.
27. Have you shared these results with Wikimedia affiliates or community members?
- Yes
27a. Please describe how you have already shared them. Would you like to do more sharing, and if so how?
- Yes we have. We have monthly talks with members of Wikimedia Poland Association. We regularly talk to our foreign friends from the movement.
28. How often do you currently share what you have learned with other Wikimedia Foundation grantees, and learn from them?
- We do this regularly (at least once a month)
29. How does your organization currently share mutual learning with other grantees?
- 1. CEE Hub status meetings.
2. Eds Group. 3. Online meetings organized by WMF. 4. Cooperation with other chapters.
Part 6: Financial reporting and compliance
edit30. Please state the total amount spent in your local currency.
- 81453563
31. Local currency type
- PLN
32. Please report the funds received and spending in the currency of your fund.
- Upload Documents, Templates, and Files.
- Report funds received and spent, if template not used.
33. If you have not already done so in your budget report, please provide information on changes in the budget in relation to your original proposal.
- No major changes except the one provided on the discussion page. The budged for “Soft skills trainings for the team” was not spent in full because we noticed that costs around longest edit-a-thon are increasing.
34. Do you have any unspent funds from the Fund?
34a. Please list the amount and currency you did not use and explain why.
- N/A
34b. What are you planning to do with the underspent funds?
- N/A
34c. Please provide details of hope to spend these funds.
- N/A
35. Are you in compliance with the terms outlined in the fund agreement?
As required in the fund agreement, please report any deviations from your fund proposal here. Note that, among other things, any changes must be consistent with our WMF mission, must be for charitable purposes as defined in the grant agreement, and must otherwise comply with the grant agreement.
36. Are you in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations as outlined in the grant agreement?
- Yes
37. Are you in compliance with provisions of the United States Internal Revenue Code (“Code”), and with relevant tax laws and regulations restricting the use of the Funds as outlined in the grant agreement? In summary, this is to confirm that the funds were used in alignment with the WMF mission and for charitable/nonprofit/educational purposes.
- Yes
38. If you have additional recommendations or reflections that don’t fit into the above sections, please write them here.