Grants:Project/MSIG/Volunteer Supporters Network 2023/Report

Movement Strategy Implementation Grant Report
Accepted

Outcomes

Please respond to the following questions below:

Where have you published your draft plan? Share the link to it here:

Volunteer Supporters Network/2023-4 Report
Members of the VSN organising committee also presented at Wikimania, discussing the work of the last year, the video of the session can be viewed on YouTube here.

What Movement Strategy initiative is this draft plan supporting?

* Main Goal - Build on the development of skill sharing meetings

Cluster C – 31–33: Invest in Skills and Leadership Development
Cluster E – 2. Funding for underrepresented communities
Cluster F – 3. Increased awareness about the Wikimedia Movement

* Sub Goal 1 - Support the delivery of the Volunteer Supporter Network Annual meeting

Cluster C – 31–33: Invest in Skills and Leadership Development
Cluster F – 3. Increased awareness about the Wikimedia Movement

* Sub Goal 2 - Hub development and evolution: management of the VSN project post 2023

Cluster D – 25. Regional & thematic hubs

What activities have you completed to produce this draft plan?

Main Goal - Build on the development of skill sharing meetings

Our aim for the period was to hold 9-10 skillshare sessions, in addition to holding the annual meeting (discussed below). Throughout the funded period, and in response to two network-wide surveys sent at a 6 month interval, we produced 15 skillshare sessions in 3 languages (English, Spanish & French), from 10 presenters or presenting groups, covering topics which included tools or project-based training (OpenRefine, Wikidata, PAWS, Event Registration Tool), thematic discussions (Climate Change, In-person events, Gender gap campaigns), and two sessions dedicated to peer-to-peer sharing.

Across these events we had 188 attendances, with individual session attendance ranging between 4 and 25, and most reaching 10-12 per session. These meetings were not routinely recorded in order to preserve the safe / private space environment, unless by special request, in which case all participants were asked for consent. All sessions were run in accordance with our friendly space policy, with support from VSN management individuals. VSN management circulated a guide to preparing and advertising a skillshare session to skillshare leaders, and provided support for hosting and advertising where requested.

We circulated an evaluation link at the end of each session, and we received 58 completed responses. The survey asked 3 questions, each with a 1-5 response:

After the workshop/meeting, do you feel more confident about this particular subject?

* Average response 4.29

Do you find the information shared in the workshop useful?

* Average response 4.74

Was the workshop a friendly experience?

* Average response 4.83

We are proud and pleased to say that this programme was a success, however during this period we have seen the emergence of other centres of activity in the movement who are offering similar services, and this has given us matter for reflection on what the VSN can best offer to volunteer supporters in the movement going forward.

One of our aims in the delivery of work throughout the funded period was to respond to the expanded geographical nature of the membership and those who attend meetings. (It should be noted that Membership, either full membership or liaison membership, is only required for matters which require a vote, and that our programme is not limited to those with a membership). The history of the VSN is such that the involvement in the early days was mostly from those in the North West Europe and Central and Eastern European regions, but we have seen organic growth and expansion in the Central and South American regions, and latterly from Central Africa. This had some very basic effects with regard to timings and language of meetings, but has also led to wider reflections on the future growth and development of the network, particularly with regard to those regions which are absent. This will be discussed below.

In our communication around the skillshare workshops and looking for presenters we wanted to offer support and opportunity to those who were less familiar with public speaking or presenting, and explicitly offered support around this. However, the bulk of those presenting already had experience in this area. What became clear through discussion was that there is an opportunity for the VSN to offer support and guidance for those newer to volunteer support in the movement more generally, rather than specifically in the area of presenting, and this has informed our thinking for the future direction of the VSN’s work, as we have reflected in our Draft Implementation Plan. Whilst skillshares were definitely more highly valued in the pandemic / lockdown era, in response to the need for volunteer supporters to switch modes and adapt to changing needs of supporters during that period, what we’re seeing now is a development toward a desire for more networking, community building, and informal peer sharing / learning. The two peer sharing events held by Vic Sfriso (WMAR) were a particular touchpoint for this, as was the online annual meeting, drawing us back to the core value of safe peer sharing, and welcoming and onboarding, that the VSN can offer.

We had budgeted for various fees for speakers in order to increase equity and opportunity in participation, it was noted that not all speakers took us up on this fee, and so some of our budget was redirected into the production of video resources, particularly in languages other than english. These resources are published on our meta page.

The VSN were asked by the Foundation to present on our work at an APP Community Call in May 2023, and we also presented at Wikimania 2024, reflecting on the opportunities and challenges of co-organising a movement project between chapters, languages, and timezones. We were invited to discussions by the Wikimania organising committee to take part in programme selection, which we were delighted to do, and although that offer did not come to fruition, we were offered and accepted space to hold an event as part of the pre-conference programme. That event represented the VSN’s first in-person meeting since 2019, and the first opportunity for organising committee members WMAR & WMUK to meet in person.

Sub Goal 1 - Support the delivery of the Volunteer Supporter Network Annual meeting

The 2022 annual meeting was organised by individuals from Wikimedias Argentina, Chile, Columbia, Spain, Mexico and Uruguay, whilst the VSN was being coordinated by Wikimedia Poland and Wikimedia Austria. In 2023 WMAR & WMUK put out a series of calls to the VSN network for a host, with the meeting being held in June 2024 by Wikimedia Chile. We were delighted to welcome them on board to produce this event, and for the VSN to be able to offer both financial support, and the opportunity for experience and capacity development in running such an event for another chapter. More information on the event can be found on our meta page, with the full report here. The event had 18 attendances over 2 days, with which we were happy, especially considering some unavoidable scheduling clashes for some members.

Key outcomes from the Annual meeting, which have informed our future plans, were around the following items:

Strengthening our collective framework and infrastructure, including communication
Working collaboratively on future projects
Focussing on working locally / inter-regionally

Good discussions were had around engagement and connection between existing members, and how to ensure sustainability in network coordination by involving representatives from other chapters.

One important piece of feedback form the Annual Meeting was the importance of having used budget to provide live translation in English and Spanish. Although we have held various meetings in different languages throughout the last year, live translation allowed for more equitable participation by allowing a greater number of attendee to speak in their native language.

Sub Goal 2 - Hub development and evolution: management of the VSN project post 2023

As discussed in the Draft Implementation Plan, this first year of collaboration between WMAR & WMUK has felt like a period of learning both about working across chapters, and about what the VSN can offer to the movement more generally, and consequently less time than initially desired was able to be devoted to discussion of Hub development. However, discussions around this issue, and the future of the VSN, were had at the Annual Meeting and those discussions followed up in network meetings held for this purpose (one in English and one in Spanish), and also by email.

While keen not to create unnecessary layers of administration, there was clear interest in potential benefits, especially as with regard to how Hub development might dovetail with the desire expressed at the Annual Meeting around regional collaboration and growth. Both chapters gained experience in cross-affiliate working, across time zones, languages and cultures, meaning that we are better set up to support a possible Hub. In the past, the VSN has had a strong European focus, and so this has been an important development step.

In which community channels have you announced your draft plan?

The Draft Plan will be shared on the VSN's email list, Telegram channel and meta page.

Finances

Grant funds spent

Please describe how much grant money you spent for approved expenses, and tell us what you spent it on.

Budget 2023-4
Cost Heading	Description	Total requested (£)	Total spent (£)
Membership administration	112 hrs @ £21 per hr	2,352	4,901.95
Meeting administration & attendance	140 hrs @ £21 per hr	2,940	2,222.40
Project Management	140 hrs @ £25.60 per hr	3,584	5,585.72
Skill share meeting	Payment to organising affiliate & transfer fee	1,080	1,032.88
Conference	Estimate for in person conference. In the case of a virtual conference, any underspend will pay for additional grants to facilitate attendance	6,000	4,938
Speaker Honorarium	To ensure financial aspects are not a barrier to the breadth of speakers offering their expertise	500	0
Publicity and promotion	21 hrs @ £21 and 28 hrs @ £23 for communication and design work	1,093	441.56
Evaluation & Reporting	56 hrs @ £25.60	1,434	860.50
Full Cost Recovery	71 days @ £29	2,059	2058.99
Contingency	Unforseen needs	1,000	0
Total		22,042	22,042

Remaining funds

Do you have any remaining grant funds?

No. We requested and received an extension to our project and change of usage for some of the funds, the details can be found here.

Anything else

Anything else you want to share about your project?

There are aspects of the programme delivery absent elsewhere which are worthy of note here.

Our target for reach of all VSN activities for the year was 300, in the end we reached a total of 353, broken down as follows:

40 across non-skillshare VSN meetings
188 across skillshare events
18 at the annual meeting
52 at the APP session
55 across Wikimania events

The VSN membership has had one addition, with a confirmation vote taking place by email after the annual meeting. Our email list and telegram have stayed broadly level in terms of overall numbers, and we feel that there is significant room for development in the usage and activity on these channels as a means toward further connection and growth.