Wikimania 2022/Individual Reports/Chiemezie Atama

Welcome back from Wikimania 2022! Please write your report here. Once you have completed the application, please email the link to wikimaniawikimedia.org (by 20 September 2022). If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to email us.

Username

How did you attend Wikimania (virtually or in-person)?

Virtually

What did you spend the scholarship funds on?

1. Data subscription 2. Head phone 3. Meals 4. Child care

Takeaways – choose 3 specific Wikimania sessions you attended and describe your key take-aways per session.

I attended the Explore Ukrainian Cultures session. Ukraine is a country that has been in war with Russia since February 2022 and during this period Ukrainians have been fighting for their lives. It was amazing to see that the Ukrainians have such rich culture and are even still attached to it and are drawing strength from it in this period of war. They have beautiful architectures that have been featured enormously on Wikimedia. Ukrainians are such talented people- Carol of the bells; a famous Christmas carol song was composed by a Ukrainian as shown in the session.

One session I also enjoyed was the session called ”Make meaning of “Knowledge Equity” and “Knowledge as a service”. This session noted the importance of sharing knowledge with others as a part of humanity and how Wikipedia does this by sharing knowledge from wiki data. The session also brought to limelight, the importance of other members of the Wikimedia community especially the new comers sharing their story though Wikipedia. I think it’s just phenomenal how anyone can tell their story on Wiki. I am just grateful that such a space exists.

Additionally, the session on Centering Race and Equity at Art Feminism was also one session I enjoyed a lot. This session featured how the Art Feminism section of Wiki has tried to incorporate race and equity in their activities as an organization, even going as far as revising their Mission and Vision to feature these values. These values are very important to them and they try to incorporate it by opening their organization to all kinds of people from all over the world, giving micro grants, giving interpretation and translation services for their programs and also organizing community hours. It was very interesting to see how important these values are to them.

Also very motivating for me was the award session where a Nigerian Dr. Nkem Osigwe got the New comer Award. It was very interesting for me to learn how Wikipedia Foundation support and encourage Wikimedians

How did you connect with other people during Wikimania 2022? How did you celebrate at Wikimania 2022?

I connected during Wikimania by following up on session presentations, listening to other people’s stories and cultures. Experiencing culture and diversity as showcased in the conference was heart warming. I celebrated by watching the amazing performances (music and Dances).

(Optional) Please share link(s) to your social media post(s) about Wikimania