Wikimania is an annual conference where Wikimedians and open knowledge advocates can meet to share knowledge, network, and learn from each other. This year it took place in sunny Katowice in Southern Poland, in August. Several of our staff and Wikimedians in Residence attended the conference, delivering talks, workshops and sitting on panels. Here’s what they had to say about this year’s Wikimania…

Richard Nevell’s reflections about the conference as a whole

Wikimania was a fantastic celebration of all things Wikimedia, how far we have come over the last year and recognising the vital contribution of the community behind the world’s most important website.[neutrality is disputed] There were inspiring stories of pushing the boundaries of knowledge, lessons from working in museums and education, and so many conversations with friends old and new.

Main takeaway for the sessions I worked on

UN sessions: The UN has lots of different agencies like the Food and Agriculture Organization which produce outstanding reports perfect for updating Wikipedia pages about globally important topics. We would love for Wikipedians to make sure of these reports – adding them as referencing, using the images and graphics when they’re under an open licence, and using the data.

Changemakers’ toolkit: We’re excited to share the Changemakers’ Toolkit with Wikimedians, a key audience for sharing information and bringing about positive change. We hope that the tools, developed with the Sheila McKechnie Foundation, help Wikmedians think about effective strategies for communicating and advocating for change.

Daria Cybulska main takeaway for others was a report from Open Futures Foundation, found here, about trends in the future of open culture.

Lucy Hinnie’s reflections about the conference as a whole

It was really wonderful to connect with so many Wikimedians and to see the impact of both the movement as a whole, but also the specific ways Wikimedia UK is known and admired around the globe. A very laid back atmosphere with lots going on, and a wide variety of activities outside of the conference, including paint your own Polish mug 😀

It was particularly nice to connect with the UK community as a whole, and to put faces to the names of people we’ve connected with online and worked with/admired over the years.

tl;dr: it was huge, and also fun.

Main takeaway for others

I was there under the auspices of my work with Let’s Connect. We ran three sessions and a Connectathon. The Connectathon was like a speed dating session for Wikimedians from across the movement: it was well attended and a lot of fun. My session on ‘Managing Difficult Conversations’ was run with Jan-Baart from Wikimedia Netherlands and Chinmayee Mishra from Let’s Connect and went well. We also collaborated with the new Capacity Exchange initiative to promote skills sharing.

tl;dr: it was fantastic to collaborate with global colleagues!

Stuart Prior’s reflections about the conference as a whole

Being at the conference helped me start or progress about 3 collaborative projects by being able to speak to people in person. GLAM Global session was great for some in detail conversations with peers. Also, for someone that lives in a big city, I realised being at Wikimania is my closest experience to being in a village: you know a lot of people to varying degrees, you’re always recognising someone you haven’t seen in a while. To the point where I found myself trying to place people days afterwards while in the supermarket in Crystal Palace and then finding myself disappointed to find that they weren’t one of (in Asaf Bartov’s words) “my tribe”.

Sara Thomas’ reflections about the conference as a whole

This was my first in-person Wikimania, so I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect!  For me one of the main feelings was being amongst “our people”, that sense of being able to learn and talk in-depth about the projects, and have the opportunity to deep-dive and get things done with all the right people in the room. Also, being able to put faces and voices and three dimensions to folks whom I’ve only spoken to on-wiki, over email, or seen in video chat.  

A highlight

Meeting one of my co-coordinators for the Volunteer Supporters’ Network in person for the first time, after having worked together for a year. 

Lucy Moore and Onwuka Glory’s “Smell on Wikidata” session – “If you take one thing away from this session it’s DON’T TASTE CYANIDE.”

The enthusiasm for collaboration between academics in Drs Kirsty Ross and Abd Alsattar Ardati’s Demolishing the Ivory Towers session.

Main takeaway for others

Supporting volunteers within the Wikimedia movement is different from supporting volunteers in other places in society – there are a network of us at the Volunteer Supporters Network and we’d love for you to join us!

Not all knowledge, not all data, can fit into the boxes that we provide, and that’s ok – figuring that out can be delicate, careful work.

Anything else that’s relevant

Getting to spend time with the UK contingent was really lovely – strange to go so far to see those so close to us together 🙂

Lucy Crompton-Reid’s reflections about the conference as a whole

A highlight: The lightning talks from Wikimedia UK staff and volunteers really shone out – including Sara’s enchanting story weaving themes of mythology and Wikidata, Tatjana’s compelling talk on her climate residency, and Lucy’s call to action to improve documentation of (and therefore promote access to) sanitary bins, as a neglected but vital equity issue.

Main takeaway for others

I was part of a panel showcasing some of the movement’s advocacy activities over the past year. Speakers included paid staff and volunteers, and none of us were lawyers! So the main point I would like people to take away is that if you care about open access to information, you can get involved in public policy advocacy.

Anything else that’s relevant

It was a joy and a privilege to spend the week with people from all over the world, from different cultures and professional backgrounds, who are united by a shared belief that knowledge and information should be shared openly and freely.

You can find some of the talks on YouTube, such as Sara’s talk on monsters and myths at 7:49:31 in this video. The Wikimedian in Residence for Climate at GSI, Tatjana Baleta’s talk on climate at 8:08:28 is in the same video. Wikimedian and Museum Curator, Lucy Moore’s talk on sanitary justice can be found at 7:29:50 in this video. Lucy Crompton-Reid’s talk on the advocacy panel is in this video, from 1:41:55.