New guidance for researchers on Wikimedia and open research

Nick Sheppard, Open Research Advisor at Leeds University and winner of Wikimedian of the Year Award 2023, and Martin Poulter, Wikimedian in Residence at the Khalili Collections and Wikimedian of the Year in 2016, have teamed up with to create a primer for researchers on how and why to use Wikimedia projects as platforms for their work.

The new document is one of many Open Research primers published by the UK Reproducibility Network (UKRN) – a consortium that promotes best practice in research. The UKRN site hosts advice on open and reproducible research across all subjects; all freely available and openly licensed. The primer was reviewed by Daniel Mietchen (Leibniz Institute for Information Infrastructure, FIZ Karlsruhe) who is a contributor to multiple Wikimedia projects as well as a scientific researcher.

It may surprise people how much content on Wikipedia and its sister projects is drawn directly from scholarly publications. If you read about peat in any of eight languages, you see a global map of peat distribution from a research database at the University of Leeds. It’s one of many images that have come from open-access research. If you read about ant species, some of the text has been repurposed from research papers.

A peatmap of the world.
File:PEATMAP.jpg by Xu, Jiren and Morris, Paul J. and Liu, Junguo and Holden, Joseph

Concentrating mainly on Wikipedia, Wikimedia Commons, and Wikidata, the new document describes how sharing open-access research helps to open up the process of research while reaching a public audience much larger than the typical readers of a research paper. Individual charts and diagrams can be shared on Wikimedia Commons, along with the code and data tables used to create them. Text from suitable research papers can be reused in Wikipedia articles. Large databases can build mutual links with Wikidata, using it as a hub to connect with other sources of information about a topic.

There are many reasons to make the process of research as open and transparent as possible, including rigour, reproducibility, and public trust. As part of the UKRN’s work promoting transparency, its readers now have concrete suggestions of how the Wikimedia projects help this goal.

“I think this will prompt researchers in many fields to consider how their work can be visible on the most popular reference websites,” says Poulter. “And maybe give helpful next steps to those who have thought about it but are still apprehensive.” Neil Jacobs from UKRN said “We hope that this primer will encourage more researchers to work with Wikimedia in conducting research that is rigorous and transparent. It sits alongside others on data sharing, open software / code, community engagement in research, open hardware and many more.”

Wikimedia projects are community-driven and mainly work “bottom-up” with individual scholars and experts. There is also a place for working “top-down”: shaping the advice that respected organisations give to their communities. This work with UKRN is one example of work that Wikimedia UK and its community are doing with organisations in the scientific, scholarly, cultural, and volunteering sectors.

Find the primer on UKRN.

Inspiring Change: A peak into our mission and purpose

At Wikimedia UK, we believe that open access to knowledge isn’t just a right, it’s a catalyst for progress. We are committed to and are motivated by our vision of a more informed, democratic and equitable society through open knowledge and digital literacy. That’s why we are constantly exploring compelling and innovative ways of demonstrating our impact and expanding our reach.

Creative storytelling

With support from Ritzy Animation studio, we recently developed and launched a series of exciting animated videos that help to explain our mission and purpose and also articulate why you should support our work. Part of a broader digital storytelling campaign, the four videos provide an organisational overview of Wikimedia UK and simplified explanations of our key strategic themes; Knowledge Equity, Information Literacy, and Climate and the Environment.

To support Wikimedia UK projects and programmes in Wales, the videos are also available in Welsh language versions.

Introduction to Wikimedia UK. Image attributions.

Our strategic themes

Knowledge Equity

Despite our world being a lot more digitally connected today, many people and voices from across the globe still remain invisible and unheard. We envision societies where Wikimedia projects reflect the universe in all its diversity and are free from systemic bias. Knowledge Equity sits at the heart of our programmes, with much of the work delivered through partnerships with a wide range of institutions across the UK.

Knowledge Equity. Image attributions.

Information Literacy

To successfully navigate today’s increasingly complex online landscape requires specific knowledge and digital skills. Information literacy helps to protect people from misinformation and disinformation. Wikimedia UK works with educators, policymakers and other institutions to develop and advocate for a greater understanding of knowledge creation. We facilitate free access to high quality, diverse, and unbiased digital information through training, collaboration, and partnership. 

Information Literacy. Image attributions.

Climate and the Environment

A new strategic theme for 2022-25, this recognises the accelerating global climate emergency and Wikimedia’s critical role in providing up-to-date, accurate and unbiased information about the impact of climate change on the planet. We work with climate organisations and experts to improve climate change content on Wikimedia. Our work equips and empowers people to make informed decisions at a time of great urgency. 

Climate and Environment. Image attributions.

What we hope to achieve

Our goal is to expand our reach by connecting with new audiences, igniting curiosity, and inspiring action. We believe that every person in the world has the right to access the sum of all human knowledge. So, through these captivating narratives, and vibrant visuals, we hope to demystify ambiguous concepts and inspire people to support our work and actively contribute to Wikimedia projects through editing, volunteering, attending events, and other initiatives. You can also support us by donating towards our various programmes so that we can continue educating and equipping more people for even greater impact.

Join the cause

We hope these videos provide helpful insight into our work and invite you to join our efforts to democratise knowledge. We’d be keen to have a chat to explore what Wikimedia UK can do for you, your organisation, or your community. It matters not whether you’re a seasoned editor or someone new to our are of work, there’s plenty of space for everyone in the world of Wikimedia.

Together, let’s harness the power of open knowledge and information literacy to build a brighter, more informed future for generations to come!

Smelling data at the XLab – The Cultural Heritage Informatics Collaboratory

By Lucy Moore, Archeologist, Curator and Wikimedian

“Mmmm! Inhale that fresh vintage aroma!” is a sign that welcomes buyers and browsers to the vintage shop Blue Rinse in Leeds. It struck a chord with me, as I’ve been thinking a lot lately about smell and culture, in particular how data about smell can be represented in a database like Wikidata.

This train of thought started early in 2024, at an event in York that is part of a research project at the university called ‘Bespoke, Open, Collaborative Approaches to Heritage Documentation’. It brought together heritage workers and researchers to think creatively about documentation in that sector. During the day I was chatting with people about how recording sensory information, like the smell of an object, could, and perhaps should, be part of museum records. Like a good Wikimedian, I turned to Wikidata to see how it recorded examples of ‘things smelling like other things’, and to my surprise a property for ‘smells of’ was absent. 

Why was I surprised you might be thinking? Why would most people want to record how objects might smell or taste? We’re not (usually) licking things when we visit museums. I have definitely heard people talk about a ‘museum smell’. When I worked as a museum curator, I also used smells in a few exhibitions to bring topics more to life for visitors.

What captures my imagination, especially when you think about smell, is that as a sense it is both intensely personal, and also something shared. I began to think about all the cultures represented in museum collections, but also across the Wikimedia movement and started to imagine what potential there might be to represent this way of understanding the world on Wikidata.

So what smells connect what objects? How can we ‘follow our noses’ to find common scents in cultural data? Once the topic was raised lots of people in our Wikimedia family had suggestions. From the sculpture 5318008 by artist Tasha Marks (it smells of human breast milk!), to Agatha Christie-inspired ways to detect poison through scent, new smell-horizons opened with each conversation. The natural world is full of nose-surprises too. Did you know that a binturong smells of popcorn? Or that jasmine tea smells of otter poo (or is it the other way around)?

File:Binturong in dreams (4996047931).jpg by jinterwas.

Whilst pondering these relationships and questions, I saw that  XLab – The Cultural Heritage Informatics Collaboratory at Carleton University in Ottawa was due to run a conference on futures in heritage informatics along with a ‘book sprint’ on the topic. This looked like a great opportunity to talk to others thinking creatively about data. With funding from Wikimedia UK partly covering my costs, I was able to travel to Canada and take part in the workshops, discussions and book revision in person. Being able to participate in events like these is really important for researchers. At Carleton I spoke with lots of people working at their digital humanities centre, the XLab, and attended a celebration of their public history graduates’ work too. It exposed me to new ideas, and has helped me to shape how I’m thinking about smell and data. I’m now revising the chapter I have written for the book, and am looking forward to sharing wider ideas about linked open sensory data elsewhere. I’m also collecting “things that smell like other things” so drop a message on my talk page!

Call for volunteers for Wiki Loves Monuments 2024

Wikimedia UK is seeking volunteers to help with the organisation and running of the 2024 Wiki Loves Monuments competition, which will run again this year in September.

Wikimedia UK have participated in the international photo competition since 2013, where participants upload images of listed buildings & scheduled monuments to Wikimedia Commons. The UK has a 4-nation competition, and then submits the top images to the international competition. In 2023, over 13,000 UK images were uploaded to the competition.

There’s a variety of different opportunities for community members to be involved in the competition, from small tasks to bigger ones, and we’d love to hear from you if you’re interested in joining the team!

There’s lots of ways to get involved, depending on your skillset and your availability.

Smaller tasks

  • Categorising and sorting images during the competition
  • Screening images before the judging process

For those with a little more time

  • Producing web content to promote the competition

For those who’d like a bigger project to work on

  • Reviewing and updating the data on Wikidata
  • Running small events to engage people in the competition

Running the competition (behind the scenes work)

Reviewing & updating the data on Wikidata before the competition starts. The competition relies on lists from heritage bodies in Scotland, England, Wales & Northern Ireland. A good deal of data already exists in Wikidata, but there may be additional sites to add, sites to remove or re-categorise, and the quality of the data generally could be improved:

  • This work needs to take place before the competition kicks off in September, so could be worked on between May-August. 
  • We have some suggested workflows and ideas for checking and improving the data, but are also open to ideas! We’re looking for people who have some degree of familiarity & comfort with Wikidata, including bulk upload / editing and data modelling. We can also provide training in OpenRefine if volunteers would like to use that tool. 
  • Ideally we’d like to put a small team of volunteers together to work collaboratively on this part of the project, rather than one person being expected to do everything. We’re happy to work with folks’ availability, but as a general guideline we’d like to start this process in May, and be finished by the start of August. (If we finish earlier that’s a bonus! But we want to offer flexibility.) 
  • We’d also like to have regular check-in meetings (probably on zoom), and would be available to help, coordinate and answer questions throughout.  

Helping to categorise and sort images during the competition itself:

  • When images are submitted to the competition, they’re placed in the main country category, however they do need to be checked, and it can be helpful if additional data can be added.
  • We’re looking for a group of volunteers who would be happy to check in on the category for multiple days during the competition, and check around a dozen images each time. This is a role where all contributions would be very much welcomed, whether that’s one day or ten days!

After the event, screening images before judging:

  • When it comes to judging we have two main stages. The first stage is preparing a long-list of 100-200 photos for the judging panel to look over. We need as many volunteers as possible to check over images to make sure they’re eligible and grade them. Each image is seen by multiple people. This takes place in October and sometimes November – each volunteer contributes a couple of hours.

Public engagement with the competition

We’d love to have more voices producing website and social media content about the competition:

  • Would you like to write a blog post to advertise the competition, about what heritage means to you? Record a couple of minutes of audio on why you took a picture of a particular building? Make a short video about participating in the competition? Please get in contact if you have ideas!
  • We’d like to have some content available to post in August in the run up to the competition, as well as to post throughout the competition in September.  We’re very happy to chat about ideas for content, as well as scheduling.  

Running small events to engage with the competition:

  • In the past, we’ve run photo walks paired with a Wikimedia Commons training / upload session, and it would be great to have at least one of these running in each part of the UK. We’re looking for folks who could be event organisers or trainers to make this happen. 
  • This is a bigger task, and we have some funding available to support volunteer grants for items such as venue hire, admin time, and travel expenses (around £250 per event).
  • There’s a lot of scope for creativity in how these events would run – you could partner with a local library or museum, a meetup group or a group of students, for example. 
  • These events should take place in September (ensuring that all uploads were made in time to be eligible for the competition), but planning would need to start in July to allow for advertising & marketing time in August. 

If you’re interested in any of these volunteer opportunities, please fill in this google form, and we’ll be in touch to organise a chat!

Making trans histories public with Wikipedia

By Lucy Moore, Archeologist, Curator and Wikimedian

Between 15th and 17th March 1974 a ground-breaking transgender rights conference was held in Leeds. Entitled ‘Transvestism and Transsexualism in Modern Society’, it was the first conference organised by trans people to address their needs. To mark the 50th anniversary of the conference, Leeds City Museum hosted a day of recognition and celebration organised and curated by Leeds-based artist and activist GossipGrrrl. 

As part of the programme, volunteer Lucy Moore led a short workshop introducing people to Wikipedia editing. With only an hour’s slot in a packed programme, which included performances of music by Leeds-born composer Angela Morley to celebrate her centenary.

In preparation for the event, Lucy started an article on English Wikipedia for the conference, which featured in the Did You Know … section on 16 March, and was swiftly translated into Spanish by User: MiguelAlanCS. Muchos gracias!!!

The group had a short introduction to what Wikipedia is, basic guidelines, and a short demo on how to add content. It was then straight over to the group, with the goal of getting a few people to make one edit! Our good intentions were scuppered by an IP bloc, but many avoided it, and were able to start making changes. This included adding references to the conference to a range of pages, including: 

One attendee, who’d previously done some noble work de-orphaning articles, started a new page for the American organisation Full Personality Expression, a precursor of the Beaumont Society.

While we edited, one attendee mentioned how when she was transitioning, Wikipedia was one of the first places she went for medical information, but that there were many gaps. This was especially true for health and social care. These include no mention on the page for dementia about the challenges that trans people can face when diagnosed and as the disease progresses. Neither are trans women mentioned in pages for prostate or prostate cancer (which can cause issues for trans women as well as cisgender men) nor for cervical screening (trans women may receive invitations for screenings). Nor is there information available, apart from on Reddit, about how hormones prescribed for trans people interact with medication for epilepsy. 

The group also talked about the need for lived experience to be better represented on Wikipedia. One way we discussed how this might be addressed is through media uploads to Wikimedia Commons of images and/or oral histories in audio or film. 

We were really fortunate to get financial support from Wikimedia UK, which paid for transport costs for some participants, as well as some gorgeous stickers! Leeds City Museum provided tea and coffee for us too. Feedback included: 

“I think it’s really important to preserve our history, especially since Wikipedia is such a widely used resource.”

“It was lovely to meet and chat with other like-minded people!”

One month on…

Together, we work to ensure that Wikimedia reflects the world in all its diversity. Your support makes this possible, donate today.

The article begun for Full Personality Expression was featured in the ‘Did you know ..?’ section on the front page of English Wikipedia

Did You Know section

Inspired by how images can illustrate lived experience, Lucy also met up with new editor Katie to show her how to upload pictures of LGBT events she’s attended to Wikimedia Commons. Here they are, still smiling, after two hours of editing!

Lucy and Katie

Ways to connect – Wikimedian meet-ups across the UK

By Rupal Karia, Outreach and Community Coordinator at Wikimedia UK

The UK has a thriving Wiki community, and coming together informally, in-person, can be an important opportunity for Wikipedians who enjoy interacting with people in real life as well as online.

Meet-ups are a space where you can connect with fellow Wikimedians, chat about Wikipedia and its sister projects, exchange ideas and support, meet other people who are passionate about open knowledge and feel part of the UK Wiki community. All meet-ups observe the Friendly Spaces Policy; commiting to providing a welcoming experience for everyone, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, appearance, race, and religion (and not limited to those aspects). 

Whether you are new to Wiki projects or a long-time Wikimedian, there are meet-ups happening up and down the country where you can connect with fellow Wikimedians. Currently there are meet-ups in Leeds, Edinburgh, Brighton, Oxford and London.

You can find out more details about all the meet-ups here. If you would like to set up a Wikimedian meet-up in your area and would like some support from WMUK, please get in touch with us at volunteering@wikimedia.org.uk

Announcing the Changemakers’ Toolkit: your go-to, free training resource for campaigners, activists, and changemakers of all kinds

Sheila McKechnie Foundation (SMK) in collaboration with Wikimedia UK, have launched an open access toolkit which empowers people to campaign effectively.

Across the UK people are working to change things for the better. Campaigners, activists, and changemakers of all types are stepping up to address injustices, improve conditions in their communities, and draw attention to neglected issues. From the Post Office Horizon scandal, housing issues such as mouldy homes, and fighting the closure of local libraries, changemakers are grafting away on many vital issues, and are often at the forefront of holding those in power to account. 

Change is possible, but it is not easy work. It requires extraordinary courage, resilience and persistence. Changemaking is made tougher still because of the lack of good quality, freely available knowledge on how to go about it. From our many years of working with changemakers we know that it can be a struggle to know where to start. Today, we launch a toolkit to address these challenges and support those at the forefront of making change happen.

Through this unique collaboration, SMK and Wikimedia UK are committed to making knowledge open and freely available so it can help people campaign effectively. That’s why we’ve launched the Changemaker’s Toolkit, a free online training resource for campaigners, activists, and changemakers.  

The three introductory modules; Introduction to changemaking, Analysing the problem and planning for Change, and Communicating for Change, will enable you to develop your understanding of campaigning and changemaking, providing the  tools to allow you to reflect and plan. Our aim is to support you to campaign more confidently straight away, and to provide a framework to build your knowledge in the future. 

The Toolkit is based on SMK’s Campaign Carousel which draws on nearly two decades of experience training hundreds of campaigners and activists. 

‘SMK’s Campaign Carousel is a cutting-edge training programme shaped by expert campaigners. We provide practical tools and approaches that allow new campaigners to hit the ground running. Our training supports these new campaigners to make powerful, impactful change by giving them the guidance they need across all of the different aspects of campaigning. From social media, to understanding social change, to working with the legal system, and much more- our Campaign Carousel supports campaigners to become powerful forces for change.’ – Kathleen Christie, Head of Programmes, SMK

Photo of a man with a placard reading 'Guys. C'mon.' on a blue background with a quote from the Wikimedia + Democracy report.
Climate March 0802 Stunning People (33603586923) by Edward Kimmel.

At Wikimedia UK we pride ourselves on being experts on knowledge equity, committed to the ideal of a world in which every single human being can freely share in the sum of all knowledge. With thousands of contributors to open knowledge through Wikipedia and its sister projects, we have a network of supporters who will benefit from a better understanding on how to campaign on the wide variety of issues that are important to them.

‘Within the Wikimedia movement sits a great potential for making change in the world, across a huge range of societal issues: misinformation, shrinking civic space, decolonisation and knowledge equity. Members of the Wikimedia movement are, or have the capacity and aptitude to become changemakers  if supported with the right tools and knowledge. This project brings together two communities – Wikimedians and changemakers – so they can benefit from each other’s expertise. Wikimedians get access to social change knowledge to increase their effectiveness, SMK is able to support changemakers with the tools, knowledge, and confidence to work effectively and create change.’ Daria Cybulska, Director of Programmes and Evaluation

The overlapping interests between our organisations are clear, and we’re grateful for Wikimedia Foundation’s grant to help make  a long-standing ambition a reality. It’s a modest start, but an important one and a foundation we intend to build on.

‘Working with Wikimedia UK on these new resources has been a fantastic experience and fascinating to combine our different perspectives on social change and develop this Toolkit. It’s never been more important to find new ways to support those who are working to create change in our communities, and we are thrilled to share our tools and approaches with a wider audience. It’s the first step towards a long-held ambition for SMK.’ Shaan Sangha, Knowledge and Insight Manager, SMK

The ambition is to add to the Toolkit over time, providing changemakers with a comprehensive library of free campaigning resources. We’d love your feedback on how the Toolkit works for you and what else you would like to see added. You can email us at volunteering@wikimedia.org.uk

Photo of two climate protestors on a green background with yellow placards with a quote from the Wikipedia + Democracy report.
Greenpeacebelomonte by Agência Brasil.

Further information

The Changemakers Toolkit includes:

Introduction to Changemaking – Provides an introduction to how change happens and the many routes through which campaigning and activism can have an impact. Covers foundational tools including the Social Change Grid, 12 habits, and introduces the topic of social power.

Analysing the Problem and Planning for change – Digs further into how to understand the problem you want to address and your solution, using the Problem Tree tool. Introduces approaches to planning campaigns, and identifying your allies and people you need to influence.

Communication for Change – How to achieve an impact with your communications by understanding who you’re speaking to, what you need to say to connect with them, and how you can reach them.


There is a version tailored for Wikimedians available on metawiki. Modules are Introduction to changemaking, Analysing the Problem and Planning for Change, and Communicating for Change. 

Rob Abercrombie, Deputy Chief Executive, SMK

Daria Cybulska, Director of Programmes and Evaluation, Wikimedia UK

How Wikipedia can help to disseminate research: an innovative NIHR project

Adam Harangozo, the National Institute of Health Research’s Wikipedian in Residence, explains how Wikipedia can be a highly effective dissemination tool, helping to make research findings widely accessible. He encourages researchers and public contributors at NIHR to make greater use of it and highlights the project’s future direction.

Since 2022, the NIHR has been piloting the use of Wikipedia as an innovative platform to share research results. In just over a year, working with researchers, patient and public contributors and NIHR staff, we have updated and expanded 400 Wikipedia articles with findings from NIHR-funded research.

The updated Wikipedia content now includes up to 300 citations to NIHR Evidence, and 200 citations to NIHR journals, plus other references to NIHR-funded studies. Following our edits, these articles have garnered an impressive 75 million views.

The Wikipedia project is now gaining momentum across the NIHR. What started as a pilot will turn into a permanent strand of our dissemination strategy. We expect this to lead to increased evidence uptake in policy and practice, and help to make knowledge more open.

Table: Some of the articles we have edited on Wikipedia and the number of times they have been viewed since our additions

Wikipedia articleWords addedReferences addedViews
Multimorbidity60055712897
Dementia107591299115
End-of-life- care14921277391
Anxiety disorder77411565970
Management of obesity10941021643
Polypharmacy11821049633
Cancer screening14551026813
Doxycycline269<21466382
Plantar fascitis25211285654

Why should researchers use Wikipedia?

Wikipedia is an online encyclopaedia that is free to use and simple to edit. Contrary to popular belief, its editing policies and army of editors ensure that it is a reliable source of health information. It is also one of the most visited health resources on the internet. In 2019, Wikipedia’s medical content had more than 2 billion page views.

Referencing NIHR research on Wikipedia makes our research more accessible. It reaches a wide audience that includes laypeople and healthcare professionals alike. Studies have suggested that 50 – 70% of doctors consult Wikipedia for healthcare information. It was also found to be one of the most used resources by medical students.

Concerns and preconceptions about the reliability of Wikipedia need to be acknowledged. Yet, in my time at the NIHR, I’ve seen these worries fade away when I explain how Wikipedia works, and its checks and balances for accuracy. Most people are pleasantly surprised at how important Wikipedia is for health information, and how user-friendly it is.

Collaborative Wikipedia editing workshops

There is an appetite for harnessing Wikipedia’s potential. Several NIHR research teams and centres are now interested in integrating Wikipedia editing into their dissemination strategy. Some include it as part of their funding application.

Our thematic editing workshops for researchers, patients and members of the public have been impactful.

Other than access to the internet, there are no technical requirements. Prior knowledge of Wikipedia editing is unnecessary. Technical aspects are taken care of by the Wikipedian so participants can focus on enriching content.

During these workshops, 10-20 participants collaborate and aim to improve the quality of a single Wikipedia page corresponding to their research area.

For example, multiple long-term conditions are an area of strategic focus for the NIHR. But the Wikipedia page on multiple long-term conditions was short and outdated. It lacked evidence from the past 10 years. Following a workshop, the article now includes detailed evidence from NIHR-funded studies. It describes how terminology has changed, the impact of multiple long-term conditions on quality of life, and other updates.

In another workshop, we collaborated with the NIHR’s Mental Health Policy Research Unit. Together, we updated the article on the remote delivery of psychiatric care, known also as telepsychiatry. This expanded article now reflects their research on the practice and impact of telepsychiatry during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Graph: Improved content draws in more readers: Increased monthly traffic of the Multiple Long Term Conditions article following our workshop

Exploring new horizons

We have built a strong foundation for Wikipedia editing at the NIHR, with new opportunities for researchers to share and refine information on vital research. Many more topics could be covered in editing workshops, and previously edited articles can be updated as new evidence is published.

Social care, patient and public involvement, health equity, and global health are areas with untapped potential for Wikipedia editing.

We have started to deliver global health Wikipedia workshops, which will help share global health research with a lay audience, reaching additional people, potentially local audiences too as articles could be translated into other languages as well.

We are exploring how to nurture the next generation of health and care professionals and researchers. We are talking to health librarians and university departments, and suggesting that Wikipedia editing could be an assignment for medical students.

Discover more about the Wikipedia project

Wikipedia offers plenty of opportunities to share research widely. We can bring together a diverse community of researchers and patients to work on sharing health and care knowledge effectively. This will help ensure that more people can access the NIHR’s research, and perhaps also transcend language barriers.

As Wikipedian-in-residence, I’m looking forward to new developments in knowledge sharing, and continued growth in access to information.

To learn more about the NIHR Wikipedia project, contact Adam Harangozo.

Women’s History Month 2024 – exciting events and projects

By Katie Crampton, Communications Coordinator at Wikimedia UK

Over the last eight years, Wikimedia UK has been actively tackling inequality and bias across the Wikimedia projects. One of our primary strategic goals is to enhance the involvement and portrayal of marginalised individuals and topics on Wikipedia. Women’s representation has been a vital aspect of this.

Many editors have risen to the challenge of closing the wiki gender gap, so we’re by no means alone in our efforts. Projects like Women in Red and Art+Feminism are well known across the global wiki-movement, and have inspired thousands to start editing for women.

If you’d like to join an event during Women’s History month, here’s a some to get you going:

For anyone who’d like a trip to Glasgow, there’s a trilingual editathon on contemporary women writers from Germany, France, and Scotland. Join us at the Goethe-Institut Glasgow on Wednesday 6th March, from 4-8pm. No previous editing experience is needed, as our Scotland Programme Manager, Dr Sara Thomas will be on hand for the technical introduction to Wikipedia. Guests are invited to work on authors of their choice in either English, French and/or German. Please bring your own laptops and dinner snacks to make the most of the friendly atmosphere. Book your ticket on eventbrite.

The Women in Red editathons at the University of Edinburgh are long running and much loved by those who have attended. The next session – which is open to everyone, not just students – will be on Friday 8th March, from 1-4:30pm in the Digital Scholorship Centre. It’s both in person and online if you can’t make it to the library. No prior editing experience is required, with Ewan McAndrew and Ellie Whitehead on hand to get you started. It’s a great opportunity to celebrate the lives of inspiring women on International Women’s Day. Please bring your own laptop. Book your ticket on eventbrite.

As part of UCL’s pledge to confront its history of eugenics and ongoing legacies, they’re running two events on The Women Scientists of UCL’s Galton Laboratory for National Eugenics. You are invited to join students from UCL’s Public History MA programme and UCL Special Collections, in conjunction with the Eugenics Legacy Education Project (ELEP), for an interactive workshop about the women scientists who worked on eugenics research in the early twentieth century at in the Galton Laboratory. The events will examine how can we critically understand the historical work of women that developed and advanced oppressive ideologies against the backdrop of today’s women in STEM movement. Participants will be using Wikipedia to increase visibility of the archival evidence of eugenics at UCL and women in science. There’s two dates available, which you can book on eventbrite:

Tuesday 12th March, 12:30-1:30pm, UCL East in Marshgate

Tuesday 19th March, 1:30-2:30pm, Bloomsbury on Gower Street

We celebrate Women’s History Month in March, yet the work to close the gender gap is a year round activity. Take a look at just some of the examples of the fantastic efforts we’ve seen across the UK:

Protests and Suffragettes

Protests and Suffragettes is a creative initiative and social enterprise. They’re made up of artists, activists, and local historians dedicated to uncovering and honouring the stories of female activists throughout Scotland’s history. They have hosted a number of editathons committed to enriching the information of Scottish women’s activism on the Wikimedia projects. Protests and Suffragettes spoke at our Community Meeting in November (watch here) at which some of the other guest speakers commended their workshops as part of their own editing journeys.

Nurses in Red

At the same meeting we awarded the Royal College of Nursing’s History of Nursing Forum as our Partnership of the Year for their Nurses in Red project. The forum is open to anyone who has an interest in history, and in 2022 they set up lunchtime Wikithons to add notable women nurses to the Wikimedia projects. Women make up 90% of the nursing profession, but their important achievements are severely underrepresented in historic accounts both on Wikimedia and beyond. You can find out more about the project and its brilliant achievements in this video.

The Hunger Strike Medal

Becky Male has been a volunteer at Glasgow Women’s Library since 2019. Becky digitises the archive at the library, photographing their collection of objects. She started editing Wikipedia on the Hunger Strike Medal’s article, overhauling much of the page and adding over 100 references so the historic significance of the medal was reflected by its article. You can see Becky talking about her wiki-journey and the medal in this video.

Do let us know if you too are celebrating Women’s History Month with related wiki activities by getting in touch at info@wikimedia.org.uk, or tagging us on social media.

You can support this work with a donation. We’re so grateful to our supporters, who enable us to continue diversifying the Wikimedia projects so they better represent us all.

Celebrating Imbolc with Wiki Loves Folklore

By Dr Sara Thomas, Programme Manager for Scotland

Wiki Loves Folklore is an international Wiki competition celebrating Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) across the world – like Wiki Loves Monuments, or Wiki Loves Earth, but for folk culture: festivals, music, food, dances, customs, storytelling, mythology, and seasonal events.  

As someone with a keen interest in all things folklore and intangible cultural heritage, I’m really keen to participate this year. And, as the start of the competition (1st February) coincided with Imbolc, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to capture some images…

In my non-Wiki life I spend a fair bit of time volunteering with other charities, one of which is the Beltane Fire Society in Edinburgh. Most of our year is taken up with working towards the celebration of two of the Celtic quarter days (Beltane and Samhuinn) with large fire festivals, but we sometimes put on smaller, community-focussed events at other points on the wheel of the year, like Yule / winter solstice. This year, the woman currently embodying the role of May Queen led on the organisation of a community storytelling event at the Scottish Storytelling Centre for Imbolc / Imbolg / Brigid’s day, and as part of that, I helped to run a couple of workshops on how to make Brigid’s crosses (in this context, used as protection symbols for house and home) – capturing a few images for Wiki Loves Folklore as I went.

3 armed Brigid cross made at Imbolc by Lirazelf.
3 armed Brigid cross made at Imbolc by Lirazelf. CC BY-SA 4.0.

The UK Government is currently consulting on “some of the decisions regarding the first stage of implementing” the 2003 UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage, the ratification of which is supported by the Intangible Cultural Heritage Scotland Partnership (which includes long-term Wikimedia UK partners Museums Galleries Scotland).  

Usually, when we talk about digital preservation of (cultural) heritage we’re discussing buildings, or physical artefacts like paintings. ICH can present some interesting challenges – how does an archivist approach a community tradition, or a way of life? One of the key points for me is reflected in the language of the UNESCO convention – the “safeguarding” of ICH, rather than the “preservation” – reflecting the fact that folk practices necessarily change over time, or location, for example. From a Wikimedia point of view, Wiki Loves Folklore is a wonderful opportunity to capture and share the culture of our communities.  

How to take part in Wiki Loves Folklore

You can find the landing page for the competition as a whole on Wikimedia Commons, as well as the individual upload pages for different countries. The competition runs 1st Feb – 31st March.

It’s a really simple process – just click on the “upload” button to upload images through the upload wizard, adding captions, descriptions, categories, and structured data. Remember also to enable email through your account, as this is how the international organisers would contact you if you win a prize!  

Scotland, Wales, and England pages for the international competition.

Ireland page for the competition run by Wikimedia Community Ireland.

To enable us to continue to preserve cultural heritage, you can support our Wikimedia UK’s work with a donation.