ComDev minutes 2023-12-05

Community Development Committee

Tuesday 5th December, 10 am - 11:00 am (online)

Welcome and apologies

Present: Caroline Ball, Kelly Foster, Rod Ward.

In attendance: Daria Cybulska, Sara Thomas, Chuks Ogbonna (minuting).

Declaration of interests

None

Approval of previous minutes

Approved

Matters arising (CB)

Nil

Wikimedia UK Community Day Reflection  (ST)

ST talked about Community Day, she mentioned that the blog she wrote about the day has been forwarded to Katie & NI for processing after which it will be uploaded to the website. She told the group that there were more attendees than we anticipated, and she was pleased with the sense of community evident during the event. Overall it was a positive and interesting day.

• KF thanked ST for hosting the day, she suggested that we make it an annual event or maybe more than once a year. She thanked RN for presenting the awards. She also suggested writing up the ‘in memoriam’ as a separate blog post.
• DC said that she was pleased with the number of attendees that were at the event, however, she suggested that it would have been good to have more trustees in attendance. RW suggested that whilst our trustees all bring different skills to WMUK, the downside is that there is less engagement with the community.
• CB asked about the previous community days that used to be held in person, and ST & DC  answered that we certainly had more people in attendance for this one than in previous events, which speaks to the accessibility of holding something online.
• ST talked about neurodiversity, specifically mentioning that she expects to have more editing from non-white contributors.

WMUK YouTube

Update on Train the Trainer and WikiLearn (ST)

ST gave the update, saying that this year's event builds on progress made in previous years including widening learning outcomes. As in 2022, there will be a weekend of hybrid training in December, with one day for new trainers, and one for both new and existing trainers.

She also mentioned her recent training on WikiLearn; a platform for peer learning and knowledge exchange for editors with example worklists etc.

• KF asked about the next Train the Trainer, ST informed that there are upwards of 10 groups and individuals scheduled to attend in person and virtually. She also mentioned that she would not want to do it in December in London as it is more expensive to do it at that time.      

Progress on Recruitment to the Committee (DC/CO)

DC updated the committee on the recruitment process, including messages on various mailing lists (as agreed at the previous meeting) and reaching out to some individuals. CO reported that there have been no applications; however, there were two expressions of interest.

• DC suggested that as the deadline has closed, we should reopen it and set a new deadline for next year.
• CB suggested that we speak to our cohorts to try and convince them to join, she also asked for ideas on how to drive interest in this position.
• KF suggested that we shift the deadline to around February in time for our next meeting in March. She also wondered about what the priorities should be for CB, ST & RK.
• RW said that he would be away for the second half of March and April and will be leaving the board before the next AGM  
• DC suggested a more targeted approach to committee recruitment.
• CB thanked RW for his commitment so far to the board and this committee. She asked if we would like to take this to the main board for broad suggestions.

Schedule for 2024 Meetings (& Possible Themes) (DC)

Thursday 14th March - Q1 board meeting (w/c 26th Feb)

Thursday 13th June - Q2 board meeting  (w/c 27th May (bank hol))

Monday 16th September - Q3 board meeting  (w/c 26th August (bank hol))

Thursday 12th December - Q4 board meeting  (w/c 25th Nov)

Decision: Approved

AOB

Nil