[Wikimedia-l] Re: The Endowment, again

2023-07-03 Thread Andreas Kolbe 
Dear all,

A full year has now passed since the WMF received IRS approval for its new,
transparent 501(c)(3) organisation, set up to take over the Wikimedia
Endowment and end almost a decade of financial non-transparency.[1]

Let us not forget – Caitlin Virtue told us over two years ago, in April
2021:[2]

"We are in the process of establishing a new home for the endowment in a
stand-alone 501(c)(3) public charity. *We will move the endowment in its
entirety to this new entity once the new charity receives its IRS 501(c)(3)
determination letter.*"

Said determination letter was received[3] in late June 2022 and
announced[4] in late October 2022.

Today, more than a year on, the Wikimedia Endowment website still says[5]
that the money – an undisclosed nine-figure sum – is with the Tides
Foundation. Unlike a standalone 501(c)(3), Tides publishes no audited
accounts for the Endowment and releases no figures for the Endowment fund's
revenue and expenses.

The WMF has been talking[6] about this move to a transparent standalone
501(c)(3) since 2017.

When will the move take place?

Andreas

[1]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Wikipedia_Signpost/2023-03-09/News_and_notes
and
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Wikipedia_Signpost/2022-05-29/Opinion
[2]
https://meta.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=Talk:Wikimedia_Endowment=prev=21366511
[3]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IRS_Determination_Letter_dated_6-28-2022_-_Wikimedia_Endowment_(01523354-2xA3536).pdf
[4]
https://diff.wikimedia.org/2022/10/26/governance-updates-for-the-wikimedia-endowment/
[5] https://wikimediaendowment.org/#contact and https://archive.ph/CjcvW
[6]
https://meta.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=Talk%3AWikimedia_Endowment=16507295=16503857


On Thu, Mar 9, 2023 at 7:12 PM Lane Chance  wrote:

> ...
> > It's not causing any form of disruption to make these changes in a
> deliberate and thoughtful manner.  Everyone can take a deep breath.
> > Risker/Anne
>
> The WMF has never claimed that setting out a fixed timetable that
> their CEO and the Endowment "agents" can be held accountable to is
> either impossible or bad. They have been talking this change up for
> years, and failed to move forward for reasons that have been
> obfuscated deliberately, as demonstrated by "thoughtful" tangential
> and delaying responses to basic yes/no questions. Considering that the
> aim here is ethical accountability, any delay is a choice for
> "non-accountability".
>
> The facts are public, the failure to be transparent or accountable
> with many millions of dollars is a public failure. The WMF has damaged
> the reputation of the "Endowment Fund" within its own community of
> volunteers* and employees, and now risks a loss of public trust in its
> own claims to its donors and in the media for a declared value of
> transparency. Let's debunk the myth, as this is now playing pass the
> parcel with millions of dollars of donated charitable funds, the WMF
> can no longer have any credible claim to be transparent. This does not
> pass the sniff test, it wouldn't for any other not for profit or
> organization that claims to have charitable values or world leading
> ethics but chooses to hide millions of dollars from correct scrutiny.
>
> * Really, do volunteers believe the Endowment Fund is or has done the
> things it was set up to do? Do we volunteers have reason to be
> confident that in 10 or 30 years time, these monies will be spent on
> the original objectives that were claimed for it by Jimmy Wales and
> others? I no longer have reason to be confidence in these purposes or
> that this very large sum of money will not be chipped away by "agents"
> or the careful re-spinning of what the words in the Endowment
> incorporation mean by the unelected board of trustees that are
> responsible for it.
>
> As a polite observation on "take a deep breath", I would never say
> that to any member of my staff or a customer with a complaint unless I
> wanted them to walk out or put the phone down on me.
>
> Thanks,
> Lane
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: The last paper encyclopedia: World Book is still in print

2023-07-03 Thread David Gerard 
I'm presuming they assume English, yes :-)

On Mon, 3 Jul 2023 at 11:52, Johan Jönsson  wrote:
>
> It was pointed out elsewhere that the Italian Enciclopedia Italiana 
> (Treccani) is available in print with the last appendix published in 2020, 
> and that the national encyclopedia of Azerbaijan (Azərbaycan Milli 
> Ensiklopediyası) is not only published in print but still in the middle of 
> being written, so the article's claim that this is the last paper 
> encyclopedia might not be entirely accurate.
>
> //Johan Jönsson
> --
>
> Den mån 3 juli 2023 kl 11:55 skrev David Gerard :
>>
>> It's sort of nice to know we didn't take out the entire sector:
>>
>> https://arstechnica.com/culture/2023/06/rejoice-its-2023-and-you-can-still-buy-a-22-volume-paper-encyclopedia/
>>
>> World Book still does a physical edition, selling a few thousand of
>> each edition of their paper encyclopedia set for $1,199. The market is
>> mostly schools and libraries.
>>
>>
>> - d.
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Celebrating Sara Horvat!

2023-07-03 Thread Ivana Madžarević 
Congratulations! We are so lucky to have Sara among our ambassadors and
volunteers. :) She's intelligent, a great thinker, super enthusiastic about
free knowledge and our dear friend. :)

Best,
Ивана Маџаревић
извршна директорка, Викимедија Србије
p: 011 3348 468 m: 060 74 54 773 a: Кнеза Милоша 80/14, Београд
s: rs.wikimedia.org e: ivana.madzare...@vikimedija.org

*Замислите свет у коме свака особа на планети има слободан приступ
целокупном људском знању. То је оно на чему ми радимо.*


пет, 30. јун 2023. у 13:52 Natalia Szafran-Kozakowska <
nszaf...@wikimedia.org> је написао/ла:

> Wikimedia projects would not be possible without the work of the countless
> volunteers, passionately working on bringing free knowledge to the world.
> Through the year we WikiCelebrate
>  different
> volunteers and their amazing work. [1]
>
> This time we celebrate Sara Horvat, a newcomer, who already brings change
> to the education projects in Serbia. This young volunteer, apart from
> editing Wikipedia, Wikidata and Commons, works on inviting new people to
> the movement, and building cooperations with institutions. She would like
> the public to know more about Wikipedia and the Wikimedia movement.* I
> wish everyone could comprehend the importance it has. I wish everyone could
> see the powerful potential it holds*. – she says. Visit WikiCelebrate
>  [2]
> page to learn more about Sara and congratulate her. You can also read
> about her on Diff
>  [3] (the
> post is available in English, Polish, Spanish, French, Swahili and
> Russian).
>
> Each month we will celebrate a different Wikimedian, acknowledging the
> great people that have contributed so much to bringing us to where we are
> today, and continue to do so. We warmly invite you to write about the
> people celebrated each month. If you know them, share some wiki love. If
> there’s an outstanding Wikimedian that you think should be celebrated, 
> recommend
> them . [5]
>
> Happy celebrating
> Natalia and Mehrdad
>
>
> [1] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Communications/WikiCelebrate
> [2]
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Communications/WikiCelebrate/Sara_Horvat
> [3] https://diff.wikimedia.org/2023/06/28/celebrating-sara-horvat/
> [5] https://wikimediafoundation.limesurvey.net/WikiCelebrate
>
>
> --
> *Natalia Szafran-Kozakowska* (she/her)
> Senior Global Movement Communications Specialist (European Region)
> Wikimedia Foundation 
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: The last paper encyclopedia: World Book is still in print

2023-07-03 Thread Johan Jönsson 
It was pointed out elsewhere that the Italian *Enciclopedia Italiana* (
*Treccani*) is available in print with the last appendix published in 2020,
and that the national encyclopedia of Azerbaijan (*Azərbaycan Milli
Ensiklopediyası*) is not only published in print but still in the middle of
being written, so the article's claim that this is the last paper
encyclopedia might not be entirely accurate.

//Johan Jönsson
--

Den mån 3 juli 2023 kl 11:55 skrev David Gerard :

> It's sort of nice to know we didn't take out the entire sector:
>
>
> https://arstechnica.com/culture/2023/06/rejoice-its-2023-and-you-can-still-buy-a-22-volume-paper-encyclopedia/
>
> World Book still does a physical edition, selling a few thousand of
> each edition of their paper encyclopedia set for $1,199. The market is
> mostly schools and libraries.
>
>
> - d.
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[Wikimedia-l] The last paper encyclopedia: World Book is still in print

2023-07-03 Thread David Gerard 
It's sort of nice to know we didn't take out the entire sector:

https://arstechnica.com/culture/2023/06/rejoice-its-2023-and-you-can-still-buy-a-22-volume-paper-encyclopedia/

World Book still does a physical edition, selling a few thousand of
each edition of their paper encyclopedia set for $1,199. The market is
mostly schools and libraries.


- d.
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[Wikimedia-l] A new Signpost issue is out

2023-07-03 Thread Andreas Kolbe 
The Signpost – Volume 19, Issue 13 – 3 July 2023
--

News and notes: Online Safety Bill: Wikimedia Foundation and Wikimedia UK
launch open letter
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Wikipedia_Signpost/2023-07-03/News_and_notes

Disinformation report: Imploded submersible outfit foiled trying to sing
own praises on Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Wikipedia_Signpost/2023-07-03/Disinformation_report

In the media: Journo proposes mass Wiki dox, sponsored articles on Fandom,
Section 230 discussed
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Wikipedia_Signpost/2023-07-03/In_the_media

Featured content: Incensed
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Wikipedia_Signpost/2023-07-03/Featured_content

Traffic report: Are you afraid of spiders? Arnold? The Idol? ChatGPT?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Wikipedia_Signpost/2023-07-03/Traffic_report

Humour: United Nations dispatches peacekeeping force to Wikipedia policy
discussions
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Wikipedia_Signpost/2023-07-03/Humour


Single-page view

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Signpost/Single



https://facebook.com/wikisignpost

https://twitter.com/wikisignpost

https://wikis.world/@WikiSignpost
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