February is a very busy month with record number of events planned through out the United States.
Additionally, The Wiki Ed Foundation works with university based education programs including parts of the United States outside regions covered by the U.S. Chapters and User groups. So, although we are doing it differently in the U.S. than other parts of the whole, it seems to be working pretty well today and has the potential to grow as more areas are covered by User Groups. Sydney Sydney Poore User:FloNight Wikipedian in Residence at Cochrane Collaboration On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 12:51 PM, Pharos <pharosofalexand...@gmail.com> wrote: > Hi Wikimedians, > > The "chapter system" in the US and North America is a work in progress. > > In addition to the two full regional chapters (New York City - where I am, > and Washington, DC), there are also usergroups for the New England, > Cascadia/Northwest, and North Carolina Triangle regions, with other groups > still in the process of formation. > > There is a historical difference from the large-budget Western European > chapters and the US situation, which has been more grassroots and never > participated in things like fundraiser payment-sharing, and the funding for > WMF HQ in San Francisco indeed shouldn't be conflated with funding of US > volunteer-based activities. > > If anyone else is interested in organizing regionally in any part of the US > / North America, feel free to get in touch; Wikimedia NYC and others would > be very glad to help you :) > > Thanks, > Pharos > > On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 11:15 AM, Robert Fernandez <wikigamal...@gmail.com > > > wrote: > > > The US may be too geographically spread out to develop a robust chapter > > system. We have vibrant chapters in a few dense population areas. > > Wikimedia District of Columbia is particularly awesome. But for most US > > editors there isn't a critical mass of editors in some areas. Often we > > work with with chapters that are geographically distant. There's at > least > > two of us on the Board of Directors of WMDC who don't live particularly > > close to DC. > > > > On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 11:00 AM, Jane Darnell <jane...@gmail.com> > wrote: > > > > > "We also do not have a strong chapter system" > > > > > > This has always puzzled me, because I am a firm believer in the chapter > > > system, despite its faults and limitations. Isn't it time to address > this > > > for the more active areas of the USA? > > > > > > On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 10:43 AM, Andrew Lih <andrew....@gmail.com> > > wrote: > > > > > > > GerardM, > > > > > > > > As much as I agree with you on many things related to Wikimania, your > > > > statement about en.wp and USA being “over subsidized” is off base. > > > > > > > > For the last few years I’ve held my tongue as American applicants > get a > > > > fraction of 10% of all the funding for Wikimania scholarships. That’s > > > > because 10% is allocated to all of North America, so US based folks > > > compete > > > > with Canadians for that small slice of the pie. Indeed, key community > > > > members from the US could not afford to go to Wikimania, and did not, > > > > because of the limited funding. We also do not have a strong chapter > > > system > > > > to make up for that shortcoming, where European chapters can, and do, > > > > underwrite their local members with other funds. > > > > > > > > I am not against the bulk of the scholarship money going to > > > > underrepresented developing markets and giving new voices a chance to > > > > attend. But I wanted to dispel the myth that Americans are always > > gorging > > > > at the trough. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > https://wikimania2013.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Scholarship_selection_process > > > > > > https://wikimania2014.wikimedia.org/wiki/Scholarships#Selection_process > > > > > > > > > > > > -Andrew > > > > > > > > On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 6:49 AM, Gerard Meijssen < > > > > gerard.meijs...@gmail.com> > > > > wrote: > > > > > > > > > Hoi, > > > > > Pine with all due respect, the USA is not the problem and English > > > > Wikipedia > > > > > has been overly subsidised, given way too much attention. Indeed > > having > > > > > more people from the USA attend Wikimania is not a good value > > > > proposition. > > > > > The USA and Britain is overrepresented as it is. > > > > > Thanks, > > > > > GerardM > > > > > > > > > > On 10 February 2016 at 10:13, Pine W <wiki.p...@gmail.com> wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > From a US perspective, even here in the global north we have > plenty > > > of > > > > > > students and middle-class participants for whom $1500 in travel, > > food > > > > and > > > > > > lodging plus 5 days away from work, family, or school amounts to > a > > > > > > significant or impossible sacrifice. > > > > > > > > > > > > Perhaps someone could tell us the statistics for how many people > > have > > > > > > attended Wikimania each year who were not WMF employees, FDC or > WMF > > > > Board > > > > > > members, scholarship recipients, or financially sponsored by WMF > > > > > affiliates > > > > > > or WEF. Of those people who pay 100% of their own costs plus the > > cost > > > > of > > > > > > admission tickets, my guess is that many live within a day's > travel > > > > time > > > > > by > > > > > > train, car, or bus. > > > > > > > > > > > > I would hypothesize that thematic conferences also have a low > > > > percentage > > > > > of > > > > > > people who pay 100% of their own costs, but that regional > > conferences > > > > > which > > > > > > have lower travel costs for the average attendee receive modestly > > > > higher > > > > > > percentages of unsubsidized attendance. > > > > > > > > > > > > It seems to me that WMF finacial support for conferences, > including > > > > > > regional and thematic conferences, will continue to be the norm. > > > > > > > > > > > > Whether $1 million is appropriate for Wikimania and whether a > more > > > > modest > > > > > > budget would be appropriate and feasable are different questions > > that > > > > > merit > > > > > > careful reflection. > > > > > > > > > > > > Pine > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > > > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > > > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines > > > > > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > > > > > Unsubscribe: > > > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > > > > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org > > ?subject=unsubscribe> > > > > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines > > > > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > > > > Unsubscribe: > > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > > > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org > ?subject=unsubscribe> > > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines > > > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > > > Unsubscribe: > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe> > > > _______________________________________________ > > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines > > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe> > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines > > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe> > > > _______________________________________________ > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe> > _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe>
