Wikimedia Foundation

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🇧🇷 How are students in Brazil using Wikipedia to keep endangered languages alive? “Obelepédia” is an initiative by the Brazilian Linguistics Olympiad in collaboration with Wiki Movimento Brasil. During this event, students are asked to edit and improve articles about languages on Portuguese Wikipedia. Participants have two weeks to write about different aspects of a language, such as the sounds it has, which writing system is used, verbal conjugation, sentence order, and other linguistic analyses. Obelepédia helps fill knowledge gaps, especially about lesser-known and endangered languages, while providing students with practical linguistic experience. Since its inception in 2021, Obelepédia has significantly enhanced 171 language-related articles on the lusophone Wikipedia, contributing to the preservation and understanding of global diversity. Learn more about Obelepédia ➡️ https://w.wiki/B6Kv

Can the collaborative spirit of Wikimedia bring together a live orchestra? That is exactly what happened at #Wikimania2024! 🎻🥁🎷 In Katowice, Poland, the “WikiOrchestra,” consisting entirely of members from various Wikimedia communities,  debuted with a milestone in our movement’s cultural engagement. The idea for an orchestra was announced in June, with a call for interested musicians from the Wikimedia movement to honor Katowice, the host city of Wikimania 2024, which has also been named a UNESCO City of Music. This new orchestra performed two pieces: A Chopin piano composition and the Silesian folk song “Karliku,” both of which symbolize Polish cultural heritage. The project was a collaborative effort, with musicians practicing independently before coming together on the third day of Wikimania for their first – and only – rehearsal. The orchestra’s performance the next day, during the closing ceremony of Wikimania Katowice, was a success. It not only showcased the musical talents within the Wikimedia community, but also emphasized the movement’s ability to bring people together through shared interests and cultural expressions. Read a first hand account from one of the musicians ➡️ https://w.wiki/B69a

Our quarterly newsletter is out! Learn how we collaborate with Wikimedia volunteers worldwide to educate policymakers and legislators on how to protect Wikimedia's model, platform, and people. Our newsletter is for everyone interested in learning what policies and laws can address online threats while supporting participation in the sum of all human knowledge. It is also a bridge between active volunteers (who create, moderate, and curate Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects) and people who care about protecting neutral, reliable, and freely accessible information online. 📨 You can read the most recent issue of the newsletter at: https://lnkd.in/g_YYysRM  If you want to receive our updates, sign up at: https://lnkd.in/gUhjKGWY You will receive the most important advocacy moments and issues that we face, forecasts on noteworthy topics on the horizon, and upcoming events worth attending!

Time to celebrate: 20% of all biographies on French Wikipedia are about women 🎉 This milestone was reached in July, when over 142,000 biographic articles, out of more than 700,000, represented women. In 2016, this volume was 16%. In eight years, the French-speaking Wikipedia community has created around 68,000 biographies of women, demonstrating its commitment to reducing the gender bias that exists on the free encyclopedia. This goal also guides the francophone project les sans pagEs, which seeks to increase the proportion of contributors of underrepresented minorities and improve the content about women and gender minorities on the French version of Wikimedia projects. Reaching this symbolic 20% brings French Wikipedia closer to the level achieved on Spanish Wikipedia, where over 23% of biographies are dedicated to women. Learn more about this incredible achievement ➡️ https://w.wiki/BGAX

Everyone, everywhere, should be able to access and share knowledge that is diverse and verifiable, in their own languages. This is our vision of the internet's future. For it to be achieved, communities from all sectors must be able to work together to decide how digital technologies and spaces are governed. These communities must also have easy access to a multilingual digital commons and be protected through a commitment to uphold human rights online. On Saturday, 21 September, we co-hosted an event at the United Nations Headquarters that explored these topics. Learn more and watch a recording ➡️ https://lnkd.in/dKqMPVdG 🤝🏾 In partnership with Office of the UN Secretary-General’s Envoy on Technology, Republic of Poland, United Mexican States, Federal Republic of Germany, Access Now, Wikimedia Deutschland e. V., Wikimedia CZ, Wikimedia Europe, Wikimedia Polska, TUM Think Tank, Global Network of Centers #SummitOfTheFuture #OurCommonFuture #UNGA79

How can you help shape the digital world for the public interest? 🌍🌏🌎🌐 Watch the livestream of the “The Power of the Commons: Digital Public Goods for a More Secure, Inclusive, and Resilient World” side event this Saturday, 21 September, 2024, from 11:15 a.m.–12:30 p.m EDT (8:15 a.m.–9:30 a.m. PDT): https://lnkd.in/d3qUR8zJ

In an exciting milestone for digital heritage preservation, over 200 cultural professionals from Latin America were trained through the course “Good Practices for Digital Heritage.” Organized by Wikimedia Chile and Wikimedistas de Uruguay, this initiative aimed to equip professionals with the skills and knowledge needed to manage and share cultural heritage digitally. The course covered essential topics such as digitization, licensing, and the ethical use of digital content, fostering a stronger connection between cultural institutions and the Wikimedia movement. This training represents a step forward in preserving and sharing Latin America’s rich cultural heritage with the world. Participants from museums, libraries, and other cultural institutions gained practical skills and also connected with a broader community dedicated to preserving and sharing their region’s unique cultural stories. This initiative underscores the importance of collaboration between cultural sectors and the Wikimedia movement to drive forward the mission of open access to knowledge. Learn more about this impactful initiative ➡️ https://w.wiki/Ap5F

Ellie Méndez’s journey with the Wikimedia movement is not just about editing articles – it is also about building a community. Since joining in 2019, Ellie has been instrumental in fostering collaboration and inclusivity within the Wikimedia movement in El Salvador. As an event organizer and co-founder of Wikimedistas El Salvador, she has hosted workshops and meetups that empower others to contribute, focusing on underrepresented voices and topics. Ellie’s dedication goes beyond the screen, creating spaces where everyone feels they can make a difference. #WikiCelebrate Read more about Ellie’s impact ➡️ https://w.wiki/Ap5A

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the spread of misinformation posed a significant challenge to public health. In response, Wikimedia volunteers around the world united to launch WikiProject COVID-19, an initiative focused on delivering accurate, reliable information about the virus, the disease, and the pandemic. This effort was not just about writing Wikipedia articles; it was also about creating a trusted source of knowledge accessible to all, especially during a time when misinformation was rampant. Working closely with the World Health Organization (WHO), WikiProject COVID-19 volunteers crafted comprehensive guidelines for vaccine-related content and addressed numerous misinformation campaigns. Their work ensured that Wikipedia articles adhered to the highest standards of scientific accuracy, helping to counteract the flood of misleading information that plagued social media and other platforms. The scale of this initiative was immense. Volunteers contributed to more than 6,900 articles in over 180 languages, making crucial health information accessible to people across the globe. Between December 2019 and December 2020, articles about COVID-19 were viewed more than 579 million times. These articles covered a wide range of topics, from the basic science of the virus to the development and distribution of vaccines, ensuring that readers could find accurate information no matter where they were or what language they spoke. As the world continues to navigate the post-pandemic landscape, the contributions of Wikimedia volunteers remain a vital resource in promoting health literacy and combating disinformation. Efforts like this are highlighted in the Anti-Disinformation Repository, a collection of tools and activities that illustrate how Wikimedia is an antidote to disinformation. Read more about these efforts ➡️ https://w.wiki/Ap5C