Hi Folks
(cross-posting to reach all-India; apologies if you get multiple messages.)
Our regular monthly IRC on India Programs is on the 1st Thursday of every month. Please do join in this evening (details are in the subject of this mail.)
The agenda is to share an update on India Programs (such as the India Campus Program, the Campus Ambassadors initiative and building the team for India Programs.) Needless to say, we will also discuss any other areas that you wish to cover.
I look forward to as many of you as can make it.
Many thanks.
Warm Regards,
Hisham Mundol
Wikimedia Foundation India Programs
skype: hisham.wikimedia
gtalk: hmundol(a)wikimedia.org
twitter: @mundol
Hi All
(cross-posting pan-india; apologies if you get this more than once.)
A few of you have reached out and suggested modifications / corrections in the postings. I've made these. Thank you for your inputs.
Please see the revised ones :
Wiki
http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/RFP/Consultant,_Participation_-_India_P…http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/RFP/Consultant,_Indic_Initiatives_-_Ind…
LinkedIn
http://www.linkedin.com/jobs?viewJob=&jobId=1592308http://www.linkedin.com/jobs?viewJob=&jobId=1592351
Many thanks
Hisham Mundol
Wikimedia Foundation India Programs
skype: hisham.wikimedia
gtalk: hmundol(a)wikimedia.org
twitter: @mundol
On May 4, 2011, at 10:06 AM, Hisham Mundol wrote:
> Hi All
>
> I'm writing to inform you that the selection process for 2 of the 4 potential new team members of the India Programs team has started. These have been posted on Office as well as LinkedIn. They can be seen at the at the following locations:
>
> Wiki
> http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/RFP/Consultant,_Participation_-_India_P…
> http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/RFP/Consultant,_Indic_Initiatives_-_Ind…
>
> LinkedIn
> http://www.linkedin.com/jobs?viewJob=&jobId=1592308
> http://www.linkedin.com/jobs?viewJob=&jobId=1592351
>
> Can I request a few things.
>
> a) India Programs is extremely keen on having existing Wikimedians on board in the team. I therefore invite and urge anyone from the existing community to respond to either / both of these. As you will make out from the wordings, there is a clear preference for those who are already involved in the community.
> b) Please do forward this mail to anyone you know who you think might be interested. While they may not be from the existing community, you are best placed to know your who would fit into the movement and who might be interested.
> c) Please do broadcast these links on any other mailing lists, bulletin boards, various social networks (twitter, facebook, etc.), etc. so that we can reach more potential candidates / remind potential candidates.
>
> Please do not hesitate to contact me for any clarifications.
>
> Many thanks.
>
> Hisham Mundol
> Wikimedia Foundation India Programs
> skype: hisham.wikimedia
>
> gtalk: hmundol(a)wikimedia.org
> twitter: @mundol
>
cross posting to local India lists
Hisham Mundol
Wikimedia Foundation India Programs
skype: hisham.wikimedia
gtalk: hmundol(a)wikimedia.org
twitter: @mundol
Begin forwarded message:
> From: Hisham Mundol <hmundol(a)wikimedia.org>
> Date: May 4, 2011 10:06:31 AM GMT+05:30
> To: Wikimedia India Community list <wikimediaindia-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
> Subject: India Programs: Team Selection: Call for Talent!
>
> Hi All
>
> I'm writing to inform you that the selection process for 2 of the 4 potential new team members of the India Programs team has started. These have been posted on Office as well as LinkedIn. They can be seen at the at the following locations:
>
> Wiki
> http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/RFP/Consultant,_Participation_-_India_P…
> http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/RFP/Consultant,_Indic_Initiatives_-_Ind…
>
> LinkedIn
> http://www.linkedin.com/jobs?viewJob=&jobId=1592308
> http://www.linkedin.com/jobs?viewJob=&jobId=1592351
>
> Can I request a few things.
>
> a) India Programs is extremely keen on having existing Wikimedians on board in the team. I therefore invite and urge anyone from the existing community to respond to either / both of these. As you will make out from the wordings, there is a clear preference for those who are already involved in the community.
> b) Please do forward this mail to anyone you know who you think might be interested. While they may not be from the existing community, you are best placed to know your who would fit into the movement and who might be interested.
> c) Please do broadcast these links on any other mailing lists, bulletin boards, various social networks (twitter, facebook, etc.), etc. so that we can reach more potential candidates / remind potential candidates.
>
> Please do not hesitate to contact me for any clarifications.
>
> Many thanks.
>
> Hisham Mundol
> Wikimedia Foundation India Programs
> skype: hisham.wikimedia
>
> gtalk: hmundol(a)wikimedia.org
> twitter: @mundol
>
Hi All (cross-posting to make sure I reach as much of India as possible),
As you're aware, we had invited applications for Campus Ambassadors for the upcoming Pune Pilot of the India Campus Program.
The response has been fantastic: we've received ~500 applications/enquiries from across India, ~70 of which were from Pune. This has been really heartening - indicating the desire of many to support the Wikimedia movement. It's also been overwhelming because we need to process all the applications, respond to applicants, etc.!
I think, most critically, it also presents an amazing opportunity for us to introduce new people to Wikimedia projects (especially Wikipedia) - and invite them to join the community. I've interviewed quite a few and there is a recurring theme I hear from many of them. It goes something like, "I've been using Wikipedia for years and years, and I love it. I want to contribute back to it - but I wasn't sure how. Then I saw the banner and decided this was a great way to help." The overwhelming common trait I have noticed in the applicants is that they are bright, well-intentioned and eager to contribute.
Here are some thoughts I had, and I'd love to hear your suggestions/comments on these.
We should respond to every single applicant, and even to those who didn't actually apply but sent emails enquiries (such as "When is the program coming to my city?", etc.) No one should be left behind.
We will prioritise (in terms of sequence of events) the Pune Campus Ambassadors. We need to have a reasonable number available for a training session that we need to conduct before the start of the program. Of the 70 who applied from Pune, we should hopefully get 20-30 Campus Ambassadors.
The important suggestion I had for everyone else (in Pune and beyond) is that we do not "reject" anyone. While some might not become Campus Ambassadors because we don't plan to run the program in their towns/cities right now, or some in Pune might not currently have the desired experience (in teaching and people management), there is no reason that they can't participate in some other roles. Therefore, I don't think we should send any "reject letters" to anyone. No one should be left behind. Instead, we should send them options on how they can participate/learn more about participating. For example:-
i) they could form student clubs in their respective educational establishments
ii) they could form Wikipedia clubs in their workplaces/social groups (as a number of applicants are working professionals, and no longer on campus)
iii) they could become individual editors
For us to try and help realise their potential, here are some thoughts I had:-
i) Invite all the applicants/enquirers to attend the next community meet-ups. This was a suggestion shared by the Pune community. This would give them a chance to interact with the community and understand more about the movement/projects.
ii) Additionally, those who have not been selected as Campus Ambassadors can be reassured by telling them that they can join an "incubation" program. This was a suggestion shared by the Pune community. This would involve them attending meet-ups, learning how to edit, starting to edit - and being supported and hand-held along the way by existing community members. This would help them if they eventually wish to reapply as Campus Ambassadors. Even if they choose not to, they could easily become individual newbie editors.
iii) Invite all applicants/enquirers in a town/city to attend a full-fledged Wiki Academy. This was a suggestion shared by the Mumbai community. This is currently envisaged as a full day session where they are given insights into the movement & projects, taught how to edit, and actually edit articles.
iv) In towns/cities where a full-fledged Wiki Academy is not viable (e.g. if there aren't enough numbers of either participants or volunteers/volunteer time to run a Wiki Academy), then an alternative suggestion is to have a smaller group (3-5) of the applicants /enquirers linked up with a community member who can conduct smaller, shorter groups to explain how to edit and hand-hold them as they edit.
I'd really like to hear your views/comments/suggestions on the ideas listed here.
Also, do let me know which of you would like to volunteer either to help conduct Wiki Academies (point (iii) above) or to manage smaller groups of potential newbies (point (iv) above). Also, it'd be great if we could invite them to your next meet-ups at your respective towns/cities (point (i) above).
Another aspect I'd like to get suggestions from you on is how to manage the process of inviting them to these events. We could, for example, share the contacts of these applicants with the respective communities could reach out and invite them. Alternatively, if you wish this to be done for you, that also can be arranged (though it will put some strain on already stretched resources.)
I look forward to hearing from you. (Please note that we have received applicants from every corner of the country - so please don't assume that the applicants are only from Pune or only from large cities or only interested in English Wikipedia. (They are literally from everywhere, and no one should be left behind!)
Kind Regards,
Hisham Mundol
Wikimedia Foundation India Programs
skype: hisham.wikimedia
gtalk: hmundol(a)wikimedia.org
twitter: @mundol
Hi Folks
I am writing to all of you to correct a potential error. As you might be aware, the Wikimedia Foundation has set itself an important objective of supporting the community in India to expand participation. As part of this, India Programs has been set up - and I work for it.
I have put together a plan for India (please see http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_-_India_Programs) - and I had communicated this on the India mailing list. This has generated interest as well as debate and discussion. However, I understand that some of you might not be on that mailing list. I therefore thought I'd correct this by reaching out directly to you and requesting you to have a look at the page and share your comments (on the Talk Page or on this mailing list or directly to me; my contact details are in my signature.) It outines the thinking behind India Programs, key initiatives, milestones, team structure, visit reports, IRC logs, recommendations on office location and some other details. I hope you find it interesting, and I'd love to hear your views / comments / suggestions.
Also, we I have a monthly IRC on India Programs with whoever is interested - on the first Thursday of every month. I'll send out an invite to your mailing list from now on. Do see if you can join in.
I am also going to try and attend as many community meet-ups in as many locations as possible - so I look forward to meeting as many of you as possible, as soon as possible. If you would be kind enough to let me know when the next meeting is planned for and on what schedule (e.g. 2nd Saturday, etc.) then I'll work out how to attend asap.
(Do excuse me if you have received this message through other mailing lists, or it's a bit of a duplication if you are already on the India mailing list.)
Thank You.
Warm Regards,
Hisham Mundol
Wikimedia Foundation India Programs
skype: hisham.wikimedia
gtalk: hmundol(a)wikimedia.org
twitter: @mundol
(Apologies for the cross-posting)
FYI. Accommodation is also available. Travel expenses up to Rs.
10,000/- will be reimbursed per participant.
Yours sincerely,
Anirudh Bhati
00 91 9328712208
Skype: anirudhsbh
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Anirudh Bhati <anirudhsbh(a)gmail.com>
Date: Fri, Mar 18, 2011 at 12:58 PM
Subject: OSSCamp 11.03, Lucknow
To: Wikimedia India EC <wikimedia-in-exec(a)lists.wikimedia.org>
Dear Wikimedians,
We have been able to secure travel funding from the organizers for TWO
volunteers representing the Wikimedia community at OSSCamp Lucknow.
If you have some experience as a Wikimedia volunteer (and preferably
but not necessarily some Mediawiki background) and are interested in
participating at the event, please write back to me.
The event is scheduled to be on 26-27 March 2011 which is the last
weekend of this month.
Thanks for your attention.
Yours sincerely,
Anirudh Bhati
00 91 9328712208
Skype: anirudhsbh
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Abhinav Upadhyay <er.abhinav.upadhyay(a)gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Mar 9, 2011 at 10:09 PM
Subject: [Wikimedia-IN-Exec] Invitation for OSSCamp Lucknow
To: wikimedia-in-exec(a)lists.wikimedia.org,
wikimediaindia-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
Hello to all,
My name is Abhinav Upadhyay, and I am a final year
engineering student from Northern India Engineering College, Lucknow.
My purpose for emailing you is to inform you about about OSSCamp
Lucknow.
We are organizing OSSCamp on 26th and 27th of March in Lucknow.
OSSCamps (http://osscamp.in) are unconferences on opensource projects
and initiatives where people meet and discuss about various open
source tools, technologies and projects. Events like these are a great
source of active learning and sharing our experience and knowledge
with others.
People form all over India are coming to join us for OSScamp, and I
would like to invite you all for it as well. It would be our great
pleasure to learn more about Wikimedia India Chapter, how does it
work, how can we also get involved with it and make it even more
awesome.
I am expecting that you people will join us in great number and share
your knowledge with us by means of some excellent sessions. I believe
that, this will be a great platform for the Wikimedia India Chapter,
as I am sure, a large number of people will be interested in joining
it after learning more about it. It would be great, if you have some
goodies to distribute amongst the participants as it will excite the
participants even more, as well as it will encourage them to attend
your session with more enthusiasm.
I hope to hear a positive reply from the Wikimedia India Chapter.
Those of you, who are willing and interested in coming, please
register on our website:
http://osscamp.in/event/osscamp-lucknow-1103
Thanks & Regards
Abhinav Upadhyay
For your information. Jace / Kiran is also a Wikipedian, should be
great to catch up with him. :)
anirudh
00 91 9328712208
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Kiran Jonnalagadda <kiran(a)hasgeek.in>
Date: Mon, Jan 17, 2011 at 10:42 AM
Subject: DocType HTML5 Ahmedabad
To: Anirudh Singh Bhati <misc(a)anirudhbhati.com>
Hi Anirudh,
Could you pass on this announcement to your colleagues in Ahmedabad?
--------------------------
DocType HTML5 is a one day conference on HTML5, CSS3 and related
technologies. This is a free, technology-focused event aimed at
helping folks get started with HTML5 as a rich application platform.
February 5th, 2011 at the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry
(GCCI). Registrations are open at http://www.doctypehtml5.in/
The first edition of DocType HTML5 was in Bangalore on October 9,
2010. A full report of that edition is
availableathttp://wiki.hasgeek.in/DocType_HTML5_Bangalore
Each edition has a different set of speakers and is customized around
the interests of participants. After you register, you will be asked
to pick the topics you're interested in. We will customize the
sessions and find subject matter experts based on your choices.
DocType HTML5 is organized by HasGeek, a new initiative focused on
creating high quality community-driven technology events, and is made
possible by the generous support of our sponsors. http://hasgeek.in/
Greetings!
Thank you for attending the Ahmedabad Wikipedia Meetup #1. You have
received this email because you signed up on the list of participants
of the meeting. If you are interested, please join the Wikimedia
Ahmedabad mailing list, which will be used to co-ordinate and organize
future meetups in Ahmedabad.[1] If you seek broader participation,
you can also sign up on the Wikimedia India mailing list.[2]
[1] https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-in-amd
[2] https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimediaindia-l
Yours sincerely,
Anirudh Bhati
Wikimedia India
00 91 9328712208
Skype: anirudhsbh