Hey pine, As most people will be able to confirm, having a bigger presence of regional topics is likely to happen anyway in any Wikimania. When Wikimania is in Asia, you'll see more Asian speakers, and when it's in Europe, more Europeans. Separate and successful tracks have been organised before, to the best of my knowledge, in three ways: 1) language tracks - which were separate for very practical reasons (translations). 2) type-of-session tracks - which again are very practical (different needs for a discussion than for a presentation) and 3) A thematic track - but that was often organised like a type of side conference (with the US govt in 2012, with WikiSym and the hackathon). To be honest, I don't see right away why 'North American regional and local subjects' would require such track and even more why it would require a special committee. It will find its way in the programme, and it's not like non-Americans won't enjoy those topics per se. Why try to separate it from the rest of the programme? In general I'm no big fan of splitting up the programme into smaller pieces too much - it leaves too much opportunity for good proposals to fall between the cracks and get lost. And it gets confusing easily to the participants. Now I *do* see an added value for a French language track... but I guess that'll be of little use to you. Best, Lodewijk 2016-07-06 7:44 GMT+02:00 Pine W <wiki.pine(a)gmail.com>om>: > Hi Wikimania folks (Ellie and the Montreal organizers in particular), > > Those of us in the US have expressed a hope that WikiConference North > America 2017 can be united with Wikimania 2017 in Montreal. This would > likely lead to economies of scale and reduced total cost, in terms of both > time and money, for what would otherwise be separate conferences. > > I would like to ask if WMF and the Montreal organizers would be > willing and able to have some tracks at that conference dedicated to North > American regional and local subjects, perhaps coordinated by a dedicated > North America program committee. I foresee a modest increase in attendance > at Wikimania 2017, and decreases in personal and WMF costs, if we can make > what would otherwise be separate conferences happen harmoniously. > > Thanks, and I hope to see you in Montreal next year. > > Pine > > _______________________________________________ > Wikimania-l mailing list > Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l > > _______________________________________________ Wikimania-l mailing list Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Hi Pine, Thanks for sharing your thought process. I can see why you identify a topical overlap between Wikimania in North America and the North American WikiConference. I also see why those topics should be part of the programme at Wikimania - I don't expect much disagreement in that field. And whatever you do, it will be. The question is, why would you want to organise it in a special 'track' beyond a grouping of similar topics - which seems overly formal and separatist. There's an overlap between all topics that you mention, and I wouldn't see either why there should be a 'legal track', 'glam track' etc. Every 'regional topic' will likely also fall under Nature, Glam, Technology, Law, Education or one of the other topical groupings. Having a 'track' in a formal way, is much more heavy than grouping topics that are related, together. To me it would suggest that 1) North Americans can't learn from projects from elsewhere (I think the opposite is true) and 2) Non-North Americans should not attend those presentations (which I also think would be quite untrue). The question is what you're trying to accomplish. I would be a fan of rather mingling geographies, rather than separating them out, unless you have a strong reason to do otherwise. It makes more sense to me to have three presentations about education grouped together where they come from different regions, with different approaches than to have three presentations about North America on a variety of topics grouped together. I would find it even more odd to have a whole track dedicated to a region - and it would be without precedent (I think). Best, Lodewijk 2016-07-06 9:06 GMT+02:00 Pine W <wiki.pine(a)gmail.com>om>: > I'm fine with multiple language tracks (most likely including French > and Spanish). > > The reason for a geographic track (in this case, North America) is > that otherwise we'd be having a separate conference that served this > purpose. I'm sure that many of us in North America will want to attend > tracks on subjects other than geographic interest (technology, research, > GLAM, STEM, law, education, outreach, community health, and governance come > to mind), so there will be substantial benefit in effectively co-locating > the conferences. My guess is that this can be done in a way that is a net > positive for all. For example, the scholarship budget that would otherwise > be requested for a separate WikiConference North America 2017 could instead > be used to facilitate increased attendance by North Americans in Montreal, > which I think would have the benefit of increasing attendance at Wikimania, > and at the same time we would eliminate the need to find a time and venue > for a separate conference with separate expenses. > > Pine > On Jul 5, 2016 23:36, "Lodewijk" <lodewijk(a)effeietsanders.org> wrote: > >> Hey pine, >> >> As most people will be able to confirm, having a bigger presence of >> regional topics is likely to happen anyway in any Wikimania. When Wikimania >> is in Asia, you'll see more Asian speakers, and when it's in Europe, more >> Europeans. >> >> Separate and successful tracks have been organised before, to the >> best of my knowledge, in three ways: 1) language tracks - which were >> separate for very practical reasons (translations). 2) type-of-session >> tracks - which again are very practical (different needs for a discussion >> than for a presentation) and 3) A thematic track - but that was often >> organised like a type of side conference (with the US govt in 2012, with >> WikiSym and the hackathon). >> >> To be honest, I don't see right away why 'North American regional >> and local subjects' would require such track and even more why it would >> require a special committee. It will find its way in the programme, and >> it's not like non-Americans won't enjoy those topics per se. Why try to >> separate it from the rest of the programme? In general I'm no big fan of >> splitting up the programme into smaller pieces too much - it leaves too >> much opportunity for good proposals to fall between the cracks and get >> lost. And it gets confusing easily to the participants. >> >> Now I *do* see an added value for a French language track... but I >> guess that'll be of little use to you. >> >> Best, >> Lodewijk >> >> 2016-07-06 7:44 GMT+02:00 Pine W <wiki.pine(a)gmail.com>om>: >> >>> Hi Wikimania folks (Ellie and the Montreal organizers in particular), >>> >>> Those of us in the US have expressed a hope that WikiConference >>> North America 2017 can be united with Wikimania 2017 in Montreal. This >>> would likely lead to economies of scale and reduced total cost, in terms of >>> both time and money, for what would otherwise be separate conferences. >>> >>> I would like to ask if WMF and the Montreal organizers would be >>> willing and able to have some tracks at that conference dedicated to North >>> American regional and local subjects, perhaps coordinated by a dedicated >>> North America program committee. I foresee a modest increase in attendance >>> at Wikimania 2017, and decreases in personal and WMF costs, if we can make >>> what would otherwise be separate conferences happen harmoniously. >>> >>> Thanks, and I hope to see you in Montreal next year. >>> >>> Pine >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> Wikimania-l mailing list >>> Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org >>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >>> >>> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Wikimania-l mailing list >> Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org >> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >> >> > _______________________________________________ > Wikimania-l mailing list > Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l > > _______________________________________________ Wikimania-l mailing list Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Hi Pine, Co-located events in conferences work well if the event that is co-located with the main conference attracts a new audience that the main conference doesn't usually get by default. In the case of Wikimania and WikiConference North America, I can see a lot of overlap based on the last couple of years' schedules. This will result in what Lodewijk is concerned about: splitting the potential audience in smaller groups while they can benefit from getting in one room. Also, an already hard task of scheduling events will become even harder: For example, we need to worry about not scheduling two GLAM events at the same time, one focusing on North America and the other a general/global event. This being said, I understand that you want to be mindful of the cost and time spent for these conferences. My suggestion would be for you to consider a 1-2 day event pre/post Wikimania focused on North America. Best, Leila Leila Zia Research Scientist Wikimedia Foundation On Wed, Jul 6, 2016 at 1:43 AM, Lodewijk <lodewijk(a)effeietsanders.org> wrote: > Hi Pine, > > Thanks for sharing your thought process. I can see why you identify a > topical overlap between Wikimania in North America and the North American > WikiConference. I also see why those topics should be part of the programme > at Wikimania - I don't expect much disagreement in that field. And whatever > you do, it will be. > > The question is, why would you want to organise it in a special > 'track' beyond a grouping of similar topics - which seems overly formal and > separatist. There's an overlap between all topics that you mention, and I > wouldn't see either why there should be a 'legal track', 'glam track' etc. > Every 'regional topic' will likely also fall under Nature, Glam, > Technology, Law, Education or one of the other topical groupings. > > Having a 'track' in a formal way, is much more heavy than grouping > topics that are related, together. To me it would suggest that 1) North > Americans can't learn from projects from elsewhere (I think the opposite is > true) and 2) Non-North Americans should not attend those presentations > (which I also think would be quite untrue). > > The question is what you're trying to accomplish. I would be a fan of > rather mingling geographies, rather than separating them out, unless you > have a strong reason to do otherwise. It makes more sense to me to have > three presentations about education grouped together where they come from > different regions, with different approaches than to have three > presentations about North America on a variety of topics grouped together. > I would find it even more odd to have a whole track dedicated to a region - > and it would be without precedent (I think). > > Best, > Lodewijk > > 2016-07-06 9:06 GMT+02:00 Pine W <wiki.pine(a)gmail.com>om>: > >> I'm fine with multiple language tracks (most likely including French >> and Spanish). >> >> The reason for a geographic track (in this case, North America) is >> that otherwise we'd be having a separate conference that served this >> purpose. I'm sure that many of us in North America will want to attend >> tracks on subjects other than geographic interest (technology, research, >> GLAM, STEM, law, education, outreach, community health, and governance come >> to mind), so there will be substantial benefit in effectively co-locating >> the conferences. My guess is that this can be done in a way that is a net >> positive for all. For example, the scholarship budget that would otherwise >> be requested for a separate WikiConference North America 2017 could instead >> be used to facilitate increased attendance by North Americans in Montreal, >> which I think would have the benefit of increasing attendance at Wikimania, >> and at the same time we would eliminate the need to find a time and venue >> for a separate conference with separate expenses. >> >> Pine >> On Jul 5, 2016 23:36, "Lodewijk" <lodewijk(a)effeietsanders.org> wrote: >> >>> Hey pine, >>> >>> As most people will be able to confirm, having a bigger presence of >>> regional topics is likely to happen anyway in any Wikimania. When Wikimania >>> is in Asia, you'll see more Asian speakers, and when it's in Europe, more >>> Europeans. >>> >>> Separate and successful tracks have been organised before, to the >>> best of my knowledge, in three ways: 1) language tracks - which were >>> separate for very practical reasons (translations). 2) type-of-session >>> tracks - which again are very practical (different needs for a discussion >>> than for a presentation) and 3) A thematic track - but that was often >>> organised like a type of side conference (with the US govt in 2012, with >>> WikiSym and the hackathon). >>> >>> To be honest, I don't see right away why 'North American regional >>> and local subjects' would require such track and even more why it would >>> require a special committee. It will find its way in the programme, and >>> it's not like non-Americans won't enjoy those topics per se. Why try to >>> separate it from the rest of the programme? In general I'm no big fan of >>> splitting up the programme into smaller pieces too much - it leaves too >>> much opportunity for good proposals to fall between the cracks and get >>> lost. And it gets confusing easily to the participants. >>> >>> Now I *do* see an added value for a French language track... but I >>> guess that'll be of little use to you. >>> >>> Best, >>> Lodewijk >>> >>> 2016-07-06 7:44 GMT+02:00 Pine W <wiki.pine(a)gmail.com>om>: >>> >>>> Hi Wikimania folks (Ellie and the Montreal organizers in >>>> particular), >>>> >>>> Those of us in the US have expressed a hope that WikiConference >>>> North America 2017 can be united with Wikimania 2017 in Montreal. This >>>> would likely lead to economies of scale and reduced total cost, in terms of >>>> both time and money, for what would otherwise be separate conferences. >>>> >>>> I would like to ask if WMF and the Montreal organizers would be >>>> willing and able to have some tracks at that conference dedicated to North >>>> American regional and local subjects, perhaps coordinated by a dedicated >>>> North America program committee. I foresee a modest increase in attendance >>>> at Wikimania 2017, and decreases in personal and WMF costs, if we can make >>>> what would otherwise be separate conferences happen harmoniously. >>>> >>>> Thanks, and I hope to see you in Montreal next year. >>>> >>>> Pine >>>> >>>> _______________________________________________ >>>> Wikimania-l mailing list >>>> Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org >>>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >>>> >>>> >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> Wikimania-l mailing list >>> Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org >>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >>> >>> >> _______________________________________________ >> Wikimania-l mailing list >> Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org >> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >> >> > > _______________________________________________ > Wikimania-l mailing list > Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l > > _______________________________________________ Wikimania-l mailing list Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

Or -- my favorite solution -- leaving LOTS of time in the schedule for meetups and discussion tracks, so that all kinds of groups -- including those interested specifically in North America-related issues (like building a coalition of NA usergroups, planning future conferences, doing NA-specific outreach or lobbying) can meet to discuss such things. We've had discussion time historically at most Wikimanias but I think we can always leave more time in the schedule for this kind of meetup. Additionally a preconference day could work too, when multiple thematic tracks could be scheduled (lots of people have historically asked for preconferences, not just the hackers -- everyone from researchers to librarians to glam outreach coordinators to affiliates have considered it in the past). (Of course, if I was in charge of the schedule I would probably get rid of individual presentations altogether during Wikimania, and just have panels/lightning talks/discussions. Best not to put me in charge of the schedule! :) -- Phoebe On Wed, Jul 6, 2016 at 1:00 PM, Leila Zia <leila(a)wikimedia.org> wrote: > Hi Pine, > > Co-located events in conferences work well if the event that is > co-located with the main conference attracts a new audience that the main > conference doesn't usually get by default. In the case of Wikimania and > WikiConference North America, I can see a lot of overlap based on the last > couple of years' schedules. This will result in what Lodewijk is concerned > about: splitting the potential audience in smaller groups while they can > benefit from getting in one room. Also, an already hard task of scheduling > events will become even harder: For example, we need to worry about not > scheduling two GLAM events at the same time, one focusing on North America > and the other a general/global event. > > This being said, I understand that you want to be mindful of the cost > and time spent for these conferences. My suggestion would be for you to > consider a 1-2 day event pre/post Wikimania focused on North America. > > Best, > Leila > > Leila Zia > Research Scientist > Wikimedia Foundation > > On Wed, Jul 6, 2016 at 1:43 AM, Lodewijk <lodewijk(a)effeietsanders.org> > wrote: > >> Hi Pine, >> >> Thanks for sharing your thought process. I can see why you identify a >> topical overlap between Wikimania in North America and the North American >> WikiConference. I also see why those topics should be part of the programme >> at Wikimania - I don't expect much disagreement in that field. And whatever >> you do, it will be. >> >> The question is, why would you want to organise it in a special >> 'track' beyond a grouping of similar topics - which seems overly formal and >> separatist. There's an overlap between all topics that you mention, and I >> wouldn't see either why there should be a 'legal track', 'glam track' etc. >> Every 'regional topic' will likely also fall under Nature, Glam, >> Technology, Law, Education or one of the other topical groupings. >> >> Having a 'track' in a formal way, is much more heavy than grouping >> topics that are related, together. To me it would suggest that 1) North >> Americans can't learn from projects from elsewhere (I think the opposite is >> true) and 2) Non-North Americans should not attend those presentations >> (which I also think would be quite untrue). >> >> The question is what you're trying to accomplish. I would be a fan of >> rather mingling geographies, rather than separating them out, unless you >> have a strong reason to do otherwise. It makes more sense to me to have >> three presentations about education grouped together where they come from >> different regions, with different approaches than to have three >> presentations about North America on a variety of topics grouped together. >> I would find it even more odd to have a whole track dedicated to a region - >> and it would be without precedent (I think). >> >> Best, >> Lodewijk >> >> 2016-07-06 9:06 GMT+02:00 Pine W <wiki.pine(a)gmail.com>om>: >> >>> I'm fine with multiple language tracks (most likely including French >>> and Spanish). >>> >>> The reason for a geographic track (in this case, North America) is >>> that otherwise we'd be having a separate conference that served this >>> purpose. I'm sure that many of us in North America will want to attend >>> tracks on subjects other than geographic interest (technology, research, >>> GLAM, STEM, law, education, outreach, community health, and governance come >>> to mind), so there will be substantial benefit in effectively co-locating >>> the conferences. My guess is that this can be done in a way that is a net >>> positive for all. For example, the scholarship budget that would otherwise >>> be requested for a separate WikiConference North America 2017 could instead >>> be used to facilitate increased attendance by North Americans in Montreal, >>> which I think would have the benefit of increasing attendance at Wikimania, >>> and at the same time we would eliminate the need to find a time and venue >>> for a separate conference with separate expenses. >>> >>> Pine >>> On Jul 5, 2016 23:36, "Lodewijk" <lodewijk(a)effeietsanders.org> >>> wrote: >>> >>>> Hey pine, >>>> >>>> As most people will be able to confirm, having a bigger presence of >>>> regional topics is likely to happen anyway in any Wikimania. When Wikimania >>>> is in Asia, you'll see more Asian speakers, and when it's in Europe, more >>>> Europeans. >>>> >>>> Separate and successful tracks have been organised before, to the >>>> best of my knowledge, in three ways: 1) language tracks - which were >>>> separate for very practical reasons (translations). 2) type-of-session >>>> tracks - which again are very practical (different needs for a discussion >>>> than for a presentation) and 3) A thematic track - but that was often >>>> organised like a type of side conference (with the US govt in 2012, with >>>> WikiSym and the hackathon). >>>> >>>> To be honest, I don't see right away why 'North American regional >>>> and local subjects' would require such track and even more why it would >>>> require a special committee. It will find its way in the programme, and >>>> it's not like non-Americans won't enjoy those topics per se. Why try to >>>> separate it from the rest of the programme? In general I'm no big fan of >>>> splitting up the programme into smaller pieces too much - it leaves too >>>> much opportunity for good proposals to fall between the cracks and get >>>> lost. And it gets confusing easily to the participants. >>>> >>>> Now I *do* see an added value for a French language track... but I >>>> guess that'll be of little use to you. >>>> >>>> Best, >>>> Lodewijk >>>> >>>> 2016-07-06 7:44 GMT+02:00 Pine W <wiki.pine(a)gmail.com>om>: >>>> >>>>> Hi Wikimania folks (Ellie and the Montreal organizers in >>>>> particular), >>>>> >>>>> Those of us in the US have expressed a hope that WikiConference >>>>> North America 2017 can be united with Wikimania 2017 in Montreal. This >>>>> would likely lead to economies of scale and reduced total cost, in terms of >>>>> both time and money, for what would otherwise be separate conferences. >>>>> >>>>> I would like to ask if WMF and the Montreal organizers would be >>>>> willing and able to have some tracks at that conference dedicated to North >>>>> American regional and local subjects, perhaps coordinated by a dedicated >>>>> North America program committee. I foresee a modest increase in attendance >>>>> at Wikimania 2017, and decreases in personal and WMF costs, if we can make >>>>> what would otherwise be separate conferences happen harmoniously. >>>>> >>>>> Thanks, and I hope to see you in Montreal next year. >>>>> >>>>> Pine >>>>> >>>>> _______________________________________________ >>>>> Wikimania-l mailing list >>>>> Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org >>>>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >>>>> >>>>> >>>> >>>> _______________________________________________ >>>> Wikimania-l mailing list >>>> Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org >>>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >>>> >>>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> Wikimania-l mailing list >>> Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org >>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >>> >>> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Wikimania-l mailing list >> Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org >> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >> >> > > _______________________________________________ > Wikimania-l mailing list > Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l > > _______________________________________________ Wikimania-l mailing list Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l

As Pharos says, my understanding also from discussions was that North Americans were planning to have a pre-conference or post conference at Wikimanina 2017. Sydney Sydney Poore User:FloNight Wiki Project Med Foundation WikiWomen's User Group Facebook https://www.facebook.com/sydney.e.poore On Wed, Jul 6, 2016 at 1:15 PM, Pharos &lt;pharosofalexandria(a)gmail.com&gt; wrote: > Yes, we were thinking more along the lines of an expanded > preconference with greater regional opportunities, rather than a separate > track during the actual Wikimania. > > Thanks, > Pharos > > On Wed, Jul 6, 2016 at 1:11 PM, phoebe ayers &lt;phoebe.ayers(a)gmail.com&gt; > wrote: > >> Or -- my favorite solution -- leaving LOTS of time in the schedule >> for meetups and discussion tracks, so that all kinds of groups -- including >> those interested specifically in North America-related issues (like >> building a coalition of NA usergroups, planning future conferences, doing >> NA-specific outreach or lobbying) can meet to discuss such things. >> >> We've had discussion time historically at most Wikimanias but I think >> we can always leave more time in the schedule for this kind of meetup. >> Additionally a preconference day could work too, when multiple thematic >> tracks could be scheduled (lots of people have historically asked for >> preconferences, not just the hackers -- everyone from researchers to >> librarians to glam outreach coordinators to affiliates have considered it >> in the past). >> >> (Of course, if I was in charge of the schedule I would probably get >> rid of individual presentations altogether during Wikimania, and just have >> panels/lightning talks/discussions. Best not to put me in charge of the >> schedule! :) >> >> -- Phoebe >> >> >> On Wed, Jul 6, 2016 at 1:00 PM, Leila Zia &lt;leila(a)wikimedia.org&gt; >> wrote: >> >>> Hi Pine, >>> >>> Co-located events in conferences work well if the event that is >>> co-located with the main conference attracts a new audience that the main >>> conference doesn't usually get by default. In the case of Wikimania and >>> WikiConference North America, I can see a lot of overlap based on the last >>> couple of years' schedules. This will result in what Lodewijk is concerned >>> about: splitting the potential audience in smaller groups while they can >>> benefit from getting in one room. Also, an already hard task of scheduling >>> events will become even harder: For example, we need to worry about not >>> scheduling two GLAM events at the same time, one focusing on North America >>> and the other a general/global event. >>> >>> This being said, I understand that you want to be mindful of the >>> cost and time spent for these conferences. My suggestion would be for you >>> to consider a 1-2 day event pre/post Wikimania focused on North America. >>> >>> Best, >>> Leila >>> >>> Leila Zia >>> Research Scientist >>> Wikimedia Foundation >>> >>> On Wed, Jul 6, 2016 at 1:43 AM, Lodewijk < >>> lodewijk(a)effeietsanders.org&gt; wrote: >>> >>>> Hi Pine, >>>> >>>> Thanks for sharing your thought process. I can see why you identify >>>> a topical overlap between Wikimania in North America and the North American >>>> WikiConference. I also see why those topics should be part of the programme >>>> at Wikimania - I don't expect much disagreement in that field. And whatever >>>> you do, it will be. >>>> >>>> The question is, why would you want to organise it in a special >>>> 'track' beyond a grouping of similar topics - which seems overly formal and >>>> separatist. There's an overlap between all topics that you mention, and I >>>> wouldn't see either why there should be a 'legal track', 'glam track' etc. >>>> Every 'regional topic' will likely also fall under Nature, Glam, >>>> Technology, Law, Education or one of the other topical groupings. >>>> >>>> Having a 'track' in a formal way, is much more heavy than grouping >>>> topics that are related, together. To me it would suggest that 1) North >>>> Americans can't learn from projects from elsewhere (I think the opposite is >>>> true) and 2) Non-North Americans should not attend those presentations >>>> (which I also think would be quite untrue). >>>> >>>> The question is what you're trying to accomplish. I would be a fan >>>> of rather mingling geographies, rather than separating them out, unless you >>>> have a strong reason to do otherwise. It makes more sense to me to have >>>> three presentations about education grouped together where they come from >>>> different regions, with different approaches than to have three >>>> presentations about North America on a variety of topics grouped together. >>>> I would find it even more odd to have a whole track dedicated to a region - >>>> and it would be without precedent (I think). >>>> >>>> Best, >>>> Lodewijk >>>> >>>> 2016-07-06 9:06 GMT+02:00 Pine W &lt;wiki.pine(a)gmail.com&gt;om>: >>>> >>>>> I'm fine with multiple language tracks (most likely including >>>>> French and Spanish). >>>>> >>>>> The reason for a geographic track (in this case, North America) is >>>>> that otherwise we'd be having a separate conference that served this >>>>> purpose. I'm sure that many of us in North America will want to attend >>>>> tracks on subjects other than geographic interest (technology, research, >>>>> GLAM, STEM, law, education, outreach, community health, and governance come >>>>> to mind), so there will be substantial benefit in effectively co-locating >>>>> the conferences. My guess is that this can be done in a way that is a net >>>>> positive for all. For example, the scholarship budget that would otherwise >>>>> be requested for a separate WikiConference North America 2017 could instead >>>>> be used to facilitate increased attendance by North Americans in Montreal, >>>>> which I think would have the benefit of increasing attendance at Wikimania, >>>>> and at the same time we would eliminate the need to find a time and venue >>>>> for a separate conference with separate expenses. >>>>> >>>>> Pine >>>>> On Jul 5, 2016 23:36, "Lodewijk" &lt;lodewijk(a)effeietsanders.org&gt; >>>>> wrote: >>>>> >>>>>> Hey pine, >>>>>> >>>>>> As most people will be able to confirm, having a bigger presence >>>>>> of regional topics is likely to happen anyway in any Wikimania. When >>>>>> Wikimania is in Asia, you'll see more Asian speakers, and when it's in >>>>>> Europe, more Europeans. >>>>>> >>>>>> Separate and successful tracks have been organised before, to the >>>>>> best of my knowledge, in three ways: 1) language tracks - which were >>>>>> separate for very practical reasons (translations). 2) type-of-session >>>>>> tracks - which again are very practical (different needs for a discussion >>>>>> than for a presentation) and 3) A thematic track - but that was often >>>>>> organised like a type of side conference (with the US govt in 2012, with >>>>>> WikiSym and the hackathon). >>>>>> >>>>>> To be honest, I don't see right away why 'North American >>>>>> regional and local subjects' would require such track and even more why it >>>>>> would require a special committee. It will find its way in the programme, >>>>>> and it's not like non-Americans won't enjoy those topics per se. Why try to >>>>>> separate it from the rest of the programme? In general I'm no big fan of >>>>>> splitting up the programme into smaller pieces too much - it leaves too >>>>>> much opportunity for good proposals to fall between the cracks and get >>>>>> lost. And it gets confusing easily to the participants. >>>>>> >>>>>> Now I *do* see an added value for a French language track... but >>>>>> I guess that'll be of little use to you. >>>>>> >>>>>> Best, >>>>>> Lodewijk >>>>>> >>>>>> 2016-07-06 7:44 GMT+02:00 Pine W &lt;wiki.pine(a)gmail.com&gt;om>: >>>>>> >>>>>>> Hi Wikimania folks (Ellie and the Montreal organizers in >>>>>>> particular), >>>>>>> >>>>>>> Those of us in the US have expressed a hope that WikiConference >>>>>>> North America 2017 can be united with Wikimania 2017 in Montreal. This >>>>>>> would likely lead to economies of scale and reduced total cost, in terms of >>>>>>> both time and money, for what would otherwise be separate conferences. >>>>>>> >>>>>>> I would like to ask if WMF and the Montreal organizers would be >>>>>>> willing and able to have some tracks at that conference dedicated to North >>>>>>> American regional and local subjects, perhaps coordinated by a dedicated >>>>>>> North America program committee. I foresee a modest increase in attendance >>>>>>> at Wikimania 2017, and decreases in personal and WMF costs, if we can make >>>>>>> what would otherwise be separate conferences happen harmoniously. >>>>>>> >>>>>>> Thanks, and I hope to see you in Montreal next year. >>>>>>> >>>>>>> Pine >>>>>>> >>>>>>> _______________________________________________ >>>>>>> Wikimania-l mailing list >>>>>>> Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org >>>>>>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >>>>>>> >>>>>>> >>>>>> >>>>>> _______________________________________________ >>>>>> Wikimania-l mailing list >>>>>> Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org >>>>>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >>>>>> >>>>>> >>>>> _______________________________________________ >>>>> Wikimania-l mailing list >>>>> Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org >>>>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >>>>> >>>>> >>>> >>>> _______________________________________________ >>>> Wikimania-l mailing list >>>> Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org >>>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >>>> >>>> >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> Wikimania-l mailing list >>> Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org >>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >>> >>> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Wikimania-l mailing list >> Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org >> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l >> >> > > _______________________________________________ > Wikimania-l mailing list > Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l > > _______________________________________________ Wikimania-l mailing list Wikimania-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimania-l