Submissions/A global discussion forum: does Meta-Wiki really work?

After careful consideration, the Programme Committee has decided not to accept the below submission at this time. Thank you to the author(s) for participating in the Wikimania 2015 programme submission, we hope to still see you at Wikimania this July.

Submission no.

2053

Title of the submission

A global discussion forum: does Meta-Wiki really work?

Type of submission (discussion, hot seat, panel, presentation, tutorial, workshop)

presentation

Author of the submission

Pmlineditor

E-mail address

pmlineditorgmail.com

Username

Pmlineditor

Country of origin

India

Affiliation, if any (organisation, company etc.)

N/A

Personal homepage or blog

N/A

Abstract (at least 300 words to describe your proposal)

Wikimedia Meta-Wiki was first created as "Meta-Wikipedia" in November 2001 to separate content about Wikipedia and its users and actual encyclopedia content. At present, it serves as the place for discussion about Wikimedia projects (including global policy discussions), as a central co-ordination wiki and the place to post grant requests, ideas, and reports for most Wikimedia events.

Such a global wiki only succeeds in its goal when several users from different communities collaborate and discuss on issues. Meta-Wiki theoretically does not have a community per se, but some groups of users are active here – stewards, SWMT members etc. Some Meta-Wiki events, especially votes, get a comparatively higher number of comments as they are popularized by CentralNotice banners. However, important discussions such as implementation of global policies rarely get participation from a wide audience. For instance, Request for Comments on Meta-Wiki has significantly lower participation than similar processes on English Wikipedia (and other large Wikipedias). Even significant discussions, such as proposals to open and close projects get relatively low input compared to their relative importance.

The documentation of global Wikimedia policies, proposals and events and the discussion / reports before and after such events are hosted on Meta-Wiki. But are people actually viewing the content and providing suggestions? If they are not, there is possibly a need to change the way Meta-Wiki works. The presentation will address how Meta-Wiki functions at the moment, and will discuss the various activities on Meta-Wiki. The possible reasons that deter users from participating in this wiki will be addressed. In particular, the presentation will focus on how Meta-Wiki has some sort of a culture of its own and how it may be difficult for new editors to adjust to this wiki and its present culture.

The goal of the presentation is to make it easier for editors, particularly those active in policy discussions in their local wikis, to participate in similar discussions in Meta-Wiki. At the end of the presentation, there can be a discussion to brainstorm methods to make it easier for people to actively take part in Meta-Wiki discussions and other ‘global’ activities.

Track

WikiCulture & Community

Length of session (if other than 30 minutes, specify how long)

30 minutes (20 min for presentation + 10 mins for discussion)

Will you attend Wikimania if your submission is not accepted?

If I get a scholarship, yes

Slides or further information (optional)

Special requests

Interested attendees

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1. guillom (talk) 23:52, 7 March 2015 (UTC)
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