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CIS-A2K/Reports/CIS-A2K Report 2023-24/Executive Summary

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In 2023-24, CIS-A2K strategically deepened its commitment to empowering Indic Wikimedia communities through collaborative, capacity-building initiatives. Recognizing the growing self-sufficiency of these communities, CIS-A2K shifted from direct interventions towards fostering community-led growth, prioritizing strategic partnerships and global collaborations to cultivate sustainable development and enrich Wikimedia projects with Indic language content. With over a decade of experience in open knowledge work in Indic languages, A2K recalibrated its earlier approaches and efforts. This included investing in building long-term sustainable partnerships, focusing on contributions to technology development and related discourse, building upon our leadership-building initiatives, creating spaces for Indic Wikimedia communities to expand their open knowledge network, strengthening global engagement of Indic communities and other efforts in this direction.

Collaborative project design and ensuring alignment with community needs and priorities through continuous efforts to understand the diverse backgrounds, capabilities and direction of communities are part of our team values. CIS-A2K invested in creating language communities a platform for the community to foster strategic planning, nurture essential skills and build connections with a larger language community. This kind of effort not only resulted in communities becoming more active but also building a common understanding that led to content enhancement, partnerships and outreach. Along these lines, Telugu and Santali Community Conferences in which CIS-A2K played a key role as co-organisers resulted in collaborative planning, innovative efforts in community engagement, content development and partnerships. Recognizing the importance of commons contributions in nurturing new communities and leaders, CIS-A2K focused on expanding Wikimedia Commons and visual documentation through community-led workshops and photo walks, facilitated in sustained long-term partnerships with commons wikimedians in regions like Mangaluru and Hyderabad. These efforts not only enriched Commons with culturally relevant imagery but also resulted in the growth of communities and the nurturing of new leaders. Furthermore, CIS-A2K continued its dedication to supporting the oral culture project.

The visual illustrates the strategic direction of CIS-A2K for 2024-27.

A2K's flagship Train-the-Trainer (TTT) program restarted in 2023 after a break during COVID-19. The 2023 and 2024 events introduced significant improvements, including collaborations with local communities. Additionally, the initiation of the She Leads program brought renewed energy to women leaders, strengthening their engagement and activities within the movement. The Future of Commons (FoC) 2024, a new initiative co-organized by CIS-A2K, aimed to strengthen the Wikimedia movement's connection with the broader open knowledge ecosystem by exploring AI's role in preserving cultural heritage and enhancing access to knowledge. The event focused on how AI can support Wikimedia projects, especially in the context of Indian languages, fostering collaboration and strategic development for future initiatives in archiving and AI. The Wikimedia India Summit 2024 focused on enhancing community engagement and strategic planning, with feedback on the Movement Charter, followed by the India Strategic Meet in June 2024, where participants discussed decentralization, governance, and the Global Council's selection process.

Digitization and relicensing initiatives were also a primary focus and were achieved through dedicated collaborations, most notably supporting the launch of the Tulu Wikisource, a strategic partnership with the West Bengal Wikimedians User Group for Wikisource and GLAM projects, and a key partnership with the Telangana Language and Culture Department, resulting in the relicensing of cultural assets and the upload over 9000 culturally rich media files on Wikimedia Commons. CIS-A2K's GLAM initiatives in Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh will help in addressing the underrepresentation of North-East India on Wikimedia by fostering local partnerships, digitizing cultural heritage, and expanding Wikimedia content through collaborations with regional institutions. CIS-A2K deepened its partnership with PNVM by expanding digitization efforts, developing a Marathi literature database, and strengthening library networks, serving as a blueprint for future collaborations. Lek Ladki Abhiyan (LLA) contributed by digitizing the works of Sane Guruji on his 125th birth anniversary and advancing relicensing initiatives. Lek Ladki Abhiyan also facilitated Wikimedia sessions in libraries with historic prominence and engaged collectors to enhance open knowledge contributions.

Technical outreach focused on empowering communities through resources and training, while insights from a User Research Study on app usage in India informed a project aimed at improving mobile editing for Wikimedia Commons. CIS-A2K also contributed to the Global Majority Wikimedia Technology Priorities initiative to address technical challenges in the Global South by promoting epistemic diversity and decentralizing technological development. By commissioning experts, CIS-A2K developed the Wikisource reader app for Android to enhance mobile accessibility, initially supporting English, French, and Bangla, integrating Wikidata for better categorization, and improving user experience while expanding access to public domain texts.

Overall, CIS-A2K’s initiatives in 2023-24 have contributed to advanced community empowerment, collaboration, and technical development within the Indic language Wikimedia ecosystem. Through strategic partnerships and localized efforts, A2K has laid the foundation for sustainable growth and inclusive knowledge-sharing, setting the stage for future progress and wider global engagement.

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