EduWiki Conference 2023/Program/Democracy and Wikimedia
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Democracy and Wikimedia - sharing insights on how our work strengthens civil societyTime: 14:00 - 14:20
Room: Atrium Room
Abstract:
Wikimedia UK (WMUK) is the UK charity for the global Wikimedia movement. WMUK’s vision is of a more tolerant, informed and democratic society through open knowledge. Wikimedia UK works with Wikimedia projects and enables people and organisations in the UK to contribute to a shared understanding of the world through the democratic creation, distribution and consumption of knowledge.
Through this research project we wanted to critically investigate how engaging with Wikimedia projects contributes to the strengthening of civil society and democratic processes in the UK, and how improving information literacy skills contributes to Wikimedia UK’s vision of a more tolerant, informed and democratic society. Does our work in education increase participants’ information literacy, and does this in turn lead to a more engaged civil society?
To answer this question, we examined current understanding and frameworks of literacies, civic engagement and democratic participation, to see how information literacy can be shown to support civic engagement, with a particular focus on these frameworks in the UK context. We then show how Wikimedia UK’s work fits into these frameworks. This secondary research of existing approaches to information literacy takes a fresh perspective on how exactly it maps to civic disposition skills.
The research concludes that Wikimedia’s activities can increase citizen engagement in democratic processes through our work in information literacy by (1) Providing open and free access to accurate information, (2) Improving information literacy skills, (3) Encouraging volunteering, and (4) Providing accessible collaborative infrastructure. Crucially, freedom of expression and access to reliable information through Wikimedia projects increase intercultural dialogue and decrease the social isolation of minority groups. Wikipedia serves as a platform that can assist displaced or minoritised communities to express and maintain cultural identity.
Working on Wikimedia UK projects can facilitate a spirit of working towards a common good (free knowledge for all), cooperation with others, activism, which in the long run encourages an empowered civil society. This we believe can go a long way towards realising Wikimedia UK’s vision of a more informed, democratic and equitable society, and that this vision is more important than ever.
Full report: here