Global Open Initiative/People

Who We Are

The Global Open Initiative is a young not-for-profit organization made up of a dedicated group of open advocates who are striving to solve social problems that confront our communities; such as challenges in public services delivery, transparency and democratic control, and availability of educational resources. We are devoted to achieving this by enhancing visibility of open access material, information and data that strengthens the basis for valorization of the knowledge needed to tackle these issues.

People

Harriet Henry Bayel (Executive Director)
Emmanuel Yeboah (Project Manager)
Jemima2019 (Twi Project lead)
Gabriel Amuzu (Photographer)
Sunkanmi12 (Project lead for Wiki Clubs)
Yvonne Darko (Trainer and workshop facilitator)
Abigail Darko (Trainer and workshop facilitator)
Valentine Badu (Trainer and workshop facilitator)
Franklin Oduro (Support)

Harriet Henry Bayel

Harriet serves as the Executive Director/Community Lead for the GOI Foundation. She holds a background in Geography and Resource Development from the University of Ghana, Legon. With a longstanding commitment to Wikipedia, Harriet has actively contributed to and facilitated successful projects aimed at making knowledge available and accessible while nurturing the skills of the youth. Additionally, she has served as a member of the Regional Grants Committee for Sub-Saharan Africa (2021-2023).

In her role as the lead of GOIF, Harriet acts as a liaison between the local wiki community and the broader Wikimedia movement. She oversees teams, directs the organization of diverse community projects, provides logistical support, and monitors project progress to ensure they meet Wikimedia standards within budget and on time. Her commitment to training and workshops significantly enhances community members' skills and fosters a culture of knowledge sharing. By addressing concerns and collecting valuable feedback, she keeps the community vibrant and responsive.

As an open advocate, Harriet is passionate about volunteerism and closing the digital gender gap. Open Knowledge, women's empowerment, and youth development are matters of great concern to her.

Emmanuel Yeboah

Emmanuel Yeboah, also known by the username Kinvidia, graduated from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and is now working on a Master's degree in Leadership in Open Education.

He started editing Wikipedia by himself in 2018 and later joined the Global Open Initiative Foundation as a volunteer. Within a year, he became the Project Manager of the Global Open Initiative, where he oversaw projects like the Parliament of Ghana Contest, which resulted in the creation of more than 500 Wikipedia pages and over 1000 Wikidata items. He also led a project that uploaded over 900 Supreme Court cases from Ghana to Wikidata.

Emmanuel has helped build partnerships with institutions like the Nubuke Foundation, CSIR, Effutu Libraries, Cape Coast Library, and academic institutions like the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology Department of Language and Communication Sciences and the University of Education, Winneba (Adjumako Campus). He also holds a diploma in Database Management and is a strong advocate for open education, focused on making knowledge more accessible. Emmanuel worked as Wikimedian-in-Residence for the Ghana Society for Education Technology, where he helped in digitalising the Ghanaian Junior High School curriculum on Wikidata. Emmanuel serves as an advisor on the Movement Charter Drafting Committee and is a member of the Advisory Committee of Capacity Exchange. He was also a member of the 2021 and 2022 editions of the Coolest Tools Awards organisers (Coolest Tools Academy). The organising team (Coolest Tools Academy) was responsible for organising and selecting tools for the Coolest Tools Awards.

Jemima2019

Jemima Antwi, also known as Jemima2019 in the Wikimedia community is the Executive Director/Community lead for Wikimedians of Twi Language. She has a background in Sociology and Akan from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. She is a dedicated advocate for open knowledge. She has a strong passion for volunteerism. She also has passion for translating articles and creating content in the Twi language on Twi Wikipedia and other sister projects of Wikipedia like Wikimedia Commons, Wikidata and so on. In her role as the Twi project lead for GOI, she takes the lead in ensuring that open knowledge initiatives thrive and reach the general public. This is evident in their collaborations with universities and their language departments and also cultural institutions in Ghana. Her commitment to making knowledge freely accessible coordinates with the foundation's mission to promote open collaborative information sharing. She is open minded, passionate, resilient and a team player who is open to varying ideas, confident optimistic and connects easily. She is eager to guide and inspire the next generation of Wikimedia enthusiast.

Sunkanmi12

Sunkanmi12 is a dedicated advocate for open knowledge, mentorship, and peacebuilding. With a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering (Hons.) from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, He brings a unique blend of problem-solving expertise and a deep commitment to fostering knowledge sharing and collaboration.

Sunkanmi12 serves as the Communications Manager and Facilitator for the Global Open Initiative Foundation. In this role, he plays a crucial part in promoting open knowledge initiatives and facilitating the exchange of ideas within the Wikimedia community. His communication skills and dedication contribute to the success of various projects. He is also the visionary founder of the LUCG Wikimedia Community, where he actively promotes the principles of open knowledge and the Wikimedia platform. Under his leadership, the community serves as a hub for like-minded individuals passionate about sharing information and supporting the Wikimedia mission in Lakeside University College, Ghana. He takes the lead as the Project Lead for the Wiki Club in Ghanaian Schools Project. Through this initiative, he empowers learners to access and contribute to the wealth of knowledge available on Wikimedia platforms. His dedication to education and mentorship is evident in the impact of this project.

Sunkanmi12 is driven by a profound passion for open knowledge. He believes in the power of freely accessible information to transform lives and communities. In addition to his dedication to open knowledge, he is a committed mentor, eager to guide and inspire the next generation of Wikimedia enthusiasts. He also finds purpose in promoting peace, recognizing that a harmonious world is essential for the growth of knowledge and humanity.

Yvonne Darko

Yvonne began actively editing Wikipedia in 2019. Her username is Naa2Darkoa. After her introduction to English Wikipedia she has expanded her editing to Twi Wikipedia and Wikidata. She,thus, also contributes to the activities of the Wikimedians of Twi Language community. Yvonne has an affinity for WikiCommons and enjoys assisting new editors get involved in WikiLovesAfrica projects.

Yvonne is a pharmacist by profession. She has both a Bachelor of Pharmacy and is studying for a Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) degree from the University of Ghana, School of Pharmacy. Professionally she is interested in the areas of Female reproductive health and Assisted Reproduction.

Yvonne has an interest in open source technology. As a result she is also a member of Linux Accra User Group and has held the position of Project Lead for a Software Freedom Day celebration by the community. She also is an editor and contributor on OpenStreetMap (OSM). Yvonne is also a member of OpenStreetMap Ghana.

Gabriel Joe Amuzu

Gabriel holds a professional diploma in Computer Network Desktop Administrator (NIIT GHANA), Hardware Technician Certificate from Towers Computers Ghana. He is am an educationist, computer hardware technician, a photographer and a business man. Gabriel loves to educate people. Aside all, he also loves taking pictures, He contribute pictures and videos to Wikimedia Commons. He is the current Photographer for GOI Foundation. In his words, Gabriel writes, "I am very happy being part of these group of vibrant young men and women. I am happy to join them in making educating and empowering people my main goal".

Abigail Darko

Abigail, as known as Amoaniwaa on Wikipedia and its sister projects was first introduced to Wikipedia in 2019 through a Linux open source community. Since joining in 2019, she has dedicated her efforts to enhancing the quality of articles and promoting knowledge dissemination on Wikipedia and its sister projects. As an avid supporter of open knowledge, she proudly serves as a facilitator in the Global Open Initiative Foundation. She has been facilitating trainings in both English and Twi languages in Ghana.

In her role as a facilitator at the Global Open Initiative Foundation, she has had the privilege of working with a diverse group of individuals in and outside academia who share a common commitment to open knowledge. Whether organizing events, fostering collaboration, or supporting initiatives that promote free access to information, she is dedicated to advancing the Wikimedia movement's principles

Valentine Badu

Valentine Badu, known by his real name on Wikimedia platforms, is a multi-talented individual with a diverse background. His educational journey includes a certificate in Banking and Finance from Wisconsin, a certificate in theology from Presbyterian College, and a career as a Life Planner at Enterprise Life Insurance. Beyond his professional achievements, Valentine is deeply committed to enriching the Wikimedia community and the Twi language.

Valentine Badu's life is a testament to his commitment to serving others in various capacities. He values the importance of knowledge sharing and the preservation of his native Twi language. He is a multilingual person who creates and edits content in the native languages Nzema and Twi. His dedication as a Life Planner, pastor, and community leader showcases his passion for helping individuals plan for their future, both financially and spiritually. His involvement in the Wikimedia community, both as a contributor and a community leader, demonstrates his commitment to making knowledge accessible to all, and his role as a jury member underscores his dedication to maintaining quality standards in content creation.

Valentine Badu's life is certainly a testament to his allegiance to serve others in various ways and due to this, he also shows a keen interest in politics and is serving as an electoral chairman at Burma Camp under the La Dadekotopon electoral area administering to the New Patriotic Party. Valentine Badu acknowledges the sharing of open knowledge, he arranges concurrently with individuals as he has a positive impact on the life of an individual in the space of open knowledge through his excellent communication and penmanship skills to encourage individuals about volunteerism and how they can involved themselves in the project of Wikipedia and other sister platforms and the opportunities that are in the Wikipedia fraternities. Valentine Badu holds a lot of positions and serves diligently, this demonstrates how dedicated he is to his assigned duties as a superintendent. He is the chaplain to the Young Adult Fellowship (YAF) for the Abeka District in the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, he makes it infallible that knowledge is accessible to individuals and also has a fascination with training individuals to create and edit content in Wikipedia world.

Warmglow

Contributes primarily to Wikidata, Wikipedia and Wikicommons. Occasionally Wikisource and Wikivoyage. With a deep-rooted passion for volunteerism and community service. Motivation is driven by a strong, service-oriented, making volunteer work an essential part of the commitment to uplifting others. Years of dedicated volunteer experience have cultivated the skills to navigate complex responsibilities, fostering an ability to not only hold oneself accountable but also inspire positive change within the community. As a team member, actively contributes by reviewing proposal drafts and engaging in collaborative meetings both before and after project launches, ensuring thorough preparation and follow-through.

Franklin Oduro

Franklin is a Software engineer. He graduated in 2016 with a diploma in mechanical engineering and now pursuing a degree in Information technology. He loves to volunteer and teach people about science, technology, engineering, and math. He was a volunteer with TechLeads and also a facilitator for the Global code summer programing Bootcamp in Ghana.

He has helped train people during Wikimedia foundation events in Ghana. Franklin currently works closely with Zita as a facilitator of most of the projects run by the GOI Foundation

Advisory Board

Gereon Kalkuhl
Greg McVerry

Gereon Kalkuhl

Gereon is a translator and interpreter from Ennepetal, Germany. He is also a Wikipedian since 2006, has written more than 1600 Wikipedia articles and has more than 140,000 edits on Wikimedia projects. In the Wikipedia and Wikimedia movement he is administrator, press contact and juror and was also a Community Strategy Coordinator and Liaison for the Wikimedia Foundation. He has been schooling new Wikipedia users in Germany, South Africa, Rwanda, Belarus and North Macedonia – in libraries, on conferences, workshops and writing events.

As an actor he had small roles in 64 movies for cinema and television. As musician and songwriter he has given many concerts. In his voluntary engagement he was lay judge at a district court and is head of an election board.

Although each of the language versions of Wikipedia and its sister projects have their own policies and guidelines, his main focus is on the similarities rather than the differences of the projects. In his outreach he supports all participants of the Open Movement as they are all joined in spreading knowledge and liberating content.

Greg McVerry

Greg has been a Wikipedian since 2009. Most recently he has advocated for adding an h-feed,webmentions, a badging platform to Wikimedia. He infrequently contributes to articles on educational psychology and literacy.

Greg is an Associate Professor of Education at Southern Connecticut State University. Dr. McVerry, who earned his PhD in Educational Psychology as a Neag Fellow at the New Literacies Research Lab, University of Connecticut, studies the convergence of technology and literacy. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the Literacy Coalition of Greater New Haven.

Dr. McVerry is an active member of the IndieWeb community. He was recognized in 2016 by Mozilla Foundation, makers of Firefox, as one of 50 people protecting the Open Web. In 2006 Dr. McVerry was awarded the Connecticut Educator Computer Educator of the Year in 2006 for his work on Mythology and digital texts. He taught students to compare reading from print to pixel, start their own blogs, use threaded discussions, and think about website credibility. In 2015, Dr. McVerry was selected for the Joan Finn Junior Scholar Research Fellowship. Greg built a class called #QuestionTheWeb and also worked with Mozilla to help create and test Thimble.

Maha Bali

Maha Bali is an Associate Professor of Practice at the Center for Learning and Teaching at the American University in Cairo. She is an editor at Hybrid Pedagogy journal, and editorial board member of Teaching in Higher Education, Online Learning Journal, Learning, Media and Technology, International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education and Journal of Pedagogic Development. She has blogged for the Chronicle of Higher Education’s Prof Hacker, DMLCentral blogs and Al-Fanar media. Maha, is a co-founder of virtuallyconnecting.org and co-facilitator of Equity Unbound. She is also a former International Director of Digital Pedagogy Lab. Maha was the ninth person interviewed on the Leaders and Legends of Online Learning podcast and she was featured alongside 15 amazing women of the open movement in the UnCommon Women 2018 Coloring Book. Learnaholic, writeaholic and passionate open and connected educator, who tweets a lot pretty somes up the person Maha Bali.

Nate Angell

Nate is an evangelist who connects people, ideas, and technologies to make things better. He has worked across a wide variety of public and private institutions, focusing on community development, digital communications, meaningful education, open technologies, and sustainable growth. Nate studied, taught, and researched topics in film, television, and digital media at Brown University, and the history and literature of Latin America at Columbia University.

Founders

Mohammed Sadat Abdulai
Zita Ursula Zage
Sadik Shahadu (Communications Manager)

Mohammed Sadat Abdulai

Mohammed is co-founder of the Global Open Initiative, who is now serving the Foundation as an Advisory Board member. He has contributed to Wikimedia projects as User:Masssly for the past 13 years, and has been involved in various structure groups of the Wikimedia Foundation, including the Wikimedia Foundation Board Election committee, Project Grants committee, WikidataCon 2017 Program committee, Wikimedia Foundation Communications committee, Small Wiki Toolkits project, co-editor of the Wikimedia Research Newsletter, and member of the Wikimedia Volunteer Response Team.

Mohammed worked as an intern with the Community Resources team of the Wikimedia Foundation between 2015 and 2016. Before that, he participated as lead researcher for the Wikidata Human Gender Indicators project that automated the production and graphing of statistics about gender diversity on the different language Wikipedias. Mohammed is the Technical Editor for WikiJournal User Group. He was the West Africa Regional Ambassador for Art+Feminism from 2017 until joining the campaign as one of its co-leads in 2019.

Mohammed's background is in Statistics and Computer Science. He has worked as a network administrator and taught courses in statistics at the School of Engineering of Madina Institute of Science and Technology. He speaks fluent English, Hausa, Dagbani, Akan and beginner level Arabic, and French.

💌 Contact

On my talk page on Wikipedia
By email: msabdulaigoifoundation.org
On Phabricator: Masssly
On Telegram / Twitter: @masssly

Zita Ursula Zage

Zita is an open advocate and tech enthusiast. She is passionate about volunteerism and and bridging the digital gender gap . She has a background in Information Technology.

She has 7 years of experience in the Open Movement and tech industry. Zita is the co-founder of the Global Open Initiative. Zita worked as a front-end developer for six years. She authored a book titled the Road to Discovery and served as the Anglophone Regional Ambassador for Art and Feminism.

Sadik Shahadu

Sadik is a project manager, a researcher, and a digital marketing strategist with strong internet industry experience. He’s passionate about open education, open data, and open technology. He’s also a Mozilla Open Leaders X fellow and a MozFest wrangler.

My strengths are my interpersonal communication skills and my ability to work with people from diverse backgrounds.

I am interested in working with indigenous languages communities, and always happy to discuss how we can bridge the gender gap on Wikipedia and the digital divide across Africa. I am a Co-founder of Global Open Initiative and Dagbani Wikimedians.

Global Open Initiative
(GOI Foundation)
Contact: www.goifoundation.org info@goifoundation.org +233(0)207792629 Skype WhatsApp Telegram Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Instagram YouTube Slack Mailing List