Grants:TPS/Strainu/OSGEO Cluj

User name: Strainu
User location (country): Bucharest (Romania)
Event name: Free and open-source solutions for working with and representing geo-spatial data (short: OSGEO)
Event Web site: http://earth.unibuc.ro/osgeo (new page is added for each edition when the program is completed)
Event date(s): April 4-5, 2014, 09:00-20:00
Event location (city): Cluj-Napoca
Amount requested (remember to specify currency!): 325 - 365 EUR (USD 445 - 500)
Endorsements

Budget breakdown

Travel: 170-200 EUR^[1]
Accommodation: 45-50 EUR per night x 2 nights = 90-100 EUR^[2]
Meals: 10 EUR x 4 = 40 EUR^[3]
Incidentals (basically local transport): 25 EUR^[4]

Proposed Participation

I am a sysop and active Wikipedian on ro.wp and commons. I am also an organizer of Wiki Loves Monuments in Romania, making me the de facto maintainer of the Romanian historic monuments list used as a base for that contest. In OSGEO 2014 Cluj I will hold a 20' presentation about gathering, cleaning and populating the geo-spatial information (aka coordinates) about monuments in Wikipedia. I will also illustrate the other geo-spatial initiatives used in Wikipedia, such as Wikipedia World and others.

As a bonus, there might be an (yet unconfirmed) workshop about designing maps using Inkscape and GIMP, taught by a former participant in ro.wp. I am currently in discussions with him to illustrate the workshop by realizing maps that the Romanian community would require. If this workshop will happen, I will of course be attending and providing assistance and guidance to the participants.

Usual networking and outreach activities would take place - invitations to participate in specific projects, facilitating contacts within the community, etc.

Goal and Expected Impact

This is mainly an outreach event, as I'm hoping to make the audience (mostly geography students and teachers) aware that their niche domain is present on Wikipedia and that they can help further the coverage of the subject. By the end of the presentation, the audience should be aware that:

there are geographical initiatives within the Wikipedia/Wikimedia community that they can join no matter what their specific skills
there is a need for clean, reliable geographical data within the Historic Monuments project in particular, as well as Wikipedia in general

I'm sincerely hoping that at least a couple of participants will try to "get dirty" for the first time and edit Wikipedia. If we will be able to keep them on our side depends on the community at large. If the second workshop takes place, the number could be bigger and we will also get some usable material.

Notes

↑ Round-trip airline tickets. 170€ is the current price, 200€ is the price for tickets bought a week in advance.
↑ Maximum price for 3*** hotel, bought from the hotel website. If lower prices will be available using booking engines, I will use those
↑ Friday and Saturday lunch and dinner; breakfast is included in the hotel rate
↑ Taxi in Bucharest on departure, as I need to be at the airport before the public transport begins; public transport for the rest.

[1] Round-trip airline tickets. 170€ is the current price, 200€ is the price for tickets bought a week in advance.

[2] Maximum price for 3*** hotel, bought from the hotel website. If lower prices will be available using booking engines, I will use those

[3] Friday and Saturday lunch and dinner; breakfast is included in the hotel rate

[4] Taxi in Bucharest on departure, as I need to be at the airport before the public transport begins; public transport for the rest.

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