Talk:Hablon User Group

Affiliations Committee resolution

Hi @DNdubane (WMF): and @Kirill Lokshin:, for transparency, kindly post your decision about our application in this talk page. Thanks in advance. --Jojit (talk) 11:21, 23 October 2019 (UTC)

@DNdubane (WMF): and @Kirill Lokshin: Kindly also provide us with the link of the Affcom resolution declining our application as a User Group. Thanks in advance. --Jojit (talk) 00:15, 25 October 2019 (UTC)

Jojit fb, please find a copy of the decision provided to your group below:

I regret to inform you that, after considerable deliberation, the Affiliations Committee has decided not to recognize the Hablon User Group of Wikimedians in the Philippines as a Wikimedia User Group.

As you know, Wikimedia affiliates are generally permitted to operate in overlapping geographic and thematic spaces; however, in cases where affiliates intend to operate in an overlapping space, it is the responsibility of the Affiliations Committee to assess the potential for conflict, and to strike a balance between encouraging the development of new affiliates and limiting the risk to existing affiliates and the Wikimedia movement as a whole. Proposed affiliates that intend to operate in an overlapping space are required to articulate a clear and convincing rationale for why their work cannot be supported through the existing affiliates in that space, as well as a plan for how they will peacefully coexist with those existing affiliates. Existing affiliates operating in a geographic or thematic space do not have the authority to veto new affiliates, but their concerns are taken into consideration by the Affiliations Committee when assessing new affiliate applications.

As stated in your application, the Hablon User Group of Wikimedians in the Philippines intends to operate in a geographic space that overlaps with other existing affiliates, including the PhilWiki User Group. At this time, you have not articulated a clear and convincing rationale for why your work cannot be supported through those existing affiliates, and consequently the risks and costs associated with recognizing an additional affiliate in this space have not been adequately mitigated.

Please keep in mind that our decision is based solely on concerns related to the Wikimedia affiliate ecosystem, and is not intended to reflect on your work as volunteers in the global Wikimedia movement. We deeply value your contributions to our shared mission, and encourage you to work with existing Wikimedia affiliates to support and promote your efforts.

Regards,
Kirill Lokshin
Chair, Affiliations Committee

The Affiliations Committee does not publish its resolutions concerning declined applications, and consequently no link will be provided. Kirill Lokshin (talk) 14:40, 4 November 2019 (UTC)

Thanks for your reply. Despite the outcome of our application, we decided to continue as a user group although an unaffiliated one. --Jojit (talk) 01:19, 6 November 2019 (UTC)

Notification from AffCom

Hello,

I'm writing to you on behalf of the Affiliation Committee regarding the use of the "User Group" title and the Wikimedia Foundation's trademarks (Logos and etc.) by your group at events and meta without the Foundation's permission and without AffCom's recognition of your group. We strongly recommend ceasing this practice and removing Wikimedia Foundation trademarks from meta and all social media channels of your group.

Please note that if you continue to use WMF trademarks without permission, this might affect any future submission from the group for recognition.

We expect you take the necessary steps to immediately rectify the questionable information.

Kindly,

Mehman

Vice-Chair, AffCom

--Mehman 97 23:47, 22 January 2021 (UTC)

@Mehman97: I am not a member of Hablon, but I would like to clarify what you mean by this message because I think this sounds very threatening to us unaffiliated Wikimedians. As far as I know, the Wikimedia Foundation does not have a trademark or a monopoly on the phrase "user group". Lots of tech groups use "user group" in their names (for example: w:Linux user group) and Hablon is not misrepresenting themselves that they are an actual affiliated user group of WMF (quote: "The Hablon User Group is not an affiliate of the Wikimedia Foundation but is a community of volunteers for the Wikimedia movement"). As for the second part, can you specify exactly how Hablon is using the WMF's trademarks in violation of the Trademark policy? As far as I can see, it seems that Hablon is using the marks as "nominative use" or as part of "community-focused events" or "outreach and recruiting new contributors" which are all allowed uses that community members do not need to seek permission for. —seav (talk) 07:54, 12 February 2021 (UTC)

thanks @Seav: --Billie bb (talk) 12:14, 15 June 2021 (UTC)

@Mehman97, Rosiestep, MKaur (WMF), CRoslof (WMF), Jrogers (WMF), Slaporte (WMF), and Asaf (WMF):

Hi AffCom,

In 2019, when our group's application for user group was declined by the Affiliation Committee (AffCom), we were not informed by the same committee or anyone in the Wikimedia movement that we were no longer allowed to use the term "user group" in our name, the community logo, and the Wikimedia trademarks. Furthermore, we have not read in any document pertaining to the application for user group that a group which recognition was declined could no longer use the term "user group" or the community logo or the Wikimedia trademarks. In addition, we use the term "user group" to distinguish our group from the Wikimedia Foundation and we believe that the said term is generic which pertains to group of individuals with the same interests. Likewise, we mention in the section "Who we are" in our group's metapage that our group "is not an affiliate of the Wikimedia Foundation but is a community of volunteers for the Wikimedia movement" so we never mislead anyone into thinking that we are an affiliate. We have been using the community logo because it is free and no one owns it as a trademark as stated in Section 3.4 of the Wikimedia trademark policy. In terms of the Wikimedia trademarks, we have been using it in our edit-a-thons and presentations to promote and improve Wikipedia and its sister projects which is in accordance with Section 3 of the Wikimedia trademark policy.

Therefore, when we read your notice in January 2021 in our metapage with its threatening tone, we felt harassed because the choice of words and tone indicated that the activities we did to promote and improve Wikipedia and its sister projects were wrong and that we were not allowed to use the Wikimedia trademarks in our Wikipedia-related activities because we were not an affiliate.

To get a better perspective on the issues that you mentioned in your January 2021 notice, we consulted the Legal Department of the Wikimedia Foundation on the use of the term "user group", the community logo, and the Wikimedia trademarks by a group which application for a user group has been denied. They said that in the Wikimedia movement, the use of the term "user group" and the community logo by an unrecognized group created confusion. However, they also said that they thought that there was no document prohibiting an unrecognized group from using the term "user group" and the community logo. Likewise, they mentioned that we were welcome to use the Wikimedia trademarks in our activities such as edit-a-thons as described in the trademark policy regardless of our group's status. However, they indicated that they were unlikely to grant us permission for "special uses that require permission" as described in Section 4 of the policy that would contribute to confusion regarding our group's affiliation status. "Special uses that require permission" include photo contests, GLAM-Wiki initiatives, hosting a public event or a conference, publications. These are activities which our group has not undertaken. We participated in conferences to talk about Wikipedia and the Wikimedia movement and we were able to contribute an article about Wikipedia in a journal published by an educational institution which were activities that are described in Section 3 of the Wikimedia trademark policy.

Our group believes in the Wikimedia vision - "Imagine a world in which every single human being can freely share in the sum of all knowledge. That’s our commitment." That is also our group's commitment.

--Billie bb (talk) 12:14, 15 June 2021 (UTC)

We write in response to your concerns that as unaffiliated Wikimedians, you feel unfairly targeted and harassed by our request to cease using the title “User Group” and Wikimedia Foundation logos. We are sorry you feel this way and would like to note that we appreciate your work and commitment to the Wikimedia vision. However, it is the role of the Affiliations Committee to work with affiliates across the world to both provide assistance, as well as to ensure compliance. In this we are guided by the Wikimedia Foundation legal department.

The phrase ‘user group’ is, as you point out, widely used outside the Wikimedia movement. However, within the movement the phrase ‘User Group’, carries a very specific meaning that indicates an official status and confers a range of privileges. Within this very specific context, it is not appropriate for you to adopt the phrase in your title.

Further, as previously advised, as your group is not recognised as an affiliate, you are not able to use the trademarks of the Wikimedia Foundation. Interested groups that have not received recognition do not have the right to behave and work like recognized affiliates. Please see section 1.5 of FAQ’s here. We hope this clarifies your status. Kind regards, AffCom Bunty Avieson (talk) 03:39, 29 July 2021 (UTC)

Thank you for appreciating our work and commitment to the Wikimedia Vision.

As the Affiliations Committee, you have the prerogative to recommend whom to recognize to be an affiliate to the Wikimedia Foundation and we do not take it against you that our application was not approved. However, with your committee's disapproval of our application, we remain independent and outside of your jurisdiction. Likewise, it is neither in your purpose nor in your responsibilities to restrict and/or hinder unaffiliated volunteer groups in working towards the fulfillment of the Wikimedia vision and mission. Due to the inclusiveness and openness nature of the Wikimedia movement, everybody even the unaffiliated, is welcome and free to contribute to the movement including the outreach part of it.

Normally, since the Wikimedia trademarks are registered under the Wikimedia Foundation, nobody is allowed to use them except the Foundation. However, since they are the property of the Foundation, it can also delegate the use of them especially presumably to aid the Foundation in fulfilling its mission. That is why the affiliates can use the trademarks as it has been granted to them by the Foundation. But under certain conditions, the privilege to use the Wikimedia trademarks can also be granted outside the affiliate system as set forth in the Trademark Policy of the Wikimedia Foundation. As such, even the unaffiliated groups can use the Wikimedia Trademarks within the trademark policy. --JinJian (talk) 05:48, 7 November 2021 (UTC)

Invitation to join the UCoC Roundtable Discussions

You are invited to participate in the Roundtable Discussions about how to enforce the Universal Code of Conduct within the Wikimedia movement. There are two Zoom calls scheduled at 15 May and 29 May, both at 15:00-16.30 UTC. Please sign your name here if you are interested. Thank you! RamzyM (WMF) (talk) 21:03, 5 May 2021 (UTC)

Invitation to join the 12 June UCoC Roundtable discussion

Dear Wikimedians: you are invited to participate in the next Roundtable discussion on the Universal Code of Conduct (UCoC). The next iteration would be held on Saturday, 12 June 2021, on 05.00-06.30 UTC (see your local time here). The forum would discuss how to enforce the Code of Conduct across Wikimedia projects and communities. Should you have any question, please direct it to Ramzy Muliawan. See you there! MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 10:09, 3 June 2021 (UTC)

Universal Code of Conduct News – Issue 2

Universal Code of Conduct News
Issue 2, July 2021Read the full newsletter

---

Welcome to the second issue of Universal Code of Conduct News! This newsletter will help Wikimedians stay involved with the development of the new code and will distribute relevant news, research, and upcoming events related to the UCoC.

If you haven’t already, please remember to subscribe here if you would like to be notified about future editions of the newsletter, and also leave your username here if you’d like to be contacted to help with translations in the future.

• Enforcement Draft Guidelines Review - Initial meetings of the drafting committee have helped to connect and align key topics on enforcement, while highlighting prior research around existing processes and gaps within our movement. (continue reading)
• Targets of Harassment Research - To support the drafting committee, the Wikimedia Foundation has conducted a research project focused on experiences of harassment on Wikimedia projects. (continue reading)
• Functionaries’ Consultation - Since June, Functionaries from across the various wikis have been meeting to discuss what the future will look like in a global context with the UCoC. (continue reading)
• Roundtable Discussions - The UCoC facilitation team once again, hosted another roundtable discussion, this time for Korean-speaking community members and participants of other ESEAP projects to discuss the enforcement of the UCoC. (continue reading)
• Early Adoption of UCoC by Communities - Since its ratification by the Board in February 2021, situations whereby UCoC is being adopted and applied within the Wikimedia community has grown. (continue reading)
• New Timeline for the Interim Trust & Safety Case Review Committee - The CRC was originally expected to conclude by July 1. However, with the UCoC now expected to be in development until December, the timeline for the CRC has also changed. (continue reading)
• Wikimania - The UCoC team is planning to hold a moderated discussion featuring representatives across the movement during Wikimania 2021. It also plans to have a presence at the conference’s Community Village. (continue reading)
• Diff blogs - Check out the most recent publications about the UCoC on Wikimedia Diff blog. (continue reading)

Should you have any question regarding the UCoC, please direct it to the Movement Strategy & Governance facilitator for the ESEAP region, RamzyM (WMF).

-- MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 14:09, 14 July 2021 (UTC)

Call for Candidates for the Movement Charter Drafting Committee

Movement Strategy announces the Call for Candidates for the Movement Charter Drafting Committee. The Call opens August 2, 2021 and closes September 1, 2021.

The Committee is expected to represent diversity in the Movement. Diversity includes gender, language, geography, and experience. This comprises participation in projects, affiliates, and the Wikimedia Foundation.

English fluency is not required to become a member. If needed, translation and interpretation support is provided. Members will receive an allowance to offset participation costs. It is US$100 every two months.

We are looking for people who have some of the following skills:

• Know how to write collaboratively. (demonstrated experience is a plus)
• Are ready to find compromises.
• Focus on inclusion and diversity.
• Have knowledge of community consultations.
• Have intercultural communication experience.
• Have governance or organization experience in non-profits or communities.
• Have experience negotiating with different parties.

The Committee is expected to start with 15 people. If there are 20 or more candidates, a mixed election and selection process will happen. If there are 19 or fewer candidates, then the process of selection without election takes place.

Will you help move Wikimedia forward in this important role? Submit your candidacy starting from next week here. Please contact strategy2030wikimedia.org or Ramzy Muliawan, Movement Strategy and Governance facilitator for the ESEAP region, with questions.

-- MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 10:39, 30 July 2021 (UTC)

Delay of the 2021 WMF Board of Trustees election

Dear Wikimedians,

We are reaching out to you today regarding the 2021 Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees election. This election was due to open on August 4th. Due to some technical issues with SecurePoll, the election must be delayed by two weeks. This means we plan to launch the election on August 18th, which is the day after Wikimania concludes.

For information on the technical issues, you can see the Phabricator ticket.

We are truly sorry for this delay and hope that we will get back on schedule on August 18th. We are in touch with the Elections Committee and the candidates to coordinate next steps. We will update the Board election Talk page and Telegram channel as we know more.

-- MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 16:07, 3 August 2021 (UTC)

Voting for the WMF Board of Trustees election is now open

Voting for the 2021 Board of Trustees election is now open. Candidates from the community were asked to submit their candidacy. After a three week long Call for Candidates, there are 19 candidates for the 2021 election.

The Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees oversees the Wikimedia Foundation's operations. The Board wants to improve their competences and diversity as a team. They have shared the areas of expertise that they are hoping to cover with new trustees.

The Wikimedia movement has the opportunity to select candidates who have the qualities to best serve the needs of the movement for the next several years. The Board is expected to select the four most voted candidates to serve as trustees. This term starts in September and lasts for three years. Learn more about the Board of Trustees in this short video.

Vote now until August 31.

Below is some useful information about the election process.

Learn more about the candidates

Candidates from across the movement have submitted their candidatures. Learn about each candidate to inform your vote. The community submitted questions for the candidates to answer during the campaign. Candidates answered the list of community questions collated by the Elections Committee on Meta.

Vote

Voting for the 2021 Board of Trustees election opened on 18 August 2021 and closes on 31 August 2021. The Elections Committee chose Single Transferable Vote for the voting system. The benefit of this is voters can rank their choices in order of preference. Learn more about voting requirements, how to vote, and frequently asked questions about voting.

Please help in the selection of those people who best fit the needs of the movement at this time. Vote and spread the word so more people can vote for candidates. Those selected will help guide the Wikimedia Foundation and support the needs of the movement over the next few years.

Best,

The Elections Committee

-- MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 06:40, 18 August 2021 (UTC)

Universal Code of Conduct Draft Enforcement Guidelines review still needs your ideas and opinions

Hello, this is just a reminder that the Universal Code of Conduct Draft Enforcement Guidelines are open for review and comment. The Drafting Committee will start working on revisions and improvement in less than two weeks (October 17), so it is important that you give them your ideas and opinions soon!

There is now a short, simple version of the Draft Guidelines here to make your review easier. If possible, also help translate the short version into more languages!

We will also hold one last conversation hour on October 15, 2021 03:00 and 14:00 UTC.

On behalf of the Drafting Committee, much thanks to everyone who has given ideas so far. We hope to hear from more of you - the Guidelines will be much stronger if more opinions are included.

Best regards, RamzyM (WMF) 07:28, 6 October 2021 (UTC)

ESEAP Regional Education Meeting

Join us for the 1st ESEAP Regional Education Meeting on 27th November 2021 at 7:00 UTC.

We are using this as an opportunity to strengthen the EduWiki network, explore collaboration opportunities, and identify common practices or challenges that are faced by our community members in different regions of the world. Learn and share your projects, tools, or ideas with the education community in the ESEAP region.

We are excited to hear from these wonderful speakers:

Education activities in Indonesia - Dimas Hardijanto, Deputy Coordinator of Education Program of Wikimedia Indonesia

Education activities in Australia - Alex Lum, President of Wikimedia Australia

Education activities in Malaysia - Dody Ismoyo, Wikimedia Community User Group Malaysia

Education activities in the Philippines - Imelda Brazal, EWOC Community Specialist - ESEAP Region

Read more about this event here: ESEAP Regional Meeting You may join as a sharer by adding your own agenda or send an email to dangbrazal@gmail.com to be included in the participants list.

Thank you.

Best,

EduWiki Outreach Collaborators Community Specialists Team

MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 07:56, 23 November 2021 (UTC)

Closing the comment period for the Universal Code of Conduct Enforcement Draft Guidelines

Thank you for your continued comments and ideas on the Universal Code of Conduct enforcement guidelines. Your responses have helped to build a stronger Universal Code of Conduct.

If you have not already provided your comments, now is the time as the drafting committee has been meeting to update the enforcement guidelines. The drafting committee wants to consider all comments as they make their updates. Please submit any comments by the end of November. The Committee hopes to finish its revisions before the end of the year, and the revised guidelines will be published as soon as they have been completed.

The next steps for the Universal Code of Conduct include conversations about ratification of the enforcement guidelines. There will be a conversation about ratification on Nov 29.

The Wikimedia Foundation will make recommendations to the Board of Trustees about the ratification of the guidelines in December. The recommendations will inform the next steps in the Universal Code of Conduct process.

Best, RamzyM (WMF) 08:58, 26 November 2021 (UTC)

Upcoming Call for Feedback about the Board of Trustees elections

You can find this message translated into additional languages on Meta-wiki.

More languages • Please help translate to your language

The Board of Trustees is preparing a call for feedback about the upcoming Board Elections, from January 7 - February 10, 2022.

While details will be finalized the week before the call, we have confirmed at least two questions that will be asked during this call for feedback:

• What is the best way to ensure fair representation of emerging communities among the Board?

• What involvement should candidates have during the election?

While additional questions may be added, the Movement Strategy and Governance team wants to provide time for community members and affiliates to consider and prepare ideas on the confirmed questions before the call opens. We apologize for not having a complete list of questions at this time. The list of questions should only grow by one or two questions. The intention is to not overwhelm the community with requests, but provide notice and welcome feedback on these important questions.

Do you want to help organize local conversation during this Call?

Contact the Movement Strategy and Governance team on Meta, on Telegram, or via email at msgwikimedia.org.

Reach out if you have any questions or concerns. The Movement Strategy and Governance team will be minimally staffed until January 3. Please excuse any delayed response during this time. We also recognize some community members and affiliates are offline during the December holidays. We apologize if our message has reached you while you are on holiday.

Best,

Movement Strategy and Governance

RamzyM (WMF) (talk) 04:34, 27 December 2021 (UTC)

Introducing Let's Connect!

Dear Hablon User Group,

We hope this message finds you well and that you are in good spirits. We are the Let’s Connect working group - a team of movement contributors/organizers who are liaison representatives of 7/8 regions. We are connecting with you to see if you are interested in and/or know about the peer-to-peer program, Let’s Connect!

The program creates an open and safe learning space for any Wikimedian who is part of an organized group to share and learn different skills (organizational/interpersonal / grant related / learning & evaluation ...) with other peers to add value and contribute collectively to the community. The purpose is to further develop skills, share knowledge and promote human connections and mutual support between different groups and communities, in alignment with the Movement Strategy.

Every month, we host 2-3 live 2-hour learning clinics with interesting topics selected by our team and our interested sharers. Our live learning sessions have up to 4 interpreters translating the clinic for our participants. Our main languages are Spanish | Arabic | French | Portuguese. If there is a specific language you would like to see in the calls, we are happy to see how we can accommodate it.

Let’s Connect is directed at Wikimedians in all regions that are part of organized groups (this can range from a group of individuals that are not formally organized user groups, chapters and mission-aligned organizations). Please see our Meta page for more criteria. To participate as a sharer, you can register in this initial registration form where you can register your learning and sharing interests and state if you want to share your knowledge through Learning Clinics.

Below, you will find our team of 8 who are excited to meet with you if you are interested. Please email our team at letsconnect@wikimedia.org if you have any questions :) We look forward to hearing from you.

Best,
Anthony Diaz
The Let’s Connect Working Group

Kunokuno (talk) 12:08, 25 March 2024 (UTC)