WikiAdvocates/Programs
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Wikipedia Birthday Meet-UpLast January 15, we celebrated the 24th birthday of one of the world’s largest and most popular online encyclopedias. Since its creation in 2001, it has revolutionized the way users across the globe can access and share knowledge. Even before we became editors of Wikipedia, we had been active users of it during our student days. Our small gathering has also served as a space to remember the small beginnings of Wikipedia until this present time, where we are already involved in providing free access to the sum of all knowledge. Over the years, Wikipedia was able to create 60 million articles in different languages, including our very own Central Bikol and Tagalog languages. We are also proud to be part of the more than 200,000 active editors who collaborate in improving and safeguarding information online. As volunteers, we also celebrated our effort in making Wikipedia a tool for our education initiatives, providing free access to information through our local community learning hub, adding information during natural disasters during our WikiForHumanRights campaign participation, and giving voice to marginalized voices through our SheSaid and Art+Feminism campaigns. In commemorating this milestone, our group will continue to invite people from diverse backgrounds and expertise to come together and help in building a shared resource that benefits not only our local community but also the entire Wikimedia community.
Bikol Wiktionary Birthday Meet-UpOn January 12, 2025, volunteers of Wiki Advocates Philippines celebrated Bikol Wiksyunaryo's 4th anniversary out of incubator. Bikol Wiksyunaryo is the Central Bikol Wiktionary project developed through the Hatch-A-Wiki project in 2021. The goal of this meet-up is to reach the 8000th word in Bikol Wiksyunaryo. Other volunteers joined the editathon via remote participation. Bikol Wiksyunaryo has 8,016 entries made through actual human contributions. During our development of this incubator project in 2019, we foresaw the advantage of having an accessible online dictionary for Central Bikol speakers and also for other language enthusiasts who will take an interest in our local language. There are numerous printed local dictionaries, but a digital version of it will provide easy access, and the possibility of collaborative work is higher. During previous edit-a-thons, we have realized that language is indeed dynamic and other words may be at risk of being lost or unused in conversations, and one way to preserve it is through developing the Central Bikol Wiktionary project. Every year, we opted to add more vocabularies, provide interlinks to each entry, and add audio pronunciations as guides. As we moved forward, we also planned to take language preservation initiatives to other Bikol languages, such as the Rinconada language, and conduct research on the Inagta Partido language with the help of Language Revitalization Toolkit of Wikitongues. For the next phase of our program, we are currently cleaning up word entries and the interface as we are set to create the online Central Bikol Wiktionary application powered through Kiwix.
WAP Year-End Meeting and EvaluationOn December 17, 2024, Wiki Advocates Philippines held its annual Year-End Meeting and Evaluation at the learning hub. This event served as a platform to review the accomplishments of the past year and to plan for future initiatives. The atmosphere was one of positive reflection and anticipation for upcoming projects. The meeting was attended by the organization's members and volunteers, whose dedication forms the core of Wiki Advocates Philippines. Ms. Imelda Brazal formally welcomed the attendees and acknowledged their significant contributions to the growth and success of the organization. The shared experience fostered a sense of community among the participants. In recognition of their efforts and significant contributions throughout the year, each member and volunteer received a token of appreciation. The Year-End Meeting and Evaluation underscored the collective strength and commitment within Wiki Advocates Philippines, providing a foundation for continued progress and shared objectives in the future.
WikiForHumanRights Philippines x International Human Rights Day 2024On December 7, 2024, Wiki Advocates Philippines proudly joined International Human Rights Day by organizing a community outreach event at Streat Park Pasacao. This initiative was part of our ongoing WikiForHumanRights campaign, and our goal was to bring greater awareness of fundamental human rights principles to the local community. Volunteers from Naga City joined our local members, and together, we kicked off the event with registration starting at 3:00 PM. The afternoon unfolded with a dynamic program that blended learning and fun. We organized interactive games designed to engage participants, and of course, we had prizes to give away! A particularly exciting part of the day was our "culinary bingo." Participants received bingo cards that could be exchanged for delicious street food at six stalls we had rented. This was our way of offering a unique and enjoyable community dining experience. Beyond the entertainment, our core mission was to promote a deeper understanding of essential human rights, especially among the many students who attended. To do this, our volunteers engaged in one-on-one interviews with participants. We initiated conversations to gauge their existing knowledge of human rights and to hear about their personal experiences in exercising these rights. Through this initiative, Wiki Advocates Philippines aimed to cultivate a wider public understanding of the inherent right of every individual, regardless of their socioeconomic background, to pursue the life they choose. We, as organizers, also recognized the immense value of this event in strengthening the bonds within our community and in fostering the development of social skills among both our dedicated volunteers and the enthusiastic participants.
Wikidata Day Philippines 2024In a spirit of solidarity with the global community of Wikidata editors, Wiki Advocates Philippines organized a five-day celebration marking Wikidata's 12th anniversary, which took place from October 26th to November 3rd, 2024. Our learning hub transformed into a vibrant center of activity, hosting a diverse program designed for everyone interested in Wikidata. This included dedicated Wikidata editing sessions for both our seasoned contributors and those just starting out, introductory training sessions to welcome newcomers to the world of structured data, explorations into the fascinating possibilities of lexemes, and engaging, interactive games to keep the energy high. We were thrilled to receive support for this celebration from Wikimedia Deutschland, a testament to their dedication to empowering local communities and affiliates in their anniversary observances. The culmination of our five-day event was a special recognition ceremony held on the final day. During this ceremony, we proudly acknowledged the valuable contributions of each volunteer to our Wikidata edit-a-thon through the presentation of certificates and well-deserved cash prizes. This intensive period of editing proved to be incredibly productive. Not only did we significantly expand the volume of data accessible across various Wiki projects, but we also served the crucial purpose of preserving linguistic diversity and our local heritage by actively adding lexemes into Wikidata. This was a meaningful way for us to contribute to the global knowledge base while also celebrating the power and potential of Wikidata.
Community Support after TS Kristine PHFollowing the landfall of Tropical Cyclone Kristine in the Philippines on October 22, 2024, significant flooding impacted numerous areas within the Bicol Region, including Naga City, Legazpi City, Sorsogon City, and the provinces of Camarines Sur, Camarines Norte, Albay, Catanduanes, Sorsogon, and Masbate, among others. [1] The primary route connecting San Fernando to Naga City was rendered impassable due to the elevated water levels, leaving many travelers in need of support. In response to the widespread disruption, volunteers from Wiki Advocates Philippines mobilized to provide assistance and helped us prepare meal packs and bottled water for stranded passengers in San Fernando, Camarines Sur. We may not be able to provide food for everyone, but at least maybe 1% of the stranded passengers received 250 water bottles and 150 food packs, enough to temporarily satisfy their hunger and worries. Because of this unexpected event, our learning hub temporarily closed, and the upcoming event, such as the preparation for the celebration of Wikidata's birthday, was canceled. In this situation, the life and time of the volunteer to their family is more important than any other activities. Hence, in this kind of hardship, volunteerism is more needed, and we should help one another to start a new beginning after the disaster.
Art+Feminism Philippines Information Session
SheSaid Philippines 2024
WAP Virtual Wikimania 2024On August 12, 2024, Wiki Advocates Philippines virtually participated in the Wikimania 2024 celebration at their designated learning hub. This event served as an occasion to acknowledge the dedication and significant contributions of the organization's members. Wikimania 2024, the annual global conference for the Wikimedia movement, was held in Katowice, Poland. The conference featured presentations encompassing Wikimedia projects, other wikis, free/open-source software, free knowledge, and free content, alongside discussions on the associated social and technical dimensions. This global event is commemorated annually worldwide, with Wiki Advocates Philippines consistently gathering at their learning hub to partake in the virtual proceedings. Notably, during the preceding Wikimania 2023 held in Singapore, two volunteers from Wiki Advocates Philippines were granted full scholarships of the conference, while three additional members attended through self-funding. Meanwhile, the rest of our team in the Philippines also joined the global celebration remotely. These types of events are invaluable as they allow all our volunteers to connect more deeply with the wider Wikimedia movement.
WPWP Campaign in the Philippines 2024Wiki Advocates Philippines successfully conducted a month-long Wikipedia Pages Wanting Photos (WPWP) edit-a-thon campaign in September 2024, specifically from September 6th to September 30th. The primary objective of this initiative was to enrich the Tagalog and Bicol Central Wikiprojects on Wikiquote by incorporating images into articles lacking them. Volunteers were invited to contribute at our learning center at their convenience. The campaign yielded significant results, with a total of 1,112 edits made across five Wikimedia projects, leading to the enhancement of 1,031 pages. The contributions were distributed as follows: wikiquote (835), wiktionary (201), wikipedia (32), tl.wikiquote.org (27), and bcl. wikiquote. org(6) This annual WPWP campaign is designed to improve various Wikipedia pages by addressing the issue of missing photographs. By integrating visual aids, we aim to enhance the accessibility and comprehensibility of information for users. In conjunction with this campaign, we also commemorated the second anniversary Wikikawikaan [2], the Tagalog version of Wikiquote. This project focuses on curating quotes and information about the lives of notable individuals in history, politics, religion, and literature. The success of this event, largely attributed to the diligent efforts of student volunteers, emphasizes their commitment to contributing to such projects alongside their academic responsibilities.
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