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Wiki Loves Africa 2014

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THIS IS AN ARCHIVE PAGE.


Wiki Loves Africa (WLA) is an annual contest where people across Africa can contribute media about their environment on Wikimedia Commons for use on Wikipedia and other project websites of the Wikimedia Foundation. Wiki Loves Africa particularly encourages participants to contribute media (photographs, video and audio) that illustrate a specific theme for that year. Each year the theme changes and could include any such universal, visually rich and culturally specific topics (for example, markets, rites of passage, festivals, public art, cuisine, natural history, urbanity, daily life, notable persons, etc).

The theme for the 2014 photo contest will be Wiki Loves Africa Cuisine. This year's contest will seek to document in the form of various media, the diverse types of cuisines across the continent of Africa. The theme will encompass the "foods", "dishes", "crops", "husbandry", "culinary art", "cooking methods", "utensils", "food markets",traditional symbols and arts "festivals", "culinary events", "famine food" and any other issues related to cuisine on the African continent.

The project is a two-month competition which will start on the 1st October and end on the 30th November 2014.

The project will be run at the entire continental level. However, some specific actions (training, communication etc.) will be held in some countries with national organisers. The project will feature a contest to select the best media at the continental level, with a ceremony and prizes as deemed appropriate.

Please access our website here : Wiki Loves Africa Website (Internet Archive)

This project is possible due to funding from the Orange Foundation and the Wikimedia Foundation, via a PEG grant.

Proposals from countries that wish to participate in 2015

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The call for pictures and the contest will run in all African countries and beyond.

Participating Countries in 2014

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The call for pictures and the contest will run in all African countries and beyond.

In 2014, specific focus will be put on the following countries (referred to focus countries): South Africa, Tunisia, Egypt, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Uganda, Ethiopia and Malawi (check out teams here).
Please do not add the name of your country to this list. That list does not mean your country is not welcome to participate. That list is one that was approved by the WMF to receive specific support and in particular funds for the organization of local events as part of a grant request. But please feel free to add your country below and to get in touch with us so that we can feature your country in the right page

If you wish to get involved, please add your name in the space below

Brenda Wilkinson, South Africa


Guidelines for Participating Countries

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Hello, thank you for wishing to take part in this contest. We are so excited to have your country represented and your team working with us. Below are some actions to consider working on with your team. We really look forward to working with you on this project and getting some great results! May the best photo/video/audio win!

Here is some examples of the things you may do:

  • Let your community know about the contest. Your local community can include local Wikip/medians and aligned Open Movement members (enthusiasts from Creative Commons, Open Street Map, Open Data, OER, etc.). Relevant links to provide include WLA on Meta, WLA on Commons, wikilovesafrica.org, WLA on Twitter and WLA on Facebook.
  • Finalise your team and let us know about it.
  • Provide press contact: When you know who your press person is, put their name and contacts down on this page.
  • Help select the jury: suggest up to three judges from your country who might be interested in taking part in the international contest (perhaps a locally celebrated photographer, chef, filmmaker or journalist)
  • Take a look at the timeline here to have an idea of what happens where.
  • Look at the food categories for your country on Commons, this can give you an idea of what is already covered, and the kinds of content that needs to be covered. Here are some links:
  • Look for local partners: think of food-based organisations, cooking schools, food networks and festivals, and cultural groups who might be key partners in spreading the word or hosting events.
  • Decide on whether you wish to host a national round of judging and prizes - if you do, you will need to organise the judges and the prizes (we can give you guidance on how).
  • Think about the events, meet ups and training sessions that you can do with your community during the contest. Make sure everyone knows about it (and they are included in the press release).
  • Get together a list of media contacts in your country that you think will be interested in talking about the competition.
  • Participe to press releases: Help on crafting a press release template, adapt this for your country, and send it out to your media contacts. Other marketing and communication tools will be written and template created, we will share everything with you for you to adapt and translate.
  • Help us to identify the languages that are needed for the site notice (see a first list of language Wikipedias below)
  • Help us to translate the Site Notice into those languages (as well as other relevant texts)
  • Volunteer to help on OTRS to answer questions or comments made by participants (get in touch with us if you want to be a volunteer on OTRS)
  • other suggestions ?

Focus country support

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As explained above, in 2014, specific focus will be put on the following countries: South Africa, Tunisia, Egypt, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Uganda, Ethiopia and Malawi (the previous countries have been selected as part of a grant request approved by the Wikimedia Foundation).

To support your country's participation in the competition, we will supply the following.

  1. A dedicated space on the wikilovesafrica.org for you to talk about your country's involvement in the competition and provide event notices (pre- and post)
  2. We are setting up an FAQ to answer general enquiries and a competition support emails to answer any requests for info, help, complaining etc.
  3. There is a small amount of money allocated for events to take place in each focus country. Please send through your plan and budget (space, internet, food etc.) for these events to Isla isla{@}wikiafrica.net. It is a good idea to get partners to work with you on your events – the food network, a food school / training college / a food programme, etc.
  4. Some teams have requested a letter of accreditation for the team, that will help when approaching sponsors and partners to be involved. We can supply this. Please let us know if you need a letter like this.

There is a small budget allocated for each country for In-country communication and materials. Your team needs to decide what is appropriate for your country and context. For marketing and press, we will provide the following :

  1. A press release and faq for press (that you will need to localise for your country) and a list of talking points for you if the press contact you (end of september - early october) .
  2. The digital version of a leaflet presenting the project for local printing and distribution (you will have to determine how many prints and where you want to distribute it).
  3. The digital version simple A2 Poster for local printing and distribution.
  4. A guideline booklet (that may be on the wiki) for organisers (with in particular information on technical issues for upload sessions, categories and tags, useful tools for tracking, stats, reminders on licences...).
  5. The digital version of stickers, badges and bumper stickers (your team should decide what you need to print and how many).
  6. A simple t-shirt design (this is not essential given the small budget, but again, is up to your team to decide).
  7. Facebook has been set up - https://www.facebook.com/wikilovesafrica - please like this page so we can make you admins and you can post your country events to it.
  8. Twitter has been set up - http://twitter.com/WikiLovesAfrica - please follow and link your tweets about the competition to our handle.


Please let us know if there are other means of communication or channels you would like the competition to consider. We will need help translating the materials into Arabic, please contact Isla if anyone can help us with this.

Website and Commons

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The Wiki Loves Africa website has been created to allow for maximum accessibility, both by the range of local communities and by a global audience. The project’s website will be bi-lingual - featured in both English and French.

A page has been created on Commons to further organise ourselves : Wiki Loves Africa on Commons

Timeline

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The first contest takes place during the Kumusha Takes Wiki project (2014). The concept can support further opportunities to held Wikipedia editing session, workshop related to image upload on Wikimedia Commons, a mapping party and create contact point with a community of African innovators and launched during Wiki Indaba.

Note 1: some of the elements in the planning will be delayed given the later start of the project than expected. But the general idea hold...
Note 2: the development (or reskining) of a dedicated mobile application has been dropped due to time constraints

Due time Task Status
June
Pre-announcement at WikiIndaba
July
week 1 Finalise the creation of the grant application;
week 2 Submit grant application to WMF
Send out preliminary call for endorsement of grant and project from Wiki Indaba participants and other known Africa-based Wikipedians
week 3 Create a timeline for international and local teams
Begin to coordinate international partners (local teams)
week 4 Inform and request support from all possible parties, i.e. every local Wikimedia community or chapter, aligned organisation, etc..
August
week 1 Discuss Wiki Loves Africa at Wikimania, finalise expectations around the competition.
Begin search for additional international sponsors (contest or prizes).
Discuss with tech re-skinning existing WLM app for WLA and phases of possibility.
week 2 Follow up on tracking and tech needs; and ensure seamless cross usage.
week 3 Request country-specific banner alerts with CentralNotice / local site notice guardians
Alert and discuss with OTRS administrators the possibility of OTRS queues/ permissions flow.
Create task management and process system, ensure actions and requirements are acknowledged and agreed upon.
International partners: provide agreement with regards to minimum expectations and set achievable and checked targets.
Request list of potential jurors from participating countries.
Begin writing a manual for the participating county teams - posted in pdf and on Commons
Start to identify influential thought leaders and bloggers in each country and continentally. Each one contacted with information and request to take part.
week 4 Begin preparing the website with toolkits, materials, FAQs and other materials; Discuss and design promotional materials and goodies. Have all communication channels defined and running
Begin soft social media campaign
Create marketing materials, event, training and publicity materials.
Set delivery mechanisms, protocol for judging and judging criteria. Identify and clarify in documentation what is an acceptable entry, and what is not an acceptable entry.
Clarify all processes with partners, supply all links and materials for printing. Work with country teams to identify culinary, cuisine and other food-based organisations, networks, etc for distribution of information and materials.
Start working on a mobile application for taking and uploading pictures to Wikimedia Commons.
Design CentralNotice banners.
September
Week 1 Finalise identity, website template, marketing needs, branding opportunities, marketing campaign;
Translate all materials into French, Portuguese (optional), and Arabic (optional); Ask local teams to translate select materials to relevant local languages.
Re-confirm all obligations and expectations
Finalise short list of jurors and sign them up to the process.
Secure a list of media in each country for pending announcement send.
Finalise and brief a core team of pr/ media people, define communication channels, inform them about the work to come
Local teams to upload and finalise all documentation on local events and posted to Wikimedia Commons, Meta and Facebook
Get UploadWizard and CentralNotice translated to all languages and ready.
Week 2 Launch website
Test all materials; ensure all spokespeople in each country are briefed. Start the work on metrics and statistics
Preload first 4 weeks of social media campaign
Resolve any potential issues around OTRS and permissions.
Week 3 Test all technology and upload procedures on all devices.
Distribution of printed materials to sites - if needed.
Inform any sponsors (local and international) about all processes, provide them with the press release;
Week 4 Double check all technical systems on all formats and OS systems; double check with each country team; increase reach of social media
October
Week 1 project launch. monitor all coverage, continent wide. post pics of the first uploads to all social media. write articles, get articles placed. double check all tech and permissions.
Send out press releases to the media in each country (both international and local organiser teams) (do not send the press release before the site notice is up !). Answer all press and other related queries;
Place news alerts in all possible sections.
Launch CentralNotice
Week 2 Facilitate the voting system for international jury - use the first week’s batch to test the system, get feedback and fine tune it.
Week 3 Working on a mid-contest press release (local and continental);
Begin the work on the participants survey
Week 4 Contact all local teams, continue monitoring press and uploads, assisting with permissions, sharing content
November
Week 1 Send out the mid-contest press release to local and continental media. field all enquiries.
Update and increase the intensity of the social media campaign, work with local teams to make the continental team more relevant as the competition progresses.
Week 2 Finalise the exhibition logistics with each organising committee; Create schedule to ensure timeous delivery of printed exhibition.
Week 3
Week 4
December
Week 1 Send through final batch of images to jurors
Send out a participants survey; Send out organisers survey
Week 2 Deadline for the local juries to select Top 40 photos each (if applicable). Compile short list + favourites per country (to be decided).
Analysing the outcomes of the participants survey; compile the beginning of the project report; post the outcome of the survey to Meta
Week 3 Deadline for the international jury to select winners. Compile press release announcing winners. Have embargoed translations, blog posts and other media ready for publishing.
Week 4 Inform the winners
January The announcement of winners has been slightly delayed. Winners will be announced end of January 2015. Thank you for your patience.
Week 1 Announce winners and inform all entrants about the results of the contests.
Announce the winners to the media (local and international);
Publish progress report to Meta; ready the files for printing and digital send
Thank the members of the jury for their work (e-mail, official letter, etc.)
Week 2 Send out the awards to the winners - ensure they are received.
Call for suggestions for next theme.
Week 3 Ensure documentation of all coverage of all exhibition events; Compile continental press release and mentions list
Analyse contribution statistics (ongoing and during the contest) of contributors.
Week 4 Finalise report
February-March 2015
Finalise theme for 2015 contest. Write project proposal for funding for 2015 contest.
Do a 4 month contribution assessment (ongoing) of contributors.
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