Wiki Loves X campaigns
Wiki Loves X is general format for naming various sorts of Wikimedia community outreach campaigns. In general, the campaigns share a few clear characteristics:
- Campaign: a clearly marked period of activity, with a start and an end.
- Outreach: the campaign aims to engage a general audience (not a specialized community) to contribute to Wikimedia projects.
- Scope: there is a topical theme to the campaign, which is clearly defined.
- Specific: it is clear what specific data/media/knowledge the participants are asked to contribute.
In such campaigns, anyone who wishes to organize Wikimedia community events may call their campaign "Wiki Loves X", where X is an appropriate description of what knowledge participants are asked to contribute.
History
[edit]The first "Wiki Loves X" event was Wiki Loves Art on English Wikipedia in 2009, followed in 2010 by Wiki Loves Monuments, an international photo scavenger hunt to ask people worldwide to photograph heritage sites. From an organizational perspective, these campaigns set the precedent of using the word "Wiki" to describe Wikimedia community projects and also established the general model "Wiki Loves X" for community organized events. By using the term "Wiki" and designing their own logo, they branded the campaign and avoided any need to secure trademark permission for their outreach.
Trademarks and branding
[edit]"Wiki" is a general term for the wiki style of web application, and there are no trademark restrictions. "X" is a common symbol for any variable, and can mean anything a person wishes for it to mean or be replaced with anything. However, when you create a new project, please consider if it would be the most appropriate name, given the precedents.
For anyone who wishes to use the trademarks owned by the Wikimedia Foundation, including logos and words such as "Wikipedia" or "Wikimedia", please refer to the Trademark policy. Using such trademarks is often not part of a "Wiki Loves X" campaign.
"Wiki Loves X" campaigns historically have been grassroots community projects with no deep planning or formal affiliation with the Wikimedia Foundation or any Wikimedia movement affiliate.
Starting a Wiki Loves X campaign
[edit]Anyone can start a Wiki Loves X campaign at any time. One model for setting up a campaign is to follow guidelines for setting up WikiProjects, such as those at English Wikipedia's WikiProject Council.
There is no standard system or guidelines for managing or promoting Wiki Loves X events. For tutorials and some records of what has worked in the past, the "Learning Patterns" project at Grants:Learning patterns documents some outreach styles.
Common strategies for promoting any kind of outreach project on English Wikipedia include making a request at Mass message senders or the Geonotice notice to get a message to a new audience.
To add the campaign to the Wikimedia Commons mobile app, see their Github repository.
Resources
[edit]Examples
[edit]- Wiki Loves Africa
- Wiki Loves Love aka Wiki Loves Folklore
- Wiki Loves Classics 2019
- Wikipedia Loves Art
- Wiki Loves Bangla
- Wiki Loves Butterfly
- Wiki Loves Cultural Heritage
- Wiki Loves Earth on Commons, with http://wikilovesearth.org/
- Wiki Loves Fashion
- Wiki Loves Health Videos
- Wikipedia Loves Libraries
- Wiki Loves Monuments, with http://www.wikilovesmonuments.org/
- Wiki Loves Music
- Wiki Loves Manuscripts (WiLMa)
- Wiki Loves Pride
- Wiki Loves Renewables
- Wiki Loves Science
- Wiki Loves Sport
- Wiki Loves Children
- Wiki Loves Public Art with http://www.wikilovespublicart.com/
- Wiki loves (French) Translations
- Wiki Loves Scientists
- Wiki Loves Living Heritage
List of Wiki Loves X competitions
[edit]Please add any additional "Wiki Loves X" competitions you may be aware of to this list. Inclusion on this list helps support communications efforts by the Wikimedia Foundation, affiliates, and others within the movement. Thank you!
| Campaign name (Active in bold) |
Target project(s) | Dates | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wiki Loves Africa | Wikimedia Commons | March–April | Active as of 2024 | |
| Wiki Loves Art | Central Bikol Wikipedia | Active as of 2023 | ||
| Wiki Loves Bangla | Wikimedia Commons | January–February | Active as of 2024 | External website |
| Wiki Loves Butterfly | Wikimedia Commons | |||
| Wiki Loves Children | Bengali and English Wikipedias and Wikibooks | Active as of 2022 | ||
| Wiki Loves Classics | Wikimedia Commons | September | Inactive as of 2021 | |
| Wiki Loves Cultural Heritage | Wikimedia Commons | Inactive as of 2013 | ||
| Wiki Loves Earth | Wikimedia Commons | May–July | Active as of 2023 | External website |
| Wiki Loves Folklore | Wikimedia Commons | February | Active as of 2023 | |
| Wiki Loves (French) Translations | French Wikipedia | November | Inactive as of 2017 | |
| Wiki Loves Monuments | Wikimedia Commons | September–October | Active as of 2023 | External website |
| Wiki Loves Music | German Wikipedia | September | Inactive as of 2022 | |
| Wiki Loves Music | Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese Wikipedias | May–June | Inactive as of 2019 | |
| Wiki Loves Onam | Multiple Wikis | August-October | Active as of 2023 | |
| Wiki Loves Public Art | Wikimedia Commons | May | Inactive as of 2014 | |
| Wiki Loves Pride | Multiple | June and October | Active as of 2023 | |
| Wiki Loves Renewables | TBD | TBD | Inactive as of 2022 | |
| Wiki Loves Science | TBD | TBD | Inactive as of 2018 | |
| Wiki Loves Scientists | English Wikipedia | Ongoing | Active as of 2022 | External website driven |
| Wikipedia Loves Art | English Wikipedia | Various | Inactive as of 2016 | |
| Wiki Loves Muslim Academia | Multiple Wikis | January-February 2024 | Active |