Wikimania 2022/Wiki Advocates Philippines/Report

Daphpb

What were your responsibilities as a volunteer at Wikimania 2022?

During the Wikimania 2022, I was assigned to be an organizer of this event. Honestly, it is tough to be an organizer, and I cannot imagine fulfilling my responsibilities in this position at first. I feel a lot of pressure and stress and overthink about this event's result because I hate disappointments. The responsibilities we had as an organizer were to make a program for 4 days, to list all the things that we needed to buy, to wrap the prizes, to print all the printed materials we needed for decorating, to list all the foods we needed to cook, to decorate and to make sure that everything in this event is organized.

Furthermore, aside from the responsibilities I listed above, we also need much patience as we encounter many struggles before, during, and after the event. One of those struggles is the weather. We have had an outdoor interactive game for the last two days of our event, and we needed good weather to play this because our materials are printed on nonwaterproof paper. However, because of my co-organizer's creativity, we managed this problem and successfully made it to the end.

What have you learned from the entire Wikimania 2022 activity?

The things that I have learned in the entire Wikimania 2022 activity is that celebrating Wikimania means celebrating all the free and open knowledge projects such as Wikiquote, wiktionary, wikipedia, etc. which are organized by volunteers.

Apart from this, I have learned how vital time management is to an organizer during this kind of activity. In my own perspective, time management is knowing those things that are needed to prioritize first in order to have a successful outcome in the available time you have. So, for me, time management is very vital during the implementation of this event because we need to be productive in order for us to accomplish things like planning, decoration making, and materials buying on time. We have 10 days of preparation and we need to adapt the time management because this event might fail if we are not going to prioritize those things that we needed to do first. I think we managed our time during this event because we were successful in this event although we encountered some problems.

What were your favorite Wikimania 2022 moments?

My favorite Wikimania 2022 moments are:

During the first day of Wikimania because I was assigned to be the organizer for the August 11, 2022 event. When Ma'am Imelda, Sir Anthony and my co-volunteers created a teamwork to successfully accomplish this event. I am so grateful to Ma'am Imelda and Sir Anthony because they helped me organize the venue, especially in setting up those gadgets needed for live streaming and for attending zoom meetings while implementing the activities as well. I am also thankful to my co-volunteers and co-organizer also because they helped me throughout the event from decorating to joining in interactive games that makes the event not boring which is the reason why the first day was successful.

Also, my second favorite Wikimania 2022 moment is during the Sierra's Cotta Resort trip when I experienced joining in the different interactive games because I won in 3 out of 4 games. I will never forget this because it is my first time winning 3 out of 4 games with the beautiful small notebook as prizes.

Lastly, the moment that we are coming back to Pasacao. I'm so relieved knowing that we are done in this event even though we have a lot of problems before and during the event and we as an organizers have a lot of shortcomings, I'm still happy that we overcame the challenges brought by this event during the process of preparation. The experience I have as an organizer is priceless, being organizer is not only about overcoming the pressure and stress, it is about learning how to be resourceful, creative and patient even through the worst times.

What challenges have you faced during Wikimania 2022?

The challenges I faced during Wikimania 2022 are:

First, my fear of public speaking. I am one of the organizers and so I need to facilitate the day I was assigned to. While planning for the flow of our activities, I'm so nervous about how I am going to deliver the flow of activities if I am so afraid of talking in front of other people. I asked for help from my co-organizer and luckily they agreed that they are the one to facilitate my games, for introducing each participant and for explaining short introductions about wikimania and Wiki Advocates PH.

Second, lack of materials for live streaming like gadgets, computers or laptops, cell phone stands, tripods etc.. I consider this as a challenge for me because I am the organizer for the first day of Wikimania and with these challenges, we cannot be able to do the live streaming and we cannot attend the zoom meeting which is the very important part of this event. Luckily, Ma'am Imelda saved me from having a failed day because she thinks of ways how we can overcome these challenges. Honestly, I am so stressed about this and even though the event is done already I'm still not complacent because we still have 3 days to accomplish before this event becomes truly successful.

Lastly, the stress and the way I overthink. When there's an activity or event like this, I easily feel stressed and there's nothing I can do about it. I also overthink to the point that everything that comes into my mind is all about negativity. I don't want to have this trait because this is the reason why I am not growing as a person. I can't build my self-confidence because I keep on reminding myself that I don't have it and I can't have it. Sometimes, I am trying to make myself grow in my own simple ways, but when I gradually learn to do it, someone will come and ruin it again. But, I am confident that Wiki Advocates Philippines, which is the organization that I am a member of right now, will help me and will be one of the keys for me to learn to overcome these challenges. I know it's not going to be easy but I am always willing to wait.

What realization did Wikimania 2022 provide you as a volunteer?

The realization that Wikimania 2022 provides me as a volunteer is that "Everything that is hard will be easy, if we are applying the essence of teamwork and unity."

This is my realization because personally I saw the teamwork and unity inside this organization especially for the recent 4-day event we had. Honestly, I can't organize if I will do it alone, it will be much harder for me to accomplish my task as an organizer if I am the only one who is working for it. Teamwork and unity is a gift of a member to the organization, it helps the organization to be strong and have some reason to keep going and grinding to achieve the goals and objectives which an organization has. Helping each other is something that an organization must have because it is an indication that we love what we do and we have the same goals that we wanted to pursue.

Danbarrameda

1. What were your responsibilities as a volunteer at Wikimania 2022?

During the pre-Wikimania 2022 event, I was designated as one of the five (5) volunteers assigned to be the organizer of Wiki Advocates Philippines' Wikimania 2022. Of course, it includes a responsibility to organize and implement such interactive games for the 4-day event. And I am also part of planning the programs, activities, foods, choosing a venue, listing of materials to buy, and the decorations for the 4-day event of this year's Wikimania. Also, my responsibility as a volunteer during the said event was to assist those participants who needed some help. Aside from that, I am also thankful because they trusted me to lay-out the program and other printed materials. And I am grateful for Ms. Bianca's creativity because our fantastic theme has come from her idea.

2. What have you learned from the entire Wikimania 2022 activity?

Some of the things I learned throughout the entire Wikimania 2022 were how to manage time well and always be prepared for unexpected changes during the events. In a particular scenario, the game I was preparing for the second day of the said event suddenly went on during the first day. Admittedly, I was shocked, which I shouldn't be because it is part of being an organizer to prepare for anything that might change during the event. But the most important thing is, with my co-organizer's help, we successfully ran/completed the activity assigned to me.

3. What were your favorite Wikimania 2022 moments?

My favorite Wikimania 2022 moments are:

When we’re already preparing everything we need, preparing swags and kits for fun games, making some layouts of programs and other necessary printed materials required in the planned activity, printing, and arranging everything to be organized.

And one of my favorite moments was when we did a dry run one day before the first day of the event. We had fun during the dry run, but we felt some stressful moments as we struggled to arrange all the furniture in its perfect place for the aforementioned event.

Ultimately, It includes when we were at Sierra's Cotta during the 3rd and 4th day; I had a lot of fun with the interactive games that happened that day; I enjoyed socializing with other participants and my co-volunteer while playing games like Wiki Play Station, Wiki-Fix, and Picksyunaryo.

4. What challenges have you faced during Wikimania 2022?

The challenge I wanted to highlight was how I was feeling afraid while we were preparing for the preparation. Owing to low self-confidence, I overthink that I will receive failure because it is expectedly to make unexpected mistakes before and during the event. After all, I don't know how to overcome the overthinking that usually happens to me. But luckily, the said event has successfully done with the help and cooperation of every one of us.

5. What realization did Wikimania 2022 provide you as a volunteer?

The realization that Wikimania 2022 has given me as a volunteer is to realize how we manage and behave can impact the event’s overall success. Because every one of us had worked together from the first day of preparation, did some initiatives and cooperation. Consequently, the event was indeed a success as a consequence of our hard work and dedication.

Sheanjean

1. What were your responsibilities as a volunteer at Wikimania 2022?

I worked as an organizer and also assisted during Wikimania 2022. As an organizer, I am part of the planning of the activities, choosing venues for the event, and creating materials that will be used for the activities. During the activities, I was also able to discuss a short description of Wiki Advocates Philippines on the opening day of Wikimania 2022.

2. What have you learned from the entire Wikimania 2022 activity?

Being an organizer and participant in Wikimania 2022 I learned a lot through the experience as an organizer because it was my first time organizing an event. It helps me to distinguish the things that must be prioritized or eliminated. It is also a great experience to know how to handle different people in an event.

3. What were your favorite Wikimania 2022 moments?

My favorite moment in Wikimania 2022 is watching the video presentation because it is such a great privilege to be able to see yourself in the video. Next, when I joined and played the games created by the organizer, I also enjoyed the performance of our guest performer. In conclusion, everything about Wikimania 2022 was spectacular.

4. What challenges have you faced during Wikimania 2022?

So far, preparation has become a big challenge for me due to my decision-making skills. You need to consider a lot of things when it comes to being an organizer. It's kind of stressful, but worth experiencing.

5. What realization did Wikimania 2022 provide you as a volunteer?

As a volunteer, I realized that this event became my first experience as an organizer assisting a big event. This helps me to gain more knowledge and experience that will help me as a student. This trip was also a good point because I can apply for it when I have my job in the near future. Overall, I’m grateful for all the good and not-so-good experiences I had in Wikimania 2022. It is still a great privilege to be a part of and a participant in this event.

Imelda

1. What were your responsibilities as a volunteer at Wikimania 2022?

I am part of the core organising committee of the Wiki Advocates Philippines In-person Wikimania event. I am also one of the presenters for a workshop on the Event Registration Tool currently being developed by the Wikimedia Campaign Product Team. On the last day of Wikimania, I also organized a small networking session to collect recommendations on how to further improve Central Notice and to also socialize the social fixes currently being proposed by the Campaign Programs Team.

2. What have you learned from the entire Wikimania 2022 activity?

I have learned to practice good faith in dealing with other new volunteers. Since I am assigned on the live streaming part for our local event, I learned on how to navigate streaming tools and organized a livestreaming event.

3. What were your favorite Wikimania 2022 moments?

It is always my favorite part when everyone else within the team is having a good time. The sessions involving games are the most memorable for me. Also during the watch parties, we were able to share and learn together.

4. What challenges have you faced during Wikimania 2022?

The event also helped me to work with a bigger organizing group this time. It is a challenge handling a bigger group with diverse talents, principles and overflowing ideas. The key to being able to handle a team like this is to be open and accepting of differences and giving a chance for everyone else to speak and work on what will be the best for the team in general. It was also a challenge mediating conflicts within the organizing team because it prolongs the tasks at hand and compromises the objectives of the event.

5. What realization did Wikimania 2022 provide you as a volunteer?

Roronoa Erica

What were your responsibilities as a volunteer at Wikimania 2022?

I'm one of the volunteers in the celebration of Wikimania 2022 but for some excuses, I got very busy the reason why I can't get the opportunity to be part of the organizers. But I can't afford to just attend without lending help so I did my best to help even in a simple way like cutting some puzzle pieces for the game purpose, inviting one of my cousins to be a participant, and make it sure that she'll attend the meeting. I believe that at least by inviting one person as a participant is like a puzzle that every single piece is a big step to complete the celebration.

What have you learned from the entire Wikimania 2022 activity?

The whole celebration was great and I gain so many lessons. From personal aspects and on how to get along with the new participants. I remembered the quote of Confucius "Don't do unto others what you don't want others to do unto you" It's a kinda personal thing and a lesson to remember. From some angle, I really confirmed that to work as a team is a different kind of level.

What were your favorite Wikimania 2022 moments?

The best moment for me is when Melissa runs wild and pins down the balloon just for us (our team) to win. It's a kind of satisfaction when someone that you have invited for some celebration is really having fun and enjoying the day without hesitation.

What challenges have you faced during Wikimania 2022?

However, it is not always a party to describe in every celebration because we can't control every little thing. Facing myself is the most challenging for me because of the mood swings that affect by weather, surroundings or people around me, and lastly myself. From day 1 to day 4 I remain a volunteer because that's how supposed to be. I can't act whatever crazy stuff I want because I must be able to do my best to not affect my organizer, co-volunteer, and especially the participants. But at the end of the day for me, I've done great because I got myself and treat the whole celebration as normal because challenges are always been coupled with our day.

What realization did Wikimania 2022 provide you as a volunteer?

Overall I realized that even if we have personal issues we should disregard it when working inside the organization because I join as a volunteer and no one can change that.

Even Barrameda

What were your responsibilities as a volunteer at Wikimania 2022?

As a volunteer during Wikimania 2022 my responsibilities are:

First, I have to make sure that I know those tasks that are assigned to me, on each day of this event. The second one is to help my co-volunteers in every situation that I know they needed help. The third one is we are responsible for each other, even though we are at the right age and we are aware of what we are doing, I believe that we are still responsible for each other, because we are involved in one organization only which is the Wiki Advocates Philippines that move together or moving as one. So, whatever they're going through during these 4-day events we are also affected by that so we need to help and look for each other. And the last one is my responsibility as a volunteer to be happy in every event we had in this organization so I can inspire others, especially those beginners to be happy and also encourage them to be editors and volunteers in Wiki Advocates Philippines.

What have you learned from the entire Wikimania 2022 activity?

The things that I have learned in the entire Wikimania 2022 activity is to always be ready and be prepared. Having plans will never make us the least, instead, it will make us ready and confident of what we can do to avoid ruining the plans we had especially in this kind of event. We don't know what will happen in the future, so we need to always have a plan b or even plan z if needed, so that no matter what circumstances we encountered like bad weather, we can still continue conducting our activities thoroughly. We also need to act professionally so we can reduce problems we might encounter in the future to make the event successful in the end.

What were your favorite Wikimania 2022 moments?

My favorite moment during Wikimania 2022 is when we were all in the swimming pool, maybe because of the smile I saw and the laughter I heard from the participants and my co-volunteers. I don't know but it makes me feel relieved seeing them happy which is making me happy too.

What challenges have you faced during Wikimania 2022?

I think, the challenges that I and my co-volunteers have faced during Wikimania 2022 are when it is day 3 of this event. The organizer for day 3 of Wikimania is about to implement an outdoor game but there's bad weather at that time which prevents the organizer from continuing the games she prepared. This is so frustrating because this might ruin this event, but luckily they find a way to continue playing the games.

Whatrealization did Wikimania 2022 provide you as a volunteer?

The realization that this Wikimania 2022 event has brought me was: We should not bring our personal problems to work, instead we need to act professionally for us to do our work productively. It might help each of us to prevent shortcomings and struggles in what we do as a worker or volunteer. This will not only benefit ourselves but it will benefit other people too.

YamPikit

What were your responsibilities as a volunteer at Wikimania 2022?

As a volunteer, my responsibilities are to help to prepare for that event and I also assist with clean-up as needed, especially at off-site activities and last is be a role model.

What have you learned from the entire Wikimania 2022 activity?

I learned that teamwork and trust are very important in a group because without that you will not win, As a volunteer, it is also necessary for us and my fellow volunteers to have unity, even though I am not the organizer, it still depends on us whether an event like Wikimania 2022 will be successful or not.

Yes, the Wikimania 2022 will be successful because of the efforts of all people behind this event.

What were your favorite Wikimania 2022 moments?

My favorite Wikimania 2022 moments was on the first day because on that day I saw that there was still unity and I can say that I enjoyed that day and of course, there were no problems so that's why that's that is my favorite Wikimania 2022 moments.

What challenges have you faced during Wikimania 2022?

Actually, I don't know what challenges I faced because I don't know the flow of the event because only the organizers know anything about it, actually, I don't know what challenges I faced because I don't know the flow of the event because only the organizers know anything about it.

What realization did Wikimania 2022 provide you as a volunteer?

Be responsible for anything, don't be selfish, and learn to socialize with other people not only your acquaintances. It also gives me the opportunity to boost my self-confidence to speak in front of the camera or to other people.

Kunokuno

What were your responsibilities as a volunteer at Wikimania 2022?

As an experienced Wikimedian, I have to lead the group's Wikimania 2022, especially requesting the Wikimania Grant and contacting the core organizer team. But, all the efforts of planning and implementation are carried out by my co-organizers since it happened to coincide with my day work and night class. I have also overseen the entirety of the program so it will be according to the objectives of this year's Wikimania and there was least to suggest and revise since my co-organizers are knowledgeable enough of what the purpose of the program is. I have also cooked local dishes for the group during the third day of the event, like Ginataang Manok, Natong, and Pork steak. We have tried to incorporate the spirit of Filipino fiesta into the Wikimania Festival. For the production of the presentation (Hatch-A-Wiki Project of Wiki Advocates Philippines), I was in constant conversation with our video editor as to the status of our video presentation. When the video was played on Pheedloop, I am on backstage to provide answers and comments from the viewers. We have at least reached a maximum of 80 viewers for our session. Also, I was tasked to provide the background of the project, the script, and the transition of videos in interviews. For the post-event, I was assigned to talk with the Wikimania evaluator to provide our feedback and suggestions.

What have you learned from the entire Wikimania 2022 activity?

There was a lot to learn from this year's Wikimania, especially from the presentations of other Wikimedia groups from other parts of the globe. But what I would treasure most is the learnings I have acquired during the 4-day event that I was with my fellow Wikimedians whom I also considered as a family now. Before, I felt that we were left out as a group and that we were only performing our tasks as Wikimedians in this remote part of the world and secluded from the rest of the community. If not for their appreciation for every little thing we've done for the community, I would continue to feel that way. Seeing that these new Wikimedians we've recruited are passionate about collaboration and free knowledge, I've been reminded of our bigger plans as a group. Back in 2019, we only started talking about gathering a small group of editors who would be editing an unnoticed Wikimedia project in an incubator, but only after 2 years, we have increased in number and were able to develop three Wikimedia projects in the incubator. This year's Wikimania was a celebration of all the persistent efforts we have done way back in 2019 and also of the new volunteers we have now that has helped us towards our goal.

What were your favorite Wikimania 2022 moments?

All of the events during the four days were worth keeping in memory and it's really hard to choose among them which is the best. It felt nostalgic actually, seeing the new Wikimedians being part of this event. I have seen myself when I was once a newbie in 2012 during an event at a local university where I don't have any idea what I had signed up for. The best thing I can keep maybe in those times they'd encountered minor conflicts but still continued despite their individual differences. The four-day event was not only meant for celebration but as a formation of these individuals into a full-pledged Wikimedian who's always open for collaboration and can receive criticisms from others. The packing of things for the last day of the event was also memorable, thinking that we'll be back to our normal lives with new learnings from the Wikimania experience.

What challenges have you faced during Wikimania 2022?

It was our first time presenting at the Wikimania event and even though it was a pre-recorded video, the preparation for it was a bit hard for us. Considering that English is almost our third language, the speakers needed to prepare a script beforehand and master it by heart. They are given guide questions weeks before the video production however since they are not used to speaking in front of a camera and speak in fluent English, we needed several takes before getting it perfect. For my part, I chose to use the Central Bikol language and it was a hard decision on my part since there would be a chance that the audiences may not entirely grasp what I am saying even with the aid of the subtitles. We have uploaded the transcript guide on our presentation page to provide guidance for the audience and hopefully, they were also able to check on it.

Admittedly, we were surprised by the number of viewers in Zoom during the local integration. As to our part, we were able to prepare the introductory remarks, the musical performance of the trumpet artist, and the acoustic band. It was in the Zoom meeting that we were not able to handle it well, since there were some viewers who have their mics on. The programming part was also problematic for us because the whole Wikimania program was published only days before the actual event. We were waiting for it to be finalized before we can decide on our final local schedule. We would like to view as many of the presentations that were shown on the program.

Another hindrance for actively participating in the sessions was the poor data connection on the venue that we rented. We have expected to have good internet reception at that venue but since the last two days were a rainy season here in our region, it may have affected the data connectivity. We have repeatedly tried to connect to the sessions and in lucky instances, we get the chance to watch some of the videos.