Wikimedia CEE Meeting 2024/Survey results

This page contains the results of a survey of Wikimedia CEE Conference participants after the conference in Istanbul in September 2024.

A total of 53 people took part in the survey, which is 27% of all conference participants.

Scholarship Process

The entire process of receiving a scholarship from the organizers to participate in the meeting, the registration process, as well as instructions for selecting delegates from affiliations and communities were described in detail at the conference registration page. This year, we used a single registration form for scholarship recipients and self-funded individuals to simplify the registration process and avoid misunderstandings. Affiliations and communities participating in the conference had to select their delegates, after which WMTR provided scholarships for these individuals to participate. After receiving feedback from conference participants (who received scholarships), we concluded that the process worked well.

Survey results:

Question	Agree	Disagree	Neither agree nor disagree
Was it easy to understand the scholarship application process?	32	3	4
The scholarship application was easy to complete	30	2	7
I was informed of my application status clearly and in a timely manner	32	1	7

Notes:

One of the survey participants noted that the ticket purchase through the new WMF contractor was unnecessarily tricky and confusing. Also, they didn't appreciate that they're not allowed to add a day at their own cost to visit the city.

Event venue and environment

The Wikimedia CEE Meeting 2024 took place at Müze Gazhane, located at the heart of the Kadıköy neighborhood on the Asian side of Istanbul.

70% of conference participants surveyed were satisfied with the environment, accessibility, and language support of the conference space. However, it was noted that due to the scale of the conference venue, it was inconvenient to get to the meeting rooms, and there was a problem with direction. At the same time, it was noted that volunteers and conference organizers helped with direction.

Recommendations for the future:

Improving the toilet access.
The conference venue must not be open to outsiders.
Meeting places need to be better isolated from outside voices and sounds.
Catering needs to be better organized.

Strengths:

Cats!
Food.
The venue overall and the environment were suitable.

Event venue and environment

1. Program: Most conference participants reported significant value from the event. Specifically, 90% highlighted that the program provided them with the best skills and experiences, and they found the session topics highly engaging. Additionally, 92% indicated that the knowledge they gained was directly relevant to their Wikimedia activities. Most attendees intended to apply the skills and insights acquired during the conference to their ongoing work, underscoring the program's practical impact and effectiveness.

1.1. Some useful, exciting knowledge and skills conference participants gained at Wikimedia CEE Meeting 2023:

Connections
How to make minority’s culture and language more visible in Wikipedia
Capacity building
Research
CEE Hub activities
Hiring first staff workshop
GLAM programs
The education collaboration in CEE
CEE Youth Group
Learning day
Wikibase
Admin support program
AI
WikiClub
PR and communication

2. Experience: 85% of conference participants reported feeling deeply connected to the Wikimedia Movement during the event and expressed a strong desire to actively contribute to its growth and the development of Wikimedia projects. Furthermore, every participant who completed the survey confirmed that they successfully built new connections, highlighting the conference's role in fostering collaboration and community engagement.

3. Recommendations for the future:

More short lectures and some tools for dummies
The location should have the meeting rooms close
More food options
Better toilets
Add subtitles
Politics should not be reflected in the event
More interactive sessions