Free Webinar: Why Wikipedia in Libraries?

Overview

Wikipedia is increasingly an important source of free knowledge for people around the world and plays a major role in the internet research ecosystem. The resource is also a veritable tool for teaching and dissemination of information. African voices are getting heard in Wikipedia but AfLIA wants to enlarge these ‘Voices’ in a synchronized manner so that gaps in information about Africa, our knowledge, values, peoples, our heroes and heroines of times past and present can feature more prominently and accurately on the platform.

Following the recent partnership between AfLIA and Wikimedia Foundation, the non-profit behind Wikipedia, series of webinars aimed at training African librarians to use and contribute to Wikipedia are scheduled to be organized between February – March 2020.  We are therefore excited to announce that registration for the first webinar on the topic: Why Wikipedia in Libraries? is ongoing. Book your space now!!

Learning outcomes

It is expected that webinar attendees will:

1. Learn more about how the library community partners with Wikipedia on it’s mission of free and open knowledge in the world.
2. Learn how OCLC trained librarians in the United States to integrate Wikipedia into their work.

Date and Time – 15pm GMT, Thursday 20th February, 2020

Registration

This is a free webinar and open to members and non-members of AfLIA alike. Registration ends on the eve of webinar day.

Click here to register.

Please read the section on Technical Requirements to help you prepare adequately for this webinar.

Who should attend?

• Librarians from all Library types are eligible to attend.
• Also, interested persons and professionals who wish to learn more about the One Librarian, One Reference” (#1Lib1Ref) campaign and how to be a part of it.

Resource Persons

Ms. Merrilee Proffitt works for OCLC, a global library cooperative, and provides project management skills and expert support to institutions within the OCLC Research Library Partnership. Merrilee has authored or co-authored articles, guidelines, and reports for a variety organizations and professional journals. She is frequently an invited speaker at international professional conferences and workshops on topics relating to digital libraries and special collections. In 2014, Merrilee was elected as a Fellow of SAA, the highest honor bestowed on individuals by SAA and awarded for outstanding contributions to the archival profession. She is passionate about forging connections between Wikimedia projects and cultural heritage institutions. She is the editor of Leveraging Wikipedia: Connecting Communities of Knowledge (ALA Editions, 2018). Before coming to OCLC in 2001, Merrilee was Director of Digital Archive Development at the Bancroft Library, UC Berkeley.

Ms. Monika Sengul-Jones is a communication scholar with expertise in media and cultural studies. From 2017 – 2019, Monika served as OCLC Wikipedian-in-Residence and instructional designer for two online Wikipedia training programs for U.S. public library staff, including the 18-month Wikipedia + Libraries: Better Together project funded by the Knight Foundation and Wikimedia Foundation. Monika is passionate about information and media literacies and community engagement. She has leadership experience in educational programming, publishing, and the arts. She has written book chapters, articles, and essays for academic and popular presses and makes presentations related to her research and projects. Monika has a master’s degree in Gender Studies from Central European University in Budapest, Hungary and is completing her doctorate in Communication and Science Studies at UC San Diego. Currently, she is adjunct lecturer in Department of Communication at University of Washington, in Seattle, WA.

Technical Requirements

Upon registration, reminders will be sent to all registrants periodically. This webinar will be hosted on Zoom Conferencing Platform. Participants, who do not have Zoom on their mobile devices and or computers, need to download, install and create an account on Zoom ahead of time (CLICK TO DOWNLOAD). Webinar attendees are encouraged to join early, preferably 15 minutes before the start of the webinar, as one may need time launch the application. The speaker will use a webcam to connect with attendees. Audio and video for the session will be streamed over computer speakers. Attendees are therefore encouraged to connect with a headset or earpiece for maximum utility. Participants will be able to ask questions and interact with the presenters and other webinar participants via the Q&A and chat features in Zoom.

Webinar Materials

A list of resources and further information will made be available at the end of the webinar, to enable thorough engagement with the webinar content. All registrants will have access to the presentation slides. The webinar recording will be uploaded on AfLIA Youtube Channel soon after the webinar to facilitate continuous engagement with the webinar content by webinar attendees and non-attendees. Webinar attendees who will present for more than half the duration of the webinar may be eligible for a certificate of participation from AfLIA.

Queries

For further enquiries and assistance about the webinar contact us at afliacomm@aflia.net. Remember to bring this to the attention of your colleague librarians as well as those in your professional circle. It is free!!!