LetHerEdit Campaign

The LetHerEdit Campaign, held in April 2024 in collaboration with the Global WikiEducation Initiative, aimed to address the significant gender imbalance on Wikipedia. This initiative focused on recruiting more Tanzanian women to become Wikipedia editors, thereby promoting gender equity in content creation. The campaign was conducted online, providing participants with the necessary skills to create accounts and publish content on Swahili Wikipedia.

Event Overview

Virtual Launch

The campaign commenced with a virtual launch event where presenters outlined the campaign’s objectives and introduced a dedicated metapage for the initiative. This page served as a central hub for information and coordination, listing articles that participants could work on. The session included a comprehensive introduction to Wikipedia, covering the platform’s purpose, significance, and the various styles of editing.

Training Sessions

Participants received hands-on training on creating Wikipedia accounts, editing articles, and publishing content on Swahili Wikipedia. These sessions were designed to be interactive and inclusive, ensuring that participants felt confident and capable of contributing to Wikipedia. The training emphasized the importance of accurate and diverse content, aiming to empower more Tanzanian women to share their knowledge and perspectives.

Campaign Impacts

The campaign successfully created a significant impact by raising awareness about the gender gap in Wikipedia editing. Currently, only about 9% of Wikipedia editors are female, compared to 91% male. The LetHerEdit Campaign aimed to change this dynamic by actively encouraging and training women to become editors.

During the campaign period, a total of 169 articles were created on Swahili Wikipedia. This achievement is reflected in the campaign’s dashboard, showcasing the tangible results of the participants’ efforts. The newly created articles enriched Swahili Wikipedia with diverse content, contributing to a more balanced representation of knowledge.

Conclusion

The LetHerEdit campaign successfully raised awareness among women about the opportunities and importance of editing Wikipedia. The positive impact, evidenced by the creation of 169 new articles and high engagement levels, indicates a strong interest and commitment to continue inviting more women to participate in this initiative.

Moving forward, the campaign could expand by offering more online resources, such as detailed guides and video tutorials, to support new editors. Additionally, fostering long-term partnerships with various women’s institutions could help sustain the momentum and bridge the gender gap on Wikipedia. By continuing to provide skills training and support, the campaign aims to create a lasting impact on the representation of women in the open knowledge movement.