NDEC Wikimedia Bootcamp 2024: What Participants and organizers said!

^{[This is the third and the last one of the series of three diff blogs about NDEC Wikimedia Bootcamp 2024]}

One of our goals for the bootcamp is to create a safe space where all participants can freely express their thoughts and ideas. The depth of the questions and opinions from the participants assured us that we are on the right track! 

Here are a few of the many questions and opinions we received from the bootcamp’s participants and volunteers.

Questions

1. Why would someone work for Wikimedia? What can Wikipedia and its sister projects offer its contributors?

2. If the Wikimedia Foundation runs Wikimedia projects, how can we be the owner?

^{(Context: The 17th slide from the first workshop’s deck states that humankind is the owner of Wikipedia. While explaining the 19th slide from the same deck, the instructor mentioned that the Wikimedia Foundation (WMF) is the organization that hosts Wikipedia and its sister projects.)}

The copyright of the content on Wikimedia projects is held by the respective authors. Since anyone can contribute to Wikimedia following its policies, humankind is essentially the owner of Wikimedia. The Wikimedia Foundation is just the host. The more appropriate verb is “host” rather than “run”.

Think of the street in front of your home. The people of the country are the owners. But we need someone to take care of it – that someone is the government. The government is not the owner but the caretaker of public property. Similarly, humankind owns Wikimedia, and the Wikimedia Foundation is just the host.

3. As you compared the Wikimedia Foundation with a government, can we change the Wikimedia Foundation and choose anyone else as a host, like the government changes?

Interesting question indeed. The comparison of the Wikimedia Foundation to governments might become incompatible when you dive deeper into legal and other aspects. We used it just to provide a high-level idea of how things are.

While it’s theoretically possible to change the host, it would be a very long and complex process as the infrastructure isn’t set up with this in mind. The Wikimedia Foundation has supported the Wikimedia movement from the very beginning and also holds the Wikimedia trademarks. So, while it’s possible, it would be a very long shot to achieve this. 

4. Can’t Wikipedia take money from the big corporations in exchange for making their articles? 

^{(Context: While explaining the eighth slide from the deck of the first workshop, the instructor told them that Wikipedia or WMF doesn’t earn money. And in the 21st slide, the instructor says that donation is the only way we can get money for the movement)}

The answer is, No. Wikipedia or the Wikimedia Foundation is a non profit. Wikipedia is valuable, because it doesn’t take money for content. If it did, corporations won’t agree to give money! A lot to think here!

Expressions

1. I had been working at the Notre Dame English Club’s specialized Wikimedia team for quite some time. When we first heard about the bootcamp, we were quite enthusiastic because we hadn’t had the opportunity to attend one ourselves, at least our one wasn’t so grand as the legacy. So we put our all into organizing skills in this bootcamp to ensure something for our juniors that we couldn’t experience. We all learned something new and gained an incredible amount of knowledge. This knowledge can be used to exclude all types of blunders while planning another bootcamp. We hope to organise another bootcamp next year with more participants, more smiles, more memories, and, most importantly, spreading the love for the open knowledge movement. – Ahnaf Tahmid Manan, Director of Communications, NDEC WERT (Ahnaf was a safety and hospitality volunteer during the 2024 edition of the bootcamp and later took the responsibility of the Director of Communications of the team)
2. When I learned about WERT’s 2022 bootcamp, I got excited. However, for several challenges, our batch’s bootcamp didn’t see light, we learnt the same thing in a different way and the program was also very confidential. Then, we promised to arrange the bootcamp for our next batch at any cost. This year, we planned to conduct the first session offline to make it more interactive. We encounter challenges, including financial, technical and strategic ones. We solved each of them and made this bootcamp the most successful one. It’s not the end; just the beginning of an epic where we will dive into the depths of Wikimedia. – Tausif Fuad, Director of Legal and Advocacy, NDEC WERT (Tausif was a safety and hospitality volunteer during the 2024 edition of the bootcamp and later took the responsibility of the Director of Legal and Advocacy of the team)
3. NDEC Wikimedia Bootcamp 2024 was a great experience for me. The first workshop opened a new world to me, a world of open knowledge, particularly Wikipedia. I found myself mesmerized when I got to know all the initiatives of the Wiki world. I soon found out how vast the Wiki world is. Thanks to NDEC WERT, I dived into the basics of editing a Wikipedia page in the following two workshops.
   The experience I gathered from the bootcamp is invaluable for me, as it was my first step into the world of Wikipedia and I wish to continue contributing to the movement. – A.R Tawfique Hasan, participant
4. Unlike most of the attendees of the Wikimedia Bootcamp arranged by NDEC WERT, I was not a newbie to Wikipedia. Rather, I was oblivious to the vastness of the Wikimedia movement, which was unlocked during the bootcamp. And it was really fun to attend the sessions with friends and meet our youthful facilitator. The edit challenge was also something special. In short, the bootcamp widened my views about Wikimedia projects and its spirit of open knowledge—by and for everyone. – Symoum Syfullah Priyo, participant
5. Cheers to the NDEC  Wikipedia Editorial and Research team for the outstanding “NDEC Wikimedia Bootcamp 2024.” Following the successes of previous bootcamps, this year’s event was equally impressive and informative. Our facilitator was exceptionally cooperative and insightful, guiding attendees through each step and addressing all concerns. While the sessions were highly informative, they occasionally felt lengthy and repetitive. Nevertheless, we gained valuable knowledge about Wikimedia and open knowledge. This bootcamp was immensely helpful, and we hope such initiatives continue to spread, raising awareness and participation in this field. – Sorbendu Deb Krish, participant
6. Wikimedia is an open source of knowledge that we can access free of cost. When I first heard about Wikimedia movement I didn’t even have a clue about it. A brief session with our mentor, one of the best Wikimedia trainers in the region, made me realize how lucky I am to get the chance to participate in the Wikimedia movement. The following day I registered and waited for a few days for the bootcamp. The first workshop was about knowing the basics of Wikimedia.  It cleared all of my questions. The second and third workshops were all about editing articles, categorizing images, errors, word mistakes, and many more. Overall, it was an amazing experience to participate in the movement. I would suggest everyone to participate in it. – Hridoy Chisim, participant
7. The experiences procured through this bootcamp have surpassed my expectations. It has endeared me with the opportunity to dive into the deeper domain of Wikimedia. The things that compel me most are that the organizers were very eager to help us out at any stake. And it was fun to work with them. It would be best provided that the online grooming sessions were taken offline through a multimedia projector to make the bootcamp more accessible to all. At the bottom, I eagerly want to pursue with the team to learn more about the free encyclopedia and hope this tiny starting will one day bring about a remarkable Wikimedia revolution throughout the country. – Md. Naim Molla, participant

This third diff was all about people—the individuals who keep the Wikimedia movement alive. We hope these amazing people will lead the team and the movement toward the ultimate goal: ensuring free knowledge for everyone.

_{About the author: Towhidul Islam is the former Director of Communications (2023-2024) of NDEC Wikipedia Editorial and Research Team and led the communication work during the NDEC Wikimedia Bootcamp 2024.}