User:Carlojoseph14/Wikimania2015

Insights before and during Wikimania 2015


I started my Wikimedia journey as a project volunteer of the Philippine Cultural Heritage Mapping Project of Wikimedia Philippines. As a volunteer, we were tasked to create Wikipedia articles of places we have visited, to upload photos on Wikimedia Commons, and to create markers on the now defunct Philippine Heritage Map. I have made 5 000+ edits, 10 DYKS, and four articles on good status. The numbers reflect how happy and thankful I am to be part of the project.

When Asaf Bartov visited Manila on March 2014, I was one of the two Filipinos (the other one was Eugene Alvin Villar, WMPH Chairman) he interviewed on learning about the English Wikipedia community in the Philippines. Asaf was also the person who extended a scholarship for me to attend Wikimania 2015.

It was my first time to attend Wikimania, the annual Wikimedia conference. As an educator, I have attended several conferences related to science education and chemistry research and I though Wikimania is less scholastic and academic compared to the usual conferences in the academe. My expectation was Wikimania is solely about Wikipedia and its sister projects with focus on how to contribute to Wikimedia projects. I realized I was totally wrong. Wikimania is an academic conference. We talked even beyond Wiki, integrating Wiki across all possible disciplines, and working on all possible Wiki collaborations. It really promotes sharing of knowledge, and it really stands by its motto of promoting free knowledge.

I attended to two day Education Preconference. I was amazed during the preconference. I really said on my mind, Wikipedia and Science rocks! I met several science majors who contributes to Wikimedia! To name a few, Martina from Spain who currently pursues her PhD in Physics, and Emilio and Eli who are studying Biotechnology from Tec de Monterrey. Besides these cool persons, I am delighted and more amazed to see how Mexico and several countries run the Wikipedia Education Program, especially in Tec de Monterey in Mexico where writing, editing, or translating Wikipedia article is part of the university's social services. It inspires me to see someday that the Philippines will incorporate Wikipedia in schools (though, it may seems Utopian if it will be integrated in the national curriculum). The two day preconference was for me the main conference as it is nearer to the track I am pursuing.

I am glad to be part of this movement. I am happy to meet some volunteers behind this global free movement. I am more excited to share knowledge beyond the four walls of my classroom, or should I say, beyond the pages of the books I have written and will be writing. I hope that in the future, the Filipinos will be active on this global movement and will join the world in sharing free knowledge. Umaasa ako na sa hinaharap, ang mga Filipino ay magiging aktibo sa ganitong pandaigdigang kilusan at makikilahok sa mundo sa paghahayo ng malayang kaisipan.