User:Sean Whitton/Sandbox

NOTE: This is a draft. Please do not post anywhere else yet; thanks.

Greetings, I am Sean Whitton, formerly Xyrael, and seanw on IRC. I've been hovering around since 2005, contributing actively to Wikimedia projects since early 2006. I am a very strong believer in the peaceful resolution of conflicts and the application of patience and constructive dialogue rather than technological force. That said, I do recognise that there comes a point in some disputes where a decisive decision needs to be made to avoid further harm to people and projects, and for that we have the Arbitration Committee. Having gained the experience outlined below, I feel that I can now serve the community in this important role.

Dispute resolution has been an area I have been involved in for a long time; principally, I have been on the Mediation Committee for just under a year (and before this was a Mediation Cabal mediator), giving me contact with the arbitration process. In addition, I have been Wikimedia's primary IRC Group Contact for about the same length of time, managing our IRC channels. These roles, in addition to being a freenode staff member focused on user rather than technical issues, have given me a great deal of experience in dealing with disputes of all levels of complexity. I always aim to resolve these disputes through negotiation and mediation, but I also accept that this will not solve every problem and that decisions sometimes need to be made by a third party based on a careful overview of the case.

My work and experience is not however limited to dispute resolution, and the other area in which I participate most regularly is communications at Foundation level. I currently chair the Communication Projects Group, which is an initiative to allow more community participation in Wikimedia's PR department. Finally, I am also an OTRS agent, primarily answering press enquiries coming in to Wikimedia as part of the Communications Committee. Being involved in the OTRS team has also given me insight into a huge range of potential encyclopaedic disputes which I consider invaluable.

If I were to be elected, my most important aim would be to exercise patience, taking time to consider everything and listen to everyone before returning with opinions of my own. I believe that with my experience and ability to listen to all involved, I can serve the community well as an arbitrator. I welcome questions about my nomination and will be happy to clarify any issues present.

Questions page
Three things:
 * Please ask questions
 * Thanks for help from those who helped presentation of platform
 * Move username change issue here?