Wikipedia:Wikipedia Signpost/2008-01-14/Wikimania 2009

After a four-week period where individuals were invited to submit bids for Wikimania 2009, bidding ended this week. Six official bids were submitted:


 * Bogotá, Colombia: Carlos Thompson (Chlewey) is the contact for this bid.  The Bogotá bid would run from July 17 to 20, 2009, at a venue yet to be named.  Wikimedia Colombia, currently in the discussion phase and headed by Thompson, would help with the event.  Further information on this bid is expected over the next few weeks.
 * Brisbane, Australia: Craig Franklin (Lankiveil) and MichelleG are contacts for this bid.  The Brisbane bid would run from July 31 through August 2, 2009, at the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre.  Among the strengths cited in the bid are the mild winters of Brisbane, the fact that Wikimania has never visited Oceania or the Southern Hemisphere, and the number of Wikipedians who hail from Australia.  The bid also mentions a large dining and entertainment district (South Bank) close to the convention centre, various tourism opportunities including the Australia Zoo, and local sponsorship opportunities being negotiated, including government, industry, technology, and media sponsors.
 * Buenos Aires, Argentina: Patricio Lorente is the contact for this bid.  The Buenos Aires bid would run at a date yet to be named (likely August 2009), at a venue yet to be named.  Wikimedia Argentina, approved as an official chapter in December, would help with the event.  While much of the bid has not yet been developed, the bid notes Buenos Aires' status as a "gay-friendly" city; Alexandria, which will host Wikimania 2008, was criticized by some Wikipedians due to its human rights record, particularly with respect to sexual orientation.
 * Karlsruhe, Germany: Wilhelm Bühler (Kawana) and Hauke Löffler are the contacts for this bid.  The Karlsruhe bid would run at a date yet to be named, at a venue yet to be named (though organizers indicate they have three possible locations in mind).  Wikimedia Deutschland and a non-profit wiki organization headquartered in Karlsruhe would help out with the event.  The organizers indicate that the conference venue, including conference rooms and wired and wireless internet will be fully sponsored.  A bid from Karlsruhe was withdrawn from Wikimania 2008 contention, with organizers choosing to focus on 2009 bidding.  Germany previously hosted Wikimania 2005, which was held in Frankfurt.
 * Kathmandu, Nepal: The conference would be held from July 31 through August 2, 2009, at the Birendra International Convention Centre.  Further information on this bid is expected over the next few weeks.
 * Toronto, Canada: Nicholas Moreau (Zanimum) is the contact person for this bid.  The Toronto bid would run at a date to be named, at the University of Toronto.  Wikimedia Canada, currently in planning stages, would likely help with the event.  Toronto organizers note the multilingual, multicultural nature of the city, the ease of travel into Canada, the campus' numerous facilities and green atmosphere, low crime rates, and the progressive atmosphere of Toronto, in relation to sexual orientation and drinking age.  A bid from Toronto was withdrawn from Wikimania 2008 contention, with organizers choosing to focus on 2009 bidding.

2009's field covers five continents, with only Africa and Antarctica without bids (in 2007 and 2008, bids from just three continents were submitted).

Wikimania jury selected
Meanwhile, the jury who will decide Wikimania 2009's location was selected this week. It includes:
 * Frieda Brioschi, elected board member
 * Kat Walsh, elected board member
 * Sue Gardner, Wikimedia Foundation Executive Director
 * Angela Beesley, trustee emeritus and Programme/Advisory Board member
 * Achal Prabhala, Advisory Board member
 * Dror Kamir, Wikimedia Israel organizer, present at 2 Wikimanias
 * Kizu Naoko, "Translation and community coordination"
 * Titan Deng, organizer of Wikimania 2007
 * Yu Chen Hsu, organizer of Wikimania 2007 organisation (has not yet accepted spot)
 * Austin Hair, organizer of Wikimania 2005 and 2006, member of Chapters Committee
 * Samuel Klein, organizer of Wikimania 2005 and 2006
 * Damian Finol, member of Chapters Committee, Wikimania attendee
 * Michael Snow, Wikipedia Signpost writer/editor emeritus and community member

Five of the thirteen members currently reside in the United States; two members reside in Taiwan, and the other six members each reside in separate countries (Italy, Australia, India, Israel, Japan, and Venezuela). Ten of the members were also members of the Wikimania 2008 jury; Snow was invited to serve on the 2008 jury but was unable to do so; Walsh and Finol are also new to the jury.