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Wiki Indaba 2014 Scholarships Programme

Wiki Indaba 2014, the 1st annual continental conference of the Wikimedia movement, is being held between 23 - 25th May 2014. Organisers of the event, Wikimedia ZA, are offering a limited number of scholarships to offset the cost for selected individuals to attend Wiki Indaba.

The anticipated timeline for the scholarship programme is as follows:

• Scholarship applications open: Monday 17th March 2014
• Deadline for applying for scholarships: Monday 31st March 2014 23:59 UTC
• Scholarship Committee reviews applications: April 2014
• Applicants are notified about final decisions: mid-April 2014

Goals of the programme

• To make Wiki Indaba 2014 a successful and productive continental conference.
• To support the Wikimedia projects by encouraging participation from Africa.
• To facilitate the expansion of the movement in Africa through the attendance of active participants.
• To enrich the conference with attendance by a diverse group of participants in the Wikimedia movement.

Types of scholarships

Scholarships awarded to attend Wiki Indaba will cover expenses for:

• Round trip travel
• Shared accommodation
• Conference registration fees

Eligibility to apply

Any active contributor to a Wikimedia project, or Wikimedia volunteer in any other capacity, from the continent of Africa is considered eligible. Participants in other free knowledge, free software, collaborative or educational initiatives in Africa are also encouraged to apply. Wikimedians from outside of Africa, with specific interests and skills will also be considered.

Selection process

All applications for Wiki Indaba scholarships are reviewed by the Scholarship Committee. The number of scholarship recipients will be allocated across the different delegate categories as follows:

• Members of Wikimedia Usergroups and Planning groups from across Africa
• Africa-based Wikipedians
• South African based Wikipedians
• Individuals active in aligned organisations, and
• Interested and skilled international delegates.

While applications are categorised by region during the review process, a standardised review process will be applied to all applications, regardless of origin. This process involves two phases of review:

• Phase 1: All applications will be reviewed by two or more reviewers, with each independently giving a score of zero (fail) or one (pass) on an application-by-application basis using the phase one selection criteria. All applications which are passed by three or more reviewers will pass phase one; applications which are passed by two or fewer reviewers will fail phase one and shall not be given further consideration in phase two. All applicants will be notified by e-mail on whether their application has passed or failed once this phase of review is completed.
• Phase 2: All remaining applications will be reviewed in more detail by a minimum of three reviewers each. Each reviewer will independently review and score the application against the phase two selection criteria, in order to give each application a total score.
• Phase 3: The Scholarship Committee, in close collaboration with the Wikimedia Foundation, will determine the total budget available and how this will be distributed to each region, with estimations made on how much money a particular recipient will require (for example, someone attending Wiki Indaba 2014 from South Africa will require more resources than someone attending from France). Applications will be ranked using phase two scores on a region-by-region basis; those receiving the highest scores in each region, by default, will be the recipients of scholarships. In the event of identical or very similar scores between applicants, those that have not previously received a scholarship will be favoured over those that have, and those that received a scholarship many years ago will be favoured over those that received one in recent years. Further adjustments between high scoring applications may also be made to ensure there is fair distribution between countries in each region.

Following the completion of phase three, a decision will be issued by e-mail to all remaining applicants as to whether their application has been successful or has been declined. Those with successful applications are given the opportunity to confirm their attendance at Wiki Indaba 2014 and their acceptance of the awarded scholarship.

Selection criteria

Applications will be vetted according to:

• The number of edits and length of involvement in Wikimedia projects,
• A motivation for inclusion in the conference,
• Demonstrable experience in the aligned movement or experience with community activation, and
• Future intentions for Wikipedia in your country.

Phase 1

Applications will fail phase one of review process if any of the following failing criteria apply:

1. The application entirely or primarily consists of content which is off topic or abusive.
2. The applicant has failed to make a reasonable effort to answer the questions on the application form.
3. The applicant has failed to demonstrate any significant contributions or activities which may merit the awarding of a scholarship.
4. The applicant has failed to provide evidence, either as part of the application itself or elsewhere, of English language abilities that are at a level which would enable them to participate in Wiki Indaba, a conference which is primarily conducted in English.

Phase 2

Selection criteria for phase two

	Activity within Wikimedia projects, affiliate organisations or initiatives (50%)
	Activity in other free knowledge, free software, collaborative or educational initiatives (20%)
	Personal investment in the Wikimedia movement (30%)

During phase two, applicants will be assessed against the three dimensions listed below, with each applicant being awarded a score on a scale of zero to ten for each criterion. While descriptions are only provided for even numbered scores, odd numbered scores may also be awarded when an applicant is judged to fall between two descriptions. These scores are then averaged and weighted to give an applicant's total score.

Activity within Wikimedia projects, affiliate organisations or initiatives (50% of total score)

Activity within Wikimedia projects, affiliate organisations such as chapters or initiatives indicates that an applicant will add value to Wiki Indaba through the experiences and knowledge they have gained from contributing. Examples of online activities include writing articles, uploading images and dealing with vandalism. Examples of offline activities include participating in outreach events, involvement in the training and attending meetups. Applicants are encouraged to write about both their online and offline experiences within their application.

0 = Not a participant, with no involvement in any Wikimedia project, affiliate organisations or initiative.

2 = Very low level participant, with very occasional involvement; no notable impact on any Wikimedia projects, affiliate organisations or initiatives.

4 = Low level participant, with occasional involvement; a small and narrow overall impact on Wikimedia projects, affiliate organisations and initiatives.

6 = Mid level participant, with continued involvement; a moderate overall impact on Wikimedia projects, affiliate organisations and initiatives.

8 = High level participant, with dedication; a high and diverse overall impact on Wikimedia projects, affiliate organisations and initiatives.

10 = Very high level participant, with exceptional dedication; a very high and very diverse overall impact on Wikimedia projects, affiliate organisations and initiatives.

Activity in other free knowledge, free software, collaborative or educational initiatives (20% of total score)

Activity in other free knowledge, free software, collaborative or educational initiatives outside the Wikimedia movement, indicates that an applicant will add value to Wiki Indaba by bringing new relevant experiences, knowledge and innovations to the conference. Relevant initiatives are those that either have a general educational value or are relevant to the free culture movement, or both. Examples include ICT4D, Moodle, OpenStreetMap, Mozilla Localisation and other projects and the Creative Commons organisation. A project does not have to follow or support the Wikimedia Foundation's definition of free content to be considered relevant. Applicants are encouraged to write about both their online and offline experiences within relevant initiatives, and to explain how participation in Wiki Indaba by the applicant could bring benefits either to the initiatives or the Wikimedia movement, or both.

0 = Not a participant, with no involvement in any other free knowledge, free software, collaborative or educational initiative.

2 = Very low level participant, with very occasional involvement; no notable impact on any free knowledge, free software, collaborative or educational initiatives.

4 = Low level participant, with occasional involvement; a small and narrow overall impact on other free knowledge, free software, collaborative or educational initiatives.

6 = Mid level participant, with continued involvement; a moderate overall impact on other free knowledge, free software, collaborative or educational initiatives.

8 = High level participant, with dedication; a high and diverse overall impact on other free knowledge, free software, collaborative or educational initiatives.

10 = Very high level participant, with exceptional dedication; a very high and very diverse overall impact on other free knowledge, free software, collaborative or educational initiatives.

Personal investment in the Wikimedia movement (30% of total score)

Personal investment in the Wikimedia movement indicates that an applicant will be able to make a significant contribution to Wiki Indaba and get the most out of any scholarship awarded to them. Applicants are encouraged to write about why Wiki Indaba is of interest to them, how they intend to participate in the conference (including any submissions), and what they expect to take away from it all – whether that be at a personal level or for the benefit of the Wikimedia and the free culture movement. It should be noted that answers will be critically analysed during the review process – claims that are modest and realistic will gain more credit than those that are unrealistic or clearly exaggerated.

0 = No expressed interest in the Wikimedia movement; no relevant explanations as to why the applicant is interested in attending Wiki Indaba.

2 = No clear interest in the Wikimedia movement; non-thoughtful or generic explanations as to why the applicant is interested in attending Wiki Indaba.

4 = Limited interest in the Wikimedia movement; vague or likely unrealistic explanations as to why the applicant is interested in attending Wiki Indaba.

6 = Moderate interest in the Wikimedia movement; some developed and moderately realistic explanations as to why the applicant is interested in attending Wiki Indaba.

8 = Strong interest in the Wikimedia movement; many developed and likely realistic explanations as to why the applicant is interested in attending Wiki Indaba.

10 = Very strong interest in the Wikimedia movement; many exceptionally well developed and clearly realistic explanations as to why the applicant is interested in attending Wiki Indaba.

Questions

For more information about the Wiki Indaba 2014 Scholarships Programme, please email theresa [at] wikimedia [dot] org [dot] za

Apply

To apply for a scholarship to aid in covering expenses for Wiki Indaba 2014 in Johannesburg, South Africa, please submit a completed application form by 31 March 2014 23:59 UTC. It is highly recommended that applicants review all of the material on this page before submitting an application.