Meeting:Board (2025-04-15)
See also the list of all meetings.
Introduction
- Date: Tuesday 15 April 2025
- Time / time zone: 3pm AWST / 4:30 pm ACST / 5.00 pm AEST /
- Meeting channel: Zoom = https://us06web.zoom.us/j/4127540823
Attendance
- Attendees: Elliott, Shravan, Peter, Kassi, Emily, Jeremy and Belinda
- Apologies:
- Absent:
Acknowledgement of Country
Previous minutes
Minutes of previous meeting:
- Tuesday 18 March 2025 Meeting:Committee_(2025-03-18)
2025-03-18-Wikimedia Australia Board meeting
- That the minutes of the Tuesday 18 March 2025 meeting be accepted.
Reports
Executive Officer report
10 year Strategy finalised and Triennial Grant application submitted to WMF
Our Three year Grant application has been finalised and submitted through Fluxx to the WMF for their consideration. As raised by email to the Board, after discussions with Jacqueline we have included the Terri Janke and Company proposal covering an ICIP and IDSov Protocol project, in our three year Grant application. While this significantly increases our proposed Budget it ensures that this major project is held within the ESEAP funding envelope, that it stays with Wikimedia Australia over the three years, and reduces our administrative and reporting requirements. We expect to hear a response from Jacqueline and the WMF Grant Review team from approx 21 April onwards. Many thanks to the Board for feedback and detailed input during this extensive planning phase.
The ESEAP Grant Timeline is available on meta-wiki.
ICIP and IDSov Protocol scoping project announced
On 2 April 2025 we announced the ICIP and IDSov Protocol scoping project undertaken by Terri Janke and Company. This included sharing with our community the original Scoping paper (dated December 2024) which briefly outlined the issues, deliverables and key needs, as well as providing profiles on Terri and selected members of her team. Once we have more information from WMF regarding the status of the Protocol funding, then we will release comprehensive information from Terri Janke and Company including a Report and a more detailed Scoping document with recommendations for undertaking the development of the Protocol over three years. So far feedback from the community has been positive, and there has been significant interest globally from a range of organisations and stakeholders.
APNIC Foundation grant for the Ian Peter archive digitisation project
Work is progressing and the copyright clearance process is now underway. Alongside completing the digitisation of Ian’s papers, the project now has a focus on setting up processes to review documents and undertake rights verification. Ensuring personal and sensitive materials are handled with care remains a top priority. Belinda, Caddie and Cameron have scheduled a meeting (17 April) to plan and timeline the final project phase and a Report to APNIC Foundation with recommendations for a Phase 2.
1Lib1Ref collaboration with WANZ
After the success of last year, we are working with WANZ again to hold a #1Lib1Ref campaign in 2025. More information on meta-wiki, including an option to sign up and be part of this global event. You don’t have to be a Librarian, anyone who wants to add citations or improve articles is welcome!
Partner Projects 2024-2025
All Projects continue successfully.
We held a Meet-up and community workshop on 12 April in the SA Museum Adelaide, facilitated by Mike Dickison (WNAZ), for local Wikipedians covering Commons, Wikidata and Wikipedia.
2SER-FM have 2 days of editing and editathons planned for Friday 9 and Saturday 10 May, from 10am - 1pm.
ESEAP Hub Governance and Strategy Summit update
The ESEAP Preparatory Council (EPC) and the Core Organising Team (COT) for the ESEAP Strategy Summit in Manila in May 2025 advise there will be online information sessions in the lead up to the Summit. These sessions will be open to anyone in the community, not just those going to the Summit in Manila. In particular there will be a session on 27 April proposing two draft Governance structures for the ESEAP Hub, and seeking feedback from the ESEAP community. The two Governance models and community feedback will be shared and developed further at the Summit in Manila, and potentially a final Governance model will be produced. Everyone is encouraged to participate.
Enquiries from organisations
We’re talking with a range of organisations on editathons or Wiki events, including:
- Art Gallery of SA - Dangerously Modern exhibition (joint exhibition with Art Gallery of NSW)
- Willunga Heritage Art and National Trust South Australia (Dr Mark Staniforth)
- Wikimedia Sweden (Eric Luth) to enlist their support for the International Society of Biomechanists (ISB) conference in Sweden (following on from our successful editathon in Melbourne)
- Paula Llull Llobera from the Embassy of Spain in Australia (Canberra), and also Wikimedia Spain (Ruben Ojeda) to discuss an event focussing on translation of Wikipedia articles, possibly at the ANU in Canberra.
- History Trust of SA (Emma Haddy)
Australian Communities Foundation (ACF) grant
No update at this stage.
Communications report
Social media report
March Statistics
Total followers as of 31 March, 2025
- Twitter: 4137 (up by 49)
- Facebook: 2036 (up by 8)
- Instagram: 722 (up by 26)
- Linkedin: 401 (up by 6)
- Mastodon: 248 (up by 7)
- YouTube: 240 (up 11)
- Humanitix: 77 (0)
- Announce monthly newsletter: 507 (up by 2)
On our WMAU website we published 2 news stories for March 2025:
President’s report
Please read this report in addition to joint activities with the EO as outlined above.
TAROCH Workspaces meeting – Den Haag (The Hague), The Netherlands
On Wednesday 26 March 2025 and Thursday 27 March 2025 Creative Commons held the Towards a Recommendation on Open Cultural Heritage (TAROCH) Workspaces meeting at Koninklijke Bibliotheek (KB National Library of the Netherlands). This saw some of the participants of the Civil Society Statement Workspace and the Advocacy Workspace come together for a series of joint and separate sessions to progress the work that had already been undertaken by video conferencing and asynchronously.
Over the two days the participants produced a first draft of our Coalition Statement and laid the groundwork for an Advocacy Strategy framework to support the Statement when it is released.
These were a highly productive two days and will contribute significantly to the TAROCH project. If successful, a UNESCO Recommendation will support and encourage countries and their GLAM organisations to digitise and release more Public Domain material which benefits the public, as well as Wikimedia Australia and the wider Wikimedia movement. I am grateful to WMAU for supporting my participation.
The workshops were attended by representatives from Canadian Museum of History, COMMUNIA, Creative Commons, Internet Archive, Open Knowledge Finland, Qatar National Library, the University of Exeter Law School, Wikimedia Chile, Wikimedia Deutschland, Wikimedia Indonesia, Wikimedia Sverige and Whose Knowledge?
Meetings with Wikimedia Nederland and Wikimedia Deutschland Wikimedia Nederland
Wikimedia Netherlands
On Monday 14 March 2025 I had dinner with Sandra Rientjes, Executive Director, and Jan-Bart de Vreede, Chair Wikimedia Nederland. We discussed WMAU’s 10 Year Plan, our triennial funding application and Activity Plan and the proposed ICIP and IDSov Protocol. Both were in support of our ambitions and projects.
Wikimedia Deutschland (Wikimedia Germany)
On Friday 28 April 2025 I travelled from Den Haag (The Hague) to Berlin with Heike Gleibs, Head of Education Policy and Digital Cultural Commons.
On Monday 31 March 2025 I met with a number of employees of Wikimedia Deutschland. Across the meetings we discussed WMAU’s 10 Year Plan, our triennial funding application and Activity Plan and the proposed ICIP and IDSov Protocol. There was a lot of support for our ambitions and projects across the representatives I met with.
Wikimedia Deutschland staff I met with:
- Frank Böker, Board Advisor and Coordinator – We also discussed the increasing professionalisation of the WMAU Board and the organisation’s operations. Frank informed me about the very strategic functioning of their Board and its makeup which includes numerous members who are not Wikimedia contributors.
- Eva Martin, Program Coordinator, Governance and Movement Relations
- Bettina Rech, Director of Fundraising – We also discussed the recent donor issue an Australian experienced, as well as donor motivations, campaign messaging, campaign banner management, campaign timing, donor segmentation and other fundraising matters.
- Anna Rees, Executive Assistant – As an expatriate Australian Anna was particularly interested in the ICIP and IDSov Protocol.
- Lucy Patterson, Digital Heritage Advisor –
- Riham Abed-Ali and Christopher Schwarzkopf, Project Managers, Marginalized Knowledge – They ran a project called re-shape to promote knowledge equity by supporting projects from marginalized communities in Germany, particularly those experiencing racism. They were very interested in the ICIP and IDSov Protocol. They were hosting a conference called Who Owns Free Knowledge? Examining Power, Platformization, and the Promise of the Commons happening on Thursday 10 April 2025. If the timing had worked out it would have been good to attend but an extra week in Europe was not realistic.
Due to her not being available unexpectedly I met with Nicole Ebber, Director of Governance and Movement Relations by video conference on Friday 4 April 2025. While we only had 30 minutes, we agreed to meet again soon.
10 Year Strategic Plan and 3 Year Activity Plan
I would like to thank Belinda for her help in finalising the 10 Year Strategic Plan and for finalising and submitting the 3 Year Activity Plan (2025–2028). Both will be added to the website in due course.
Secretary's report
Membership report
New members. No new member applications, and three members have lapsed. Membership currently at 84.
Treasurer's report
- Profit & Loss and Balance Statements
Financial reports provided:
Profit and Loss Statement March 2025
Balance sheet March 2025
This year’s Grant expenditure to 7 April, a high level summary:
Strategy/Category Allocated ($) Expended Strategy 1: Engagement 56,000 47,736 Strategy 2: Equity & Inclusion 24,800 21,895 Strategy 3: Capacity Building 31,000 34,104* Staff & Administration 291,680 218,166 TOTAL 403,480 321,901
(*)Waiting for refund of approx $3500 on Elliott’s travel to The Hague and Berlin which will bring the net expenditure for Capacity Building to $30,604.
Fraudulent Transactions
This calendar year we have had $1014.39 of fraudulent transactions. These have been submitted to Westpac for reimbursement. These transactions have likely made use of our BSB and Account number that is published on our website in order to set up an automated debit.
A number of actions could be taken to reduce the risk of this:
- Stop accepting donations through a BSB and Account number (not recommended)
- Obscure the account number on our website (seeking advice from Sam on this)
- Set up a new account that is solely for accepting donations - this account could be set up so that it cannot be overdrawn and any donations are promptly removed from the account
Matters for Decision
AGM and administrative matters
Please review the following administrative items relating to the upcoming AGM and general governance:
- AGM Date Confirmation: Confirm and announce the date of the 2025 Annual General Meeting as Sunday 14 September 2025.
- Board Casual Vacancies: Discuss the current casual vacancies on the Board. Decide whether to:
- Fill the vacancies now through Board appointment, or
- Leave the positions vacant until the next Board election at the AGM. (Note - Our Rules of Association do allow us to leave the vacancies until the AGM in September, or we could appoint to fill these roles for the next five months.)
- Preparations for Changes to Rules of Association: Begin planning for proposed updates to the Rules of Association, including:
- Aligning with the CAV Model Rules as discussed at previous meetings, and
- Consider creating a Working Group to look at any other amendments, such as revising WMAU’s Purposes to explicitly reference our role in Education, Culture and Heritage. (This may support future applications for Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) status by better articulating our mission.)
Motions:
AGM Date
Motion: That the Board confirm and announce the date of the 2025 Annual General Meeting as Sunday 14 September 2025.
ACTIONS: Staff to publish the confirmed AGM date on the Wikimedia Australia website and member communication channels. EO to prepare a timeline for AGM planning, including key deadlines for nominations, notices and reports. Add AGM date to official calendar and notify the relevant regulatory bodies (eg, ACNC, CAV, etc).
Casual Vacancies
Motion (Option A): That the Board agree to fill one or both of the current casual vacancies by Board appointment. OR Motion (Option B): Hold as vacant positions for the time being unless a distinct candidate is available beforel the 2025 AGM.
ACTIONS:
Option A: Board to review potential appointees and seek expressions of interest if needed. If candidates agree then the Board will appoint suitable candidate/s by resolution. Secretary or EO to notify Consumer Affairs Victoria and ACNC of new appointments.
Option B: Secretary to note vacancies will remain until the 2025 AGM. EO to include information about upcoming Board elections in the AGM notice and call for nominations.
Rules of Association Review
Motion: That the Board initiate preparations to revise the Rules of Association, including alignment with the Model Rules. That the Board creates a Working Group to consider revising and amending the organisation’s Purposes to explicitly include Education, Culture and Heritage.
ACTIONS: EO, President and Secretary to establish a working group on the current Rules of Association with a specific focus on the Purposes. Board to review and provide feedback on proposed changes at a future meeting. Working group or EO to draft updated Purpose clause to clarify Education, Free cultural works, Culture and Heritage (and consider alignment with requirements for DGR status). Secretary to prepare draft Rules of Association amendments and follow the process for putting them to members at the AGM (including notice period and explanatory materials).
Volunteer Support Funds applicant
Margaret Donald is attending Wikimedia Aotearoa New Zealand’s WikiCon conference in mid May, where she will also enhance her openRefine skills through some time spent with Tamsin. While she has received a scholarship from WANZ to attend WikiCon, it does not cover all of her trip expenses due to the exchange rate and costs of travel/accommodation. She is seeking some additional funding to cover costs of her trip.
Motion: Board gives in principle support for Margaret up to AUD$1000 towards travel expenses and costs towards WikiCon in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Proposals passed by email and documented below:
ICIP Protocol Funding Update - email circulated 27 March 2025
Jacqueline from WMF/ESEAP Grant Review team has advised that the best way to secure funding for the ICIP Protocol work with Terri Janke and Company is by incorporating it into our current WMAU triennial grant application (recently submitted on 21 March). She advised against submitting a separate application for a stand-alone project. Jacqueline will reopen the Fluxx application so Belinda can make amendments, and re-submit it for the WMF Grant Review team’s consideration in coming weeks.
At the last Board meeting we originally set a 2 April deadline for feedback on Terri’s reports, but this must be submitted now for our grant application. If you have major concerns, please raise them as soon as possible. Jacqueline noted there is flexibility for cost discussions over the next two weeks, but we must submit indicative figures by 28 March for the WMF Grant Review team.
Moved: Elliott; seconded: Shravan; outcome: approved
ACTION: Belinda to review the grant documentation and make all necessary adjustments to our application for triennial WMAU grant funding through WMF Fluxx platform.
Matters for Discussion
WMAU offer of Wikimania Scholarships 2025 - Nairobi, Kenya
While the Wikimedia Foundation offers a global scholarships program, many strong Australian contributors miss out due to the highly competitive process and limited slots. Providing a small number of Wikimedia Australia funded scholarships will help ensure that diverse Australian voices and experiences are represented at the movement’s flagship global event. This year Wikimania is being held in Nairobi Kenya from 6-9 August.
So far Alice Woods (WMAU staff) is the only person we are aware of who has accepted a WMF scholarship, and she has submitted a proposal to present a paper on the Alice Springs Public Library project uploading culturally assessed Central Australian images to Commons.
Supporting community members to attend Wikimania aligns with our Strategic Pillars, particularly:
- Pillar 1: Grow Free Knowledge - offering development opportunities and equipping contributors with inspiration, skills, and connections to further share and create free knowledge across Wikimedia platforms.
- Pillar 4: Celebrate our Community - by recognising and supporting volunteers’ ongoing engagement and leadership within the Wiki movement.
Proposal: That WMAU offers one or two scholarships for community members to attend Wikimania 2025. Scholarships would cover economy airfares, accommodation and registration, in line with WMAU Travel and Scholarships policies.
Discussion Points:
- Return Airfares are approx $3000-3500. The venue has not been announced, however accommodation is likely to be $1000-$1400 (7 nights at $150-$200 per night). Suggested Scholarship amount of AUD$5000.
- The Wikimania COT will supply us with a list of Australian applicants who have been assessed by WMF Trust and Safety, but were not successful in securing a WMF scholarship. Using that list, a 2-3 person Scholarship Committee (as outlined in our Scholarship Policy) can evaluate against the selection criteria to ensure diversity, equity, and impact (e.g. first-time attendees, regional contributors, underrepresented groups).
Proposal: That Wikimedia Australia reserves funds up to two scholarships to support community members to attend Wikimania 2025 in Nairobi, Kenya. Recipients will be selected based on the WMF application process, aligned with WMAU’s policies, strategic goals and values. Successful scholars will provide a report (written or at a WMAU Community meeting) of their learning and experiences from attending Wikimania 2025.
Community Wellbeing Support – Proposal for Assistance Program
Background:
As part of our commitment to Strategic Pillar 4: Celebrate our Community, the Board could consider the development of a Community Assistance Program to provide limited, confidential support services for Wikimedia Australia members (and potentially wider community members).
This initiative would offer access to professional counselling or mental health support for volunteers who experience distressing or negative situations related to their Wikimedia contributions, online behaviour, or interpersonal dynamics within the community. It could also provide support for those who wish to seek help for stress, burnout, or wellbeing concerns more broadly.
Examples of similar services within the Wiki movement include:
- Wikimedia Switzerland’s Community Care further info on meta-wiki
- Wikimedia France established a mental health phone support line in response to harassment online (link to be provided)
- Wikimedia Foundation’s Mental Health Resource Center (an article on Diff): note this a selection of online resources, not an in-person service.
Key Considerations:
- Defining eligibility (e.g. active contributors, event participants, project volunteers).
- Scope of support (e.g. limited number of counselling sessions per person per year).
- Confidentiality and duty of care protocols.
- Partnerships with external providers (e.g. referral services or EAP-style providers).
- Budget implications and potential pilot phase.
Discussion Points:
- Does the Board support piloting a Community Assistance Program?
- What scope and structure would be appropriate for a trial?
- How might we ensure equity, accessibility, and clear communication of the program?
Proposal: That Wikimedia Australia integrates the Wikimedia Mental Health Resource Center into its support services by promoting its availability, ensuring accessibility, providing educational initiatives, (and establishing a feedback mechanism?), in alignment with Strategic Pillar 4: Celebrating our Community.
Belinda to find out about a Community based counselling service in Adelaide, which aligns with what we are talking about.
Establish a Working Group looking at Safety and Care, including Board members and possibly community members.
WMAU staff and Board Working Group to research services and community supports for volunteer based organisations in Australia and provide a report to WMAU Board at a future meeting for consideration.
WikiCon 2025
Introducing early ideas to start discussions for WikiCon 2025. Possible locations - Canberra, Darwin, Hobart or Perth, but other suggestions are welcome, which should align with budget and other programmatic decisions. Best date is similar to last year to be in early-mid November. Potential for a two-day conference with most sessions offered in a hybrid format, so venue selection will need to support strong AV and live streaming capabilities. If we can identify a preferred city, potential dates, and key themes to guide further planning. Suggestion that we start the call-out process for a Committee that would focus on the program. WMAU staff can undertake the majority of logistics/comms/venue/catering, and community involvement be focussed on deciding the program content.
Proposal: Board suggested looking at regional cities and towns, and focussing on those with good air and train connections. Possible ideas include Shoalhaven, Illawarra, Northern Rivers, Lismore, Alice Springs, Albury and Launceston. Requirements are regional but accessible. WMAU Staff to research and provide an update at the next Board meeting. Circulate by email for decision if needed quickly.
Matters for Noting
Subcommittees
Subcommittees Board members:
Membership subcommittee : Emily, Jeremy
Grants (Volunteer Support grant, and/or Standing Grants): Elliott
Finance committee (Elliott, Peter, Belinda)
Activities
WMAU and other local events 2025
Upcoming 2025:
- SA Museum with Mike Dickison, Adelaide - 12 April (Belinda and Ali)
- Perth Meetup 88 — Sunday 13 April 2025
- Online Community Meeting - April 2025 — Monday 14 April 2025
- Drop in and Wikidata - April 2025 — Thursday 17 April 2025
- 2SER-FM editathon at UTS Sydney - 9 and 10 May (Alice and Annie)
- Willunga Heritage on women artists, Adelaide - 3 June (Belinda and Ali)
National activities
Global activities
- 1Lib1Ref - 15 May to 5 June 2025, Australia, New Zealand and online
- ESEAP Strategy Summit, 23-25 May 2025, Manilla Philippines
Meeting close: 6:48 pm (AEDT)
- Next Community meeting: Monday 12 May 2025
- Next Board meeting: Tuesday 20 May 2025.