I attended the 2010 UK GLAM-WIKI conference at the British Museum recently.
These are my notes on lessons from the various content collaborations which were presented. None of this is original to me but hopefully it is a helpful summary. If anyone wants to move this to a different space and use it as the basis for further discussion, please feel free.
Benefits for cultural institutions:
- Bringing some of the accumulated knowledge of your institution to an immense global audience - well beyond the reach of an individual institution.
- Reputational benefits: press coverage and word of mouth
- The opportunity to engage a new, high-impact, group of volunteers
One benefit which doesn't seem to happen: increased web traffic for the institution. Though this might be different for a smaller institution
Benefits for Wikipedians:
- Access to expertise, information and resources that are normally difficult to get to
- Engagement with the cultural sector offers for a focus for Wikipedians and can be more fun than sitting in front of a computer!
Ingredients for successful WIKI-GLAM co-operation:
- A defined project which is not only voluntary for both sides, but which sparks some inspiration on both sides.
- A project sponsor on both sides who is prepared (and able) to get interested parties to buy in. On the GLAM side, this is likely to involve web, curatorial and perhaps educational staff, and appropriate authorisation. On the Wiki side, no-one needs to authorise anything, but someone does need to make the effort to keep the relevant Wikimedia chapter updated, publicise and promote the collaboration on-wiki.
- Wikipedians taking the time to de-mystify the way Wikipedia works; and vice versa!
Things to avoid if co-operation is to be successful:
- Wikipedians treating it as a hit-and-run raid on image libraries
- The idea that editing Wikipedia now becomes part of any existing staff member's job
Risks of collaboration which have not occurred (or at least not yet!):
- Reputational risks to museums
Useful things to work on to promote future collaboration:
- Cultural institutions should designate a point of contact for queries from Wikipedians
- Wikimedia projects should aim to develop clear documentation for people at GLAM institutions, and also to set up processes which will handle people trying to get in touch.
- Wikimedia projects should aim to engage with cultural institutions who are raising concerns with us about copyright infringement rather than ignoring them. This can be done without compromising our position.