2024:Program/Demolishing the ivory towers: bringing universities and open knowledge communities together.

Session title: Demolishing the ivory towers: bringing universities and open knowledge communities together.

Session type: Workshop

Track: Research

Language: en

Educational Wiki collaboration with universities isn’t new. This workshop will offer a new perspective on Wiki collaborations with universities through the lens of research, with the Inclusion, Diversity, Equity & Accessibility in Open Research Network (IDEA Network) at the University of St Andrews as a case study.

The workshop will be suitable for anyone with knowledge, experience, or interest in implementing Wiki research projects within educational institutions, including those involved in knowledge exchange, teaching, or research.

Description

The digital era has revolutionised knowledge access, with platforms like Wikipedia serving as vital resources globally. Yet, underrepresented subjects and marginalised communities often struggle for recognition in this vast landscape. Founded in April 2021, the IDEA Network aims to address this challenge.

Our team from the university and beyond is committed to promoting inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility in open knowledge through research and community engagement. Together, we aim to bridge the gap between researchers from educational institutions and communities, such as Wikipedia, amplifying the voices and representation of marginalised groups and improving digital literacy.

Although Wikimedia and the Wikipedia community have made commendable efforts to support researchers navigating this online environment, there is still a need for more comprehensive guidance on aspects such as obtaining research ethics, engaging with the community, and accessing resources to encourage greater researcher involvement in contributing to open knowledge.

The IDEA Network's initial focus is to create clear and sustainable digital research pathways to tackle the challenges encountered by researchers engaged in digital research (DR), especially within open knowledge initiatives.

So far, we've had the privilege of supporting several research endeavours, including a PhD research project, several MSc projects, as well as senior and junior undergraduate projects, among others, primarily in the field of computer science. Our initiatives have also involved experimenting with training youth workers and undergraduates in Wiki editing, collaborating with diverse communities, and hosting events to enhance editing skills. Importantly, these efforts are being documented to create a structured approach to researching Wikimedia projects.

Aim: To disseminate knowledge of ongoing Wiki research projects within universities and inspire future endeavours and research collaborations at the University of St Andrews and beyond.

Objectives: • Facilitate conversations among participants to foster collaboration on exploring research pathways. • Establish a mutual learning environment for sharing experiences. • Share both successes and failures to extract valuable lessons. • Define the strengths, weaknesses and opportunities of current universities' research on open knowledge projects. • Develop a collaborative document consolidating case studies to identify common themes leading to success or failure. • Identify avenues for collaborative research on Wikimedia projects among universities.

How does your session relate to the event theme, Collaboration of the Open?

We believe that collaboration on open work between Universities and Wikimedia can reap benefits for all involved. As mentioned above we’d like also to use the session to create a collaborative document which draws case studies together and looks to uncover common themes for success / failure.

What is the experience level needed for the audience for your session?

Everyone can participate in this session

Resources

Speakers

Abd Alsattar Ardati

I'm a collaboration enthusiast and Lecturer who recently completed his PhD at the University of St Andrews School of Computer Science. Originally from Syria, I've been driven by the impact of limited knowledge access to address social challenges through research and educational initiatives.

Since discovering the Wikimedia Foundation's mission in May 2018, I've been dedicated to supporting its movement, starting with an MSc dissertation focused on enhancing the Wikipedia content translation tool and supporting volunteer translation. During my PhD, I introduced a co-design framework for grassroots solutions and used it to co-designed WikiSync, a collaborative Wikipedia editing tool. Additionally, I co-founded the IDEA Network to systematically support open-knowledge research projects. Presently, I'm focused on participatory design strategies to address social issues like digital poverty, exploring Wikipedia's potential as a medium to provide assistance to those affected.

While I'm not a regular contributor, I'm devoted to researching ways to improve Wikipedia for everyone. Outside of academia, I enjoy music, archery, and, lately, attempting not to break any bones while slacklining!

Dr Kirsty Ross

Dr Kirsty Ross joined the Wikimedia community in August 2019, at a training session delivered by @Stinglehammer. In 2021, she, along with Dr Sara Thomas (Wikimedia UK) and Dr Abd Alsattar Ardati, co-founded the Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility in Open Knowledge Network (IDEA Network for short) at the University of St Andrews. She won the Up and Coming Wikipedian of the Year (UK) in 2022 for her efforts with the IDEA Network. Since then, she has explored a plethora of ways to integrate Wiki projects into teaching, knowledge exchange, and research. Kirsty likes to hang out primarily on Wikicommons and Wikidata, with occasional forays into Wikipedia. She considers herself to be a WikiShepherd.