Proposal:Strategic meetings

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The status of this proposal is:
Request for Discussion / Sign-Ups

Strategic Priorities

Every proposal should be tied to one of the strategic priorities below.

Edit this page to help identify the priorities related to this proposal!

1. Achieve continued growth in readership
2. Focus on quality content
3. Increase Participation
4. Stabilize and improve the infrastructure
5. Encourage Innovation

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This proposal is being implemented through the Meetups page.

Summary

This proposal is aiming to improve the strategy process, and to involve Wikimedians world wide in the discussion, and not only on-line.

Proposal

Meetings should be organized all over the world to involve Wikimedia chapter members, Wikimedia projects' community members and other stakeholders in a real life-discussion into the strategy process. The meetings can take several shapes, and the outcomes should be processed into the strategy process.

Meetings could be of a few different levels:

Cafe Meetups

Informal meetings on a local level, with a low participation threshold.

Discussion meetups

A little more formal type of meetup, where the actual aim is discussion. Preferrably facilitated by an able discussion leader. The discussions could be very general or more specified to a part of the strategy to attract more people.

International discussion meetings

The WMF or a consortium of chapters could organize international meetings with participants from several countries. These meetings should focus on a specific topic or set of topics, such as for example Intellectual Property Lobbying. That way the experts from those topics could travel to the meeting, and the outcomes are most useful.

When a chapter is present in a country, this chapter could facilitate the discussions and meetings. The advantage here is that chapters have the relations to invite the right people, but they can also organize the meetings in the local language. To attract participants (if funds are available), consumptions could be provided for participants.

The first category of meetings would be best in the very early phases, the second a little later, and the last type when the outcomes are getting somewhat more serious. [[

Motivation

In real life discussion goes faster, and people are better able to explain their point and arguments, but it makes it also easier for people to agree with each other. These meetings could work as a catalyst for the total strategy process. It excludes less people who have problems with the language or expressing themselves in a written way, and makes it possilbe to invite specific experts.

Key Questions

• Are there funds available for this type of meetings?
• Who would be the best participants?
• When can we start? (yesterday!)
• Which chapters would be interested?
• How to ensure a good discussion (facilitation)
• Is WMF staff presence required?

Potential Costs

• Consumptions
• Room rent
• Travel cost
• Staff time
• Volunteer time

Community Discussion

Do you have a thought about this proposal? A suggestion? Discuss this proposal by going to Proposal talk:Strategic meetings.

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