Information is a vital commodity in today’s increasingly connected world. If one loses touch with the latest trends in sharing knowledge‚ one risks being left behind.
A key international forum to discuss the subject is Wikimania‚ the annual gathering of volunteers from around the world to celebrate Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects.
This year’s Wikimania will take place in Cape Town between July 18 and 22. It will be the first time the conference is held in sub-Saharan Africa.
The conference’s 2018 theme - bridging knowledge gaps: the ubuntu way forward - epitomises the organisation’s commitment to ensure a more equitable spread of information across the internet.
The main conference will take place at the Cape Sun in central Cape Town. Through a combination of talks‚ panel discussions‚ workshops and lunchtime talks‚ attendees will share their ideas to bridge Wikipedia’s gaps‚ including gender and transgender contributions‚ African content and language.
Topics related to access‚ equity‚ sharing and open content will all be put under the microscope during the three-day conference‚ as well as in the pre-conference sessions.
The programme for Wikimania has been released and features more than 80 community-submitted talks‚ 32 poster discussions and four keynote sessions. Sessions will include “AfroCROWD: expanding into the African Diaspora”‚ a panel discussion on how to raise awareness of Wikimedia among potential editors of African descent.
Wikimania 2018 will be hosted by Wikimedia ZA‚ the local chapter of the Wikimedia Foundation‚ which supports Wikipedia and the other free knowledge projects. Their vision is a world in which every single human can freely share in the sum of all knowledge.
For more details or to book your place at the conference‚ visit www.wikimania2018.com.
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