Friday, March 25, 2011

Doing a good job, and then the reward ...

Having been involved on the #Wikimedia side of GLAM, it was my privilege to learn people in many parts of the world interested in different aspects of both Wiki and GLAM. With the whole program becoming more official, it was time to make myself an "ambassador"  now that I still can or forget about it.

I did and clearly there is a clear need for people who are available for questions, who are willing to give people their bearings. The lessons learned from the Tropenmuseum and from my language involvement make for a happy fusion.

I have had wonderful conversations with two ladies, one from Mexico and one from South Africa. Both were a mix of GLAM and language and exhilaratingly different.

Thelmadatter was getting into contact with me independently about Wikipedia for native Mexican languages and the different ways you can approach a museum. The Tropenmuseum has many Mexican objects in its collection and this made for an interesting exchange of views. Mexican arts and crafts have a rich tradition and they can do with increased visibility.

An organisation in South Africa wants to improve information about Africa in Wikipedia for Africans. This conversation went very much the other way; we started with GLAM and ended up what practical activities will infuse activity in Wikipedias like the one in Xhosa or Zulu. I gave them a challenge and, when they accept I will blog about their organisations and what they aim to do.
Thanks,
      GerardM

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