Monday, July 25, 2016

Adelaide workshop report

The Australian Paralympic Committee (APC) and University of Queensland (UQ) conducted a workshop in Adelaide on 9/10 July 2016 for the Wikipedia Paralympic history component of the History of the Paralympic Movement in Australia (HOPAU). This weekend also coincided with the launch of Don Worley’s films by the APC and the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia on Monday 11 July. On the second day of the workshop, Adelaide Paralympians joined the group for lunch and a panel discussion that further explored aspects of Paralympic history.


Goals and strategies


·        Increase the number of editors involved in the Wikipedia dimension of the Paralympic History Project by recruiting existing editors to the project, training new editors and training existing, interested supporters as editors.

·        Up skill existing editors.

·        Create excitement around the project before the Rio Games

·        Create a connection between Don Worley’s footage and the Paralympic History Project


Key strategies to achieve these goals: 

·        Conduct a workshop in the months leading up to the Rio games

·        Use Adelaide as a venue, because no HOPAU workshops had been conducted there and there is a strong disability sport following in Adelaide

·        Promote the workshop as widely as possible within potential target groups using social media and networks of supporters.

·        Show how Don Worley’s films can be utilised to create more dynamic content for the Paralympic History Project

·        Find the requirements for putting clips from the Don Worley films into Wikipedia articles

·        Past Paralympian panel discussion


Venue


The State Library of South Australia was very cooperative and negotiated a discounted rate for the use of their Heztel Lecture Theatre. Essential venue requirements were Wi-Fi access, wheelchair access, tables and chairs, catering and projection facilities.


The venue location was perfect, central for those staying at the group hotel and those who lived locally, close to parking areas


Participants


Twelve participants in total – with an additional 5 on the Sunday for lunch and a panel discussion:


·        Elizabeth Edmondson – 1964 and 1968 Paralympian. HOPAU member. (Perth based)

·        Lyn Lillecrapp – 1976, 1988, 1992 Paralympian. HOPAU member. (Adelaide local)

·        Julie Russell - 1980, 1984, 1988, 1994, 1998 Paralympian, HOPAU member, (Adelaide local)

·        Greg Blood – HOPAU member from Canberra and prominent Wikipedian, (Canberra based)

·        Ross Mallett- prominent Wikipedian (flew from Melbourne to attend)

·        Murray Phillips – UQ sports historian responsible for writing the History of the Paralympic Movement in Australia, (Brisbane based)

·        Gary Osmond – UQ Sports historian working on the History of the Parylmpic Games Project, (Brisbane based)

·        Ciara Mahady – UQ research assistant and event convenor, (Brisbane based)

·        Lauren Robertson – Australian Paralympic Committee Public Relations Intern, (Sydney based)

·        Tony Naar – Facilitator of the History of the Paralympic Movement in Australia Project and Organiser of the Don Worley Film Exhibition, (Sydney based)

·        Patricia Ollerenshaw – HOPAU member and APC Volunteer Historian, (Sydney based)

·        Don Worley – Creator of historic Paralympic footage , (Adelaide local)


Sunday only – Paralympians panel and lunch:

·           Libby Kosmala

·           Stan Kosmala

·           Sue Twelftree

·           Troy Andrews

·           Kevin Munro



Issues


·           Advertising of event could have been expanded to attract additional local disability sport groups

·           There was a lack of existing HOPAU editors in Adelaide to build the workshop around.

·           Attempts were made to target new contributors to attend, but this remains an ongoing issue.


Outcomes


·        Participants were provided with an overview and update on the progress of the History Project: the written book, the Ehistory and the Wikipedia articles.

·        The contributions of attendees to the development of Wikipedia articles were summarised and documented.

·        The contributions of Wikipedia editors working at the University of Canberra and the University of Queensland were summarized and documented. Plans for the development of future Wikipedia articles from the Universities of Canberra and Queensland were discussed.

·        Existing HOPAU members were up skilled and now have the confidence and capacity to upload images and edit articles.

·        The State Library of Adelaide has been identified as an excellent venue for future events and a relationship has been established with the venue manager.

·        After a considerable break since the previous workshop, the project has developed new momentum through the workshop.

·        A connection between film and print information was highlighted

·        Past Paralmpians gained knowledge about the Project and were able to have input about the direction

·        Requirements for putting clips from the Don Worley films into Wikipedia articles were identified as follows:


o     OGG standard

o     Length of clips- limited by MB capacity, larger clips to be uploaded through WMF

o     Most films just 3-6 seconds of individuals – who will be responsible for this?

o     Films linked through articles – i.e. games articles linked to YouTube channel

o     Copyrights/ Music Copyrights

o     Potential uses for the E-History

o     The need for ongoing collection of additional videos


Recommendations


·       UQ and the APC to put together a program of workshops and other events for the remainder of the project.

·       Conduct the next workshop in Perth in late 2016. Initiate preliminary work for the preparation of the Perth Wikipedia workshop.

·       Ensure sufficient experienced editors attend each workshop to provide one-to-one time with inexperienced editors so that each person can develop skills at their own pace and focus on the specific areas of interest to them. This proved to be a great advantage of this workshop compared to previous workshops, where the inexperienced felt somewhat overwhelmed.

·       Clearly identify the specific history project needs which can be addressed by HOPAU project participants and be ready to work with them to achieve those by developing the requisite skills at workshops.

·        Provide sufficient notice to maximise participation at workshops.


Appreciation

·        Steve Burrows, Administration and Venues Coordinator, State Library of Adelaide

·        All attendees for giving up their time to participate

·        Libby Kosmala, Stan Kosmala, Sue Twelftree, Troy Andrews, Kevin Munro, Lyn Lillecrapp, Julie Russell, Elizabeth Edmondson for attending and sharing their insights

Report prepared by Ciara Mahady.

Thursday, July 7, 2016