I _try_ to create a monthly report, but we do fall behind. Nobody at the
Foundation is happy about that, but they are a pain to produce. We'll probably
try to figure out a better, easier way to do it, this year.
(And hello Oliver, and welcome to foundation-l!)
Just to be clear, I have no idea what Milos is talking about, either with
regard to the chapters or the Wikimedia Foundation. I believe one of the board
members plans to follow up with him offline.
A couple more bits of information:
* We don't currently have good audit procedures confirming that the chapters
have met their commitments. That's normal, because Wikimedia is still pretty
young. But what I believe Thomas said is also true: most organizations have
pretty strong audit procedures, plus procedures for what to do when commitments
aren't being met. For example, I believe the (U.S.) Corporation For Public
Broadcasting publishes the results of its (third-party) audits of compliance at
NPR and PBS stations. For example, it tracks how many minutes of sponsorship
are broadcast per hour, in order to assess whether stations are complying with
agreed-upon maximums. If a station exceeds its sponsorship maximums, there are
repercussions -- although I don't know what they are.
* Anyone who has information about malfeasance or misfeasance inside Wikimedia
should take a look at our Whistleblower Policy, which lays out process for
escalation to authorities. The policy is intended to cover serious and actual
problems (rather than for example rumour or worries), but it's probably better
to overreport than underreport. And it is good to have a confidential avenue.
I can tell you our Whistleblower Policy has worked well for us in the past: I'm
glad it exists.
* For those interested in the scholarships, here's a quote from mail Sara sent
me the other day:
"1) As of tonight, we have 70 Wikimania Scholarship recipients from 39
countries (6 continents). Each scholarship covers roundtrip travel,
registration, and accommodations for one recipient.Approximate funding on
travel, registration, and accommodations for these 70 people is $110,000.* The
program is funded by the Wikimedia Foundation in 2010. The recipients were
selected by a committee of volunteers, out of about 2,500 applicantions. They
were selected primarily on the basis of their participation in the Wikimedia
projects or other free knowledge and educational initiatives, and also on their
efforts to help grow community in underrepresented regions.This is compared to
58 recipients in 2009 whose travel and registration cost ~$93,000, and was
funded by four funders.*As we are processing last-minute refunded tickets, and
accommodations and registration still need to be charged back to us, $110K is
only an approximate number at this time.2) Thanks to the scholarships committee
and Gdansk team who dedicated so much time and attention to this program.3)
Thanks to chapters that offered direct support for Wikimedians to attend
Wikimedia. (I don't know which ones specifically, just that some have supported
their members).4) Thanks to the Open Society Institute and the Soros
Foundations, which are sponsoring several Wikimedians from Central Asia, the
Caucuses, and the Balkans."
Sorry for the formatting on that note from Sara -- it's just a copy-and-paste
out of my Blackberry. I'm at the airport in Newark: just about home :-)
Thanks,
Sue
-----Original Message-----
From: oliver keyes <thedarkth...@hotmail.co.uk>
Sender: foundation-l-boun...@lists.wikimedia.org
Date: Wed, 14 Jul 2010 17:12:53
To: <foundation-l@lists.wikimedia.org>
Reply-To: Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List <foundation-l@lists.wikimedia.org>
Subject: Re: [Foundation-l] Money, politics and corruption
"Sue doesn't send out a monthly report" - Sue is the Executive Director of the
fastest growing non-profit foundation in the United States, a foundation which
has just announced a doubling of its staff, trial direct expansion to two more
nations and the gradual relocation of server resources. You think she has the
time for a monthly report?
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