University of Canberra/RCC2011/Going forward: Future wiki conferences

RecentChangesCamp 2011 Canberra closed with a discussion on what we will do going forward as a result of this, how we were empowered and how we can share our learning. This involved discussing several ideas:

  • Trying to have more Wiki Academies around Australia;
  • Having a one day RecentChangesCamp in New Zealand, possibly in June or July of 2011. The focus would be on attracting a group more interested in research than in education, but all people interested in wikis would still invited. (The premise was also that RCC in Australia would be more education oriented. The USA would be more commercial wiki users oriented.) The goal would be to build the infrastructure community network wise so that a three day RecentChangesCamp could be held in New Zealand in 2012. People at the conference thought Wellington would be a good location to have it as it is centrally located. It would not take more than three weeks to organize and promote once a venue was found. Laura Hale volunteered to facilitate in order to insure continuity.
  • A discussion was had about trying to reach out to MPs to help push the idea of using collaborative practices as part of open governance. This might be realized either through a formal conference or possibly through Wiki Academies.
  • A conference proposal was put forth about having a standard academic wiki conference with a focus on doing research on best practices on wikis. Methodology would be really important. Paper presentation would be open to everyone and it would be structured more like a post-graduate conference. People would have the opportunity to have their research subjected to a double blind peer-review. This conference would likely be held in Adelaide as the proposal was put forward by some one from Adelaide. It would also introduce people to ethics review. An attempt could be made to try the peer reviewed practice on Wikiversity as a test to how feasible this was. If that doesn't occur on Wikiversity, it could be tried on a locked wiki. The conference would be about Critical improvement, not criticism.
  • An event in Newcastle around w:This Is Not Art-festival. Possibly a one day RCC type event, as many of the people who attend are very creative who might be extremely willing to engage in the wiki community if they are approached.

Beyond the planning of events such as these, we discussed how we were all ambassadors for wikis and the collaborative learning community. When we returned home, we were encouraged to continue our activism and to share what we learned.

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