Like Jung at University of Toronto, O’Neil created a GLAM page at “Wikipedia:GLAM/UAlbertaLibrary” (2020) to collect all the Wikipedia work she was doing at the University of Alberta. The page contains archives of the Wikipedia 101 course, ongoing editing tracking, and resources about using Wikipedia as a pedagogical tool. During her WIR term, O’Neil supported several classes with Wikipedia assignments and noticed increased interest in Wikipedia as university instructors planned for online delivery of classes during COVID-19 restrictions.
At University of Alberta, writing Wikipedia articles was a core component of WIR activity. Early on in the WIR term, we collaborated on a list of articles and themes that were either featured in the library’s collection or of interest locally, and this list is posted on the GLAM page. Two examples of article creation are “Miriam Green Ellis” (2020), whose archives are housed in the Bruce Peel Special Collections at the University of Alberta Library, and the “Indigenous Art Park” (2020) recently created in Edmonton in a neighborhood adjacent to the university.
Residency Impact
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit and we had to change many of our original plans for the residency, we were not sure how to measure impact resulting from the residency. We very consciously did not tie any specific quantifiable outcomes, like number of participants for the speaker series or number of edits to Wikipedia, to any of the activities. What we did observe was there was considerable community enthusiasm for Wikimedia, both in the library and at the university, and we learned a lot through the conversations and questions. O’Neil used the GLAM page as a place to bring together what she learned and curate resources for the campus community.
In terms of the impact on the individual, O’Neil said the WIR term was an excellent experience for building community at the university and stoking a passion for open knowledge, and being a WIR gave her graduate student life a stimulating new dimension. As a result, she will
