How does it work?

We will kick off with a brief training on why this work is important, instructions on how to begin and tips for making strong pages. Following that, it’s time to get to work for as long as you are able to stay. Wikipedia volunteers and Optica staff will be on hand until 14:00 EST, working alongside you and ready to answer any questions you have.

Ways to participate?

1. Improve Diversity – By strengthening existing or creating new pages for the underrepresented people in science we can improve diverse representation on the site. 

2. Translate Pages – Wikipedia pages exist in multiple languages but not all pages are equal. Translate existing pages to a language where the page does not exist or includes significantly less information can help the distribution of information on a global scale.

3. Simple Wiki – The Simple English Wikipedia is designed for children and adults who are learning English and can open the door to the world of optics and physics to new populations and inspire the next generation of scientists.

What do you need to do?

1. Register as a Wikipedia Editor. 
2. Log in to the Wiki-dashboard using your Wikipedia account to track the contributions made during the event.
3. Check out this FAQ for more information and helpful hints.

If you are a Wikipedia editor and would like to help out during this session, or want to help build the list of scientists to add to Wikipedia please email mlesky@optica.org.

Meet the Trainer

Alice White, Digital Editor & Wikimedian-in-Residence, Wellcome Trust

Dr. Alice White is a Digital Editor and Wikimedian-in-Residence at the Wellcome Trust; her work involves helping people to share their knowledge online. Before joining Wellcome, she did a PhD in the history of science and has also worked as a researcher and teacher. Alice has run several Wikipedia Edit-A-Thons including the Optica’s first Wiki Needs Women in Optics event at their annual meeting Frontiers in Optics in 2019.