GLAM/Newsletter/June 2025/Contents/Australia report

This Month in GLAM – Volume XV, Issue VI, June 2025

Australia report

Celebrating Communication History and Women Artists through Wikipedia

National Communication Museum

Wikimedia Australia ran an edit-a-thon at one of Melbourne's newest museums, the National Communication Museum, which opened in September 2024. Before the edit-a-thon we were greeted warmly and offered a passionate tour of the collections.

At the edit-a-thon we hosted thirteen staff and volunteers of the museum and we spoke a lot about the importance of editing Wikipedia, and other Wikimedia platforms, in the era of AI. Also, unlike at other edit-a-thons the attendees were very interested in the history of Wikipedia.

As a group, we looked at how easy it was to make a difference and improve the internet one step at a time, and nerded out together (their words), improving a number of articles about communications in Australia.

Dangerously Modern at the Art Gallery of South Australia

Wikimedia Australia (WMAU) and the Art Gallery of South Australia (AGSA) hosted an edit-a-thon as part of its current exhibition Dangerously Modern: Australian Women Artists in Europe 1890–1940.

The event brought together 20 enthusiastic participants to learn how to edit Wikipedia and improve coverage of women artists represented in the exhibition. With guidance from WMAU, participants added information, references, and began creating new articles to help ensure these notable women artists receive the recognition they deserve online. WMAU will also work closely with the AGSA Gallery Guides, who have conducted additional research on each of the artists, to edit and update the articles.

The exhibition Dangerously Modern celebrates a bold generation of women who embraced modernity in both life and art at the turn of the 20th century. The edit-a-thon attendees contributed to a more balanced and inclusive digital record of art history.

Aldinga Wiki workshop improves local history on Wikipedia

As part of Wikimedia Australia's regional outreach, a Wikipedia workshop was held in Aldinga, South Australia (45 kilometres South of Adelaide), focusing on enhancing Wikipedia articles about the local people and history of the area.

The event grew out of the determination of a local historian, who was frustrated by the absence of Wikipedia articles about significant women artists from South Australia. Motivated to take action, he drove a return trip of nearly 2,500 kilometres to Canberra to attend a Know My Name edit-a-thon at the National Gallery of Australia, to learn how to contribute to Wikipedia. On returning to Adelaide he continued editing and has since liaised with WMAU staff to facilitate the Alginga workshop aimed at documenting the cultural heritage of regional South Australia.

Participants learned editing skills and worked together to improve articles. Using the Aldinga Library’s local history resources, the group collaboratively reviewed articles with errors, poor citations, and unclear writing. Through discussion and hands-on editing, participants improved several entries, ensuring more accurate, better-sourced, and locally informed content on Wikipedia. There is great interest in another workshop in the near future to learn how to upload images to Wiki Commons.

This event is part of Wikimedia Australia's ongoing efforts to expand Wikipedia’s coverage of regional Australia, while building digital literacy and research skills in local communities.

Thank you!

Thank you to everyone across Australia who joined us in June, and a special thank you to our wonderful volunteers who helped prepare the lists and materials, as well as to our hosts for their support and collaboration. We look forward to what we can achieve together going forward

Belinda Spry, Alice Woods & Alison Smith

Wikimedia Australia Staff