Free Knowledge Advocacy Group EU
The Free Knowledge Advocacy Group EU (FKAGEU / EU policy) represent the European Wikimedia chapters and communities so they can have a unified and clear position on major legislative and political changes affecting the vision, mission and values of the Wikimedia movement.
The Free Knowledge Advocacy Group EU wants to coordinate chapters’ resources where possible: the core group will monitor the EU processes closely, raise red flags in case of crucial issues, and propose possible actions.
The FKAGEU has an office in Brussels, close to the European institutions.
Periodically the chapters and communities are informed via reports and with in-person meetings where the FKAGEU sets new goals for the coming period.
History
editThe question of lobbying for free knowledge is far from new in the Wikimedia movement. During the Wikimania 2009 in Buenos Aires, a group of activists suggested some core issues which should be monitored on a regular basis. During the Wikimania 2011 in Haifa and the Wikimania 2012 in Washington D.C. Lodewijk Gelauff from WMNL presented a variety of Chapters’ projects which indicated clearly that there is a need for advocacy work.
One of the strategic goals of the Wikimedia movement is to stabilise infrastructure, which explicitly includes building "increased capacity to safeguard the movement's reputation and support the advancement of legal conditions that enable unimpeded access to information online, worldwide." Another list of mid-to-long term priorities of the movement that this initiative wants to pursue is it's Advocacy agenda.
Main topics
edit- Freedom of panorama (FOP)
- Public domain for public works (works created by governments and other publicly funded works)
- Free use of Orphan works
Contacts
editTimeline
edit- 6-7 April 2013 - Annual meeting of the Wikimedia Free Knowledge Advocacy Group EU (1st edition), Mundo-b (Edinburgstraat 26) (documentation | minutes | photos)
- January-March 2014 - Together with Free Knowledge Advocacy Group EU and the WMF we worked on the European Commission copyright consultation (info)
- 23-25 April 2014 - Annual meeting of the Wikimedia Free Knowledge Advocacy Group EU (2nd edition), Constant Variable @ Open House, Rue Gallait 80, Schaerbeek - co-organised and co-hosted by WMBE volunteers (documentation | minutes | photos)
- 20-21 November 2015 - Annual meeting of the Wikimedia Free Knowledge Advocacy Group EU (3rd edition), 25th floor WTC I-building, Brussels (documentation | photos)
- 22-23 April 2017 - Annual meeting of the Wikimedia Free Knowledge Advocacy Group EU (4th edition), BeCentral, Brussels (documentation | photos) (Dimi z & Romaine & SPQRobin)
- 28-29 April 2018 - Annual meeting of the Wikimedia Free Knowledge Advocacy Group EU (5th edition), office WMBE at Rue du Trône 51, Brussels (documentation | photos) (Dimi z & Romaine)
- 3 December 2018 - Presentation: Beauty and the Beast ... and the Memes! Copyright exceptions under EU and national laws (website | archived website)