The Wikimedia Movement in Canada examines the distinctive role Canadians have played in creating and sustaining the world's largest free encyclopedia. Drawing on interdisciplinary case studies, this volume investigates how Wikimedia projects transform the creation, circulation, and governance of knowledge. Contributors probe the relationship between identity and contribution across English, French, and Atikamekw Wikipedias, attending to questions of diversity, representation, and inclusivity. They analyze institutional partnerships, demonstrating how collaborations extend public access to cultural knowledge and reshape institutional practices. Finally, they explore the forms of literacy required for meaningful engagement in Wikimedia environments, including digital, legal, and algorithmic literacies, and reflects on their implications for both amateur and professional contributors. A rich, multifaceted examination of open culture in practice, this volume offers a rigorous exploration of how collaboration and knowledge-sharing shape Canada's evolving digital landscape.
The Wikimedia Movement in Canada examines how Canadians shape Wikimedia projects, focusing on identity, diversity, partnerships, and the literacies needed for meaningful participation in open knowledge.
Jean-Michel Lapointe is digital education project manager at Université du Québec à Montréal. A Wikipedian since 2014 and a former academic librarian and teacher, he promotes the educational use of Wikimedia projects in higher education settings.
Marie D. Martel is an associate professor at the École de bibliothéconomie et des sciences de l'information at the Université de Montréal. A specialist in libraries and open culture, she is also involved in research and outreach projects related to Wikimedia platforms. She has been a Wikipedian since 2010.
With contributions by Stacy Allison-Cassin, Gabriel Arsenault, Nathalie Casemajor, Pierre Lévy, Denise Smith, Nathalie Thibault, Miguel Tremblay, Simon Villeneuve, and Mathieu Wade.
Introduction
Focus I: Identities
Chapter 1: Protocols of Pluralization: Negotiating Cultural Cohabitation in Wikipedia
Nathalie Casemajor
Chapter 2: Does Wikipedia's Acadia Portal Offer an Accurate Portrait?
Gabriel Arsenault and Mathieu Wade
Chapter 3: Using Wikidata to Quantify the Gender Gap in Biographical Resources
Marie D. Martel and Simon Villeneuve
Focus II: Institutions
Chapter 4: Wikidata in Canada and the Mariposa Folk Festival Linked Data Project
Stacy Allison-Cassin
Chapter 5: Wikimedia in a Québec Art Museum: Exploring an Open Cultural Institution Model
Nathalie Thibault
Chapter 6: Open Government: A Wiki to Link Them All Together
Miguel Tremblay
Focus III: Literacies
Chapter 7: Public Knowledge During the COVID-19 Infodemic: Health Literacy and the Effect of Wikipedia
Denise Smith
Afterword: The Value of Verified Knowledge in the Age of Generative AI
Pierre Lévy
List of Contributors
