We hope that, through this WordCamp, we may encourage important conversations within the WordPress community about the value of Indigenous perspectives and that result in practical initiatives to support Indigenous communities in engaging with WordPress.
(from our Opening words and Land Acknowledgement)
When we made a commitment to Indigenous representation and perspectives in our vision statement we knew that it was important that we put this front and centre, not as an afterthought. We also knew that we might fail.
We were therefore delighted to be able to open the conference with Meggan Van Harten’s keynote presentation on Accessibility in Action: Indigenous Communities and bookend it with a closing fireside chat between Meggan and Julia Golomb about the intersection of Indigenous values and accessibility in the open-source community.
It was heartwarming that there were a number of people present from or actively working with Indigenous communities.
And it was encouraging the way in which so many of our speakers responded to the invitation to include their own Land Acknowledgement in their presentation, even though this was an unfamiliar idea to many.
We have gathered together a selection of Indigenous related links that may encourage you to explore further and keep the conversation going.
Call to action
I think it is fair to say that we succeeded in our aim of starting a conversation. The question is, how do we ensure that the conversation continues and results in positive actions?
Do you have any suggestions as to how the WordPress community might do this?
Are you already doing things that seem to work that you might share with others?
If so, please comment on this post! (And if you have an idea as to a better place for these suggestions and keeping the conversation going, please include this.)
Suggestions and ideas
In conversations before and during WC-EH, the following thoughts were thrown into the mix:
- Meetup groups taking workshops out to Indigenous communities and colleges, (first asking what might be most helpful!), growing skills and community
- Mentoring young Indigenous talent
- VR, AI and Metaverse workshops as a way of reaching youth, teens and young adults especially those of marginalized, Indigenous communities
- Gifting tickets to WordCamps to the local Indigenous community
- Continued encouragement of Indigenous involvement in WordCamps, with support for speakers to attend
- Making concerted efforts to recruit WordCamp organizers from Indigenous communities who can bring insights and connections that we lacked
- Exploring whether Indigenous language support within WordPress is of value and, if so, how to focus effort on this given that there are more than fifty different languages in Canada alone.
WP Community Collective Program to Incentivize DEIB in WP
WordCamp Canada is immensely grateful to the WP Community Collective for their support for the attendance of Meggan Van Harten and Nyasha Green, the first cohort participants in their new program Incentivizing DEIB in WP.
This is a significant initiative offering individuals from underrepresented communities support and funding. Hopefully it will make it easier for other potential speakers from Indigenous communities to engage with WordCamps going forward.
WordCamp Canada Organizers
Following the success of the inaugural WordCamp Canada, we are already thinking ahead to a follow up and inviting expressions of interest from potential organizers, speakers and volunteers.
If we are to continue the conversation on Indigenous perspectives and engagement, it would be fantastic to be able to draw more directly on the knowledge of those from within Indigenous communities during the planning stages.
Could you bring your Indigenous perspectives and knowledge to the organizing team? Or do you know someone else who might be willing and able to do so? If so, please register your interest!