In this section I will focus on my role as a Trustee of the Association for Learning Technology and Wikimedia UK.

I was first elected to the Board of Trustees of the Association for Learning Technology [1][2] and Wikimedia UK [3][4], the UK chapter of the Wikimedia Foundation, in 2016, and I am now serving my second and final term for both charities.  The Boards of Trustees are responsible for the governance and oversight of these organisations and, as a result, I have a range of senior leadership duties and responsibilities.  These include supporting the charities’ mission, vision and values and contributing to the development of strategy, through annual strategy planning days, and providing comments to strategic framework drafts.  Overseeing the implementation of policies, processes and budgets, including financial planning, risk management and legal compliance. Supporting the CEOs and Chairs of Board, and promoting the aims and values of both charities, which I do through my social media channels, blog posts and conference presentations [5][6]. 

In addition to these regular responsibilities I also contribute to a wide range of additional activities for both organisations.  As a Trustee of ALT I have helped to develop policy guidance, including the ALT policy paper Open Education and OER – A guide and call to action for policy makers [7].  I have contributed to partnership projects such as the development of guidelines on getting started with online learning for the National Lottery Heritage Fund [8].  I’ve been invited to represent ALT at events including Open for a cause: fostering participation in society and education [9], an international symposium hosted by  ALT and Wikimedia DE.  I attend and contribute to all of ALTs own events including the ALT Annual and Winter Conferences, the AGM and the ALT General Assembly. In 2021 I sat on a recruitment panel for a senior role at ALT, which involved shortlisting and interviewing candidates. I have also sat on the judging panel for the ALT Learning Technologist of the Year awards, and have twice had the honour of presenting the award of Life Membership of ALT.  

Taking part in Open for a Cause with Maren Deepwell, and Audrey Watters. CC BY, Martin Hawksey.

In addition to sitting on the Board of Wikimedia UK, I am also a member of the Governance sub-committee, which oversees corporate governance, planning, and the performance of the Board and individual trustees, and the Partnership Advisory Board, which explores partnership opportunities and promotes Wikimedia UK to potential partners. I was appointed as Vice Chair of Board in 2019 and in 2020 I stepped up as Acting Chair of Board in the interim period between our previous Chair stepping down and our new Chair taking up the role [10].  I also worked with Wikimedia UK’s CEO and both the outgoing and incoming Chair to ensure a smooth transition of governance. I have taken part in facilitated working meetings to help develop Wikimedia UK’s equity, diversity and inclusion framework and action plan. I recently ran a session on Creative Commons and open licensing as part of a copyright skills development workshop for fellow Board members.  I help to plan and participate in the AGM, and I promote the wide range of projects and initiatives undertaken by Wikimedia UK through my social media channels, including the annual photography competition Wiki Loves Monuments, which I enthusiastically promote and take part in [11].  I have also had the honour of presenting the Wikimedian of the Year Awards in 2019 and 2021.  As a Trustee and member of the wider Wikimedia community I also take part in editing events such as Wikipedia for Peace at Europride Vienna [12] and I contribute to Wikimedia Foundation strategic initiatives, such as the ratification of a new Universal Code of Conduct.  I regularly talk about the work of Wikimedia UK and the benefits of Wikmedia in education, and in 2020 I was invited to present a keynote at the Wikimedia in Education Summit at Coventry University [13].  As Vice-Chair of Board I am sometimes asked to step in and delegate when the CEO is unavailable, for example in April 2022 I wrote and presented a paper on knowledge equity and the commons for the Westminster Media Forum webinar on “The future for intellectual property and copyright regulation in the UK.”

Wikimedia UK Board of Trustees, 2019. CC BY Josie Fraser.

Reflection 

Serving as a trustee for ALT and Wikimedia UK has been an immense honour for me over the last six years.  I greatly appreciate the opportunity to give something back to both these organisations, in return for their ongoing commitment to openness, equity, community engagement and knowledge activism. I have learned a great deal from my fellow trustees and benefited enormously from working closely with such a diverse group of people from a wide range of backgrounds, who I might not otherwise have had the opportunity to engage with. Sitting as a Trustee also gives me an opportunity to engage with the wider learning technology and open knowledge communities at a senior level. As a Trustee of these organisations, I have an opportunity to engage with strategic initiatives that are not directly related to my role at the University of Edinburgh, for example the Creative Commons Ethics of Open Sharing Working Group [14], which I participated in as a representative of Wikimedia UK, and the ALT / Wikimedia DE Open for a Cause Symposium [9] 

I do sometimes find that there are tensions between my role as a Trustee and my university employment, and it requires careful time management to balance my responsibilities to both my employer and the charities I represent. Having said that, I believe that the experience I gain as a Trustee directly benefits my role as a Learning Technology Service Manager at the University of Edinburgh, as it gives me considerable strategic insight into current issues relevant to the learning technology and open knowledge domains.  On a more practical level I am able to share the skills I develop through my work as a Trustee.  For example in 2021 I wrote this blog post on Making Hybrid Meetings Work [15], based on my experience of participating in the Wikimedia UK hybrid Board meeting, and shared it through University channels at a time when colleagues were getting to grips with hybrid working.

I make a point of sharing my experience of working as a Trustee in order to encourage colleagues from across the sector to consider standing for these roles. This involves providing advice and guidance to potential candidates and blogging about the charities I represent.  In 2021 to coincide with Trustees Week, which showcases the work of charities and trustees, I shared this video reflection of what it means to be a Trustee of Wikimedia UK [16]. 

Evidence

1. Association for Learning Technology Board of Trustees.
2. Association for Learning Technology Trustee Elections 2016. My original candidate statement for election to the ALT Board.  
3. Wikimedia UK Board of Trustees.
4. Wikimedia UK Board election statements 2016 and 2019.  My candidate statements for election to the Wikimedia UK Board. 
5. Blog posts I have written about ALT on my Open World blog.
6. Blog posts I have written about Wikimedia UK on my Open World blog. 
7. Deepwell, Maren and Weller, Martin and Campbell, Lorna and Wilson, Joe (2017) Open Education and OER – A guide and call to action for policy makers. Association for Learning Technology.  An ALT policy paper I co-authored with senior colleagues. 
8. National Lottery Heritage Fund, (2020), Digital guide: getting started with online learning.  An ALT project that I contributed to as co-author. 
9. ALT and Wikimedia DE, (2019), Open for a cause: fostering participation in society and education.  A symposium in Berlin which participated in as guest speaker. 
10. Wikimedia UK AGM Report, including announcement of my appointment as Interim Chair of Board. 
11. Blog posts I have written promoting Wiki Loves Monuments on my Open World blog. 
12. Campbell, L.M., (2019), Wikipedia for Peace at Europride Vienna, Open World blog. Two blog posts I wrote about my participation in Wikipedia for Peace.
13. 2020 Wikimedia in Education UK Summit at Coventry University.  Videos and images from the event where I presented the closing keynote. 
14. Fraser, J., (2021), Beyond Copyright: the Ethics of Open Sharing, Creative Commons: We like to share Blog. Output of the CC Ethics of Open Sharing Working Group which I participated in as a representative of Wikimedia UK. 
15. Campbell, L.M., (2021), Making Hybrid Meetings Work, Educational Design & Engagement blog. A blog post I shared on a University of Edinburgh blog based on my experience of participating in hybrid board meetings.
16. Campbell, L.M., (2021), Being a Wikimedia UK Trustee, Media Hopper Create. Reflective video I recorded for Trustee Week.