State of the GLAM: DC

The Wiki(media) DC group is actively working on collaborations and outreach with cultural institutions in the Washington DC area. WikiProject GLAM/SI was established in Summer 2010, with an introductory workshop held for Smithsonian staff. In the Fall 2010, we narrowed focus to the topic of American Art, working with the Smithsonian American Art Museum on article collaborations, and the Archives of American Art which is now hosting a Wikipedian in Residence this summer (2011). Members of our local group also work on OpenStreetMap, helping to map the (Smithsonian's) National Zoo and mapped the Smithsonian Hirshhorn's Sculpture Garden.

We have also been working with the US National Archives and Records Administration. Projects include en:Wikipedia:WikiProject FedFlix which leverages and supports work of Carl Malamud and the International Amateur Scanning League (IASL) to digitize video from the National Archives collection and other public domain government sources, and make use of relevant materials on Wikipedia. And we held WikiXDC, a tenth anniversary celebration and symposium, in January 2011 at the National Archives. This summer (2011), the National Archives is hosting a Wikipedian in Residence.

As our collaborations and outreach continue, possibilities and interest exist for working with other institutions including the Library of Congress, and more. Other events in the works include Wikipedia Takes Baltimore (with support of Baltimore Heritage) for mapping, photographing and documenting historic sites. We also are interested in expanding beyond GLAMs and do outreach to government agencies that are treasure troves of information and data, such as the NIH and the Bureau of Labor Statistics.