I’m a geek who loves words, so what better way to contribute on Mandela Day than by contributing to Wikipedia?

Wikipedia is written almost entirely by volunteers from around the world. It is one of the most popular sites in South Africa – offered free and without advertising to anyone with an Internet connection. Whatever you think about the credibility of the resource, you have to appreciate that Wikipedia has taught us the value of people working together for no monetary gain to create something of major public value.

Wikipedia is mostly valuable when it’s written by people like you and me. The Afrikaans Wikipedia has a dedicated community in South Africa working together to build a rich indigenous language resource. The isiZulu and isiXhosa Wikipedias are smaller but also slowly growing due to the contributions of volunteers. By contributing to these resources, we are able to write our own history, our own view of the world – what could be more valuable?

If you’re interested in editing Wikipedia with others on Saturday from 11.30-12.37 in Jozi, please email me.