Board

Board of Trustees

The following board members were elected at the 2022 AGM.

Bobby Shabangu

Summary Details

Name: Bobby Shabangu Location: Johannesburg Languages: English, siSwati, Bahasa ,Tshwana Wikipedian since: 2011 Active wikis: zu;ss;st Board member since: September 2013

Statement

I call Johannesburg home, and although I've registered an account in 2011 but I've been an active Wikimedian since 2013. My edits are centered around current affairs and African thematic topics. My involvement in the chapter is more on outreach, support to local Wikimedia volunteer communities, and activation of new wikimedians. A lot of people consume knowledge from Wikipedia but they don't contribute. My goal is to see more diverse participation in Wikimedia, especially one from black Africans and females to increase content in our small African language Wikipedias.

Coenraad Loubser

Summary Details	Name: Coenraad Loubser Location: Cape Town Languages: Afrikaans, English Wikipedian since: 2004 Active wikis: Afrikaans Wikipedia, English Wikipedia Board member since: November 2016
Statement	Linux and embedded systems enthusiast, South African entrepreneur and champion of internet accessibility and the power of information. Co-founder of a successful ISP. Volunteering in Community Networks. Studying Physics.

Deon Steyn

Summary Details	Name: Deon Steyn Location: Johannesburg Languages: Afrikaans, English, German Wikipedian since: 2009 Active wikis: Wikipedia (af, en, de) Board member since: November 2014
Statement	Deon is a professional technologist specializing in telecommunication. He is the first Afrikaans speaking person to attend a Wikimedia conference in 2015 in Mexico City.

Douglas Scott

Summary Details

Name: Douglas Scott Location: Cape Town Languages: English, Mandarin Chinese, Afrikaans Wikipedian since: 2006 Active wikis: Wikipedia (en), Commons, Meta Wiki Board member since: 2012

Statement

Douglas has been an editor on the English language Wikipedia since 2006 and a member of the South African chapter of Wikimedia since 2012. He was president of Wikimedia South Africa from 2015 to 2020 and was the organizing chairperson for Wikimania 2018, the official annual international Wikipedia conference. He has been involved in copyright advocacy to support the free knowledge movement since 2014 when he has advocated for the adoption of Fair Use and Freedom of Panorama in South Africa. In addition to his copyright advocacy Douglas has organized and implemented over 20 projects for Wikimedia South Africa such as Wiki Loves Monuments (2012, 2013, 2014 & 2015), Wiki From Above, the first climate change edit-a-thon, Kiwix pilot deployments, and Wiki Loves Science. He is always interested in projects that encourage more people to read and edit Wikipedia or contribute to Wikimedia Commons. Additional interests include public policy and the role it plays in the free knowledge movement. Douglas currently lives in Cape Town, South Africa, and in his day job works as a criminologist specializing in technology, data collection, project design, and crime analysis. He has a strong interest in economics, history, technology, and public policy.

Ingrid Thomson

Summary Details	Name: Ingrid Thomson Location: Cape Town Languages: English Wikipedian since: 2014 Active wikis: English Wikipdeia Board member since: October 2022
Statement	I am a librarian of many years in the academic, public and school library sector. Not the most active editor, but heavily involved in driving the #1lib1ref campaign and advocating for libraries and librarians to get more involved through other projects. Looking forward to the challenge!

Khetiwe Marais

Summary Details

Name: Duduzile Kate Khethiwe Marais Location: Johannesburg Languages: IsiZulu, Xitsonga, IsiXhosa, IsiNdebele, Siswati, English, Sesotho, Sesotho sa Leboa, Setswana, and Tshivenda and a passive understanding of Afrikaans. Wikipedian since: 2018 Active wikis: 2017 on Wikipedia Board member since: 2021

Statement

Khethiwe is a language activist, committed to multilingualism and cultural diversity. I believe and am committed to ensuring that vital information should be made available and accessible to all across all fields of knowledge. I also believe that Wikipedia is an encyclopedia that helps to make knowledge and information freely accessible and available to people. I would like to see more people participating and producing information on Wikipedia through editing, translation, and submitting new and various information, articles, photographs, images, etc with verifiable sources.

Michael Graaf

Summary Details

Name: Michael Graaf Location: Cape Town Languages: English, Afrikaans, IsiZulu Wikipedian since: ' Active wikis: ' Board member since: October 2018

Statement

Wikimedia is only one of my many fields of activism stretching back to the early 1980s and I suspect the list may grow! Although active in the Cape Town user group since 2013, only in 2018 have I taken the plunge to be on the board. I have just completed my master in IT and have come to think that the "writable web" of which wikis are an important part, has great potential as a tool for dealing with humankind's challenges.

Nobantu Modise

Summary Details

Name: Nobantu Grace Modise Location: Johannesburg Languages: English, Setswana, isiXhosa, isiZulu, Sesotho Wikipedian since: 2019 Active wikis: en Board member since: November 2020

Statement

I am a publisher, editor, and magazine founder who's passionate about increasing the African presence in local and international media, publishing, and the digi-sphere in general. I was attracted to joining the Wikipedia community by an edit-a-thon looking for more contributions from women about Africa. With this alignment of values and the friendly, approachable and passionate nature of Wikipedians, I decided to be involved in the Wikimedia community beyond the edit-a-thon. I look forward to spending my time on the board hosting activities that will empower more Africans and women to be active members of this community. So as to enrich Wikipedia with more balanced articles about the continent and the exciting plethora of exceptional people, achievements, and rich heritage that Africa is and has been home to. In as many different languages as possible.

Veer Gosai

Summary Details	Name: ' Location: ' Languages: ' Wikipedian since: ' Active wikis: ' Board member since: October 2022
Statement

Advisor to the Board

Dumisani Ndubane

Dumi is a previous president and board member of Wikimedia ZA. He was employed by the Wikimedia Foundation in 2017 and stood down from the board to prevent any conflict of interests with his new role. He is currently serving as an advisor to the board

Summary Details

Name: Dumisani Ndubane Location: Johannesburg Languages: English, Xitsonga Wikipedian since: 2008 Active wikis: en-wv; ts-we Board member since: September 2012 - November 2017

Statement

My name is Dumisani Ndubane, I have been a Wikipedian since 2008. I'm involved in the Xitsonga Wikipedia and occasionally in the English Wikipedia. I am involved in the organisation of Wiki Loves Monuments for South Africa and Joburgpedia. I am an Electrical Engineer by profession. The foregoing has given me the privilege to work closely with some of the existing board members and ex-board members. I believe that the exposure and experience I have on Wiki projects, combined with my project management skills can be somewhat useful to the Wikimedia-ZA chapter. My passion is in the development of small language Wikis and the attraction and retention of Editors in these wikis. I also have an interest in GLAM activities within the Archives environment and hope to foster lasting ties between Wikimedia ZA and the National Archives and other heritage bodies.

See also

• Past Boards