Wikis

Find out how to create your own wiki and use it as a tool for your campaign, cause or project.

Anyone can set up and use a wiki

What are wikis?

Wikis are online collaboration tools that enable web pages to be edited by groups of people. Some are completely open to everyone; others are more private and restricted to certain people (in a company for example). Wikis work on a very simple basis; all pages are open to edit like a word document, allowing any user to add their information to the page.

The most famous and well-used wiki is Wikipedia, an encyclopaedia which allows anyone to edit entries and add their own pages.

How can I use a wiki?

Private wikis are used by organisations as a way of sharing up-to-date knowledge amongst their networks. Virtually any network can set up and use a wiki.

Start by setting up your wiki through a site such as Wetpaint or Wikia then invite your friends and networks to join and share information on your particular topic. The collaborative nature of a wiki means that they work best when people feel similarly about a topic

How can I use it to promote my message?

Here are some examples:

Promote your opinions and ideas in the same way as blogs and podcasts;
Publish documents from meetings or events and ask for comments and amendments;
Use your wiki to draft a template letter or petition for people to edit and sign to send to their local MP or Councillor;
Organise events and pass on details to people in your network.

What are the downsides?

Wikis are open to abuse and some wikis suffer from 'vandalism' or 'graffiti'. However, the biggest debate is not about these obvious acts of vandalism, but about the sharing and spreading of incorrect knowledge. As a reader, be aware that you need to check information and sources before using any knowledge gathered from a wiki as fact. As a contributor, try to cite your sources or give evidence for what you say.

Wikipedia's creators have tried to counter the issue of trust through their next wiki project, Citizendium. This wiki requires contributors to use their real names and entries are more strictly moderated. There is also a list of 'approved articles' which have been peer reviewed by topic experts. This is more time-consuming than the open source nature of Wikipedia, so Citizendium doesn't cover as many topics.

Most wiki services also offer a history of edits. This means that all changes to a page are memorised and kept in archives. So if there's any debate about the edited information, the original (or most up-to-date) version can be recovered and restored.

Examples of successful wikis

BYC Rally Your Region - A wiki hosted on wetpaint for young people to discuss and coordinate British Youth Council (BYC) local, national and international campaigns.