Volunteers speaking Turkic languages from 10 countries and autonomous regions around the world gathered at the Wikidata Istanbul 2022 Wikidata Conference held at Üsküdar Üniversitesi from October 21-23, 2022. Wikidata, created through the collaboration of volunteers, serves as a very extensive database supporting over 300 Wikipedia language versions. The conference aims for collaboration to use Wikidata more effectively. In his opening speech at the conference, Üsküdar Üniversitesi Founding Rector, Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, emphasized the necessity of environments of free thought for new discoveries. Stating, “Where there is no freedom, there is no entrepreneurship, science, or discovery,” Tarhan added, “Others merely discover, and we become users. Others produce, and we become a market. If we, as Turkic-speaking and developing communities, want to be the subject of science, we must encourage scientific freedom.”
Volunteers speaking Turkic languages met at Wikidata Istanbul 2022.
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan: “Where there is no freedom, there is no entrepreneurship, science, or discovery”
The three-day Wikidata Istanbul 2022 Wikidata Conference, held at Üsküdar Üniversitesi Central Campus Prof. Dr. Ayhan Songar Conference Hall in Istanbul, aims to improve the knowledge and skills of Turkic-speaking volunteers regarding Wikidata, thereby supporting their efforts to make information about their own cultures and languages accessible on the internet.
Participants from Turkic-speaking countries gather
Organized in collaboration with the Digital Information Association and the Turkic Languages Wikimedia Community, the conference brings together participants from Azerbaijan, Bashkortostan, Georgia, Iranian Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Sakha, Tatarstan, and Turkey. Participants, who are knowledge volunteers contributing to Wikipedia and its sister projects (such as Wikidata, Wikiquote, Wiktionary, Wikisource) in their own countries by writing, translating, and coding, aim to develop new collaborations at the conference. Participants from Italy, Israel, and India also attended the conference.
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan: “Wikidata facilitates tasks”
Üsküdar Üniversitesi Founding Rector Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan began his opening speech at the conference by wishing for a productive Wikidata event. Stating that universities have 4 main functions, Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan said, “First is vocational training, second is R&D, third is informing society, and fourth is ensuring the transformation of knowledge into products, i.e., commercialization. While performing our function of informing society, we are holding a meeting of an institution that greatly facilitates our work. We say 'thank goodness for Wikipedia' because it shares references to access the closest information to truth and makes scientific knowledge accessible to society.”
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan: “Wikipedia’s closure was not befitting of Turkey”
Stating that it is very effective in saving a society from gossip, superstitions, false beliefs, and paranoia, Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan said, “Wikipedia is a very serious gateway to access higher quality, accurate information and truth. This door must always remain open. This door remained closed for nearly 3 years. In fact, this was a situation not befitting of Turkey. When we examine the cultural differences between undeveloped and developed societies in the world, we observe significant differences. In undeveloped societies, generally a monolithic, single type of person is raised. They operate within a chain of command, possessing a culture of 'don't question – don't think – just obey'.”
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan: “Truth emerges through objections and dissenting opinions”
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan continued his words by stating that especially after the Second World War, it was realized that without a free market of ideas, there would be no free economic market, discovery, innovation, or entrepreneurship: “Within a chain of command, one cannot say ‘I order you to be an entrepreneur.’ There must be an environment of freedom, free negotiation, and opposition. There will be objections, dissenting opinions, and challenges. Thus, the truth will be found. In the 1850s, Namık Kemal said, ‘Sparks of truth emerge from the clash of ideas.’ We cannot yet say that this idea is widespread in Turkey, but the world is moving in this direction. Discoveries happen in societies where truths can be debated and free discussions of ideas can occur. These are called high-security and liberal societies. Everyone expresses their opinion and is not punished for doing so.”
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan: “Being able to be questioned is a sign of self-confidence in a person”
Stating that scientists also have the right to speak nonsense from time to time, Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan said, “A scientist can also speak nonsense occasionally; they shouldn't be trolled immediately. After dissenting opinions, there will actually be a brainstorming session with objections, and ultimately, the truth will emerge. Therefore, it is very important for free discussions of ideas to exist and become a culture. It also needs to be idealized for acceptance by society. Our university's founding motto includes criticizability, liberalism, pluralism, and participation. One should not be bothered by criticism. Being open to questioning and measurable is a sign of self-confidence in a person. People who shout and yell protect themselves by silencing others for ego gratification due to a lack of self-confidence.”
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan: “Where there is no freedom, there is no science or discovery”
Reminding that Wikipedia also has the slogan "free media," Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan concluded his words: “Where there is no freedom, there is no entrepreneurship, science, or discovery. Others merely discover, and we become users. Others produce, and we become a market. If we, as Turkic-speaking and developing communities, want to be the subject of science, we must definitely encourage scientific freedom. In such situations, our inherent talents will also develop. A place without questioning cannot be called a school. There is a system where there is no deep thought or objection. They call it direct democracy. It used to be called militant democracy. That is, someone gives orders, and others obey. This approach is missing the age. Defending and maintaining a free environment is very important for us. I appreciate what Wikipedia does globally.”
Hakan Özdemir: “We aim to increase collaboration in Turkic-speaking countries”
Hakan Özdemir, Head of Digital Technologies & Software Department at Üsküdar Üniversitesi and Founding Member of the Wikimedia Turkic Languages User Group, thanked Üsküdar Üniversitesi for hosting and the organization team, stating his belief that the conference outcomes would be beneficial. Özdemir said, “The aim of our event is to increase collaboration in Turkic-speaking countries. We set such a goal at a meeting in Sweden in 2019 and have come to this point. We hope to continue increasing this collaboration further. This is our university’s 3rd Wikimedia event, but it is an international event, unlike the others. It is the first event of this nature for our country and our university. In this context, I extend my thanks to our founding rector, Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, for supporting us with the vision of the importance of knowledge, its free sharing, and its enhanced developability.”
Başak Tosun: “Wikidata is an important tool for developing content in our own language”
Başak Tosun, Secretary General of the Digital Information Association, stated that they are volunteers contributing to Wikipedia and its sister projects such as Wikidata, Wikiquote, and Wiktionary in Turkey and Turkic-speaking countries, adding, “We organized this event for volunteers to get to know each other, explore collaboration opportunities, and to better understand and more effectively use Wikidata. Wikidata is a very helpful tool for us in developing content in our own language, making it more current and accessible, and conveying our culture, knowledge, and language to the world. This year, Wikimedia volunteers are celebrating Wikidata’s 10th anniversary, and we wanted to come together to celebrate as well.”
A commemorative photo was taken together
During the program, which saw significant participation, a plaque was presented to Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan. Participants also took a commemorative photo together, displaying their national flags.
The conference, which will continue on October 22 and 23, will feature presentations and workshops on how to query and share data in the Wikidata project; inspiring projects realized using Wikidata in various fields of work and countries; and the use of Wikidata in recording a language’s vocabulary, as well as presentations on local activities carried out by participants in their own countries and the introduction of different collaborative-knowledge initiatives in Turkey.
For detailed information: URL: Conference page