Whose Knowledge? | Our Practices - Whose Knowledge?

Our Practices

Open Licenses

We balance openness of design and data with the dignity and security of marginalised communities.

We are committed to licensing the content on this site with the open license: CC BY-SA 4.0. This means that unless otherwise specified, information and content on this site can be freely shared, changed or reused. You must acknowledge Whose Knowledge? and the other creators of this content as you do so, whether communities, organisations, or people. You also must distribute your new work with the same license.

However, because we work with marginalised communities who have historically seen their knowledges exploited by others, we are respectful of all that they generously share with us and the world. They may, at any time, request that some portion of the knowledge they share with us be licensed with restrictions other than CC BY-SA 4.0. In those specific instances, we will mark what they share with a license that reflects their wishes (for example: CC BY-NC 4.0, which does not allow for commercial use).

Organizing Principles

  • We think of ourselves as a multi-year, multi-lingual, global and trans-local campaign that meets people where they’re at. Rather than claiming territory, we seek to connect, amplify, and facilitate many other groups doing this work, and advocate to potential allies who can adopt this work.
  • We use a feminist, anti-colonial, anti-racist, anti-caste framework  that localizes and contextualizes the work. We respect each partner’s right to adapt materials to their own contexts. We affirm the plurality, fluidity, and intersectionality of issue, identity, and approach. How we do this work is as important as what we do.
  • We use open source and open culture principles. Whenever possible, we seek free and open solutions and advocate for open repositories. We commit to working collaboratively and as transparently as we can.
  • We have a commitment to safety and security. Openness must be balanced with  the safety and security of our communities. Many of the open online spaces we work in cannot be fully secured, but we put the safety of marginalized communities first, and as requested, will protect identities and other personal or confidential information. 

Read our anti-racism statement.

About Success

We experiment to see what works. Some ways that we think about success include:

  • Is more and better quality content about underrepresented communities and issues freely available and accessible online?
  • Is there more agency and participation from traditionally marginalized individuals, groups and communities in sharing their knowledge online?
  • Are more individuals and institutions aware of the ways that the internet can deepen existing social inequalities, even as it can be a democratic public space?

Non-Discrimination Statement

Discrimination or harassment against any member of the Whose Knowledge? campaign because of age, ancestry, color, disability, gender, gender identity and/or expression, marital or parental status, national origin, pregnancy, race, religion, sexual orientation, or any other categories protected by federal or state law (or any other international, national and local laws that apply) is prohibited and will not be tolerated, nor will anyone for those reasons be excluded from the participation in, or denied the benefits of any program or activity within Whose Knowledge?.