A Wiki at the United Nations

PBwiki and the United Nations have partnered to integrate a wiki into the United Nationals Global Compact which was started in 2000 to serve as a forum of social actors (non-government organizations, companies, trade organizations, governments, etc.) who commit to 10 central principles concerning human rights, labor standards, the environment, and corruption.

The Communication on Progress Reviewing Project wiki has great potential. Beyond its potential of facilitating collaboration between participants on how they can better adhere to the 10 principals by, for example, sharing successful or unsuccessful strategies, it also can add more transparency to the organization.

As long as the general public can view the wiki — whether they can edit pages or not — they’ll have a better idea of what the participants are up to. Further, the PBwiki platform — like most other wiki programs — has features that display when and who modified pages. Thus, if a wiki contributor makes an insightful or controversial adjustment, anyone with access to the wiki can track down who made the change. With this in mind, the UN can make this as transparent as it wants if it allows access to the public.

Since wikis can improve organizations’ transparency, they can help build credibility for an organization. Such credibility is crucial for the UN since it affects so many of us. Hopefully, it won’t botch this effort by fostering a respectful community and actively police any vandalism.