Wiki Loves Folklore Grant Toolkit

Welcome to the Wiki Loves Folklore Grant Toolkit page! Wiki Loves Folklore (WLF) is an annual international photography and media contest hosted on Wikimedia Commons to document folk cultures, traditions, and practices across the globe. This initiative also includes the Feminism and Folklore project, a sub-campaign focused on improving content on wikipedia about women in folklore and cultural heritage worldwide. These projects aim to enrich Wikimedia's diverse content, encouraging contributors to share stories that celebrate our shared cultural heritage and promote gender equity.

This page provides resources and guidance on how to apply for grants to support your participation in these campaigns. The toolkit is designed to help community members secure funding for local events, workshops, and activities that contribute to documenting folklore and elevating the voices and stories often underrepresented in our cultural records. Whether you're looking to host an event or initiate a folklore documentation project, this guide will walk you through the process of grant applications and funding opportunities for Wiki Loves Folklore and Feminism and Folklore.

Wikimedia Grants

The financial support provided by the Wikimedia Foundation to individuals, groups and organizations around the world to increase the diversity, reach, quality, and quantity of free knowledge.

Rapid Funds

The Wikimedia rapid fund supports short-term, low-cost projects by individuals, groups, or organizations contributing to Wikimedia projects.

Types of grantees and requirements

• Individual: A person, who is at least 18 years old, and grant funds will be received in the individual's personal bank account (i.e. non-commercial, non-organizational). If your application is approved or being considered for funding, the Grant Administrators or Program Officers will request the following information and documents prior to drafting a grant agreement and grant funds disbursement.

1. Unexpired government issued proof of identification with the birth date listed for all grant agreement signatories and bank account holders.
2. The complete address (including country) for the grant agreement signer(s)
3. A dedicated personal (i.e. non-commercial, non-organizational) bank account to receive and store the grant funds in.
4. A completed bank information form, including any country or bank specific wire transfer instructions.
5. A document from the bank with a list of the account holders for the account where the grant funds will be received and stored.

• Non-incorporated group: A group of individuals with at least one person over 18 years old receiving a grant together, and grant funds will be received in the group's joint or dedicated multi-user bank account. Grant funds should not commingle with non-grant funds. If your application is approved or being considered for funding, the Grant Administrators or Program Officers will request the following information and documents prior to drafting a grant agreement and grant funds disbursement.

1. Unexpired government issued proof of identification with the birth date listed for all grant agreement signatories and bank account holders. There must be at least two agreement signers who are also bank account holders.
2. The complete address for your group.
3. A joint or multi-user bank account used for the group's activities only to receive and store the grant funds in.
4. A completed bank information form, including any country or bank specific wire transfer instructions.
5. A document from the bank with a list of the account holders for the account where the grant funds will be received and stored.

• Non-profit organization: A legally registered organization recognized as non-profit and grant funds will be received in their organization's commercial bank account. If your application is approved or being considered for funding, the Grant Administrators or Program Officers will request the following information and documents prior to drafting a grant agreement and grant funds disbursement.

1. Proof of non-profit status in your local contexts. If your documents are not originally written in English, please provide a set of documents translated in English (Google translation is fine) in addition to the documents in your local written language. This document is kept as part of your Grantee/Grant record and is provided to our external auditors. Please include any important information that would help us understand how nonprofit organizations are recognized in your country.
2. Unexpired government issued proof of identification with the birth date listed for all grant agreements and bank account signatories.
3. Your organization's complete address (including country)
4. Your organization's commercial bank account where grant funds will be received and stored
5. A completed bank information form, including any country or bank specific wire transfer instructions.
6. A document from the bank with a list of the account signatories for the account where the grant funds will be received and stored.

Eligibility criteria

1. A person or organization is not listed in the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) watchlists.
2. Registered organizations must be nonprofit and can provide proof of their nonprofit status.
3. Returning Grantees must be in good standing.
4. Wikimedia Affiliates must be in good standing, which includes up to date reporting requirements.
5. A community member must not have a current ban on any of the Wikimedia projects.
6. A potential organizational Grantee must be committed to best organizational practices that include being in good standing with local laws, and to the extent applicable, meets the WMF Board of Trustees in its March 2012 resolution as set out at organizational best practices.
7. A potential organizational Grantee must be able provide financial history demonstrating previous experience in successfully administering funds comparable to the current grant/amount being requested. This is common for but not limited to Alliances Fund or Conference Fund.
8. A potential Grantee interested in a fiscal sponsorship can learn more about it at sponsorships.

For a person or organization based outside the United States, their local laws should not have restrictions for them to receive foreign funding. If there are conditions to receive funding, the Grantees/Applicants should be able to satisfy them. WMF may be able to help, if appropriate and within reason. A list of countries that we have successfully funded can be found at Grants:Administration/Countries.

Preparing Your Grant Proposal

1. Define project goals and objectives
2. Develop a detailed project plan
3. Establish a budget and financial plan
4. Identify key team members and roles
5. Write a compelling grant proposal

Grant Proposal Template

The grant application template is divided into four different sections.

• Applicant details: This section provides the overview of the applicant’s information, including; name, username, applicant type (Individual/organization), contact email, authorized signatory, country of residence, e.t.c.
• Main Proposal: This section specifies detailed description of your project, including; the project title (matching with meta-wiki page), project timeline, implementation location, desired impact/changes, planned activities, team members and roles, target participants and community, focus and objectives, community engagement and discussion e.t.c.
• Learning and metrics: This section focuses on what the grantee wants to learn at the end of the project, the impact the project will make on Wikimedia movement such as the number of new content, the number of new content contributors, the target Wiki(s), and also the tracking tools.
• Financial proposal: This is the section where you get to outline the funding requirement and budget details for your project. The budget detail will be outlined in a google sheet and then uploaded during the application. Also you will indicate your local currency in this section and also convert your budget to USD using Oanda converter.

Rapid Grant Application Steps

1. Go to Fluxx. If you do not have an account, please click Register Now and provide the requested information. Your registration will be confirmed within one working day. You can find a tutorial video on how to register on the Fluxx Tutorials page. If you have an account, enter your login details and click Sign in. You can find a tutorial video on how to login on the Fluxx Tutorials page.
2. Create your application by clicking the Apply for Rapid Funds button on the main page.
3. Follow the instructions in the application and respond to the questions. You can always save and continue your application later. Click Save and Continue or Save and Close to save the application.
4. When your application is complete click Submit to send it for review.

Best Practices

1. Clearly define project goals and objectives
2. Develop a realistic budget and timeline
3. Engage with Wikimedia community
4. Document project progress and outcomes
5. Share knowledge and expertise

Tips

1. Review past and approved Wiki Loves Folklore and Feminism and Folklore grants to gain valuable insights.
2. Analyze successful proposals to understand key elements and best practices.
3. Use the provided template to develop a comprehensive grant proposal.
4. Ensure your proposal is complete and polished before proceeding.
5. Inform the relevant community involved in your project about your grant application on the community discussion page on Meta-Wiki.
6. You can make your applications in any language.
7. You can prepare the application offline. Make a copy of the application form, answer the questions and copy the text to Fluxx.

Additional Resources

• Rapid Funds application (Individual)
• Rapid Funds application (Wikimedia affiliates)
• Rapid Funds application (organization)
• Rapid Funds form template
• Rapid Funds budget template
• Rapid Funds report template
• Bank information form