Wikimedia Foundation/Communications/WikiCelebrate/gn
The Wikimedia movement exists because of the contributions of countless volunteers and other Wikimedians from around the world, people from diverse backgrounds and life experiences contributing to the sum of human knowledge. The sheer magnitude of this global collaboration baffles most outside our movement. Many editors have long contributed independently without much acknowledgement, and some like it that way. For others, love and recognition from peers can go a long way to encourage and uplift. We are here to celebrate the exceptional people of Wikimedia, the pillars of our movement, the puzzle pieces of our ever-expanding universe of knowledge.
Celebrating Wikimedians
Barnstars are a beloved way of expressing gratitude for each other in the movement, but often without further public attention. We have no shortage of amazing contributors to celebrate and we are dedicating this space to them. WikiCelebrate is an easy, collaborative way to spotlight Wikimedians and their amazing work throughout the year. Each month we will celebrate a different Wikimedian and invite your help in further celebrating them! If you know them, share a great anecdote about your work with them. If there are others we should celebrate, please nominate them. In addition to your love and gratitude of course, the Celebrated Wikimedians will receive a limited edition barnstar, a small gift, and posts on Diff and social media.
Read about all the previous Celebrated Wikimedians!
We plan on presenting the Wikimedians of the Year in this space as well and will soon create an in memoriam page as we mark the passing of fellow Wikimedia friends and colleagues.
Mea Hanohano
The word 'wiki' is at the root of our nomenclature. That’s Hawaiian for quick. Honouring this quintessential term, we are calling this section hanohano for honour, distinction, and prestige, and adding mea to create mea hanohano, an honourable person. So, we are here to celebrate honourable Wikimedians of the highest distinction and prestige, Wikimedians of exceptional commitment and contribution.
This month we celebrate...
Chabota Isaac Kanguya
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This time (together with Afrika Baraza) we celebrate Chabota Isaac Kanguya (Icem4k), a passionate contributor from Zambia, whose journey through the Wikimedia movement embodies resilience, collaboration, and a commitment to representing underrepresented voices.
From the start Chabota was strongly motivated by the Wikimedia mission of sharing free knowledge with the world. Especially when it comes to sharing knowledge about his local community and culture. “Knowing that my efforts help bridge information gaps and ensure that Zambian voices are represented globally fuels my passion. I am also inspired by the reminder someone once shared with me: No one will write your story better unless you do it yourself. This drives me to take ownership of our narratives and represent them authentically”, he says.
Chabota knows that while the Wikipedia knowledge repository is huge, there is still so much more to do. “Despite Wikimedia’s global reach, many regions, particularly in the Global South, remain underrepresented in terms of both content and contributors. This means that the knowledge shared on platforms like Wikipedia often lacks the perspectives, histories, and cultures of these regions. For example, in Zambia and other African countries, there is still a need to increase local participation and create content that accurately reflects our diverse cultures, languages, and histories” – he reflects.
He takes this mission to action. He himself creates content about Zambia, among his many articles, he is especially proud of his contributions to the article about B’Flow – a Zambian singer and songwriter known for his impactful music and activism.
The connection to a collaborative movement is what keeps Chabota going: “The support and collaboration within the Wikimedia community further inspire me—it’s motivating to be part of a collective mission where each contribution plays a role in empowering people with accessible, free knowledge”, he says.