Affiliations Committee
The Affiliations Committee (formerly known as Chapters Committee, colloquially AffCom) is a Wikimedia community-run committee entrusted with advising the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees on the approval of new movement affiliates: national and subnational chapters, thematic organisations, and user groups.
The Affiliations Committee advises and makes recommendations regarding the recognition and existence of Wikimedia movement affiliates.
Contact:
AffCom
lists.wikimedia.org
@WikimediaAffCom 
@WikimediaAffCom
Affiliates Strategy Update: Implementation status of a new affiliate health criteria and changes to User Groups recognition process
Affiliate Recognition and Derecognition: Recognition of Togo, Wayúu, and Singapore user groups
Affiliate Activities and Compliance Report: Activities reports around the world
AffCom Conflict Intervention: Updates on conflict intervention cases
AffCom Movement Contribution: AffCom engagement at Wikimania
AffCom Administration: Results of the officers elections
Upcoming AffCom Events: AffCom at WikiIndaba and a strategy meetup
Other Movement News: Regional conferences, mental health support, and new committee support inbox
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Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees committees
Staff committees Community-wide committees Movement governance committees Movement-wide preparation committees Resources allocation committees |
The Committee was created on January 15, 2006, by a resolution of the Board of Trustees, along with several other Wikimedia committees. Its original mandate included coordination of the development of Wikimedia chapters, which at the time were at an early stage of organisation, as well as facilitating communication among the chapters and between chapters and the Wikimedia Foundation.
In 2012, following a community discussion and a resulting Board of Trustees' resolution, the scope of the Committee was expanded to include thematic organisations and user groups. In accordance with the resolution, the Committee drafted its charter which was officially approved by the Board in August, finalizing the transition into the Affiliations Committee. An updated charter was approved in 2022.
The Affiliations Committee makes recommendations to the Board of Trustees on the recognition, approval and existence of Wikimedia movement affiliates, and for facilitating the creation of those organisations. In other words, the Committee helps Wikimedians from all around the world self-organise into chapters, thematic organisations and user groups, and to gain official recognition from the Wikimedia Foundation.
We can guide you through the founding process of your organisation by helping you to prepare bylaws, answering questions about what the Foundation expects from an affiliate, providing help and advice on solving common technical, trademark, administrative and community-building issues, and—if appropriate—by approving limited financial support for starting up your activities (such as covering the costs of registration and running initial projects).
If you're interested in getting in touch with local efforts in your area, feel free to contact us using any of the methods listed below, and we'll be happy to put you in contact with the right people.
The Affiliates Committee comprises volunteers selected for their enthusiasm and their skills in community organising, cross-cultural communication, reviewing bylaws, and providing governance advice for emerging organisations. There are currently 8 (eight) voting members with terms of three years each.
Voting members of the Committee are helped by non-voting advisors. Advisors provide the Committee with on-the-ground experience, language skills, and governance advice, and are able to take part in discussions at subcommittee meetings.
Certain Wikimedia Foundation staff members support the Committee in its operations and help the Committee to function effectively. They are actively present on the Affiliations Committee's non-public mailing list and internal wiki, and may provide advice to the Committee based on their knowledge and expertise. They are not voting Committee members.
The Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees appoint liaisons to the Committee to facilitate communication and coordination between the Committee and the Board. The liaisons shall be the Committee's primary point of contact with the Board, and shall serve to update the Board on the Committee's activities and update the Committee on relevant Board activities. They may request information related to the Committee's operations as necessary to carry out their role. They are not voting Committee members.
Voting members
| № | Photo | Name | Languages | Location (time zone) | Term ends | Role |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 
|
Jeffrey Keefer | en-N, fr-2 | United States, North America (UTC-4/UTC-5) | February 28, 2027 | Chair |
| 2 | 
|
Suyash Dwivedi | hi-N, en-3, sa-2 | India, South Asia (UTC+05:30) | February 28, 2027 | Vice-Chair |
| 3 | 
|
Mari Avetisyan | hy-N, en-3, tr-3, ru-3, | Armenia, Eastern Europe (UTC+4) | February 28, 2027 | Secretary |
| 4 | 
|
Maor Malul | es, en-5, lad-4, pt-4, de-3, he-3, ca-3, af-2, guc-2, tr-2 | Israel, Western Asia (UTC+2) | December 31, 2024 | |
| 5 |
|
Aleksey Chalabyan | hy-N, ru-N, en-3 | Armenia, Eastern Europe (UTC+4) | December 31, 2024 | |
| 6 | 
|
Mehman Ibragimov | ka-N, ru-N, tr-N, az-N, en-3 | Georgia, Eastern Europe (UTC+4) | February 28, 2027 | |
| 7 |
|
Harriet Henry Bayel | Ghana, West Africa (UTC) | February 28, 2027 | ||
| 8 |
|
Agus Damanik | Indonesia, Southeast Asia (UTC+7) | February 28, 2027 |
Non-voting advisors
| Advisor | Languages | Location (time zone) | Term end | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HakanIST | tr-N, en-3 | Turkey, Eastern Europe (UTC+3) | February 28, 2025 | |
| Aaryaa Joshi | en-N, mr-N, hi-N | India, South Asia (UTC+5.30) | February 28, 2025 | |
| Buszmail | Philippines, Southeast Asia (UTC+8) | February 28, 2025 | ||
| Delphine Ménard | fr-N, en-5, de-3, es-3, it-2 | France, Europe (UTC+1) | February 28, 2025 | |
| RebeccaRwanda | Rwanda, Central Africa (UTC+2) | February 28, 2025 | ||
| Teles | pt-N, en-3, es-2 | Brazil, South America (UTC-3) | February 28, 2025 |
Board liaisons
| Liaison | Languages | Location (time zone) | Term end | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mike Peel | en-N, es-2, pt-1, fr-1 | Europe (UTC+1) | — | |
| Nataliia Tymkiv | — | |||
| Lorenzo Losa | — |
Support staff
The work of the Affiliations Committee is supported by the Committee Support team of the Wikimedia Foundation.
- The best way to contact the Committee is to write an e-mail to
affcom; please note that the Committee might be sometimes slow in responding to e-mails, so if you don't receive a reply to your message in a reasonable time, just send us a reminder.
lists.wikimedia.org - You can follow or tweet the Committee on Twitter:
@WikimediaAffCom - You can follow or write to the Committee on Facebook:
@WikimediaAffCom - You can also contact the members of the Committee individually by clicking on their usernames in the timeline above; feel free to use our talk pages and e-mails for any questions related to chapters, thematical organisations or user groups.
- You may also arrange a phone call (via Skype or Google Hangouts) with members of the Committee.