Wikimedia Summit 2022/Documentation



Introduction
Structure of this report
Day 1
Opening · Sharing Activities · Connecting Activities
Day 2
Movement Charter· Hubs · Resources & Revenues
Day 3
Open space · Closing & Next steps

Introduction edit

Group photo of on-site participants of the Wikimedia Summit.

This is the report for the Wikimedia Summit 2022, a hybrid event taking place in Berlin (Germany) between 9 and 11 September. In this you will find a structuring narrative for the conversations held during the Summit. Its content follows the sequential logic of the Summit’s working sessions and offers links to slides, and notes from breakout group sessions.

↠ The report starts with a summary here on this page. On the following subpages (Day 1, Day 2, Day 3) you can find the details for each session of each day.

You can download the full report in English as a pdf file.

Summary edit

Day 1 – Sharing and Connecting Movement Strategy Activities edit

Conference program in video.

(Link to summary notes)

Welcome and Opening edit

The Summit opened with welcoming statements from:

  • Maiken Hagemeister and Nicole Ebber on navigating the event;
  • Franziska Heine and Christian Humborg on behalf of Wikimedia Deutschland and Maryana Iskandar on behalf of Wikimedia Foundation;
  • Kaarel Vaidla on the role of the Summit in the Wikimedia Movement Strategy; and
  • Nikki Zeuner and Hanan El-Youssef on the framing for the first day of the Wikimedia Summit.

Sharing and Connecting activities edit

The first day was dedicated to catching up and celebrating the ongoing work across the movement during the last two years. It focused on sharing the stories of Movement Strategy implementation and documenting the activities connected to the Movement Strategy Recommendations.

  • Sharing: onsite and online participants went into breakout sessions to share and discuss activities related to Movement Strategy.
  • Connecting: onsite and online participants documented their activities related to the Movement Strategy experimenting with Baserow as a tool via an input form, which generated a database of activities to use to identify opportunities for collaboration.

Day 2 – Movement Charter, Hubs, and Resources edit

Movement Charter Drafting Committee on the main stage.

(Link to summary notes)

The second day was dedicated to three important pieces of Movement Strategy implementation: establishing a Charter for the Wikimedia Movement, discussing the role of Thematic and Regional Hubs, and exploring strategies around revenues and resources.

Movement Charter edit

The purpose of the Charter is to be a common agreement that can promote shared understanding and clarity about roles and responsibilities, and define how decision-making is distributed and executed across the movement. Currently, the following Charter sections are being drafted (others will be drafted later):

  • Preamble – What is the Movement? What is the Charter?
  • Values & Principles – What are the core values and principles of the Movement?
  • Roles & Responsibilities – What are the roles and responsibilities of existing and future Movement entities?

Additionally, the following Movement Charter topics were discussed:

  • Writing the Charter as a Movement – Exploring how the movement can be better involved in the Charter writing process
  • The Global Council – Becoming clearer regarding the expectations of the future governance bodies
  • Future Movement Governance Scenarios – Exploring possible future scenarios for Wikimedia Movement Governance.

Thematic and Regional Hubs edit

Hybrid room set up.

Hubs are structures for strengthening collaboration across the Movement. They are part of the Movement Strategy Recommendations. Hubs are about bringing intentionality and understanding to the collaboration efforts that will increase the level of support and peer connections. Discussions covered the following:

  • Scope – Create more clarity and guidance for the scope of Regional and Thematic Hubs
  • Governance and connections – How do the different levels of governance fit together? How Hubs would, could, and should Hubs share and learn with other Hubs?
  • Funding and Support – Collecting ideas and inputs on funding strategies as well as support mechanisms
  • Hub Research – Showcasing challenges, opportunities, and community support needs
  • Hub Piloting – Discussion and validation of the piloting guidelines

Revenues and Resources edit

Small group discussions.

The Wikimedia Movement currently operates under a system of mostly centralised fundraising combined with grantmaking. Over the years, the Wikimedia Foundation has added participatory features to the grantmaking processes. Still, there are large inequities in terms of how and where funds are spent. Discussion topics around revenues and resources included:

  • Fundraising – How money comes into the Movement?
  • Resource allocation – Where the funding goes once it has been collected? Including decisions to move Movement financial resources from one entity to another or from one region to another
  • Participation – Who makes decisions about resources?
  • Policies/Charter – What are the standards for fundraising and spending we want to write down?
  • Redistribution and Grantmaking – How do we work towards eliminating economic disparities?

Day 3 – Next Steps and Commitments edit


(Link to summary notes)

Free Conversations Session edit

The third day started with “Options Space” - a space for topics that might need further discussion and/or that had not yet had a chance to be discussed. Topics included:

  • Wikimania 2023
  • Video, Search and Social
  • Tech Meetup
  • Capacity Exchange
  • UCoC Enforcement
  • How to implement a recommendation?
  • CEE Hub VA Wikimedia Europe
  • Oral citations; Wikispore; New sister projects
  • A hybrid space for affiliates to share and discuss Fundraising
  • Regional hubs
  • Community connections & resources
  • Connection between the Wikimedia Movement and onwiki communities
  • Improving the experience of users on our platforms will allow more people to join projects
  • Resolving conflicts, within and between movement entities (chapters, hubs)
  • Diversity & Quota

Next Steps and Closing Session edit

Online participants sharing in the main room.
Day 3 closing.

The third day ended with reflections on key themes and takeaways from each of the Summit's sessions. Here are some high level 'next steps' that were captured:

Continue to Document & Collaborate

  • Continue to use Baserow and other tools to document our Movement Strategy work and find opportunities to connect with others about their work
  • Carry the opportunities to collaborate from Baserow into real life with bilateral meetings between stakeholders
  • Identify the places and spaces where product and technology intersect with Movement Strategy implementation and signal these for the WMF as a carrier of much of the Movement's product and technology needs

Engage in building the Movement Charter together

  • Community Consultations on the Movement Charter to kick off in October 2022, integrating the feedback on the Summit

Create further clarity regarding the Regional and Thematic Hubs

  • Preliminary definition of the Hubs
  • Discussions to be furthered and contextualized at regional meetups
  • Support and peer connection opportunities for hubs to be made more clear

Imagine and design a new and improved future for how we collect and share resource

  • Continue to engage in future-oriented dialogue that helps shape our Movement's building of and use of financial resources
  • Ensure our language is accessible as we discuss the Movement's financial needs and opportunities
  • Ensure that we consider and reflect non-financial resources in these conversations

Finally, Nataliia Tymkiv (Chair, Board of Trustees) closed by stating that commitment as an important part of the process, and a way to end on a high note. She brought up the milestone of having a Movement Charter by 2023, and encouraged everyone to start a conversation at Wikimania on how that charter can be implemented. This is “the responsibility we are putting on your shoulders.”