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Wikimedia Blog

Read about the latest news and views from the Wikimedia Foundation.

Wikimania to be held in Buenos Aires

The Foundation has announced that Wikimanía 2009 will be held in Buenos Aires.

Support us

The Wikimedia Foundation relies heavily on the generous support from our users. Please consider making a donation today, be it time, money or hardware. The benefactors page is dedicated to some of the companies and individuals helping to sustain the Wikimedia projects. The Wikimedia Foundation does not necessarily endorse the activities of its Corporate Benefactors.

The Wikimedia Foundation is incorporated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in the United States, and donations from US citizens are tax deductible. Donations made by citizens of other countries may also be tax deductible. Please see deductibility of donations for details. Please see our fundraising page for details of making donations via PayPal, MoneyBookers, postal mail or direct deposit. For all other types of donations, please contact us.

Did you know?

Did you know Wikimedia Commons is a multimedia repository which hosts over 3,400,000 multimedia files?

Wikimedia volunteer Brianna Laugher introduces Wikimedia Commons to you:

Welcome to Wikimedia Commons.

Founded just three years ago as a way to avoid uploading the same image to 200 different wikis, Wikimedia Commons began as a central media repository, making life more convenient for Wikimedia editors. Since then it has grown rapidly into a multilingual community of photographers, illustrators, scanners, audio editors, translators, organisers and annotators.

Read more...

Corporate details

The Wikimedia Board of Trustees is the ultimate corporate authority in the Wikimedia Foundation Inc., and has the power to direct the activities of the Foundation. The Foundation bylaws may be seen at Wikimedia Foundation bylaws. Other policies set by the Board may be seen at policies.

The Foundation manages the budget, which pays primarily for computer equipment and hosting. Other costs include human resources necessary to the running of the Wikimedia projects, though most people are volunteers. This site includes minutes from Board meetings.

The latest Board decisions may be found at resolutions.

Latest news

Roger McNamee to Become Wikimedia Advisor
Media and entertainment investment pioneer joins non-profit's Advisory Board. Read more (13 January 2009)

Wikipedia fundraising campaign surpasses $6 million USD goal
Over 125,000 donors worldwide show their support for the non-profit encyclopedia. Read more (2 January 2009)

Neeru Khosla to Become Wikipedia Advisor
Philanthropist and education pioneer joins non-profit's Advisory Board. Read more (15 December 2008)

Wikimedia Foundation applauds IWF decision to reverse Wikipedia censorship in the United Kingdom
Removal from Internet blacklist will also allow UK Wikipedia users to resume editing. Read more (9 December 2008)

Censorship in the United Kingdom disenfranchises tens of thousands of Wikipedia editors
Wikimedia Foundation opposes action by internet watchdog group to blacklist encyclopedia article. Read more (7 December 2008)

Wikipedia to become more user-friendly for new volunteer writers
The Wikimedia Foundation has received a grant from the U.S.-based Stanton Foundation to make Wikipedia's writing and editing interface easier to use for first-time authors. Read more (3 December 2008)

Wikimedia Foundation Launches 2008 Annual Campaign to Support Wikipedia
The campaign runs until Jan. 15, 2009 (Wikipedia's eight-year anniversary). In addition to raising funds for the organization, the campaign is also engaging users by asking how Wikipedia has made their lives easier. Read more (5 November 2008)

SOS Children UK and the Wikimedia Foundation announce the 2008/9 Wikipedia Selection for Schools
SOS Children UK, in coordination with the Wikimedia Foundation, has released a complete 2008/9 revision of the Wikipedia Selection for Schools, which is perhaps the most successful "checked content" project derived from the English Wikipedia. Read more (22 October 2008)

Wikimedia Foundation Announces New Appointments to Board of Trustees
Earlier today the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees Vice-Chair, Jan-Bart De Vreede announced important changes to the Board, including the selection of a new Chair, and appointment of the newest community-elected member. Read more (17 July 2008)

Wikimedians Around the World Prepare for Wikimania 2008
Next week hundreds of Wikimedia volunteers and enthusiasts will converge at the historic center of global knowledge and wisdom, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Alexandria, Egypt, for the fourth annual Wikimania conference. Read more (9 July 2008)

Board of Trustees announces Board Restructure details
Jan Bart de Vreede, Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees, today announced the details of the Board's restructuring. The restructure will add new chapter-selected seats and more clearly defines the terms and details of other seats. Read more (26 April 2008)

Board of Trustees announces appointment of new Board Treasurer
The Board of Trustees has appointed Stuart West as the new board treasurer. West brings new financial experience and skill to the Board of Trustees. Read more (22 April 2008)

Wikimedia is hiring!
Three new fundraising and development job opportunities have been posted. The closing date is May 15. Read more (20 April 2008)

Nicholas Hilliard, subject of the 10 millionth article

Wikipedia Hits Milestone of Ten Million Articles Across 250 Languages
The Hungarian biography of a 16th century painter has been declared the ten millionth article. Read more (28 March 2008)

Wikimedia Foundation Receives $500K Donation
The Wikimedia Foundation announces an unrestricted donation of $500K from philanthropists Vinod and Neeru Khosla. Read more (27 March 2008)

Sloan Foundation awards $3 million USD to support Wikipedia's quality and growth initiatives
The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation has announced it is awarding $3 million of support to the Wikimedia Foundation, the non-profit organization which operates the world's largest and most popular encyclopedia, Wikipedia. Read more (25 March 2008)

Library of Alexandria

Wikimania 2008 calls for participation
The Wikimania 2008 Organizing Committee is accepting submissions for presentations, workshops, panels, posters, open spaces, and artistic artifacts until March 16, 2008. The conference will be held this summer at the Library of Alexandria in Egypt. The submission guidelines are available online. Visit the official site for further information. (12 February 2008)

Wikimedia Foundation releases latest financial statements
Although a bit later than we would have originally liked, I'm pleased to announce that the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees has approved the Foundation's 2006/2007 financial statements. The financial statements are now posted on the Wikimedia Foundation wiki at http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Image:Wikimedia_2007_fs.pdf Read more (Florence Devouard, 8 February 2008)

See current events for more information.