The Wikimedia Foundation

7/31/2019 The Wikimedia Foundation

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TheWikimedia Foundation, Inc. is a nonprofit charitable organization dedicated to encouraging the growth, development

and distribution offree, multilingual content, and to providing the full content of thesewiki-based projects to the public

free of charge. The Wikimedia Foundation operates some of thelargest collaboratively edited reference projectsin the

world, includingWikipedia, a top-ten internet property.

In a nutshell, what is Wikipedia? And what's Wikimedia?

Wikipediais the world's largest and most popular encyclopedia. It's online, free to use for any purpose, and free ofadvertising. Wikipedia contains more than 21 million volunteer-authored articles in over 282 languages, and is visited bymore than 489 million people every month, making it one of the most popular sites in the world.

It is a collaborative creation that has been added to and edited by millions of people during the past ten years: anyone can editit, at any time. It has become the largest collection of shared knowledge in human history. The people who support it areunited by their love of learning, their intellectual curiosity, and their awareness that we know much more together, than anyof us does alone.

The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that operates Wikipedia andother free knowledge projects.

Together these sites are the fifth most visited web property in the world. The Wikimedia Foundation is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt non-profit organization with offices in San Francisco, California, USA. You can review ourletter of tax-exemptionand ourfinancial reports and annual filings.

Our mission is to empower a global volunteer community to collect and develop the world's knowledge and to make itavailable to everyone for free, for any purpose. We work together with anetwork of chaptersin many different countries toachieve this goal.

f I donate to Wikimedia, where does my money go?

Money you donate pays for staff salaries and technology. Even though Wikipedia and its sister projects together reach 489million people every month, we employ only 137 people; see ourstaffoverview.

Our staff is divided into three program departments: technology (website operations, software development); community(public outreach, reader relations and community programs, fundraising), and global development (supporting chapterprograms and growing Wikimedia worldwide). The remainder of our staff work in management, finance, and administration,which includes legal protection of our work. Your support also pays for servers, bandwidth, and Internet hosting that allow usto keep Wikimedia's projects running and growing. If you donate to alocal chapterin your geography, your donationsupports both the Wikimedia Foundation, and program activities in your country.

Above all, the Wikimedia Foundation exists to support and grow the vast network of volunteers who write and editWikipedia and its sister projectsmore than 100,000 people around the world.

What are your plans? Where is this going?

As Wikimedia founder Jimmy Wales put it: "Imagine a world in which every single human being can freely share in the sum

of all knowledge."

We're serious about this vision. Every month, more than 489 million people around the world already use Wikipedia. It'savailable online, on your mobile device, on DVD, in books, and many other forms. We aspire to reach everyone, and tocontinually provide more and better information.

Supported by an intense community-driven planning process, in 2010 the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees set "big,hairy, audacious goals" for Wikimedia. Thesefive-year targets(PDF) include increasing Wikimedia's global reach to 1billion people and the number of articles in Wikipedia to 50 million. We're also setting out to dramatically increase anddiversify participation, and to measure and improve quality of all Wikimedia content.

Wikimedia is not a traditional organization. It's a global movement. The core of the work is done by thousands of volunteersworldwide. This volunteer community is supported by a network of organizations, with the Wikimedia Foundation at its

center, working in partnership with geographically focusedlocal chaptersin 39 countries. It's our volunteer community thatenables us to accomplish so much with so little.
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hese are some of the activities we're focused on right now:

Operating the world's fifth largest web property. At its

heart, Wikimedia requires operational excellence to continueto exist. As of 2011, we're operating several hundred serversin three locations. While our global traffic continues to grow,our aim is to provide the best possible site experience toeveryone in the world, to maximize uptime, and to ensure thatall the information in Wikimedia projects is safe and secure.

Photograph: Wikimedia servers in our Florida hosting

acility.

Giving Wikimedia's volunteers the best possible tools to do

their work. The core technology that makes Wikipedia andits sister projects possible, the wiki, was invented in 1995.Things have changed quite a bit since then. Wikimediaprojects run on an open source wiki software calledMediaWiki, which we develop and improve. Our goal is tomake it as easy as possible to contribute knowledge, and togive volunteers and readers great tools for assessing andimproving article quality. In some areas, we lead andinnovate. At minimum, we must keep up with key trends inthe ever-changing web we're part of. Because our software isopen source, everyone can use and improve it.

Photograph:Affinity diagramcreated based on Wikipedia

usability research.

Developing recruiting resources for new volunteers.Wikimedia is made of people. To grow our globalcommunity, we need to excite people about the prospect ofbeing part of itand help them with their first steps. To thisend, we develop and maintain a library of outreach resources,such as videos and screencasts, but also printed "how-tos" andother more targeted resources (for teachers, librarians,students, and others). See thebookshelf of outreach resources.

Video: Wikimedia volunteers speak about their motivations,

shot at the Wikimania 2010 conference (best played in

Firefox).

Staging outreach and community events world-wide. Oncea year, hundreds of Wikimedia volunteers come together atWikimania, in a different location around the world each year.(You should come! In Summer 2012Wikimania will be inWashington DC, USA.) And, Wikimedia's chapterorganizations have staged dozens of additional events,competitions and conferences around the world. Some aretargeted at recruiting new volunteers; some give thecommunity space to think about its work, and to do it.Recognizing the value of people coming together becausethey are passionate about Wikimedia's mission has been keyto our success.

Photograph: Participants of the "Free Your Knowledge"

student competition in Indonesia listening to an introductory

presentation (2010).
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Partnering with cultural institutions. Galleries, libraries,archives, and museums protect and make available the world'shistory, culture and knowledge. Their mission is to serve andinform the public, just like Wikimedia's. We've successfullypartnered with cultural institutions around the worldnot justin working with them to make digital reproductions availablefor free, but also in improving Wikipedia articles and other

content related to their collections and archives. Wikimediachapters are playing a lead role in organizing conferences andmeetings targeting the cultural sector, and executingpartnerships.

Photograph: Wikipedia volunteers at a "backstage pass"

event organized by the British Museum (2010).

Working with the educational sector. In the age of the openweb, there's the potential for student projects to be more thanjust exercises. Pioneering professors have long assignedWikipedia writing as coursework to their students. Everybodywins: students get an audience for their work, teacherssuccessfully motivate their students, and readers get better

articles. Wikimedia chapters have also reached out to schoolsto develop media literacy and to promote responsible use ofWikipedia in the classroom.

Photograph: Indiana University students of Barry Rubin's

Seminar in Urban Economic Development are improving

Wikipedia articles as part of their coursework.

Providing access to Wikipedia everywhere. The next billionpeople to discover the web will do it using mobile phones,some without ever having touched a laptop. We need to makesure that our sites and services work both on modernsmartphones and (to the extent it's possible) on lower-end

devices. Our current mobile version is a start and we'llcontinue to improve it (including moving beyond the read-only experience). And for people with no or intermittentInternet access, we're supporting copies of Wikipedia that canbe used completely offline, including projects liketheWikiReader, offline readers for desktops and smartphones,and printed versions of Wikimedia content.

Photograph: Wikipedia's mobile version works on the

PlayStation Portableand on your smartphone.

Informing our decision-making with facts and data.Analytics, research, experiments and forecasts are essential tomake good decisions in a complex environment likeWikimedia. TheWikimedia Foundation Report Cardand theStatistics Portalprovide a wealth of up-to-date analysis whichhelps us understand the impact of our work. TheStrategyWikiis a public planning space where longer term trends areanalyzed.Research projectsprovide us with in-depth analysisand experiments, supported by the volunteer-drivenResearchCommittee. We're data nerdswhat else would you expectfrom the kinds of people who love working on an onlineencyclopedia?

Illustration: Projection regarding availability of mature

language editions useful to different segments of the world's

population.

The Wikimedia Foundation isn't a start-up company that will fade away in a few years. We're in this for the long haul.Everything we do is aimed at providing you, and the rest of the world, with free and immediate access to all the world'sknowledge. Join us!
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Which projects do you support?

The Wikimedia Foundation supports Wikipedia, an online encyclopedia and one of the five most-visited websites world-wide. From the founding of Wikipedia in January 2001, and the incorporation of the Wikimedia Foundation in June 2003, ourgrowth has been staggering. The English-language Wikipedia, our first project, has expanded to more than 3,900,000 articlestoday. All Wikipedia languages combined contain more than 21,000,000 articles.

Besides Wikipedia, the Wikimedia Foundation also supports:

Wikimedia Commons, a media repository containing more than 12,750,000 freely usable images, videos, andsound files

Wikibooks, a project to create free textbooks Wiktionary, a multilingual dictionary and thesaurus Wikisource, a library of source texts containing more than 951,000 proofread pages in 27 languages Wikinews, a citizen news website Wikiversity, an interactive learning platform Wikiquote, a collection of quotations Wikispecies, a directory of life on Earth

We lead and support the development ofMediaWiki, the open source wiki software behind all our public websites. We helpto organize outreach and community events to encourage people to contribute to our projects, and we providedownloadableoffline copiesanddatabase archivesof Wikipedia content.

The Wikimedia Foundation isnot affiliatedwith WikiLeaks.

More information may be found on the page aboutour projects

How is the Wikimedia Foundation run?

The Wikimedia Foundation has astaffof 137, led by the Executive Director, Sue Gardner. The staff supports the work of thehundreds of thousands of volunteers who contribute content to the Wikimedia projects. The Wikimedia Foundation is also

supported by countless volunteers participating through committees, as interns, or on an ad hoc basis.

TheBoard of Trusteesarticulates the mission and vision of the Wikimedia Foundation, reviews and helps to develop longterm plans, provides oversight, and supports the Wikimedia Foundation's fundraising efforts. It is the ultimate organizationalauthority of the Wikimedia Foundation as defined in its bylaws. SeeMeetingsfor published Board minutes andResolutionsfor published Board resolutions. The Board is partially elected from the community of contributors to the Wikimediaprojects. The Board is supported by anAdvisory Board, chaired by Angela Beesley Starling.

We have an office, located in San Francisco, California (USA), where most of our employees are working. All boardmembers and remaining staff work remotely.

We strive to operate highly transparently, and have publishedkey policiesandfinancial information.

How is the Wikimedia Foundation funded?

Wikimedia is funded primarily throughdonationsfrom hundreds of thousands of individuals, but also through several grantsand gifts of servers and hosting (seebenefactors).

The Wikimedia Foundation receives donations from more than 50 countries around the world. The average donation is quitesmall, but their sheer numbers have ensured our success. People make contributions year-round, and once a year theWikimedia Foundation makes a formal request for donations.

We are not considering advertising as a source of revenue.

The Wikimedia Foundation has 501(c)(3) tax exempt status in the United States. Donations made from other nations mayalso be tax deductible. Seedeductibility of donationsfor details. Clickherefor details on how to make a donation via PayPal,

MoneyBookers or by postal mail. For all other types of donation, please contact us through donate wikimedia.org.
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Why doesn't Wikipedia use ads for revenue?

We do not believe that advertising belongs in a project devoted to education, and one that is driven by the values consistentwith a balanced, neutral encyclopedia. Our big, global volunteer community (the people who make Wikipedia) have alwaysfelt that advertising would have a major effect on our ability to stay neutral, and ultimately ads would weaken the readers'overall confidence in the articles they are reading.

The current models for web advertising are also not supportive of our views on user privacy. We do not want to deliver ads tousers based on their geography or on the topic they are currently reading about. Contextual advertising (similar to geo-targeted advertising) reads the content you are viewing which goes against Wikipedia's strict privacy policy for users. Werespect your right to online privacy, and bring you the knowledge and information you are looking for.

We are not against the world of online advertising, nor are we against other organizations that host ads. We just know ads arenot an appropriate thing to find in a project devoted to education and knowledge - and especially one that strives for balanceand neutrality.

How much money are you hoping to raise?

The 2011-12 plan posits revenue of $29.5 million, a 24% increase over projected revenue of $23.8 million for 2010-11.

More details about our finances can be found in ourfinancial reports. Here is our2011-12 Plan(PDF), and here is theQuestions and Answerspage related to it.

Who else is supporting you in this goal?

Most of our funding comes from individualspeople like you. We also receive grants from community and privatefoundations, as well as in-kind contributions from corporations. They can be seen on ourBenefactorspage.

Where can I learn more about your recent activities?

For the fiscal year 2009-10, please Download the 2009-2010 Annual Report:PDF version (5.0 MB)

If you want to keep up with Wikimedia events more regularly, we recommend the following sources:

theWikimedia Foundation blog Planet Wikimedia, which includes Wikimedia community blogs theWikimedia Announcements mailing list, which includes announcements from chapters and community

members

How do I donate?

General questions

What are local chapters?

Local chapters are independent organizations founded to support and promote the Wikimedia projects within a specifiedgeographical region (country). Like the Wikimedia Foundation, they aim to "empower and engage people around the worldto collect and develop educational content under a free license or in the public domain, and to disseminate it effectively andglobally".

What is the point of having chapters?

Chapters exist to further the goals of Wikimedia. They do so by engaging in a wide range of activities, which includes but is

not limited to the following:
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Promoting the Wikimedia projects so that new and different people join them or use them (academics, scientists,college students, schools, libraries etc.)

Investigating and negotiating partnerships on a moral or financial basis to support the Wikimedia projects. Helping outside organisations use Wikimedia content, possibly for their own benefit (eg. help publishers of local

history Wikireaders, of a Wikipedia DVD in a given language)

Organizing local and national events and initiatives (eg. participate in trade shows, set up Wikipedia parties, givelectures etc.)

Taking care of PR and lobbying in a given country, give the press an interlocutor in their own language andculture.

Enabling (where applicable) tax-deductible donations in the country they are based in. Promoting Free Content and wiki culture in their respective territory.

Are chapters based on language or geography?

Chapters are based on geography, though this does not exclude people outside of a particular area from joining a chapter oftheir choice, depending on their language and affinity. In countries where there are several official languages, the localchapter should not be based on only one language, but include interested people from the different official languages.

Which chapters exist?

See the most up to datelist of existing and prospective chapters.

Chapter-Foundation relationship questions

Who co-ordinates matters between chapters and the Foundation?

TheChapters committee.

They should be the first point of contact for all chapter-related matters, including but not limited to submitting bylaws forapproval, requesting funds from the Foundation and signing any formal agreements between a chapter and the Foundation.

Do chapters legally represent the Foundation?

No, the chapters do not represent the Foundation legally. They are separate and independent legal entities, only liable for thework they accomplish in their jurisdiction.

Various agreements might be signed between each chapter and the Wikimedia Foundation, for example to allow them use ofthe name and logos, but chapters do not represent the Wikimedia Foundation, no more than the Wikimedia Foundationrepresents any given chapter.

How does fundraising work with chapters and Foundation?

As separate legal entities, the Wikimedia chapters and the Wikimedia Foundation need to respect the laws of the countriesthey are in regarding the way they fundraise and what they do with the money raised. As such, it may be that a simpleexchange of cash from one entity to the other is allowed or isn't by the local tax authorities. In the end, all chapters and theWikimedia Foundation share the same goal, that of promoting and supporting the Wikimedia projects. Chapters, like theFoundation, are bound by their bylaws to make sure that goal is achieved, their money must be spent towards that goal.

What if local law enforcement contacts a chapter for user information?

You (the chapter) tell them:

The Wikimedia Foundation hosts the Wikipedia and other Wikimedia sites worldwide. A Chapter is a stand-alone,independent organization formed by local people who use Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects. A Chapter is notgoverned, owned or operated by the Wikimedia Foundation. The Chapter has no responsibility with respect to running theWikipedia or other Wikimedia sites, nor does it have access to user information. The Wikimedia Foundation is theappropriate entity to direct all official requests for user information. You can contact them at:

Wikimedia Foundation
http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_chaptershttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_chaptershttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_chaptershttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Chapters_committeehttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Chapters_committeehttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Chapters_committeehttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Chapters_committeehttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_chapters


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c/o CT Corporation System

818 West Seventh Street

Los Angeles, California 90017

Primary Contact: Michelle Paulson, Associate Counsel

Phone: +1 (415) 839-6885 ext. 6608

Facsimile number: +1 (415) 882-0495

Email: legal wikimedia.org

We understand that the Wikimedia Foundation does require a U.S. subpoena before it releases user information, but weencourage you to talk to them directly to understand their process.

Chapter creation questions

Who can start a new chapter?

To initiate a new chapter you should have experience in contributing to any of the Wikimedia projects, and probably be ableto contribute in the language of the country you reside in and wish to start a chapter for. Of course one person is not enoughto create a full fledged organization, so you have to be ready to motivate and gather more active contributors from yourcountry who are also interested and willing to participate in all the work that comes along with the creation of a legal enti ty.

It would help a lot if at least one of these persons is already involved in discussions regarding the Wikimedia Foundation, andat least one person has some kind of experience in legal issues.

For the creation itself you should be a group of between 10 and 20 people (if you can find more, that's fine, of course), even ifyour local laws require a smaller number.

What legal form should a local chapter have?

In countries where the status is applicable, the local chapter should have non-profit status and follow the local legislation forsuch organisations.

All existing chapters (as of January 2007) are member organisations, allowing interested individuals to join the chapter asvoting members, but the final legal form should be chosen in the view of best fulfilling the goals similar to those ofWikimedia.

What arrangements need to be made with the Wikimedia Foundation?

This is better explained in theStep-by-step chapter creation guide. In any case, you will want to take a close look at therequirements for future chaptersand theguidelines for future chaptersto have a clearer view of the whole process andexpectations to become a Wikimedia chapter.

How much are the membership fees?

See alsoWikimedia chapters#Existing chapters

Membership fees are up to each chapter to decide. Currently the membership fees for individuals range from not mandatorymembership for the Serbian chapter via "1 PLN (about 0.25 ) or more per year" for the Polish chapter to a fixed 35 peryear for the French chapter. Some chapters have special discount fees for students, the unemployed, etc.

Some chapters also chose to establish a fixed fee for corporate members (eg. for Wikimedia Deutschland that fee is 100 )while others have decided to establish these on a case-by-case basis.

Other questions

Where can I find out more about each local chapter?

Each existing chapter, and some of the planned chapters, have a mailing list and a website where you can find out more. SeeWikimedia chapters#Existing and planned chaptersfor details of these.
http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Step-by-step_chapter_creation_guidehttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Step-by-step_chapter_creation_guidehttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Step-by-step_chapter_creation_guidehttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Requirements_for_future_chaptershttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Requirements_for_future_chaptershttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Guidelines_for_future_chaptershttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Guidelines_for_future_chaptershttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Guidelines_for_future_chaptershttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_chapters#Existing_chaptershttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_chapters#Existing_chaptershttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_chapters#Existing_chaptershttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_chapters#Existing_and_planned_chaptershttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_chapters#Existing_and_planned_chaptershttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_chapters#Existing_and_planned_chaptershttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_chapters#Existing_chaptershttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Guidelines_for_future_chaptershttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Requirements_for_future_chaptershttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Step-by-step_chapter_creation_guide


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You may find the information on their websites or mailing lists. Occasionally, chapter representatives are invited to meetingsof theBoard of Trusteesto give feedback, and this can be read about via the meeting notes atWikimedia:Meetings.

You might also want to ask thechapters committee.

Two or more virtual offices refer to a virtual company. Virtual office is a communication system which has auto attendantthat handle calls, phone system that enable to connect remote teams and employees as if they were on the same room andeven broadcast announcement.

Virtual Office is a new tool for home based business, small business and big companies. It is a risk free and cost effective

way of entering into new markets without incurring the costs associated with opening an office.

For home based business, Virtual Office provides a professional office address, dedicated local phone number and answeringservice. So home based business can show a professional address and the look and feel of a professional company.

For small businesses with one or two offices, if they want to expand into other cities, they can get virtual office in each cities.All the calls can be transferred into the corporate office and all the mail will be forwarded to the home office. So with oneoffice, the firm gets these virtual offices and they raise the profile of the company by having these offices.

The most important advantage is that your virtual office can be submitted to sites like Google and your visibility online willbe dramatically increased.

If you want to know more about virtual office visit www.washingtonvirtual.com

Read more:http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_a_virtual_company_and_a_virtual_office#ixzz1xjcayMC8
http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Board_of_Trusteeshttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Board_of_Trusteeshttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Board_of_Trusteeshttp://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Meetingshttp://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Meetingshttp://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Meetingshttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Chapters_committeehttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Chapters_committeehttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Chapters_committeehttp://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_a_virtual_company_and_a_virtual_office#ixzz1xjcayMC8http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_a_virtual_company_and_a_virtual_office#ixzz1xjcayMC8http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_a_virtual_company_and_a_virtual_office#ixzz1xjcayMC8http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_a_virtual_company_and_a_virtual_office#ixzz1xjcayMC8http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Chapters_committeehttp://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Meetingshttp://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees

The Wikimedia Foundation

Documents

Transcript of The Wikimedia Foundation