Presenting the 2018 winners from the world’s largest photo contest
by Ed Erhart, 20 December 2018

The top three of fifteen winning photos from this year’s Wiki Loves Monuments, an annual photo competition recognized by the Guinness World Records as the world’s largest photo competition. The contest, now in its seventh year, focuses on “monuments,” which the organizers broadly define as structures recognized by a local authority as being of particular value to cultural heritage.

This year saw over 258,000 photos submitted by just over 14,000 photographers. A plurality of the photos were of Russian subjects, followed by Italian, German, and Ukrainian.

The top images were winnowed down by the federated nature of the contest, as Wiki Loves Monuments is primarily organized on a national level by people just like you. Up to ten winners from each national competition, fifty in all, were advanced to an international jury, whose results are listed here.

For more information on the winning photos and the 2018 competition, go to www.wikilovesmonuments.org. "

Foundation finds more funds

Facebook makes $1 million gift to support the future of free knowledge

by Kaitlin Thaney, Endowment Director, 20 December 2018

We are pleased to announce that Facebook, one of the world’s leading social networking platforms, has given $1 million to the Wikimedia Endowment—a permanent, independent fund dedicated to ensuring the long-term sustainability of Wikipedia and the other Wikimedia free knowledge projects.

“We launched the Endowment in 2016 as an unwavering commitment to the lasting power and promise of Wikipedia,” said Jimmy Wales, Founder of Wikipedia. “We are grateful to Facebook for this support, and hope this marks the beginning of a long-term collaboration to support Wikipedia’s future.”

The Wikimedia Endowment makes Wikipedia more resilient in a changing world. It provides a necessary safeguard for the millions of articles, media, and resources created by Wikipedia contributors, but also maintains its continued independence as a neutral, reliable source of information.

“Through its nearly 18 years of existence, Wikipedia has become a trusted resource for hundreds of millions of people around the world. The Endowment ensures we can protect this incredible resource for knowledge seekers today, but also for generations to come,” said Lisa Gruwell, Wikimedia’s Chief Advancement Officer. “We’re thrilled that Facebook is investing in the long-term future of Wikipedia and free knowledge for everyone.”

To learn more about how you can support the Wikimedia Endowment, visit www.wikimediaendowment.org or email endowment@wikimedia.org.

Still more money coming in - Wikimedia partners with Google

Google and Wikimedia Foundation partner to increase knowledge equity online

by Lisa Gruwell, Chief Advancement Officer, 22 January 2019

"...we’re excited to announce that the Wikimedia Foundation is partnering with Google on a set of initiatives to support a shared commitment of making information more accessible to more people around the world.
Through these partnerships, we’ll be working together to create new and expanded programs to empower editors to create local language content on Wikipedia, as well as developing improved translation tools. To strengthen and support Wikipedia and its mission for generations to come, Google.org will also be contributing $1.1 million to the Wikimedia Foundation and $2 million to the Wikimedia Endowment."

15 January 2019 marked the 18th birthday of Wikipedia—and the 4th year of #1Lib1Ref

For Wikipedia’s birthday, we ask that you give the gift of a citation through #1Lib1Ref

by Felix Nartey, 15 January 2019

"...an annual campaign that asks everyone to jump in and improve Wikipedia by adding at least one citation. In doing so, they help improve the reliability and authenticity of the site for billions of readers. Though literally meaning “One Librarian, One Reference”, #1Lib1Ref has grown to include archivists, professors, researchers, and Wikimedia volunteer editors interested in an entertaining way to effect change on Wikipedia. You can participate in the campaign through five easy steps:

1. Find an article that needs a citation, using Citation Hunt
2. Find a reliable source that can support that article
3. Add a citation using referencing tools
4. Add the project hashtag #1Lib1Ref in the Wikipedia edit summary
5. Share your edit(s) on social media and invite others to participate!

More staff changes

Wikimedia Foundation appoints Valerie D’Costa as Chief of Community Engagement

by Wikimedia Foundation, 24 January 2019

The Wikimedia Foundation is excited to announce the appointment of Valerie D’Costa as Chief of Community Engagement. Valerie joins the Foundation after a decade at the World Bank Group, including nine years as leader of InfoDev, an initiative to facilitate sustainable development through access to data and information. Altogether, Valerie brings more than 25 years of experience launching and growing international initiatives in the developing world ... Maggie Dennis, the organization’s current Chief of Community Engagement, will transition to Vice President of Support & Services...