Building a Better World, One Photo and Edit at a Time: Celebrating Brahim Faraji

Today we Wikicelebrate Brahim Faraji, a longtime Wikimedia volunteer, who ensures that Wikimedia Commons is full of high-quality photographs!

In 2016, Brahim Faraji‘s search for a way to make a positive impact led him to the Wikimedia Movement. Browsing the internet, Wikipedia caught his eye. He soon realized it was more than just an encyclopedia: “I looked to know more about Wikipedia, how it works and its background, then I found the Wikimedia movement with its values which motivated me to work harder and with passion”, he says.

His entry point was Wiki Loves Monuments, a global photo competition that encourages participants to capture images of cultural heritage sites around the world. The idea of preserving history through images resonated deeply with Brahim. In 2016, he uploaded photos to the contest for the first time, with four making it to Morocco’s Wiki Loves Monuments top ten! Since then, he has become a dedicated Wikimedia photographer, contributing pictures on diverse topics: from TBOURIDA Festival  (henna on a Moroccan wedding), to rebab instrument, from dramatic stormy sky to cultural Morocco’s cultural heritage sites. His work has been part of popular Wikimedia photo campaigns like Wiki Loves Africa, Wiki Loves Folklore and especially Wiki Loves Monuments, where Brahim impressively achieved finalist status for four years in a row.

Brahim also discovered another important aspect of  Wikimedia: education. He joined the Reading Wikipedia in the Classroom project and became one of the first certified trainers. That was in 2020, when the schools struggled with the pandemic and implementing online education. Despite the challenges, together with another trainer, Soukaina and the Moroccan User Group introduced Wikimedia education projects in Morocco, following a dream of a better world, which he describes: “with all generations raised with the skills necessary to understand how media is produced, able to access and evaluate content online and recognize biases and knowledge gaps in the information consumed.”

Brahim soon became a member of the global movement, taking part in different international events, like Wiki Arabia or Wiki Indaba (and true to his photographer spirit captured moments of the Wikimedia community!). 

Strong dedication to the Wikimedia mission fuels Brahim’s passion. When asked about his motivation, he highlights  “The values of the movement and the spirit of collaboration. I feel part of a worldwide family, which lives to make the world a better place through free knowledge.” 

Brahim recognizes that there is still a lot to achieve. He notices that there is still not enough knowledge about Wikimedia, which may lead to a small number of people joining our movement. But he is a natural optimist: “Nothing is easy but everything is possible! So, Don’t give up, your added value to make the world a better place is invaluable!”, he advises his fellow Wikimedians. 

Thank you for all your contributions, Brahim and for preserving knowledge about heritage for the future generations.