Event Summary: WikiWomen Summit at Wikimania 2024

The WikiWomen Summit at Wikimania 2024 was the second landmark event dedicated to promoting and advancing gender equity within the Wikimedia movement. Taking place as part of the global Wikimania conference, the Summit served as a platform for women and their allies to come together, share experiences, and collaborate on actionable strategies aimed at increasing the participation of women in Wikimedia projects. It also addressed the challenges and systemic barriers that continue to limit their involvement. By fostering a vibrant community of women and gender-diverse contributors, the event sought to amplify their voices in the Wikimedia space and beyond.

The Summit included a series of panels, workshops, and networking sessions, focusing on topics such as:

• Strategies for increasing women’s representation and participation in Wikimedia projects
• Overcoming gender bias in content and community governance
• Building stronger networks for women and gender-diverse contributors
• Showcasing the impact of women-led initiatives and affiliates in advancing equity

Participants had the opportunity to engage in meaningful conversations about how to collectively support women in Wikimedia spaces and beyond. The event concluded with a call to action for continued advocacy, collaboration, and capacity-building efforts to achieve a more inclusive Wikimedia movement.

The Summit’s colour theme was blue, symbolizing trust, wisdom, and stability—qualities essential to building a strong, inclusive, and collaborative movement. Blue also reflects the depth and vast potential of women’s contributions to Wikimedia.

A major highlight of the Summit was the call to action issued by the co-founders of the WikiWomen Summit, Vanj Padilla and Rosie Stephenson-Goodknight. In their closing remarks, they emphasized the need for continued advocacy, collaboration, and capacity-building efforts. A key part of this call to action was the suggestion that the WikiWomen Summit could be held at any geographic Wikimedia conference in the future, functioning as a cost-effective lunchtime event. This idea would allow the Summit to remain a recurring fixture at Wikimedia events around the world, with each iteration uniquely tailored to its location and participants. The proposal includes planning support, facilitated through a Telegram group, to ensure that each WikiWomen Summit is well-organized and impactful.

Another key highlight was the Declaration of the WikiWomen Camp 2023, which was supported by participants during an interactive session using Aha Slides, receiving an average support rating of 4.2. The declaration outlines commitments to advancing gender equity and enhancing the presence of women in the Wikimedia movement. You can read the full declaration here

This Summit served as an essential platform for promoting gender equity and ensuring that women’s voices remain central to the future of Wikimedia. In addition, there was an intention to organize and support smaller WikiWomen Summits at future Wikimedia events, ensuring continued collaboration and engagement on gender equity issues. The next WikiWomen Summit is planned for Wikimania 2025 in Kenya, where the momentum from this year’s Summit will continue to grow.

Call for Task Force Members

The Summit also highlighted the ongoing call for members of the WikiWomen Task Force, a new initiative aimed at building a strategic framework to support women in Wikimedia. The Task Force will focus on key areas such as community engagement, capacity building, and addressing systemic barriers within the movement.

As the summit concluded, it was clear that the event has become an essential platform for advocacy, collaboration, and capacity-building with efforts to achieve a more inclusive Wikimedia movement. The discussions and initiatives that emerged from the Wiki Women Summit at Wikimania 2024 are expected to have a lasting impact, helping to create a more inclusive and equitable Wikimedia movement for all.

Those interested in contributing to this work in the movement, nominated themselves or others by 15 September 2024. Learn more about the Task Force here and nominations here. You can also share your experience as a woman working in our movement, by taking the Engagement Survey here.

For more updates and to stay connected, join the WikiWomen Collective on Telegram.

You can watch the WikiWomen Summit proceedings at Wikimania at the following links:

• Day 1: Full session program
• Map Up, Rise Up: Outcomes from the WikiWomen Camp: Main programme session