Meet the working groups of the CEE Youth Group

The CEE Youth Group is a group of young Wikimedians based in Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asian countries. The group was created in August 2023 with the support of the CEE Hub, inspired by the CEE Catch-up in May 2023, which was dedicated to sharing the stories of young people from the CEE region and the problems that they’re facing locally.Currently the group has 62 members.

Overview

Its purpose is to connect the young people around the CEE and CA region, improve their capacity, share experiences with young Wikimedians in the region, and provide them an avenue for upskilling in various important Wikimedia aspects as well, apart from offering a safe space for young people. Many members of the CEE Youth Group are also well-recognized members of their regional communities. The CEE Youth group is a pioneer in connecting young people from various communities with different stages of community development, different circumstances, and many other local peculiarities.The members of the CEE Youth Group have been active in promoting the group and its activities at the regional and international levels.

Members of the CEE Youth Group did a presentation in Wikimania and CEE Meeting 2024 presenting the group and its activities (there was a similar panel in CEE Meeting 2023 too), earning the applause of the community.

Meanwhile, the group emphasizes connecting its members to further its activity. We have conducted two in-person meetings in November 2023 and November 2024 which have allowed the group to connect, exchange opinions, and build further the group. Working groups and other internal structures were initiated after the two Prague meetings. Meanwhile, members of the Group will have an assistive role on the preparation of the Youth Conference 2025 in Prague, where around 40 members of the Youth Group and other Wikimedian youngsters from the whole world will participate. The post has two parts about our most active WGs. We opted to give footing to some people to share their opinions about the WGs.

Social media working group

The social media working group was created after a meeting in Prague in 2023, which was the first time the CEE Youth Group gathered in person. The group realized that having a social media presence would help share the activities of young Wikimedians in the Central and Eastern European region and connect with more young people interested in the Wikimedia movement. The first members of this working group were Nikos from Greece, Darina from Ukraine, and Jan Beranek from Czechia. This group officially started their social media efforts on January 15, 2024, when two members dedicated their time to it. Over the course of last year, the Youth Group’s social media presence has grown quite successfully. By now, our Instagram account has over 150 followers, including the official account of the Wikimedia Foundation and several other chapters and affiliates, helping us reach a wider audience for our posts and announcements. Nikos and Darina experimented with various styles of posts. We did posts describing the work of various members of the group, announcements of the group, and many more.

During the Prague Meeting in November 2024 social media working group welcomed new members, including Aian from Kyrgyzstan, Dawid from Poland, and Hanne from Turkey. We used an internal document to brainstorm ideas for the future of our working group. Our first official meeting as the social media working group took place on January 15, 2025, where we discussed our strategy and next steps. Since then, Hanne from Turkey has taken on the role of chief editor for our social media, while Aian manages our TikTok account, which has been doing really well, with each video getting 300-400 views. 

The new social media efforts of the CEE Youth Group have introduced several fresh ideas. For instance, every week, we post two “Meet the Youth” features, highlighting different members of our group and their activities. These posts are written in English and the member’s native language. Hanne also creates a graphic for each feature that includes the member’s name, photo, and a quote about Wikimedia. This initiative is designed to showcase the diverse backgrounds of our members and celebrate their contributions.

Hanne Isna Sevinc, the chief editor of the CEE Youth’s Instagram, believes that the biggest opportunity and chance to make a difference with our social media presence is: 

The biggest challenge in the current WG process of the Youth Group is balancing our academic commitments with the responsibilities of our projects. Since most of us are students, it can be difficult to find time to fully dedicate to the group. However, WGs are crucial because they offer a great opportunity to collaborate on meaningful projects, drive positive change, and empower youth within the Wikimedia movement. Despite the challenges, they help build a strong sense of community and purpose.

As the head of the working group Hanne explains below the importance of the WG:

As the chief editor of the social media WG, I believe the biggest challenge we’ve faced is balancing creativity and consistency in our content while managing the group’s workload. With the diversity of ideas and the need to keep our posts engaging, it can be tough to maintain a steady flow of high-quality content. However, I think social media is incredibly important because it allows us to reach a wide audience, raise awareness about the Youth Group’s initiatives, and showcase the diverse contributions of our members, ultimately helping to strengthen our community and expand our impact.

Internal governance group

The internal governance group was created recently, inspired by discussions from the 2024 meeting. We felt it was important to form this group because the Hub’s plan for 2025 focuses on strengthening governance efforts for the youth group. This is part of a broader decision to make the group more cohesive. The main goal of this working group is to establish guidelines for the youth group’s long-term governance and to equip members with valuable knowledge and skills related to governance and strategy. The working group is thriving, with over 10 members, reflecting the enthusiasm of our youth members—future leaders—who want to enhance their skills in important areas like governance.

To further support our members, we reached out to Mari Avetisyan, a key member of the CEE Youth Group from Armenia and secretary for the Affiliations Committee, to share her thoughts on the role of working groups in the CEE Youth and the biggest challenges they face. Mari emphasizes that working groups are a great asset to the Youth Group for several reasons:

The concept of working groups is incredibly productive for our CEE Youth Group. It allows everyone to actively participate, contribute to our efforts, and feel empowered and included.

When asked about the main challenge that WGs face, Mari explains:

While it has many benefits, it also brings challenges, and I would like to address one of the major ones. Starting from scratch is always difficult, and this has been particularly true for the internal governance group. Without a pre-existing model to follow or adapt, we have to brainstorm and create everything from the ground up. The challenge lies in defining what is “good” for the group—a very subjective concept. What seems effective now might lead to complications later.

However, establishing a clear structure is essential for the group’s growth and self-regulation. Our task is to design a framework that not only keeps our group open and welcoming to new members but also ensures it remains organized and efficient. This requires us to think ahead and find the right balance between inclusivity and structure.