Outreachy Round 29 Internship Program

At the Wikimedia Foundation, we regularly participate in developer outreach programs like Outreachy. As a mentoring organization, we provide support to individuals from underrepresented groups in the technology sector. Through initiatives like Outreachy, we continue to champion diversity, inclusion, and innovation within the Wikimedia community and beyond. Our projects include coding and non-coding endeavors such as design, documentation, translation, and research.

In this article, we look back at Round 29 of the Outreachy internship program, celebrating the excellent contributions from both interns and mentors.

Meet our Outreachy Round 29 Interns, Projects & Mentors

Project	Intern	Mentor(s)
Quickstatements 3.0 public documentation	Onitcha Nyerhovwo Edafetanure (Nigeria)	Éder Porto Artur Corrêa Souza Miguel Galves
Improve the Wiki Education Dashboard test suite	Formasit Chijoh (Cameroon)	Sage Ross Sulagna Saha
Improve observability of Wiki Education Dashboard	Esther Timothy (Nigeria)	Sage Ross
Design tailored reading experiences for different accessibility (a11y) requirements	Karimot Isiaka (Nigeria)	Carolyn Li-Madeo Justin Scherer
Creation of Codex (Wikimedia design system) components + libraries in Penpot (from Figma)	Fatuma A (Kenya)	Carolyn Li-Madeo Matthew Williams
Create Scribe-Data Wiktionary based translation and synonym commands	Md Asiful Alam (Bangladesh)	Andrew McAllister Henrik Thomasson Will Yoshida

Program Highlights

As part of our commitment to providing comprehensive support and guidance to our interns, we organize special sessions with guest speakers during each internship round. These sessions serve as invaluable opportunities for interns to gain insights, inspiration, and practical advice from experienced professionals within the industry.

Intern Highlights

Throughout the internship period, our interns embarked on a rigorous learning experience, making meaningful contributions, overcoming challenges, and forging lasting connections within the Wikimedia community. Their highlights from the journey serve as a testament to their dedication, resilience, and passion for driving positive change. Below are some of the highlights from our interns:

• “The Outreachy internship has successfully introduced me to the world of open source, helped me explore a new dimension of my skillset, improved my communication skills, and connected me with amazing individuals. As this chapter of my life closes, I am certain it will have a significant and positive impact on my future endeavors.” – Onitcha Nyerhovwo Edafetanure
• “As I look toward Open-Source opportunities, I know there’s much to consider. The most important step now is investing in myself—developing both technical skills and professional relationships that will serve as the foundation for my future. Andrew reminded me that career growth isn’t linear, and that’s okay. What matters most is finding work that aligns with my values while providing the lifestyle I desire. Previously I thought that I came late in tech industry or open-source, which was a wrong thought from me.” – Md Asiful Alam
• “My experience taught me: […] the importance of communication and community within the open source space; A lot of software developers are introverts but such projects and internships encourage community, building relationships and networking. All in all, I daresay this was the best 3 months of my life.” – Esther Timothy
• “My experience as an Outreachy Intern at Wikimedia Foundation has been truly transformative. Contributing to a project of this magnitude—one that reaches billions worldwide—has been both humbling and empowering. During my internship, I’ve focused on designing enhanced reading experiences for users with diverse accessibility needs, a responsibility I don’t take lightly given Wikipedia’s global impact: over 7 billion annual website visits and tens of millions of mobile downloads across platforms.” – Karimot Isiaka

Conclusion

Wikimedia is proud to participate regularly in the Outreachy Internship program, offering opportunities for aspiring contributors to join our community. The impact of our outreach programs in fostering innovation within our organization cannot be overstated, as it empowers interns to serve as catalysts for positive change and contribute to supporting diversity in tech. 

By providing opportunities to apply skills, explore new ideas, and collaborate with diverse teams, we enhance their professional development and drive continuous innovation and growth.  

We would like to express our gratitude to all mentors who supported this internship round, sharing their insights and contributing to the success to the program: Éder Porto, Artur Corrêa Souza, Miguel Galves, Sage Ross, Sulagna Saha, Carolyn Li-Madeo, Justin Scherer, Matthew Williams, Andrew McAllister, Henrik Thomasson, Will Yoshida. Thank you also to program organizers Deb Tankersley and Mahfuza Mohona.
If you’re interested in becoming a part of this enriching experience, learn more on our MediaWiki Page. Be sure to subscribe to Wikitech-I mailing list and/or Technical Community Newsletter to stay updated on upcoming internship opportunities and other exciting initiatives. Join us in shaping the future of open knowledge and collaboration!