“I Made the Internet Less Sexist Today”: The Iranian–German Edit-a-thon

Background: Why this event mattered

Germany hosts the largest Persian speaking diaspora in Europe, including many Iranians and Afghans whose histories are often scattered across different countries and languages. Within this broader landscape, the stories of women are especially vulnerable to being overlooked. They tend to appear less often in mainstream media, in public discussions, and even on Wikipedia, where the gender gap is still easy to see. There are fewer articles about women, fewer women editing, and fewer narratives that center women’s experiences.

The moment shaped by the movement known as “Woman, Life, Freedom” (Zan, Zendegi, Azadi) reminded many of us how quickly women can be erased unless their stories are deliberately written down. Wikipedia can help counter that trend, but only when communities make the decision to document what is missing. This is where the idea for the Iranian and German Wikipedia editathon came from. The aim was not only to write articles but also to create a bridge between Persian speaking and German speaking editors and to bring more women’s stories into public view in multiple languages. We chose Berlin, Hamburg, and Munich because each city is home to a large diaspora community and because dedicated local coordinators were available to organize space, manage registrations, and help newcomers. The hope is to add more cities in the future.

How the event worked

The editathon took place on 15 November 2025. We had in person gatherings in Hamburg at the Asia Africa Institute at the University of Hamburg, in Berlin at WikiBär, and in Munich at WikiMUC. Three online participants joined as well, so about 22 people took part in total.

Each city had a coordinator who arranged the venue, sent information to participants who registered on Meta, welcomed people as they arrived, and supported anyone new to editing. Everyone began at ten in the morning, following the same shared timetable. We held two check ins through BigBlueButton. These sessions quickly became one of the most enjoyable parts of the day. Participants greeted each other across cities, compared what they were working on, joked about which city was going to produce more articles, and asked questions about sources, pronunciation, and the best way to transliterate Iranian and German names.

The atmosphere in each location was different. Hamburg had the largest turnout and many people there were editing Wikipedia for the very first time, especially women. Several participants said they were not sure they belonged in an editing event, but with support from experienced editors they learned quickly. They created user accounts, practiced adding citations, explored how articles are structured, and switched between the Persian and German Wikipedias. Many left with their first completed articles and with confidence that they could continue editing afterward.

Berlin focused heavily on translation new biographies. Munich had a smaller group but a productive one, combining article work with media uploads and adding audio files of Iranian women’s names to Wikimedia Commons so that their names can be pronounced correctly. Some participants also joined online and contributed remotely, including those who created new biographies in the Russian Wikipedia.

One feature of the event stood out in particular. Content was created not only in Persian and German but also in Italian, Azerbaijani, English, Russian, and Turkish. Some participants felt more comfortable writing in their first language, and we encouraged that. The result was a genuinely multilingual effort that grew naturally out of the diversity of the group.

Participation and impact

Across all three cities and the online contributors, the editathon resulted in more than fifty documented contributions. This included new biographies, expanded articles, improved sourcing, better structure, and several media uploads. The range of contributions reflected the range of participants. Some preferred to write new content, others focused on translation, and others concentrated on improving clarity and references in existing pages.

One of the most important outcomes was the number of first time editors who joined, especially women in Hamburg. Many had never clicked the edit button before and were able to learn in a friendly and pressure free environment. Several said they wanted to keep editing and stay involved with the Wikimedia community.

The multilingual nature of the results was another encouraging sign. Because people came from different backgrounds, they strengthened several language editions at once. By the end of the day there were new or improved articles not only in Persian and German but also in Italian, Russian, Azerbaijani, English, and Turkish.

Looking ahead

The November editathon showed that small community based gatherings can make a real contribution to reducing the gender gap on Wikipedia. It also demonstrated how productive it can be to bring together editors from Persian speaking and German speaking backgrounds, including members of the Afghan diaspora.

Based on the positive feedback, we are already considering expanding the event in 2026 to include more cities across Germany, working with Wikimedia Deutschland and with local communities. This would give newcomers more entry points and create stronger ties between diaspora groups and German editors.

There was also interest in connecting future editathons with cultural events. One idea discussed was partnering with Cinema Iran, a film festival in Munich, which could offer an opportunity to highlight the work of Iranian women in cinema and encourage new articles across several language editions. It may also open the door to travel funding and broader outreach.

This first experiment showed that making the internet less sexist does not always require a large campaign. Sometimes it happens when a small group of people gather in three rooms, across three cities, asking questions, sharing what they know, learning how to pronounce a difficult name, and slowly adding women’s stories back into public knowledge, one article at a time.