Language Diversity Conference Grant Approved: Planning Begins for October 2026

We’re excited to share that the Language Diversity Conference (LDC) has been approved for funding, and planning is now officially underway for the conference scheduled for 2-4 October 2026.

The Language Diversity Conference, themed: Strengthening Language Communities in the Open Knowledge Movement, will be a global gathering dedicated to advancing linguistic diversity and inclusion within the Wikimedia ecosystem and the broader open knowledge movement. With the intention to be held every other year, the conference will be rotational and co-hosted by local Wikimedia affiliates in a selected country, ensuring strong community engagement and regional representation across the movement, with the support of the Language Diversity Hub, Wikimedia UK and Wikitongues as a consistent co-host. To enhance inclusivity and minimize financial and logistical barriers, the host country will be chosen based on ease of visa access for participants from diverse linguistic backgrounds.

The proposed inaugural edition of the conference will take place in Accra, Ghana, convening language activists, researchers, contributors from small Wikipedias, incubator language communities, affiliates, and language and cultural heritage organizations. This gathering will serve as a collaborative space for Wikimedia editors and language communities, as well as invite new communities who have not engaged with Wikimedia but could become Wikimedians through this conference. The conference also seeks to explore strategies for expanding multilingual content, preserving linguistic heritage, and addressing challenges faced by underrepresented language communities in the digital space. Since there hasn’t been any global Wikimedia language conference of this nature, it will be an opportunity to have a global representation of the various language communities from different regions instead of the regionally focused conferences. 

Following the grant approval, a Conference Organizing Team (CoT) which includes: Wikitongues, Language Diversity Hub, Dagbani Wikimedians User Group as the local host, Wikimedia UK has been constituted and has held its kickoff meeting to align on the conference vision, roles, responsibilities, and planning timeline. The CoT will lead the work across program development, communications, scholarships, logistics, and documentation, while the Wikimedia Foundation will support venue arrangements, payments, and operational logistics.

What’s next?

Over the coming months, the organizing team will:

• Launch a Call for volunteers and programme proposals, inviting sessions focused on language diversity.
  
• Open scholarship applications to support participation from diverse regions
  
• Share updates on the conference program, speakers, and participation opportunities
  
• Continue outreach to small wikis and incubator communities across the movement
  

In addition, the team will soon release a Call for Volunteers to support different aspects of the conference, including program support, logistics, documentation, and participant coordination. Community members who are interested in supporting the conference are encouraged to look out for this call and contribute in any way they can to help make the event a success.

The Language Diversity Conference is rooted in collaboration and community-led knowledge sharing, and we look forward to working with contributors, affiliates, and partners as planning progresses.

Further updates, including key dates and participation opportunities, will be shared on Diff and Meta in the coming months.