On Sunday, 8 February 2026, Wikimedia Iraq User Group celebrated the 25th birthday of Wikipedia in Baghdad. The celebration took place at the American Space at the American University of Baghdad, marking a historic milestone for our community. The event brought together a total of 28 attendees, including community members, students, and guests.
This event was especially significant as it marked the first time we gathered Wikimedians from across Iraq in one place. The event included attendees from eight cities: Sulaymaniyah, Ramadi, Fallujah, Karbala, Mosul, Maysan, Erbil, and Baghdad. For the first time, Wikimedia Iraq User Group took full responsibility for organizing transportation for all attendees, as well as providing accommodation for participants traveling from outside Baghdad. This was also the first time the user group managed logistics at this scale, reflecting our growing organizational capacity and commitment to inclusivity and nationwide representation.
Beyond the logistical milestone, the gathering carried a deeply personal dimension. Many of us met in person for the first time after years of collaborating online as fellow editors and community members. Transforming long-standing virtual connections into real-life conversations was both inspiring and meaningful, and it strengthened the sense of friendship and shared purpose within our community.
The event also coincided with another important milestone which is the 10th anniversary of Wikimedia Iraq, which we celebrated earlier in October 2025 in an online meeting, you can read more about it on our Fourth Quarter of 2025 Highlights diff post. Bringing the community together physically after ten years of growth was a proud and emotional moment for everyone involved.
The celebration began with an interactive ice-breaking Menti activity designed to test participants’ knowledge about Wikipedia and Wikimedia Iraq presented by (user:teebaAW), Coordinator of Wikimedia Iraq, helping create a friendly and engaging atmosphere. Following that, (user:Alli Khalil) Director of Wikimedia Iraq, delivered a presentation highlighting statistics about Wikipedia and the role of our user group in contributing to its development.
We were also honored to host an online session with Farida El-Gueretly, Senior Partnerships Manager and Community Resources Program Officer, and Manar Yacoub, Manager of Global Movement Communications, who joined us via Microsoft Teams.
During the session, Manar spoke about Wikipedia’s 25th birthday, reflecting on the platform’s journey, its global impact over the past quarter century, and the importance of continuing to grow and adapt as a movement. Farida focused on partnerships and education programs, highlighting opportunities for collaboration and emphasizing the importance of attracting and engaging students as future contributors to the Wikimedia projects.
The online session was followed by a panel discussion with 3 of Wikimedia Iraq board members (user:Mohammed Qays, user:Luma.H, user:Ravan), focusing on the challenges facing our user group and exploring collaborative solutions to strengthen our impact across Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects.
“We are incredibly proud to see how far we have come; transforming years of virtual collaboration into a physical reality today in Baghdad is not just a logistical achievement, but a testament to the deep bonds and shared purpose that define the Iraqi Wikimedia community.” Luma Salman
The day concluded with a one-hour edit-a-thon session and a shared lunch, providing space for both productive contributions and community bonding.
Celebration Cake and Theme!
To mark Wikipedia’s 25th birthday, we celebrated with themed cupcakes and a group photo capturing this special gathering. This event represented more than a celebration, it was a milestone in strengthening the Iraqi Wikimedia community, expanding national participation, and reaffirming our commitment to contributing to free knowledge.
We also incorporated the official 25th anniversary Celebration Toolkit provided by Wikipedia into our social media campaigns and event presentation materials, ensuring our activities aligned with the global celebration. Additionally, we printed tote bags stickers and bookmarks to commemorate the occasion and share the spirit of the anniversary with our community.
Our Birthday Wishes for Wikipedia
Our birthday wishes for Wikipedia are rooted in growth, equity, and sustainability. We aspire to be part of the ongoing expansion of high-quality content available on Wikipedia and a stronger representation of our online communities.
Most importantly, we wish for Wikipedia to continue inspiring individuals everywhere to access, create, and protect free knowledge for generations to come.
Our Social Media Presence
As strengthening our social media presence is one of our key priorities, we made a dedicated effort to promote the event through visual content. In collaboration with the American Space at the American University of Baghdad, we published a joint announcement post inviting students, community members, and whoever interested in this movement to apply through a registration form. You can view our collaborative post with the American Space here.
To ensure the event was well documented, we captured high-quality photos and videos that will be shared across our official platforms, including LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram further amplifying the impact of the celebration.
We are also proud of the organic engagement from our community members. One of our Wikimedians, User:ZheenSalih, who attended the event, created and shared an engaging reel capturing the spirit of the day, you can view it here.
“It was truly inspiring to connect with people from across Iraq, hear their journeys as editors, and share our passion for free knowledge.“ – Zheen Salih
Challenges We Faced
As this was the first time Wikimedia Iraq User Group organized a nationwide in-person gathering, we encountered several challenges that provided important learning opportunities.
Although our group consists of an equal number of men and women, we noticed lower female participation in our celebration, despite our efforts to provide full support to all members to facilitate their attendance.
This is a common challenge. The higher participation of women in our community is largely due to the fact that most of our activities are held online, where many women feel more comfortable contributing to a global volunteer effort from their homes. Often, family responsibilities or broader societal challenges can limit women’s ability to attend in-person events, especially those held outside their cities. Despite these challenges, we remain fully committed to supporting women’s participation in our community and continuously work to provide the necessary means and enabling conditions to facilitate their engagement and attendance.
Looking forward to gather more as a community
As we reflect on this milestone, Wikimedia Iraq User Group looks forward to organizing more offline events that bring our community together across Iraq, while also strengthening collaboration with affiliates that support free knowledge.
We also aim to further support our members in organizing offline activities in their home cities, strengthening regional engagement and expanding our presence nationwide. In line with this vision, we are planning to hold our 2026 Wikimedia Iraq Annual Meetup in Erbil, marking another step toward decentralizing our activities and ensuring broader community participation across the country.
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