Setting Sail for Growth as Wikimedians in Kaohsiung: Lessons Learned from ESEAP Conference 2026

Wiki Asmah: 

This year in May 2026, I had the privilege of attending the ESEAP Conference 2026. This has marked the 3rd time for me to attend such a remarkable event in the region where I started my journey as a Wikimedian. As the community gathered under the banner of pioneering the future together, this conference held profound personal significance as it gave me the platform to present the key initiatives and strategies I have developed throughout my years in the movement. For that, I am deeply grateful.

Raflinoer32:

My heart was overflowing with gratitude because I had the opportunity again to attend a Wikimedia conference. I was humbled when I received an email notifying me that my scholarship application for the ESEAP Conference 2026 had been accepted. For me, it was such a golden opportunity to gain more knowledge and connect with amazing people behind Wikimedia projects in person and it became a moment I am always looking forward to in this movement.

What sessions did you bring to the conference?

Wiki Asmah:

Firstly, I was honored to represent youth women in the movement for this region during the women track on Day 1 of the conference during the session “Next Gen Wiki Women: Pioneering the future together”. In this session, I advocated for a shift in perspective. Inspiring young women isn’t just about recruiting more editors; it is about systematically closing the gender representation gap across the entire Wikimedia movement. Young women bring fresh, diverse knowledge that can enrich the work of more experienced Wikimedians. In turn, experienced editors can step up as role models, empowering the next generation to confidently take up leadership roles. The session ended with various words of encouragement and advice about endless possibilities of collaborations and initiatives to do for youth women from women who I really look up to in the movement. It was heartwarming and very inspiring.

Furthermore, I fully immersed myself in the Youth Track sessions on the second day of the conference, which marked the pioneering launch of the official ESEAP Youth Group. During this track, I led several sessions to highlight the powerful initiatives our regional youth have championed. A prime example of this was the “Wikimedia in education: a look at Wiki Clubs” session. This was a panel discussion session where we demonstrated how youth and students from different schools and universities across the region are moving beyond just consuming knowledge to actively creating it, showcasing how Wiki Clubs act as a sustainable model for student engagement and movement growth. 

Unlike one-off workshops, these Wiki clubs create a self-renewing cycle where students or graduating student leaders naturally train and mentor the next generation of editors, ensuring their community thrives long after the initial spark. Seeing the success of Wiki Clubs in the region, the ESEAP Youth Group aims to be a point of support for these communities in various ways to help them grow within the movement or even help the youth members in the region to execute their ideal initiatives. 

Raflinoer32:

I had the opportunity to present two projects from my community, Wikimedia Bandung. I presented “WikiCitaRasa: Introducing Wikibooks through Indonesian Culinary Recipe Writing Workshop” during the lightning talks session. I shared my experience organizing the project and its outcomes. This project aims to introduce Wikibooks to Wikimedia volunteers in Indonesia by encouraging them to write Indonesian recipes using public domain references from Wikisource. This project helps volunteers learn about Wikimedia projects more easily because editing on Wikibooks is simpler. Through this project, I hope more local Wikimedia communities in Indonesia will contribute to enriching Wikibooks so that the project becomes more widely known.

In addition, my colleague and I also presented “WikiTutuwuhan: Documenting West Java’s Botanical Treasures in Wikimedia Projects” in a presentation session. We shared our journey of documenting plant species in botanical gardens across West Java through Wikimedia Commons and Sundanese Wikipedia. We were very happy to receive constructive feedback and suggestions from the audience, especially members of Wikimedia New Zealand who work as botany curators. They said our project has great potential to grow, both in terms of activities and its overall impact. We plan to continue developing WikiTutuwuhan so that it can contribute more to open educational resources, especially in the field of biology.

What sessions have you learned from the conference?

Wiki Asmah:

Well, like in many other conferences, learning something new is inevitable. This time, I dedicated my whole first day to fully immersing myself in understanding what ESEAP  Wiki Women in the movement is all about. Truly, it opened my eyes to how women, regardless of demographic, critically lack representation. It gave me a profound understanding of why women’s representation matters in all aspects of the movement. Therefore, moving forward, I am dedicating my efforts to ensure that our local initiatives don’t just include women, but actively empower them to lead.

On top of that, I learned that bridging the gap between experienced Wikimedians and the younger generation requires active listening from both sides. It is not just about youth learning from experts but also about creating collaborative spaces where the institutional knowledge of older editors merges perfectly with the fresh, digital-native perspectives of the youth. During “What support does the youth need?” session, it was heartwarming to hear many advice and exchange of  ideas from more established leaders in our region such as Belinda Spry from WMAU, Manop from WMTH, and Youngjin WMKR. Their mentorship proved that the future of ESEAP relies entirely on mutual support and it was a great learning session for me. 

Raflinoer32:

This year’s Wiki conference was the busiest conference I have ever attended. I had very little time to explore the beautiful city of Kaohsiung because I was busy presenting my projects and did not want to miss the other sessions. From ESEAP Conference 2026, I learned that there are many opportunities to grow within the Wikimedia movement.

I attended the EduWikiHub session, where I learned a lot about how they support Wikimedia communities in education through programs such as newsletters and mentorship. I also joined the ESEAP Youth session. In this session, I took part in a capacity-building workshop on public policy advocacy, where I worked in a group with Wikimedia Foundation staff member Rachel Judhistari. Through this workshop, I learned how important it is for young people to understand the policy challenges in their own countries. Some of the topics we discussed included copyright policies and the blocking of Wikimedia projects.

More importantly, my learning did not stop at the conference sessions. I also learned a lot through conversations with fellow Wikimedians from across the ESEAP region. I am grateful to have had this opportunity once again.

What precious things and memorable moments do you want to share from the conference?

Wiki Asmah:

For me, being a notetaker for the sessions that I volunteered to take notes for were definitely memorable. I finally see how being a note taker required me to be highly focused, and unfortunately, I found out that I actually do not have the attention span! In most cases, I got carried away with the presentation and forgot that I had to type while listening to the presenters. That was definitely a humbling experience and oh dear, I do need to upgrade my documentation skills. 

Right next to that, catching up with all Wikimedians in the region was definitely the highlight! It was really wonderful to see familiar faces again and finally meet online friends in person. It is always the best thing about every conference I have attended. 

And most importantly, the establishment of the ESEAP Youth Group was definitely the highlight of the conference for me. 

Raflinoer32:

One of the most enjoyable parts of this conference was being a Social Media Ambassador. Together with other scholars, I was responsible for sharing moments from the conference on social media. We posted key highlights from the sessions we attended and encouraged participants to share their own experiences through interactive prompts.

Another unforgettable part of the conference was connecting with other participants and expanding my network. Conferences are the perfect moment to meet the amazing people behind Wikimedia projects in person. I believe that meaningful connections can lead to great collaborations in the future.

What plans do you want to execute after the conference?

Wiki Asmah:

Every time a Wiki conference ends, there are always so many ideas and initiatives that I would like to come to life! First, my priority is to scale up our local education initiatives. Inspired by our discussions, I am focusing on supporting Wiki Clubs in schools and universities to build sustainable collaboration and work on initiatives that may allow the members of the Wiki Clubs and beyond to be empowered to take a lead in the movement. Moreover, I want to suggest dedicated safe spaces and mentorship pipelines specifically for our young women editors, ensuring they have the confidence and tools to bridge the movement’s gender gap from the ground up.

Also, the inspiration is not staying local. I am also really excited to bridge these ideas over to other parts of the movement. I will be talking all about the breakthroughs of the ESEAP Youth Track during the next bi-monthly call for the CEE Youth Group. Sharing what worked in Kaohsiung is a fantastic opportunity to foster cross-regional collaboration and exchange fresh ideas on youth engagement globally. After all, the ESEAP Youth Group was originally inspired by the CEE Youth Group, so bringing these results back to them feels like a true full-circle moment.

Raflinoer32:

The lessons and experiences I gained from the conference will not end with me. I shared what I learned with my community, Wikimedia Bandung and Wikimedia communities across Indonesia. I was invited to speak at Wikimedia Indonesia’s monthly Community Talk on June 9, 2026, where I shared my experiences from the conference. I not only spoke about my journey but also encouraged other volunteers to stay involved in the Wikimedia movement so they can have the same opportunity to attend international Wiki conferences.

Beyond that, I have also taken on a new role in the governance of the Wikimedia ESEAP Hub. I was officially elected as ESEAP Community Connector for Cycle 2 on 10 July 2026. Through this role, I wish to be able to represent young people and local communities in Indonesia within the ESEAP Hub ecosystem. I believe this opportunity will give me valuable experience, and I am committed to carrying out this responsibility to the best of my ability.

Magsukul – hatur nuhun!