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Author: Wikimedia Foundation

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Wikimedia Foundation launches campaign with South African creative community to promote access to and sharing of free knowledge

September 28 2021, Johannesburg, South Africa – Today, on the International Day for Universal Access to Information, the Wikimedia Foundation, the non-profit that operates Wikipedia, is launching a campaign in collaboration with the South African creative community to showcase the power of knowledge and everyone’s right to access, create and share it. Over the next….

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Rebecca MacKinnon

Wikimedia Foundation Announces New Vice President for Global Advocacy Rebecca MacKinnon

27 September 2021, San Francisco, California — The Wikimedia Foundation today announced that Rebecca MacKinnon has joined the Foundation as its first Vice President for Global Advocacy. Rebecca is an experienced advocate for privacy rights and media freedom who has had a long-career in journalism, academia and public policy. “Rebecca joins our team at a….

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Wikimedia Foundation reaches $100 million Endowment goal as Wikipedia celebrates 20 years of free knowledge

22 September 2021, San Francisco, CA, USA — The Wikimedia Foundation, the nonprofit that operates Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects, today announced that the Wikimedia Endowment has reached its initial $100 million fundraising goal ahead of schedule. This early achievement is a testament to the generosity of Endowment donors around the world and provides enduring….

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Federal Appeals Court Dismisses ACLU Challenge to NSA Internet Surveillance

NEW YORK — In a divided opinion, the Fourth Circuit dismissed an appeal brought by the Wikimedia Foundation, which challenges the National Security Agency’s mass interception and searching of Americans’ international internet communications. The American Civil Liberties Union, Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, and the law firm Cooley LLP represent the Wikimedia Foundation….

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Maryana Iskander

Wikimedia Foundation Appoints Maryana Iskander as Chief Executive Officer

14 September 2021, San Francisco, California — Today, the Board of Trustees of the Wikimedia Foundation announced the appointment of Maryana Iskander as the organization’s new CEO. She is a globally recognized social entrepreneur and an expert in building cross-sector partnerships that combine innovative technology with community-led solutions to close opportunity gaps.   As CEO of….

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Wikimedia Foundation Announces First Grant Recipients of New $4.5 Million Equity Fund to Close Knowledge Gaps and Promote Racial Equity

8 September 2021 — Today, the Wikimedia Foundation, the global nonprofit organization that supports Wikipedia and other free knowledge projects, announced six inaugural grants as part of the newly launched Knowledge Equity Fund, an effort to close knowledge gaps and address racial inequities in its projects. The first round of grants will be given to….

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Wikimania 2021: Welcome to the world of Wikimedians … the online edition!

In an alternate, COVID-19-free universe, hundreds of Wikimedians — the community of volunteers who make Wikipedia and other free knowledge projects possible — would have gathered in Bangkok, Thailand, in August 2020 for the sixteenth annual Wikimania conference. They would have met in person, no social distancing to worry about, exploring sites like the Grand Palace, snacking….

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Katherine Maher

Wikimedia Foundation CEO Katherine Maher to Step Down in April 2021

February 4, 2021. Katherine Maher, the Chief Executive Officer of the Wikimedia Foundation, the global nonprofit that operates Wikipedia, will be leaving the organization in April. Under her leadership, Wikipedia attained its highest public trust in the institution’s history. Since becoming CEO in 2016, Katherine defined an expansive strategic direction for Wikimedia’s next decade, significantly….

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Wikipedia Embraces First-of-Its Kind Universal Code of Conduct, Conceived For The New Internet Era

February 2, 2021. The Wikimedia Foundation, the nonprofit that administers Wikipedia, launched a first-of-its-kind Universal Code of Conduct that expands on the project’s existing policies to create a global set of community standards for addressing negative behavior on the site. More than 50% of the global population has access to the internet, an increase that….

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Wikipedia celebrates 20 years of free, trusted information for the world

14 January 2021 — Wikipedia, the world’s largest free online encyclopedia, turns 20 years old on 15 January. This birthday commemorates two decades of global efforts to support free knowledge, open collaboration, and trust on the internet. In a time when disinformation and polarization challenge our trust in information and institutions, Wikipedia is more relevant….

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