Grants:Programs/Wikimedia Community Fund/Rapid Fund/Boulanger Initiative's Wikithons (ID: 23753241)/Final Report
Application type: Standard application
Part 1: Project and impact
1. Describe the implemented activities and results achieved. Additionally, share which approaches were most effective in supporting you to achieve the results. (required)
During the final reporting period, Boulanger Initiative hosted three virtual Wikithons in partnership with community organizations and volunteers to improve the representation of women and gender-marginalized composers on Wikipedia. Held in April, May, and June 2026, these events engaged 20 participants, including 9 returning editors and 4 new editors. Together, participants created 13 new Wikipedia articles, improved 15 existing articles, and added more than 6,000 words and 65 references to Wikipedia. The articles edited during this reporting period have already received approximately 4,387 page views, expanding public access to reliable information about historically overlooked composers. The most effective approach was our community-centered editing model, which combines live virtual training, collaborative editing sessions, and curated lists of underrepresented composers. By creating an accessible environment for both new and experienced editors, participants were able to make meaningful contributions while building confidence in Wikipedia editing. Partnerships, such as our April Wikithon with ChamberQUEER, also helped us reach new audiences and connect editing efforts with communities already invested in advancing equity in music. This combination of strategic partnerships, structured support, and focused editing priorities enabled us to produce high-quality contributions while fostering a growing community of volunteer editors committed to increasing the visibility of women composers.
2. Documentation of your impact. Please use space below to share links that help tell your story, impact, and evaluation. (required)
Share links to:
- Project page on Meta-Wiki or any other Wikimedia project
- Dashboards and tools that you used to track contributions
- Some photos or videos from your event. Remember to share access.
You can also share links to:
- Important social media posts
- Surveys and their results
- Infographics and sound files
- Examples of content edited on Wikimedia projects
Stats and Tracking for Funding Period: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1gWQ8P3BvVXrALe8uCc8W9UaCByOxy_riAm08wLZ_F4w/edit?usp=sharing
Example Page: https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ingeborg_Bronsart_von_Schellendorf&action=edit
Social Media: June: https://www.instagram.com/p/DZf8LchFjIK/ May: https://www.instagram.com/p/DYSb2TaRzXl/ April: https://www.instagram.com/p/DW6oZYoETeC/
Additionally, share the materials and resources that you used in the implementation of your project. (required)
For example:
- Training materials and guides
- Presentations and slides
- Work processes and plans
- Any other materials your team has created or adapted and can be shared with others
Wikithon Handouts: April: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vgpVR18b4UH83aWq9Yzg8kbyX73sqe1w/view?usp=sharing May: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LAlAaTqs8XzdO_hwBLcXE8c5S-TMgXfh/view?usp=drive_link https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LAlAaTqs8XzdO_hwBLcXE8c5S-TMgXfh/view?usp=drive_link
Reference Articles Provided for Editors: https://drive.google.com/file/d/18T8hdt7S-tQHv5c9bzs7zGBqHYih1cgb/view?usp=drive_link
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xhncCyZabPkgbS6-pqWgOzPtCFm_Rbs6/view?usp=drive_link
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1iRMZLNKl07Nvoh_KLulUzHUUx__z2mK7/view?usp=drive_link
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jETZfBx-OXl17guna3x1Od-pwujuPJmm/view?usp=drive_link
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Ls3tGHc5lABuR4_xHglWUFrLCUB6iqL0/view?usp=drive_link
3. To what extent do you agree with the following statements regarding the work carried out with this Rapid Fund? You can choose “not applicable” if your work does not relate to these goals. Required. Select one option per question. (required)
| A. Bring in participants from underrepresented groups | Neither agree nor disagree |
| B. Create a more inclusive and connected culture in our community | Strongly agree |
| C. Develop content about underrepresented topics/groups | Strongly agree |
| D. Develop content from underrepresented perspectives | Agree |
| E. Encourage the retention of editors | Strongly agree |
| F. Encourage the retention of organizers | Strongly agree |
| G. Increased participants' feelings of belonging and connection to the movement | Strongly agree |
| F. Other (optional) |
Part 2: Learning
4. In your application, you outlined some learning questions. What did you learn from these learning questions when you implemented your project? How do you hope to use this learnings in the future? You can recall these learning questions below. (required)
You can recall these learning questions below: With funding resources for BI’s Women Composers Wikithon, we’d be able to not only sustain the program but improve upon it with better feedback processes and training for Wikithon editing participants. Our primary areas to focus on for improvement are helping first-time editors feel confident and motivated to continue contributing, and refining our preparatory methods to ensure articles on women and gender-marginalized composers are accurate, well-sourced, and complete.
One of our primary learning goals was understanding how to better support first-time Wikipedia editors while improving the quality and completeness of articles on women and gender-marginalized composers. Through participant feedback from our June Wikithon, we learned that our introductory training moved too quickly for many new editors. While participants were enthusiastic about contributing, some reported feeling overwhelmed by the pace of the initial tutorial, which affected their confidence when making their first edits. We are investing in a stronger (that is to say, slower) onboarding experience, and we hope to build a larger, more confident community of volunteer editors.
5. Did anything unexpected or surprising happen when implementing your activities? This can include both positive and negative situations. What did you learn from those experiences? (required)
Nothing unexpected or surprising. Our June group was very strong, and were so frustrated by the insidiously patriarchal language that pervades many articles on Wikipedia. BI is so grateful to receive this funding that enables us to keep this program alive and also enables us to expend more resources towards it, as it's so vital to our niche field.
6. What is your plan to share your project learnings and results with other community members? If you have already done it, describe how. (required)
Boulanger Initiative plans to share the results and lessons learned from this project through our existing communications channels, including our website, newsletters, and social media, to highlight the impact of our Wikithons and encourage broader participation. Wikithons have a full page dedicated to them in our upcoming Annual Report, and we're all excited for our Board of Directors and stakeholders to have a clearer understanding of the importance of this program, and the funding that comes from Wikimedia Foundation.
Part 3: Metrics
7. Wikimedia Metrics results. (required)
In your application, you set some Wikimedia targets in numbers (Wikimedia metrics). In this section, you will describe the achieved results and provide links to the tools used.
| Target | Results | Comments and tools used | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of participants | 139 | 20 | Per event, this means we are slightly above our normal average of 6.36 per event! 6.667 was our average for the past 3 Wikithons. |
| Number of editors | 139 | 20 | Per event, this means we are slightly above our normal average of 6.36 per event! 6.667 was our average for the past 3 Wikithons. |
| Number of organizers | 5 | 3 | We rotate depending on the month and staff availability, the target is simply the number from the past year of stats, and obviously this current number refers to just 3 Wikithons, not 12. |
| Wikimedia project | Target | Result - Number of created pages | Result - Number of improved pages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wikipedia | 0 | 28 | |
| Wikimedia Commons | |||
| Wikidata | |||
| Wiktionary | |||
| Wikisource | |||
| Wikimedia Incubator | |||
| Translatewiki | |||
| MediaWiki | |||
| Wikiquote | |||
| Wikivoyage | |||
| Wikibooks | |||
| Wikiversity | |||
| Wikinews | |||
| Wikispecies | |||
| Wikifunctions or Abstract Wikipedia |
8. Other Metrics results.
In your proposal, you could also set Other Metrics targets. Please describe the achieved results and provide links to the tools used if you set Other Metrics in your application.
| Other Metrics name | Metrics Description | Target | Result | Tools and comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edits per session | See description above. | 25 | 42 | With 126 edits total over 3 Wikithons, we almost doubled our initial target. |
| Words added per session | See description above. | 1750 | 1386 | With 4,160 words added over 3 Wikithons, we came in slightly under goal, but our focus is not solely on word count but succinct and thoroughly researched, unbiaed information. |
| References added per session | See description above. | 20 | 21 | At 21.67 per session (a total of 65 references added over 3 wikithons), we are slightly above target here! This metric feels the most valuable to the team here at BI. That we are providing further resources and references to all who view these articles in the future. |
9. Did you have any difficulties collecting data to measure your results? (required)
No
9.1. Please state what difficulties you had. How do you hope to overcome these challenges in the future? Do you have any recommendations for the Foundation to support you in addressing these challenges? (required)
Part 4: Financial reporting
[edit]10. Please state the total amount spent in your local currency. (required)
1262
11. Please state the total amount spent in US dollars. (required)
1262
12. Report the funds spent in the currency of your fund. (required)
Upload the financial report
12.2. If you have not already done so in your financial spending report, please provide information on changes in the budget in relation to your original proposal. (optional)
No changes made!
13. Do you have any unspent funds from the Fund?
No
13.1. Please list the amount and currency you did not use and explain why.
N/A
13.2. What are you planning to do with the underspent funds?
N/A
13.3. Please provide details of hope to spend these funds.
N/A
14.1. Are you in compliance with the terms outlined in the fund agreement?
Yes
14.2. Are you in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations as outlined in the grant agreement?
Yes
14.3. Are you in compliance with provisions of the United States Internal Revenue Code (“Code”), and with relevant tax laws and regulations restricting the use of the Funds as outlined in the grant agreement? In summary, this is to confirm that the funds were used in alignment with the WMF mission and for charitable/nonprofit/educational purposes.
Yes
15. If you have additional recommendations or reflections that don’t fit into the above sections, please write them here. (optional)
n/a