Grants:Programs/Wikimedia Community Fund/lt
 | There is a new FAQ page published in regards to the Wikimedia Community Fund in the fiscal year 2022-2023. |
The Wikimedia Foundation provides support to individuals, groups, organizations and affiliates around the world that are actively working on promoting knowledge equity aligned with the strategic direction of the Wikimedia movement.
We will increase investment of resources in underrepresented Wikimedia communities around the world.
Questions? Please contact us.
What we fund and funding programs
The Wikimedia Community Fund broadly supports volunteer efforts in the movement, especially those that promote knowledge equity. We emphasize the need for underrepresented communities and historically marginalized communities in the movement to have access to resources they need to accomplish their goals.
The Wikimedia Community Fund has three general areas of support:
45 days processing time; average funding amount: 500 - 5,000 USD
Please note, you can also request swag from Wikipedia Store. Please review the Requesting swag page for more details.
2 months processing time; average funding amount: 10,000 - 90,000 USD
Flexible general operating support for individuals, groups, or affiliates that have developed larger projects or programs or a strategic plan that requires sustained investment over time to be able to achieve its goals. Multi-year grant funding is available if appropriate to the goals and objectives of the applicant. This program is comparable to the previous Simple Annual Plan Grant, Annual Plan Grant, and Project Grant programs.
2 months processing time; average funding amount: 10,000 - 300,000 USD
Forms and Resources
- Review Application and Reporting Forms and Guides before applying.
- Recommendations for developing fund proposals
Eligibility criteria
The following are basic criteria that must be met by all Wikimedia Community Fund applicants in order for a proposal to be reviewed:
- Applicant must follow the Universal Code of Conduct and Friendly Space Policies
- Youth Safety Policy must be in place for any activity that involves underage community members
- Applicant is within a country that can legally receive funding for the described activities and expenses based on laws on sending and receiving funds in the United States and their country
- Applicant does not appear on the United States Department of Treasury Specially Designated Nationals And Blocked Persons List (SDN)
- Applicants must be in compliance with all requirements and in good standing for any current activities funded through the Wikimedia Foundation
- Works and contributions must be able to be published under ethical, open access agreements
- Applications must be for future, planned work
- Proposed activities that meet the United States Internal Revenue Service definition of lobbying cannot be funded.[1]
- Applicants receiving funding must not be Wikimedia Foundation staff members or contractors working more than part time (more than 20 hours per week).
- Proposals that fit certain criteria are not eligible for review in the Wikimedia Community Fund:
- Proposals that are primarily focused on research activities should be submitted to the Wikimedia Research Fund.
- Proposals that are primarily focused on software development should be submitted to the Wikimedia Technology Fund.
Youth Safety
- If the proposal indicates direct contact with children or youth, it also outlines compliance with international and local laws for working with children and youth, and provides documentation of the local laws in the annex.
- The proposal demonstrates how they will ensure the safe engagement of young people in all of the project’s activities.
- The proposal demonstrates that any adults who will be working in close contact with young people have been properly vetted and trained.
- The proposal outlines an action protocol in the case that incidents occur relating to the physical and psychological safety of young people.
Some examples of what we fund
- Individuals coordinating local events related to a global campaign in their community.
- Cultural and heritage projects that support contribution of content, curation of the content and promote accessibility of that content.
- Strategic and annual plans from Wikimedia Movement Affiliates
- Local, regional, and thematic conferences that bring together Wikimedians
- Common expenses supported through previous grant programs such as (but not limited to):
- Working space, services, prizes, outreach, and other common costs needed to support edit-a-thons, contests, photowalks, and promotional campaigns.
- Data costs to support access to online events
- Travel for organizers and participation
- Compensation for well-defined roles that do not replace volunteer activities, including (but not limited to) graphic design, training, childcare services, translation, project management, and Wikimedian-in-Residence roles.
Regional Committees have flexibility to fund projects and expenses that applicants identify based on their specific context and situational needs, and may support additional requests not described here.
When to apply?
For General Support Fund:
Individuals, groups, organizations, and affiliates interested in applying can do so at anytime of the year. They need to contact their regional Program Officer who will support in their application interest and process. The Program Officer will also support in understanding what round of funding would be suitable to apply for.
How we fund
The Foundation Program Officers and the regional funds committees work together to be strategic thought partners with applicants. The funding decisions are based on eligibility and committee deliberation.
The principles that are foundational and underline the grants strategy are based directly on the Movement Strategy Principles:
- Subsidiarity & Self Management
- Equity & Empowerment
- Collaboration & Cooperation
- People Centeredness - listening and reflection
- Efficient Data & Iterative Practices - promoting innovation and learning
Application process
We encourage all applicants to reach out to their Regional Program Officer as they are developing their proposal and before submitting a final application. This is especially recommended for first time applicants. We want to ensure everyone understands and is supported throughout the process.
- Preparation by Regional Program Officer, including proactive communication and outreach about Funding Programs
- Open Call for Funds, including office hours and program officer support for proposal development
- Review of proposals, including eligibility check, due diligence, community review, committee review and deliberation
- Decision
Timeline and award amounts
Rapid Fund
- 45 days processing time from application to decision
- Average grant size 500-5,000 USD
- Unrestricted funding[unrestricted 1]
- If your grant budget falls below 500 USD or exceeds 5000 USD please contact us for support.
Conference & Event Fund
- 2 month processing time from application to decision
- A Conference Grant amount can range between 10,000 - 90,000 USD, average grant size
- Unrestricted funding, with notification to program officer when reallocations exceed 20% of total budget[unrestricted 1]
| Region | Round 1 | Round 2 |
|---|---|---|
| All regions | September - November | February - March |
General Support Fund
- 2 month processing time from application to decision
- Average annual grant size varies on application proposal 10,000 - 300,000 USD
- Unrestricted funding[unrestricted 1]
- Multiyear funding optionally available for 2- to 3-year grant period. A multiyear strategic plan is required for multiyear funding requests.\
- ↑ a b c Unrestricted funding means that grantees are able to reallocate funding in their budget to new or existing mission-aligned activities or expenses at their own discretion during the funding period. You do not need to obtain permission from the Foundation for reallocation for these changes in your budget. For the General Support Fund and Conference & Event Fund, when reallocations exceed 20% of your total budget from the funding program, please notify your program officer of these changes. This notification would not be to request approval, but to generally inform the Community Resources team what circumstances or opportunities are prompting more significant changes in your budget.
2022-23 Fiscal Year timeline
| Region | Round | Application Due | Announcement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Middle East and Africa | 1 | Friday September 9, 2022 | Thursday November 17, 2022 |
| 2 | Friday March 10, 2023 | Thursday May 11, 2023 | |
| CEE and Central Asia Community + Alliances Fund | 1 | Friday September 9, 2022 | Thursday November 17, 2022 |
| 2 | Friday March 10, 2023 | Thursday May 11, 2023 | |
| United States and Canada Community + Alliances Fund | 1 | Thursday September 8, 2022 | Thursday November 17, 2022 |
| 2 | Friday March 10, 2023 | Thursday May 11, 2023 | |
| Latin America and The Caribbean Community + Alliances Fund | 1 | Thursday September 29, 2022 | Thursday December 8, 2022 |
| 2 | Thursday March 2, 2023 | Thursday May 11, 2023 | |
| Northern and Western Europe Community + Alliances Fund | 1 | Thursday September 29, 2022 | Thursday December 8, 2022 |
| 2 | Thursday March 2, 2023 | Thursday May 18, 2023 | |
| ESEAP (East Asia & Pacific) Community + Alliances Fund | 1 | Thursday September 29, 2022 | Thursday December 8, 2022 |
| 2 | Thursday March 16, 2023 | Thursday May 18, 2023 | |
| South Asia Community + Alliances Fund | 1 | Thursday September 29, 2022 | Thursday December 8, 2022 |
| 2 | Thursday March 16, 2023 | Thursday May 18, 2023 |
2021-22 Fiscal Year timeline (Round 2)
2021-22 - Group A (Round 2)
Applicants from the following funding regions: CEE and Central Asia, USA and Canada, Middle East and Africa. (Wikimedia Community Fund and Alliances Fund)
| Activity | Dates for group A, round 2 | Estimated time |
|---|---|---|
| Program Officer working with grantees to prepare their application | February 1 - March 4, 2022 | One month |
| Applicants working on final submission of application | March 4 - 17, 2022 | Two weeks |
| Final Submission Deadline | March 18, 2022 | |
| Committee Review, Staff Review, Community Review | March 21 - April 11, 2022 | Two weeks |
| Applicants Engaging with Committee Feedback | April 11 - 28, 2022 | Three weeks (accounting for holiday) |
| Proposal adjustment if needed | April 11 - 28, 2022 | Three weeks (accounting for holiday) |
| Final review and decision | May 18, 2022 | |
| Appeal process if needed | (TBD) |
2021-22 - Group B (Round 2)
Applicants from the following funding regions: Northern & Western Europe, Latin America and The Caribbean, South Asia and ESEAP. (Wikimedia Community Fund and Alliances Fund)
| Activity | Dates for group B, round 2 | Estimated time |
|---|---|---|
| Program Officer working with grantees to prepare their application | February 28 - March 31, 2022 | One month |
| Applicants working on final submission of application | April 1-14, 2022 | Two weeks |
| Final Submission Deadline | April 14, 2022 | |
| Committee Review, Staff Review, Community Review | April 16 - May 1, 2022 | Two weeks |
| Applicants Engaging with Committee feedback | May 2-13, 2022 | Two weeks |
| Proposal adjustment if needed | May 2-13, 2022 | Two weeks |
| Final decision | May 29, 2022 | |
| Appeal process if needed | (TBD) |
Applicants should email your Regional Program Officer if the schedule conflicts with your own timeline for proposal development and submission, and we will work with you individually to accommodate your needs.
Reporting requirements
| Fund | Midterm learning report | Midterm conversation between PO and grantee partners | Final or yearly learning report (Yearly for multi-year funds) [1] |
Final conversation between PO-grantee partners |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Support Fund (all non-multi-year) | Taip (reporting form) | Taip (reporting form) | Taip (reporting form) | Taip (reporting form) |
| General Support Fund, Multi-year grantee partners[1] | Ne | Ne | Taip (reporting form) | Taip (reporting form) |
| Wikimedia Alliances Fund | Taip (reporting form) | Taip (reporting form) | Taip (reporting form) | Taip (reporting form) |
| Rapid Fund | Ne | Ne | Taip (reporting form) | Taip / Ne (reporting form) |
| Conference Fund | Ne | Ne | Yes: two months after the conference has taken place. (reporting form) | Yes: once the final learning report has been analysed by the PO. Between 2-4 weeks after the report has been submitted (reporting form) |
General Support Fund
| General information | Midterm learning report | Midterm conversation between Program Officers and Grantee Partners | Final or yearly learning report |
Final or yearly conversation between Program Officers and Grantee Partners |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Is it required? | Obligatory for grantee partners required to present this report. If payments are in installments the payment will be made after the presentation of this report and the conversation with Program Officers within 2 weeks of this submission. | Obligatory for grantee partners required to present this report. | Obligatory for grantee partners required to present this report.
Multi-year grantee partners will use this format for their yearly learning reports. They should report one year at a time, rather than the cumulative multi-year period. Non-multi-year grantee partners (with funding for 1 year or less) will use this template to report on the final learning and results, including the period already reported on in the midterm learning report. |
Obligatory for grantee partners required to present this learning report |
| Kas atsakingas? | Grantee partners | Program Officers (POs) schedule the call and register the conversation. grantee partners will have access to the conversation report on Fluxx and will be able to edit the conversation registration. | Grantee partners | Program Officers (POs) schedule the call and register the conversation. grantee partners will have access to the conversation report on Fluxx and will be able to edit the conversation registration. |
| Kada?[2] | In the middle of the grant implementation. Reporting dates will depend on each grantee partner according to their project timelines. These dates are found on Fluxx. | Once the report has been analysed by the Program Officer. Between 2-4 weeks after submission. | One month after the end of the grant implementation. | Once the final (or yearly) report has been analysed by the Program Officer. Between 2-4 weeks after submission. |
| How will it be used? | This learning report is aimed at:
|
This conversation is aimed at a deeper reflection based on the analysis of the report. It is also used to give the Foundation feedback on ways to better support grantee partner's work. | This learning report is aimed at:
|
This conversation is aimed at a deeper reflection based on the analysis of the report. It is also used to give the Foundation feedback on ways to better support grantee partner's work in the future. |
| Where will it be filled out? | On Fluxx | On Fluxx | On Fluxx | On Fluxx |
| Ar tai bus paskelbta Meta svetainėje? | Taip | Ne | Taip | Ne |
- ↑ a b c Multiyear funding: If you have a multi-year grant agreement and will request more than a 20% increase from the pre-approved amount, the regional fund committee will need to review the request. Therefore you will need to submit a short explanation and budget for your expected increase. This can be done as early as possible yet should be completed no later than your reporting deadline.
- ↑ Note: Reporting dates will be adapted to each grantee partner according to their project timelines. Grantee partners will be able to see their proposed reporting dates on the portal on Fluxx. If you have any doubts or concerns about these dates please reach out to your Program Officer. Likewise, if you have any doubts about how to submit these reports or how they will be used.
Contact us
Rapid Fund
If you have any questions about the Rapid Fund, please reach out to your Regional Program Officer via email:
| Region | Email address |
|---|---|
| Middle East and Africa | mea_rapid wikimedia.org
|
| South Asia | sa_rapidwikimedia.org
|
| East, Southeast Asia, and Pacific (ESEAP) | eseap_rapidwikimedia.org
|
| Latin America (LATAM) and The Caribbean | lac_rapidwikimedia.org
|
| United States and Canada | usca_rapidwikimedia.org
|
| Northern and Western Europe | nwe_rapidwikimedia.org
|
| Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and Central Asia | ceeca_rapidwikimedia.org
|
Please note, you can also request swag from Wikipedia Store. Please review the Requesting swag page for more details.
General Support Fund
If you have any questions about the General Support Fund, please reach out to your Regional Program Officer via email:
| Region | Email address |
|---|---|
| Middle East and Africa | mea_fundwikimedia.org
|
| South Asia | sa_fundwikimedia.org
|
| East, Southeast Asia, and Pacific (ESEAP) | eseap_fundwikimedia.org
|
| Latin America (LATAM) and The Caribbean | lac_fundwikimedia.org
|
| United States and Canada | usca_fundwikimedia.org
|
| Northern and Western Europe | nwe_fundwikimedia.org
|
| Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and Central Asia | ceeca_fundwikimedia.org
|
Conference Fund
If you have any questions about the Conference Fund for all funding regions, please reach out to the Program Officer via email: conferencegrantswikimedia
org