Wikimania Handbook/2025
- 2026 (Paris, France)
- Details of past Wikimanias
- 2025 (Nairobi, Kenya)
- 2024 (Katowice, Poland)
- 2023 (Singapore)
- 2022 (Virtual event)
- 2021 (Virtual event)
- 2020 (Cancelled)
- 2019 (Stockholm, Sweden)
- 2018 (Cape Town, South Africa)
- 2017 (Montréal, Canada)
- 2016 (Esino Lario, Italy)
- 2015 (Mexico City, Mexico)
- 2014 (London, United Kingdom)
- 2013 (Hong Kong SAR, China)
- 2012 (Washington, D.C., USA)
- 2011 (Haifa, Israel)
- 2010 (Gdansk, Poland)
- 2009 (Buenos Aires, Argentina)
- 2008 (Alexandria, Egypt)
- 2007 (Taipei, Taiwan)
- 2006 (Boston, USA)
- 2005 (Frankfurt, Germany)
Note: this is a very in-progress draft of a full Wikimania handbook revision, based on internal documentation and current practice. Members of the steering committee will be working on this over the coming months (as of August 2025). Suggestions welcome, but expect major organizational changes as this develops.
How to run a Wikimania: past practice, best practice, and general guidance
[edit]This is not a set of official requirements for Wikimania. However, it is a collection of best practices that have been developed over the past several years, as well as a comprehensive checklist of the areas to consider when running a conference. The goal of this guide is to help each new team in planning the best conference they can.
Ideally this guide will also prove useful to organizers of other Wikimedia and community events, not just Wikimania. Feel free to adapt and remix it.
Organization and revision history
[edit]This guide is organized as follows:
- Background
this section provides background into what Wikimania is and how it comes to be
- Overview of what Wikimania is and who it is for
- Roles and responsibilities
- Future location selection process
- Planning timeline and conference date
- History of Wikimania
- Overview by area of work
This section provides an outline of key topics, roles and responsibilities, and "lessons learned" - things to keep in mind based on our experience - in each of the major areas of Wikimania planning. This is the information you will need after a location is chosen.
- Program
- Scholarships, travel and visas
- Venue and hotels
- Online and hybrid participant experience
- In-person participant experience
- Trust and safety
- Technology and website
- Budget and finances
- Communication and press
- Volunteer and team management
The process to organize and run a Wikimania has changed substantially over the years, as the Wikimedia movement and Foundation have grown and changed.
This guide was originally written in 2010, and reflected practices at the time. In 2025, a substantial revision was done to reflect current practice. Some major differences in the update are due to lengthening the formal planning timeline to two years and a greater role of WMF staff in producing and leading conference logistics, as well as greatly increasing scholarship and travel support and adding new elements such as a hybrid experience. It also reflects many more lessons learned from the twenty years of Wikimania planning so far.
Not all specific details, process and lessons are contained in this guide. This is meant as a high-level overview of the considerations that go into producing this event. It is meant to be helpful to current and future teams, while not constraining them. Teams are encouraged to reach out to the Wikimania steering committee and WMF staff with any questions. Edits, as ever, are welcomed.