Wikimedia CEE Hub/Youth Group/Reports/2025

Annual Report 2025

Introduction

The CEE Youth Group is an initiative of the CEE Hub that aims to informally connect young people under the age of 30 from Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia. The group focuses on strengthening youth engagement and supporting capacity building across the region. Established in May 2023, the CEE Youth Group has continued to grow as a platform for collaboration and exchange.

This first annual report presents an overview of the group's activities, work, and events carried out between January and December 2025.

Youth Group at glance (statistics)

By the end of 2025, the CEE Youth Group had more than 106 unique members, according to internal records and the Meta-Wiki member list. Members came from 25 of the 35 countries in the Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia region, while ten countries had no active representation. Among the 25 represented countries, 14 had active members participating in group activities, seven were represented only by fully inactive members. In four countries the level of activity was unclear due to limited or no recent participation data.

Member distribution across the CEE & CA regions. Darker shades indicate more members, while grey areas represent countries with no members or those outside the region.
CEE Youth Group Activity Status of the Members Countries with at least one active member (regardless of the total number of members) Countries where all members are currently inactive Countries with unclear activity status Countries within the region with no members

The average age of members was 22 years, and most participants were between 17 and 28 years old. The average age differed by country: Members from Kyrgyzstan were the oldest on average (about 24.6 years), while members from Albania were the youngest (about 18.7 years). Turkey had one of the most balanced age distributions, with an average age of about 21.8 years.

Demographic Analysis: Member Age Distribution (as of 31 December 2025; based on 89 survey responses)
Age	Count
28	4
27	2
26	5
25	6
24	12
23	11
22	8
21	16
20	10
19	7
18	5
17	2

Gender distribution of 106 members

Men (56%)
Women (28%)
Unknown (16%)

Regarding gender, about 56% of members were male and 28% were female. For around 16% of members, gender information was not available, and most of these members were inactive.

Our Pride & Inspiration

The individuals who turned ideas into impact this year.

Most active members of the CEE Youth Group in 2025

Bi-monthly meetings

Participation in the bi-monthly online meetings remained stable throughout 2025. Over the year, six bi-monthly online meetings were held. On average, 19 people attended each meeting, which shows steady engagement from members across the region.

In 2025 all bi-monthly online meetings were held strictly according to the planned two-month schedule. In 2023 and 2024, the time between meetings sometimes changed – some meetings happened almost three months apart, while others were held less than one month apart. In 2025, there were no major changes to the schedule.

Each meeting was supported by at least one staff member from the CEE Hub and at least one moderator from among the CEE Youth Group members. Meeting dates were chosen through a community vote on the Wudele platform usually two to four weeks before each meeting. All meetings were held via Google Meet in the evening and lasted one hour.

The agendas of the meetings generally had three main parts. The first part included regular items present at every meeting, including introductions of new members, updates from Working Groups, and updates from youth-related events across different communities. The second part focused on timely topics relevant at the moment of each meeting, such as CEE Spring, Wikimania, or the CEE Meeting. The third part covered ad hoc discussions, including idea exchanges and one-off topics, such as brainstorming initiatives for the following two months, proposals for new youth-oriented contests, CEE Hub Microgrants, invitations to WikiCamps, and online training opportunities.

Working Groups active in 2025

During the reporting period, the CEE Youth Group operated through two Working Groups (WG):

Internal Governance WG
Communication WG

The Internal Governance WG, led by CEE Hub Coordinator Barbara Klen, consisted of eleven members:^[a] Shahen, Nikos, Mari, Jan M., Aiana, Caner, Muzaffar, Qurbon, Luka, Kamola, and Nursultan.

The Working Group focused on developing a foundational document to provide a clearer structure to the CEE Youth Group. This included defining the roles and responsibilities of group members and establishing transparent decision-making processes. Over five months, the group engaged in extensive brainstorming, virtual meetings, and collaborative discussions.

After five months of virtual meetings and discussions, the finalized document was presented to the full group, after which the Working Group temporarily paused its activities.

The Communication Working Group was led by Barbara Klen and CEE Hub Community & Communications Specialist Karolina Gruszczyk and consists of nine members:^[a] Aiana (lead), Nikos (co-lead), Dawid, Spiros, Kamola, Kazy, Nal, and Amanda. Jan B., Rina, Isna also used to be members of the group, but they later left because on their request, due to limited time availability.

The Working Group focused on creating engaging, youth-oriented content for the CEE Youth Group's Instagram and TikTok channels, promoting group activities, and highlighting Wikimedia youth achievements across the region. In total, the group produced 55 posts, reels, and TikTok videos.

The WG also provided comprehensive coverage of key events, including the first Youth Conference held in Prague, Czech Republic (15–18 May), and the CEE Youth Group's annual in-person meeting in November in Yerevan, Armenia.

Youth Conference 2025

The Wikimedia Youth Conference 2025 that took place in Prague, Czech Republic, from 15 to 18 May 2025 was an important in-person event for young Wikimedia contributors. It was the first conference in the history of the Wikimedia movement dedicated exclusively to young Wikimedians.

The conference brought together 83 participants aged 18–26 from 49 countries and all eight Wikimedia regions, with a significant number of participants coming from outside the Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia region. The event focused on youth engagement, leadership development, and the long-term sustainability of youth participation within the Wikimedia movement.

The program combined skill-building workshops, thematic discussions, and collaborative sessions addressing topics such as community growth, inclusion of newcomers, cross-regional cooperation, and the role of young contributors in decision-making processes. A strong focus was placed on peer learning and the exchange of experiences between youth leaders from different countries.

Members of the CEE Youth Group were actively involved both as participants and contributors to the conference program. The event strengthened regional networking, reinforced the visibility of the CEE Youth Group within the wider Wikimedia movement, and contributed to shaping shared priorities for youth-focused activities beyond 2025.

Youth representatives at Wiki events & activities

Overview of the main wiki events where young Wikimedians were represented
Activity	Date	Location	CEE Youth Group participation and role
Wikimedia CEE Spring 2025	March–May 2025	Online	A special CEE Youth subcategory was created on the flagship article contest of the CEE region, focusing on notable young people from the CEE & CA region. Any Wikimedian could write articles from the list in their local language. The most active contributors received Amazon vouchers as recognition.
Central Asian WikiCon 2025	19–20 April 2025	Tashkent, Uzbekistan	Strong participation from young Wikimedians, especially local contributors from Uzbekistan. Many volunteers were young people, including newcomers to Wikimedia. Almost all active CEE Youth Group members from Central Asia attended. A presentation about the CEE Youth Group was delivered by Nursultan Tengge (Kazakhstan). After the event, new members joined, including the first member from Turkmenistan.
Wikimedia Youth Conference 2025	16–18 May 2025	Prague, Czech Republic	The first global conference focused only on young Wikimedians. Over 80 participants from all Wikimedia regions attended, with around half from the CEE & CA region. CEE Youth Group members helped organize side events and acted as peer facilitators.
Wikimania 2025	6–9 August 2025	Nairobi, Kenya	Many CEE Youth Group members and other young Wikimedians participated. The group was represented through a poster, a roundtable session about Youth Conference outcomes, and a Youth Meetup. The meetup was co-organised by the CEE Youth Group and Barakat from Nigeria.
CEE Meeting 2025	26–28 September 2025	Thessaloniki, Greece	Youth representation included two sessions led by Klára Joklová from the CEE Hub Steering Committee and a lightning talk session led by the CEE Youth Group members: Yılmaz Caner Özyayıkçı, Aiana Kutbidinova, Nursultan Tengge, and Nikos Likomitros.
Wikimedia CEE Hub Steering Committee 2025/2026	28 September 2025	Thessaloniki, Greece	A member of the CEE Youth Group, Shahen Araboghlian from Armenia joined the Steering Committee of Wikimedia CEE Hub for the 2025/2026 term. Shahen is responsible for the CEE Youth Group and the youth-related topics across the CEE region.
CEE Youth Group Meeting	21–23 November 2025	Yerevan, Armenia	The third CEE Youth Group meeting brought together 13 active members from 8 countries. It was the first annual meeting held outside Prague. The focus was on planning the 2026 action plan, leadership development, and strengthening collaboration and team spirit.

CEE Youth Group Annual Meeting in Yerevan

The CEE Youth Group held its third in-person meeting on 22–23 November in Yerevan, Armenia. The meeting brought together the group's most active members with the aim of strengthening leadership skills among young Wikimedians, enhancing collaboration and team cohesion, and discussing the CEE Youth Group's Year 4 action plan.

Participation in the meeting was by invitation from the CEE Hub and targeted the most active contributors. In total, 13 participants from eight countries across Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia attended the meeting.

The two-day program included icebreakers, team-building activities, in-depth discussions, brainstorming sessions, and collective decision-making. A key outcome of the meeting was the agreement to focus on four priority areas for 2026, with members and ambassadors assigned to each area. The four objectives are:

Support for local activities of group members: supporting local activities at the group level, collecting outputs, and identifying needs & activities for everyone. Possibility of support through CEE grants.
Building leadership skills: training, increasing the representation of young people in the Wikimedia movement's structures.
Raising the profile of young people and their activities in the Wikimedia movement: PR & communication, presentation at the conferences.
Management of the CEE Youth group: organization of meetings, annual activity plans, and development strategies.

Key highlights & learnings

Achievements

Established internal structure with clarity around roles, responsibilities, and decision-making.
Global youth engagement, connecting with young people from around the world and exchanging experiences.
Increased visibility within the Wikimedia movement, gradually gaining international recognition.
Setting strategic directions and key focus areas for the group's work in 2026.

Challenge

Regional outreach limitations: Reaching and actively engaging some communities across the region remained a challenge, highlighting the need for more targeted outreach strategies.

Looking ahead to 2026

Building on the outcomes of the Yerevan meeting, the CEE Youth Group identified four priority focus areas that will guide the planning and implementation of its activities in 2026. Working Groups formed around these areas will engage in regular meetings, collaborative brainstorming, and collective decision-making throughout the year.

To ensure consistent coordination and engagement, the group plans to organize six bi-monthly online meetings and one in-person meeting. In addition, whenever group members participate in global or regional events, they will actively present the group's work, promote youth engagement, and raise awareness about the CEE Youth Group and its activities within the Wikimedia movement.

Notes

↑ ^a ^b Members of the Working Groups changed throughout the year, some leaving the groups, others joining.

[Working_Groups-1] Members of the Working Groups changed throughout the year, some leaving the groups, others joining.

[a]