Wikimedia Community User Group Georgia's chapter application.

See proposed Bylaws for the chapter.

Applicant Background[edit]

History[edit]

Wikimedia UG Georgia was created by active members of the Georgian Wikipedia in 2015, who are also members of the Wikimedia community in Georgia. The creation of affiliation in Georgia was still planned in 2011, but due to a lack of knowledge in the procedures for existence and recognition by the Wikimedia Foundation, it was unsuccessful. Finally, work on creating a new affiliation in Georgia, which was supposed to unite members of the Wikimedia community in Georgia and enthusiasts of Wikimedia projects, began in 2014 after a CEE meeting in Kyiv. Work on creating all conditions for recognizing a new affiliation in Georgia was completed by January 2015.

In February 2015, the Affiliations Committee officially recognized Wikimedia UG Georgia as a user group. From that moment, members of the user group actively held various events locally in Georgia, as well as participated in international events to develop the Wikimedia movement in Georgia and to popularize Wikimedia projects in Georgia.

In 2019, Wikimedia Community User Group Georgia was officially registered in Georgia as a non-profit organization. The registration of the user group was supposed to contribute to better support of the Wikimedia movement in Georgia and also started partnerships with various institutions locally on the way of promoting Wikimedia projects in Georgia. So, from 2019 Wikimedia UG Georgia is an officially registered non-profit (non-commercial) legal entity representing the Wikimedia Foundation User Group, created by active members of Wikimedia contributors living in Georgia who are interested in organizing and participating in outreach activities on a national level.

Leadership[edit]

Leadership in Wikimedia Georgia is specified in the bylaws of the organization, and it consists of three bodies. The first and most important governing body is the General Forum of the organization, and the members of the forum are all members of Wikimedia Georgia. The rights of the general forum include the election of members of the Board of Trustees, the reorganization and liquidation of the organization, the approval of the bylaws or amendments to the bylaws, listening to the members of the administration or BoT of the organization and everything that is not the responsibility of other bodies.

The next highest administrative body of the organization is the Board of Trustees, which consists of 5 members elected by the General Forum for a term of 2 years. The BoT is responsible for matters such as determining and approving the organization's strategy, main activities, plans, programs, and budget; the election of the Chair of the Board of Trustees of the organization for a term of 2 years; The appointment of the Executive Director of the organization, cooperation with international and local organizations; Appointing a representative at local and international events, conferences, and other meetings; Monitoring the activities of the organization and etc.

The organization is led by an Executive Director (ED) who is appointed by the Board of Trustees for a term of 3 years. The Executive Director leads the organization and is the highest executive representative of the organization both within and outside the country. The ED is responsible for matters such as issuing orders and directives and, giving instructions to employees of the organization, appointing and dismissing employees of the organization. Determines the amount of their remuneration, conditions, and hourly workload. Also, coordinates the administrative and program activities of the organization. Guides the development of projects and ensures their implementation and etc.

Also, an organization may hire an Auditor to check the organization. The Audit Commission is an external organization that is hired by the Board of Trustees to check the organization.

All of the above structures ensure the smooth and stable operation of the organization. We aim to create the most sustainable structure for an organization that will act in the interests of the local Wikimedia Movement in Georgia and in developing Wikimedia projects.

Key Programs and Activities[edit]

There are five main programs of Wikimedia UG Georgia, and all of these programs are designed to develop Wikimedia projects and Movement in Georgia. These programs are:

Content development;
Increasing Participation;
Community Support and Development;
Partnerships and Promoting Wikimedia;
Advocacy.

Under these programs, the organization has developed and is implementing various projects and activities.

Content development[edit]

One of the main goals of Wikimedia UG Georgia is to increase the content of Wikimedia projects in Georgian (and other) languages. To achieve this goal, Wikimedia UG Georgia will hold various contests (Article Contests, Photography Contests, Wikimarathon, and Wikicamps) and projects on the Georgian Wikipedia and other Wikipedias. Contests are both international and local.

Article Contests

The main goal of this program is to increase the quality and authoritative content and media files' relevance in Wikimedia projects (primarily in Wikipedia, Commons, and Wikidata). Supporting initiatives and projects that are aimed at enriching the content of Wikimedia projects is a key model for the implementation and development of free knowledge, which is part of our mission.

Wikimedia UG Georgia still continues to work in this direction more thoughtfully and moderately. The organization has and will continue to hold local and international contests (CEE Spring, Asian Month, Wiki Loves Caucasus), which already have a traditional character, but the main focus will be on encouraging editors to participate in a less material way.

Enhancing quality of content

It's very important to increase the quality of the content of Wikimedia projects. It's important to improve the quality of targeted articles that are popular in Wikimedia projects, specifically on Wikipedia. Improving the arrangement, structuring, and categorization of information that already exists in projects such as Wikidata and Commons has a positive effect on the quality of Wikimedia content, so it's important to work in this direction.

Wikimedia UG Georgia will focus and put more effort into training editors who will improve and develop the content of Wikimedia projects. Improving the skills of most editors is the key to developing and improving the content of projects.

Media Contests

Increasing the number of freely licensed Georgia-related content on Wikimedia Commons is one of the important goals of Wikimedia UG Georgia. We will try to attract more volunteers and contributors to such projects with new ideas and approaches. Organizing photographic contests, such as Wiki Loves Monuments and Wiki Loves Earth for Wikimedia Commons, will be continued in the coming years in Georgia.

Increasing Participation[edit]

A key activity of Wikimedia UG Georgia is to attract new volunteers, editors, and people to the initiative of the Wikimedia Movement, to develop and improve Wikimedia projects. The increase of the number of participants in Wikimedia projects, primarily in the Georgian language, as well as in other languages of Wikimedia projects, is strategic for us since the growth of the Wikimedia content and the quality of the content created depend on the number of participants.

We seek to help different groups and individuals, including those under-represented in our community, by supporting and organizing training aimed at increasing participation in the Wikimedia movement. It's important that when the community grows, attention is paid to the diversity of the community. Therefore, Wikimedia UG Georgia will pursue a special policy to increase the diversity in the community. Wikimedia UG Georgia will also look for opportunities to find opportunities to increase participation and improve the climate for newbies in Wikimedia projects.

To achieve this goal, Wikimedia UG Georgia will carry out various projects using its experience and the experience of other Wikimedia affiliates in this area.

WikiClubs

The history of WikiClubs in Georgia has not been long since it started. Officially, the first WikiClub was opened simultaneously in Marneuli and Surami in March 2020. Unofficially, however, the Surami WikiClub is already five years old.

By 2020, it became clear that the existence of WikiClubs would contribute to the development of Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects, and it was for this purpose that Wikimedia UG Georgia decided to open the first WikiClubs. Today, there are already six active WikiClubs in different regions of Georgia.

Observing the WikiClubs clearly showed us that, on the one hand, the teaching process in those schools where WikiClubs were opened became much more active, fun, and interesting. Students were actively involved in the work of WikiClubs and the learning process. They learned to write the text in the encyclopedic style and to correct it grammatically. After the students had completely mastered Wiki technologies, they were given a wide field. The students of WikiClubs wrote articles on various topics, participated in contests organized by Wikimedia UG Georgia, and won prizes. On the other hand, WikiClubs increased the content of Georgian Wikipedia. New articles were written, or existing articles were edited. Thus, the quality of Wikipedia increased, and the Georgian Wikipedia developed. Members of WikiClubs created and added new items to Wikidata.

WikiCamps

Our experience with past projects tells us that one of the best ways to attract participants to the Wikimedia project is to conduct WikiCamps. We held such a WikiCamp in 2019, and we think this is an important factor in the development of the movement should be continued, both at the local level and in the regional context.

Over the past two years, WikiCamps has proven effective in attracting new contributors to Wikimedia projects as well as refining the skills of existing contributors. WikiCamp participants gain enough knowledge, which they then share with other contributors and also effectively use in their daily work on projects. This proves the effectiveness and correctness of the course, which we will continue in the future.

Training sessions and workshops

Wikimedia UG Georgia will conduct open training courses and workshops for all interested parties who want to contribute to developing Wikimedia projects in Georgian. Training and workshops will be held both online (using remote channels) and in person.

Over the past years, it has become clear that such sessions attract people's interest, which helps us attract new contributors to Wikimedia projects. This helps us to increase and improve the quality of content in our projects.

Community Support and Development[edit]

Community development, support, and preservation of community sustainability are one of the most important goals of Wikimedia UG Georgia. The self-organized community of Wikimedia in Georgia continues to develop, and Wikimedia UG Georgia helps them in their development and sustainable existence. This direction has long been part of the Organization's programmatic activities, and we will continue to use the proven ways of working with the WikiCommunity.

Promoting, popularization and outreach of Wikimedia and Wikimedia projects is very important for Wikimedia UG Georgia and is an important aspect of the work of affiliation since in Georgia, Wikimedia and Wikipedia projects are not very popular, and people know little about them.

Conferences

Wikimedia UG Georgia to host various kinds of conferences that serve the development of Wikimedia projects, as well as the growth of the Wikimedia Movement in Georgia. The conferences are organized by Wikimedia UG Georgia, also jointly with various institutions and our partners.

One of the main conferences hosted by Wikimedia UG Georgia is the annual Georgian WikiConference. This is the main meeting place for all members of Wikimedia UG Georgia, editors of Wikimedia projects, and volunteers. The first such meeting was held in December 2018. The aim of WikiConference is to facilitate the development of Wikimedia projects (including Georgian) in Georgia by creating a sustainable discussion platform. Also, getting acquainted with the activities of the Wikimedia UG Georgia to the general public and making future plans and goals with all. Get acquainted with updates from the Wikimedia Foundation and the international Wikimedia movement.

Community Events

Organizing in-person meet-ups is important for both UG-GE members and the whole WikiCommunity in Georgia. They allow for enhancing online cooperation, boost useful networking connections among volunteers, and facilitate knowledge sharing in the format of presentations, discussions, and personal meetings. Bringing volunteers together is especially crucial for community development in Georgia because of the geographical vastness of our country. Organizing conferences and other regional events also help boost and increase local communities.

Scholarships

Providing scholarships for international events is an important part of community and organizational development and promoting knowledge sharing. Attending conferences and other events provides members of the local community with an opportunity to build and strengthen connections, gain new knowledge, and share it through their reports, notes, articles, photos, and social media posts. Since it is difficult for economic reasons for most Georgian citizens to afford expensive international travel, UG-GE scholarships are especially important to the community.

Partnerships and Promoting Wikimedia[edit]

Wikimedia UG Georgia is an active affiliate of the Wikimedia Foundation and part of the global Wikimedia movement. It will keep building on its relationship with regional and global affiliations and seek other relationships with other chapters, UG's, and thematic organizations in order to share lessons learned and resources and to conduct projects in partnership. The UG aims to increase the involvement of Georgians in the Wikimedia movement.

Wikimedia UG Georgia, in order to achieve its goal in cooperation with other Wikimedia Foundation affiliations, will conduct joint projects with these organizations that will strengthen and develop bilateral relations, which in turn will contribute to the development of Wikimedia projects.

Wikimedia UG Georgia also collaborate with non-Wikimedia organizations to attract volunteers and editors to Wikimedia projects, as well as to integrate different ethnic groups into the Georgian WikiCommunity, since diversity in movement and in Wikimedia projects in the Georgian language is very important for us. We have already begun work in this area and have concluded a memorandum with a specific organization.

We also cooperate with government agencies in Georgia to achieve our goals, which are primarily aimed at developing Wikimedia projects in Georgia. These structures will be the Ministry of Education, Sports, etc.

Outreach

Wikimedia UG Georgia is actively trying to promote Wikimedia projects and movement in Georgia through different channels and strategies. An important part of our work was the promotion of Wikimedia projects using social media. To achieve this, we use social media and Wikimedia UG Georgia blogs. Our experience in past years has shown that social networks are a good tool for attracting new faces to Wikimedia projects since the majority of the population of Georgia and our oriented audience actively use the network.

We also host introductory meetings at various educational institutions to engage young people in Wikimedia projects that can significantly contribute to the development of Wikimedia projects. At the same time, various groups are created in such institutions where young people can get sufficient information about the Wikimedia movement.

Various events are also held together with our partners, which are widely covered. This works well for informing the public about our work, goals, and projects.

Advocacy[edit]

Advocacy is one of the most important areas of work of Wikimedia UG Georgia, where we try to promote the ideas of free knowledge and its accessibility at the legislative level. At the same time, our partners are also involved in this process. Different partners support us and help us in different areas. For example, the Administration of the President of Georgia helps us advocate Freedom of Panorama (FoP) in Georgia at the parliamentary level. The Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia helps us hold various contests (and allocates funds for prizes) to attract an audience and advocate for free knowledge locally.

It should be noted that Wikimedia UG Georgia, together with partners, is already successfully working on advocating the Freedom of Panorama (FoP) in Georgia at the legislative level.

Relationship with Other Groups[edit]

Wikimedia UG Georgia actively cooperates with various Wikimedia affiliates on a regional and global level. The affiliation has a strong bond with all of its partners at different levels.

At the regional level, Wikimedia UG Georgia actively cooperates with its neighboring affiliates, Wikimedia UG Turkey, Wikimedia UG Azerbaijan, and Wikimedia Armenia. There is also contact and a history of cooperation with Wikimedia Russia and with various User Groups from Russia. User Group at different times held joint projects and contests with regional partners, for example, Wiki Loves Caucasus, or served as a donor/fiscal organization for its partners. Georgian Wikipedia editors also actively participated in the WikiCamps of Wikimedia Armenia, and Wikimedia UG Georgia and Wikimedia Armenia held a joint contest on Wikipedia.

Wikimedia UG Georgia also actively cooperates with Wikimedia UG Azerbaijan. We hold joint contests and projects. WMGE acts as a fiscal sponsor for many projects and contests of Wikimedia UG Azerbaijan.

Wikimedia UG Georgia (WMGE), as part of the CEE region, actively supports and cooperates with the CEE Hub. Representatives of the affiliation actively participate in the meetings of the Hub. WMGE with the Hub to hold the Wikimedia CEE Spring contest, and in 2023 the regional annual Wikimedia CEE Meeting will be held in Tbilisi, organized by Wikimedia UG Georgia in cooperation with the Wikimedia Foundation and CEE Hub.

Wikimedia UG Georgia is also a founder and member of Wikimedia Europe (WMEU). We plan, after the completion of the registration of WMEU in Belgium, to actively implement the strategic advocacy programs of WMGE in cooperation with Wikimedia Europe, both in Georgia and at the EU level.

Criteria for Recognition[edit]

Diversity of Activities[edit]

Wikimedia UG Georgia has been running various projects and programs over the past 4 years that ensure a variety of affiliations activities. Our programs ensure the growth and development of the local Wikimedia community, as well as the growth of the content of Wikimedia projects in Georgian. Our programs ensure a variety of activities and areas of our work, which allows us to involve different people in our projects and makes our local movement diverse. It also allows us to develop our organization and strengthen it locally.

Our activities include different approaches and aspects, including, we have activities that cover media, Wikipedia content and other Wikimedia projects, advocacy, collaboration, etc. In detail, all our programs and projects are described above (see Key Programs and Activities). Our diversity of activities includes the following:

Article Contests (local, regional, and international)
- Wikimedia CEE Spring;
- Wiki Loves Caucasus;
- Wikipedia Asian Month;
- Thematic article contests.
Work aimed at improving the quality of content;
Media Contests
- Wiki Loves Monuments;
- Wiki Loves Earth.
Increasing Participation;
WikiClubs;
Camps
- WikiCamps for young people;
- WikiCamps for teachers.
Training sessions and workshops;
Conferences (local, regional, and international);
Community Events;
Community meetups;
Scholarships;
Partnerships and Promoting Wikimedia;
Outreach;
Advocacy.

Wikimedia UG Georgia is constantly working to expand its capabilities, leading to an expansion and more diversity of affiliation activities.

Planning and Evaluation[edit]

Wikimedia UG Georgia has a long history of planning and evaluating its achievements. As a successful organization, we evaluate our skills, capabilities, and achievements, and based on this, we plan our next steps and then evaluate our achievements. Since 2016, our organization has been actively planning various programs and holding various events. For this, you can check out our grant applications (rapid, sAPG, GF), strategic plans, and annual plans for our affiliation:

Rapid Grants[edit]

sAPG[edit]

Conference grants[edit]

Wikimedia CEE Meeting 2023

Strategic and Annual plans[edit]

Reports[edit]

Financial Reports[edit]

Our reports, both activity and financial, prepared after a thorough review of all our programs, projects, and events, prove our work in evaluating all our efforts.

External Partnerships[edit]

We started active efforts to establish contacts and partnerships with various institutions only in 2019, when Wikimedia Community User Group Georgia was registered as a non-profit in Georgia, which helped us, as a legal entity, to negotiate with various organizations officially. Over the past 4 years, we have been actively trying to expand our network of partners both locally in Georgia and globally. And now we have great achievements in this direction.

We cooperate with various organizations (non-gov) and government agencies in Georgia, where we receive significant support from them, which helps us to implement our programs and projects effectively. Different partners support us and help us in different areas. For example, the Administration of the President of Georgia helps us in advocating Freedom of Panorama in Georgia, as well as attracting new contributors to Wikimedia projects. It helps us in relations with archives and universities. The Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia helps us hold various contests (and allocates funds for prizes) to attract an audience, as well as advocate free knowledge locally.

Currently, the following non-governmental organizations (non-profits) and state institutions of Georgia are partners of Wikimedia UG Georgia, with whom memorandums of cooperation have also been signed:

Administration of the President of Georgia (since February 5, 2022)
Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia (since April 14, 2021)
Ministry of Culture and Sports of Georgia (since October 2020)
Gastronomic Association of Georgia (since 2019)
Georgian Association of History Educators (since 2016)
Culture Committee of the Parliament of Georgia (since 2022)
National Library of the Parliament of Georgia (since 2023)
Education and Development Center (since 2019)
Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University (since 2023)

Aligned Mission[edit]

The mission of Wikimedia UG Georgia is described in the Bylaws of the organization through goals and objectives. The main goal of the "Wikimedia Community User Group Georgia" (in the future - Wikimedia Georgia) is to promote creation, accumulation, development (updating, systematization, structuring), dissemination, and reflection in international projects of any encyclopedic, educational, scientific, reference information and other knowledge generally available and permitted. To achieve the above-mentioned goal, the organization aims to accomplish the following objectives:

Raising money through charity to fund the organization's work and programs;
Participation in the legislative process and cooperation with state authorities;
Distribution and promotion of the works of various authors under the author's permission or with the appropriate free license, which allows any person to distribute the works of any author legally, without paying royalties to the author, including in digital or print form;
Providing assistance in acquiring rights to the works of various authors under conditions that allow any person to distribute these works legally in Wikimedia projects without paying a fee to the author, in any form, including digital form;
Informing the public about the activities of the organization through informational literature, mass media, social networks, and other sources of public information;
Organizing academic events as well as participating in academic events of other organizations;
Ensuring activities available through the Internet and other telecommunications to create, collect, develop, and disseminate knowledge;
Cooperation with local and foreign organizations that have similar goals and objectives;
Ensuring publishing activities, production, and distribution of photographic and other products in accordance with the goals of the organization;
Protecting and representing the interests of individuals affiliated with the organization through the development of programs in relevant administrative bodies, courts, and local/international organizations;
Providing social and other assistance to the members of the organization and other persons related to the fields of activity of the organization for the implementation of their activities;
Ensuring diversity and involvement in the membership and governance of the organization.

Our Vision[edit]

Wikimedia UG Georgia shares the vision statement of the Wikimedia Foundation: „Imagine a world in which every single human being can freely share in the sum of all knowledge. That's our commitment.“

Values[edit]

Accessibility
Collaboration
Community
Diversity
Education
Gender equality
Independence
Transparency
Sharing
Volunteerism

Geographic Focus[edit]

Wikimedia UG Georgia, registered in Georgia, operates throughout the territory of Georgia based on the legislation of Georgia. To achieve its goals and based on the organization's Bylaws, Wikimedia UG Georgia may also operate outside of Georgia. Inside Georgia, the organization takes care of the three main languages of Georgia: Georgian, Mingrelian, and Abkhaz. In the future will also take care of Svan and Laz.

Georgia is a multinational and multicultural country, which makes it possible for Wikimedia UG Georgia to also work with and care for other language communities. The organization takes care of regional language communities that don't have their own affiliation and also take care of other affiliations of the region that have limited ability to operate. All of this happens in collaboration with or informing Wikimedia's regional affiliations (see Relationship with Other Groups).

Legal Structure[edit]

Wikimedia UG Georgia is a non-profit (non-commercial) membership-based legal entity established under the Civil Code of Georgia, which operates in accordance with the Constitution of Georgia, the Georgian legislation, international norms, and the Charter. The legal form of the Wikimedia Community User Group Georgia (in the future - Wikimedia Georgia) is a non-profit (non-commercial) legal entity.

The governing body of the organization is the "General Forum of Wikimedia UG Georgia", the executive body of the organization is the "Board of Trustees of Wikimedia UG Georgia," and the authority to represent the organization is vested in the Executive Director of the organization. For more details about leadership, please see Leadership.

Open Governance[edit]

Wikimedia UG Georgia has practiced open and transparent work and governance since its creation. The organization publishes all its documentation, results of work, projects, and programs, as well as minutes of meetings openly, and it is available to everyone on the Wikimedia UG Georgia websites. All Wikimedia UG Georgia reports (activities and financial) are available on the Wikimedia UG Georgia website. WMGE employees publish monthly reports on the organization's activities in the Georgian language. Also, all resolutions of the Board of Trustees and the General Forum are published openly on the Wikimedia UG Georgia websites, as well as orders and decisions of the executive body.

Our organization is also open to all interested and active contributors to Wikimedia projects. Based on the Bylaws of the organization, any adult individual or legal entity that shares the goals and objectives of Wikimedia UG Georgia can be a member of the organization. All members of the organization have equal rights and obligations. All members of the organization have equal voting rights.

Active Contributor Involvement[edit]

Wikimedia UG Georgia has many active people involved in the organization's work voluntarily. At the moment, more than 60 volunteers are registered as members of Wikimedia UG Georgia (view the full list).

Wikimedia UG Georgia is a legal entity based on membership. Currently, 19 persons (see full list) are members of the legal entity. We place particular emphasis on diversity among our members and encourage the involvement of women in the work of the affiliation and leadership of the organization. At the moment, out of 19 members of the organization, 6 members are women. All these persons are actively involved in the work of the affiliation and support the day-to-day life and work of the legal entity.

Capacity[edit]

Human resource[edit]

Wikimedia UG Georgia has a strong human resource to grow the organization and lead the development of the local Wikimedia community and projects. As indicated above, at the moment, 19 people are actively involved in the organization's work, and more than 70 people on a volunteer basis are involved in the work and projects of the affiliation. Wikimedia UG Georgia is actively working to attract new people to the organization and affiliation programs and projects, so the number of active members of the organization will grow, which will increase the human potential of the affiliation.

It should be noted that more than 200 editors are currently actively working on Wikimedia projects in Georgian language.

Financial resource[edit]

Wikimedia UG Georgia has been actively receiving rapid grants from the Wikimedia Foundation since 2016 to finance its programs and projects, and since 2019 it has continued to receive annual plan grants. The organization skillfully manages its financial resources and actively cooperates with its partners to fund common projects.

Check all our grants here.

Administrative resource[edit]

Since 2021, Wikimedia UG Georgia has paid employees who manage the administrative affairs of the affiliation and manage the organization's programs and projects. The number of employees increases yearly in proportion to the increase in affiliation programs and projects. The affiliation currently has 4 employees, which may increase as the organization grows and the needs of the local community rise.

Afflation also has the technical resources (camera, printer, computers, projectors, drone) to manage the processes needed to implement programs and projects.

Rationale for Recognition[edit]

Georgian Wikipedia this year (2023) will be 20 years old, which means the largest Georgian free online encyclopedia has been serving the Georgian people for free for 20 years. Volunteer editors of the Georgian Wikimedia projects will also turn 20, which means the local community has been working for 20 years to develop free content for everyone. For 12 years, the local community has not had an affiliation or organization that would constantly help or promote their interest on a global or local level in Georgia. Wikimedia UG Georgia has been this organization since 2015, which cares about the development and sustainability of the local community. Also, it ensures the development of the Wikimedia movement and projects in Georgia.

Wikimedia UG Georgia has been taking care of the local Wikimedia community in Georgia as a User Group for 8 years now. For 8 years, the User Group has been developing the Wikimedia movement at the local level with the help of various programs, projects, and events. We have been able to attract many new volunteers to the movement, and we have also been able to retain experienced Wikimedia editors on Wikipedia and other projects in the movement. The User Group is already considered an established organization that has the potential to grow with active members, an experienced leadership team, and sustainable partnerships at the local, regional, and global levels. Based on this, the affiliation wants to get the status of a chapter after 8 years of operating as a User Group. This will be the second chapter in the Caucasus region, which will give a pulse to the development of the Wikimedia movement in our region, as well as specifically in Georgia.

Gaining the chapter status will contribute to developing the Wikimedia Movement and projects locally in Georgia and the region. In this way, the voice of a region that is underrepresented in the global movement will be better heard. The development of our organization means the development of the Wikimedia community in Georgia, and the support and development of free knowledge locally.

Application Progress[edit]

Stage	Status
In Planning - New Application	Y
In Progress - Bylaws Submitted	Y
In Progress - Bylaw Revisions & Application Completion	Y
In Progress - Committee Review
In Progress - Recommendation Drafting
In Progress - Recommendation Submitted
Complete - Application process complete