Wikimedia Endowment

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About the Wikimedia Endowment[edit]

The Wikimedia Endowment is a permanent fund that generates income to support the Wikimedia Projects in perpetuity. The Endowment was launched in January 2016 on the 15th anniversary of Wikipedia as a Collective Action Fund with the Tides Foundation, with the initial goal of raising US$100 million by 2026 – a target that was reached in June 2021.

The Endowment has now entered the second phase of fundraising and is also providing financial support to technical innovation in the Wikimedia Projects. As of June 30, 2023, the Wikimedia Endowment was valued at US$119 million. It has been established as a 501(c)3 charity headquartered in the United States. See WikimediaEndowment.org for more information.

Mission Statement[edit]

The Wikimedia Endowment mission statement reads:

"Access to knowledge is a fundamental human right. The Wikimedia Endowment is our enduring commitment to a world of freely shared knowledge, now and in perpetuity."

Wikimedia Endowment Board Members[edit]

The Wikimedia Endowment board consists of dedicated volunteers from a variety of industries including education, technology, and for-profit business, who are committed to the Wikimedia vision: a world in which every single person can freely share in the sum of all knowledge. They provide insight and guidance to further the sustainability of Wikimedia through the Endowment.

You can also read about the Endowment Board of Directors on the Wikimedia Endowment website.

Current Members[edit]

Jimmy Wales[edit]

Annette Campbell-White[edit]

Peter Baldwin[edit]

Michael Kim[edit]

Patricio Lorente[edit]

Doron Weber[edit]

Phoebe Ayers[edit]

Alexander M. Farman-Farmaian[edit]

Lisa Lewin[edit]

Former Members[edit]

Niels Christian Nielsen[edit]

Annual Endowment Fundraising Reports[edit]

Funding[edit]

Wikimedia Endowment Investment Policy[edit]

The purpose of the Wikimedia Endowment is to serve as a permanent safekeeping fund to generate income to support the operations and activities of the Wikimedia projects in perpetuity. The following investment policy is meant to guide the long-term investment strategy of the Wikimedia Endowment; this policy is reviewed by the Investment Committee annually.

Please refer to the updated investment policy.

Adopted February 8th, 2024 by the Wikimedia Endowment Board of Directors.

FAQs[edit]

1. What is the Wikimedia Endowment? The Wikimedia Endowment is a permanent safekeeping fund to generate income to support the operations and activities of the Wikimedia projects in perpetuity. The Endowment was started in 2016 on the 15th anniversary of Wikipedia, and it formally acquired its 501(c)(3) status in 2022.

1.1. What is an endowment in general?
An endowment is a (usually) permanent fund used to support an organization or a cause in perpetuity, meaning for a long period with an undefined end. Organizations with endowments usually invest the endowment funds in financial holdings, and then they spend or use a portion of the interest or investment incomes produced each year. This allows the endowment to provide financial support for a long period of time.
1.2. What are the industry's best practices around endowments in the US nonprofit sector?
In the nonprofit sector, endowments are considered an important part of good financial planning for organizations that aspire to continue fulfilling their nonprofit mission for the long-term. While organizations look to annual fundraising and other revenue streams to support their day-to-day operations, they look to endowments to support their long-term goals. Knowing that there will be a steady stream of funds across multiple years helps organizations plan for more ambitious and long term projects.

2. What is the strategic purpose of the Wikimedia Endowment? How will the Endowment support Wikimedia projects?

The purpose of the Wikimedia Endowment is to support the Wikimedia projects in perpetuity. During times of prosperity, the Wikimedia Endowment will serve as a springboard for growth and innovation. During tough economic times, the Endowment will help fund the most critical operations that keep the Wikimedia projects functioning. After we met the initial fundraising goal, the Endowment board made the decision to start providing project funding and adopted a spending policy. We conducted interviews with people who donated to the Wikimedia Endowment and asked them what the Endowment should support in the near future. The theme that emerged from these conversation was a focus on funding technical innovation, so that the Wikimedia Projects stay relevant in a time of rapid technological change. You can find a list of projects that the Wikimedia Endowment supported last year on Diff. This work is led by Endowment's Board Grantmaking and Community Committee.

3. How are the Wikimedia communities represented in the Wikimedia Endowment?

The Endowment Board is made of people who have supported Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects for a very long time. First, one seat is reserved for Jimmy Wales, the founder of Wikipedia. It also includes people who have been significant donors to the Wikimedia Foundation for over a decade and are now also volunteering their time to help raise funds, provide governance, and offer investment guidance for the Wikimedia Endowment. Similar to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees, there are seats for people from our volunteer editing community. Phoebe Ayers and Patricio Lorente currently fill those seats and bring deep experience in the Wikimedia communities and are both former community-elected board members of the Wikimedia Foundation. The full composition of the Board can be found in the "Wikimedia Endowment Board Members" section above.

4. How is the Wikimedia Endowment set up legally, and what is a 501(c)(3)?

A 501(c)(3) organization is a corporation, trust, unincorporated association, or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. The 501(c)(3) status of the Wikimedia Endowment was approved in 2022. The Wikimedia Endowment Board has put all necessary policies and processes in place to ensure a functional and operational 501(c)(3). They can be found on Wikimedia Foundation Governance Wiki.
4.1. How will the Wikimedia Endowment report its activity?
Transparency is important to the Wikimedia Endowment Board, and the following documents and reporting will be provided:
  • Annually: Annual plan, audit, Form 990, Fundraising Report
  • Semi-annually: Board meeting agenda and minutes (once approved)
  • Ad hoc: Other updates, as needed

5. How are Wikimedia Endowment funds invested?

The Wikimedia Endowment has a Finance Committee that meets every quarter to review the portfolio's performance and composition according to its Investment Policy. Historically, the Endowment has invested in indexed mutual funds spanning the US Equity, US Fixed Income, US Real Estate, ex-US Developed Equity, and Emerging Markets Equity asset classes.

6. How much investment income do you anticipate the Endowment will generate?

We monitor and track the Endowment portfolio's income on an ongoing, annual basis. This depends on market changes during the year. The income is generally reinvested in the underlying indexed funds which comprise the portfolio.

7. What is the difference between Endowment fundraising and the annual fundraising campaigns led by the Wikimedia Foundation?

In the nonprofit sector, endowments are considered an important part of proactive financial planning for organizations that aspire to continue fulfilling their mission for the long-term. While organizations look to annual fundraising and other revenue streams to support their day-to-day operations, they look to endowments to provide more predictable multi-year funding to support their long-term goals and mission. While the Endowment does not replace our need to raise our annual fund to support day-to-day operations, it does give us more resiliency, and it is a testament to the value that so many people place on the need for knowledge.

8. How does planned giving support the Endowment?

Gifts in wills provide donors with an opportunity to continue making an impact for generations to come. Their planned, future gifts will provide another stream of donations to ensure the Endowment's growth and independence. The Endowment's first donation was a legacy gift from Jim Pacha, who generously donated much of his estate to seed its initial funding. Today, more than 2,300 members of the Wikipedia Legacy Society have committed to leave a portion of their estate to the Wikimedia Endowment.

9. Does the Endowment have its own employees and contractors?

No, the Wikimedia Endowment does not have any employees nor has it had its own contractors. Wikimedia Foundation staff work in support of the Endowment. Beginning in FY2022-23 (after the fund reached the initial US$100 million goal), the Endowment began reimbursing the Wikimedia Foundation for the cost of the time that the Wikimedia Foundation employees work on the Endowment as well as the other expenses that the Wikimedia Foundation incurs on its behalf. In FY22-23, the Endowment reimbursed the Wikimedia Foundation US$1,297,620 for expenses as well as US$420,177 in payment processing fees for the donations that the Wikimedia Foundation received on the endowment's behalf, which were deducted at the point of sale. In FY23-24, the Wikimedia Endowment is budgeting to reimburse the Wikimedia Foundation US$2.09 million.

Advisory Board Meetings[edit]

Updates and Articles[edit]

Financial Reports[edit]

Governance Documents[edit]

Background[edit]