Meet the 2021 Wikimedians of the Year
Seven exceptional Wikimedia community volunteers were recognized today at the 2021 Wikimania, the Wikimedia movement’s annual conference celebrating the free knowledge projects made possible by the volunteer community and hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation.
From Bali to California, the new Wikimedian of the Year award winners span multiple Wikimedia projects, languages, and areas of contribution. Some winners have been around for almost as long as Wikimedia projects have existed — Wikipedia turned 20 this year. Others joined the movement more recently. They are united by the shared vision of free knowledge, and on August 15 at the annual Wikimania convenient, the Wikimedia movement joined in celebrating them.
Wikimania is the largest gathering of the Wikimedia movement, bringing together hundreds of volunteers contributing to Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects from around the world. This year, Wikimania was online and along with it, the Wikimedian of the Year celebration.
This special recognition dates back to 2011. Over the years, it has highlighted the achievements of inspirational community members and welcomed Wikimedians from different backgrounds and experiences. This year’s celebration was bigger than ever — expanding beyond the usual titleholder of Wikimedian of the Year and honourable mentions to celebrate a richer profile of our projects, volunteers, and geographies — to spotlight a newcomer, contributors to rich media and technology, and in honour of Wikipedia’s birthday, a 20th year honouree.
