Wikimedia Europe
| Wikimedia Europe | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Members of Wikimedia Europe | |
| Location | Brussels, Belgium & remote |
| Affiliate code | WMEU |
| Country code | EU |
| Legal status | Association internationale sans but lucratif (AISBL) |
| Founding date |
|
| Main office | Brussels-Capital Region |
| Membership | 31 (Members of Wikimedia Europe) |
| Staff | 6 |
| Official language(s) | English |
| Other language(s) | French, Dutch |
| President | Claudia Garád |
| Secretary | Maciej Artur Nadzikiewicz |
| Treasurer | Capucine-Marin Dubroca-Voisin |
| Board members | |
| Key people |
|
| Incorporation paper | Statutes |
| Budget | 542,000 EUR (2024) |
| Affiliations | |
| Mailing list | updates wikimedia-europe eu |
Wikimedia Europe is established for the purpose of providing a shared legal entity for and common platform of the Wikimedia organisations in Europe, and is part of the worldwide Wikimedia Movement.
Our main objectives are to:
- foster collaboration between European Wikimedians to thereby advance access to knowledge in Europe,
- provide a public voice advocating a public interest internet, and
- strive for freedom and fundamental rights in the digital era.
Wikimedia Europe or WMEU is an international non-profit association (association internationale sans but lucratif - aisbl) founded in 2023 according to Belgian law and seated in Brussels.
Members
[edit]As of April 2025, Wikimedia Europe represents 31 Wikimedia Movement affiliates including National Chapters, Users Groups and Thematic Organisations seated in Europe.
Take a look at the updated list of members of Wikimedia Europe
Information for new members
[edit]You can check out our presentation for newcomers and potential future members of Wikimedia Europe.
Founding the European network
[edit]On 20 July 2022 at the meeting of incorporated Wikimedia affiliates, representatives of 21 affiliates seated in Europe confirmed their organisations' commitment to found Wikimedia Europe. In 2023 the association was officially incorporated under Belgian law, seating in Brussels.
Although newly established, Wikimedia Europe was building upon the legacy of the Free Knowledge Advocacy Group EU, and leveraged a 10-year history in public policy design and advocacy in the area of digital rights, paired with extensive tech expertise.
Read about the founding process of Wikimedia Europe
[edit]- Wikimedia Europe/EU policy qualitative study report
- Wikimedia Europe/EU policy – structural implications focus group report
Read our founding documents
[edit]Board
[edit]Current Board (2025 - 2026)
[edit]| Photo | Name | Wikimedia username | Seat | Term | Role | Affiliation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Claudia Garád | Elected
|
2025–2026
|
Wikimedia Austria | ||
|
Capucine-Marin Dubroca-Voisin |
Elected
|
Wikimedia France | |||
|
Marian Grubben | Elected
|
||||
|
Rebecca MacKinnon | Appointed
(22 Aug 2022) |
Member
|
N/A | ||
|
Alek Tarkowski | Elected
|
Open Future |
Initial Board (2023 - 2025)
[edit]| Name | Wikimedia username | Seat | Term | Role | Affiliation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claudia Garád | Elected
|
2022–2025[1]
|
President
|
Wikimedia Austria | |
| Capucine-Marin Dubroca-Voisin |
Elected
|
Treasurer
|
Wikimedia France | ||
| Rebecca MacKinnon | Appointed
(22 Aug 2022) |
Member
|
N/A | ||
| Gonçalo Themudo | Elected
|
Secretary
|
Wikimedia Portugal | ||
| Maciej Artur Nadzikiewicz | Elected
(Resigned in 2024[2]) |
Former Secretary
|
Wikimedia Poland |
Staff
[edit]| Name | Position | Ask me about | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anna Mazgal | Executive Director | Strategy, governance, financial sustainability | anna.mazgalwikimedia-europeeu
|
| Dimi Zagorski | Policy Director | Child protection, copyright & AI, disinformation, content moderation & platform regulation, EU advocacy, policy positions | dimiwikimediabe
|
| Michele Failla | Lead EU Law & Policy Advisor | Media regulation, protection of fundamental rights & against malicious lawsuits (SLAPPs), disinformation, content moderation & platform regulation, protection of minors, EU advocacy, policy positions | michele.faillawikimedia-europeeu
|
| Valentina Calcagno | Fundraising Manager | Financial health, current EU Funding opportunities, support to members in their fundraising | valentina.calcagnowikimedia-europeeu
|
| Erkida Pema | Finance and Operations Officer | Operations, event organisation, and members’ contributions | erkida.pemawikimedia-europeeu
|
| Van Anh Dam | Network Management Specialist | Membership development, capacity building opportunities | networkwikimedia-europeeu
|
Strategy renewal
[edit]At the General Assembly in Prague 2025, members came together to reflect on values, explore priorities, and offer input into the direction of our 2030 strategy. Based on outcomes of the meeting and other contributions still being gathered, strategy drafts will be developed and later consolidated in 2025. Further details and updates will be shared regularly with members via Wikimedia Europe Updates mailing list and on this meta page.
Advocacy
[edit]The EU Policy initiative aims at coordinating the European Wikimedia chapters so they can have a unified and clear position on major legislative and political changes affecting the vision, mission and values of the Wikimedia movement.
In 2025 our main areas of engagement are:
- Child protection & age verification: Explaining how the Wikimedia communities and the Wikimedia Foundation are working together to protect children on the projects and participating in the discussions about which online platforms should preform mandatory age verification. Our position is that age verification would act as an additional barrier to accessing knowledge and should therefore only be mandated for the highest risk platforms.
- Content moderation: A large part of our work is to follow up on all the legislative conversations and proposals that touch upon how content moderation is performed, by users and by service providers. The main framework for this is the Digital Services Act. Here we are supporting the Wikimedia Foundation, including by providing input to the various guidelines the European Commission is issuing.
- AI: We are currently part of a lot of discussions and consultation related to AI and our projects. This includes copyright, attribution and citations, usage of tools for content moderation and generation, usage of Wikimedia content for training and the economics of the knowledge ecosystem. Our challenge for 2025 is to pull all these loose threads in a coherent strategy and message.
- GDPR simplification: The European Commission is expected to propose a reform to reduce the administrative burden under the EU's data protection framework for medium sized companies and nonprofits. We exploring the potential to lessen the burden and cost for the Wikimedia Foundation within this legislative change.
- Geoblocking: The European Union is expected to revamp its geoblocking rules. We are part of the deliberations taking the position that geoblocking is often a hurdle to accessing and verifying sources, which are essential for citations on the projects.
We publish a monthly Monitoring Report on Meta and on the public policy mailing list (publicpolicylistswikimediaorg). It provides updates on all these topics and more.
Capacity building
[edit]Supporting the European Wikimedia chapters is a core task within our mission. We aim to foster collaboration between European Wikimedians to empower individuals and organisations, strengthening the Wikimedia Movement’s impact in Europe. By working collectively, we achieve greater effectiveness than individual efforts alone, thereby advancing access to knowledge in Europe.
Network Mapping
[edit]We are currently mapping needs of European affiliates in order to provide tailor made structural support in the future. Capacity building programme will be launched in 2025.
Get in touch with us for further information on network mapping and capacity building at (networkwikimedia-europeeu).
To see how we supported our members and communities in 2024 check the fundraising section.
Current status: Fundamental mapping completed as of May 2025
Next steps: Further mapping focused on finances, thematic activities and external communications to be continued in 2025
Network Collaboration shaping
[edit]Goal: Facilitating discussion on shaping collaboration among network members
Current status: Mapping of current level of collaboration among members completed as of May 2025 as part of network mapping
Next steps: Network specialist to draft and propose a process for shaping guiding principles of collaboration among members
Network Communication shaping
[edit]Goal: Facilitating efforts to improve communication among network members and creating communication strategy for communication between WMEU and it’s members
Current status: Ongoing mapping of communication channels and needs as of May 2025
Next steps: Continued mapping of communication channels and needs Network specialist to draft and propose a strategy for communication between WMEU and it’s members
Fundraising
[edit]Wikimedia Europe organises and conducts fundraising activities to support free knowledge where the required efforts exceed capacities of the members as individual entities in the Wikimedia Movement.
Fundraising activities are aimed both to support the members in their fundraising efforts and raise funds for ensuring the organisation can carry out its statutory objectives as mandated by the members.
All fundraising activities are conducted in accordance with Wikimedia Europe's fundraising policy.
Support for members
[edit]Wikimedia Europe organises and conducts fundraising activities to support free knowledge where the required efforts exceed capacities of the Members as individual entities in the Wikimedia Movement.
Fundraising activities are aimed both to support the members in their fundraising efforts and raise funds for ensuring the organisation can carry out its statutory objectives as mandated by the members.
Check out the overview of how we currently support our members in their fundraising efforts: Fundraising support for members
2024
[edit]In 2024, we launched an initiative to support Wikimedia affiliates in Europe with accessing European Union funding. This effort was driven by members’ requests to explore possibilities within the EU funding framework.
Our initial focus is on the Erasmus+ programme, where we offer tailored advice and guidance to those interested in applying for funding.
2025
[edit]In 2025, we will build on our EU funding initiative by expanding it to include new programmes, such as the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme and Horizon Europe. Stay tuned!
Financial transparency
[edit]Wikimedia Europe is committed to rely on steady, diversified and ethical funding to ensure its independence, safeguard its reputation and maintain donor trust.
Check out our 2024 financial transparency report to learn more about our sources of funding.
Reports and Plans
[edit]Annual Reports and Plans
[edit]| Activity reports | Financial reports | Annual budget plans | Annual work plans |
|---|---|---|---|
General Assembly Reports
[edit]The General Assembly (GA) is the highest governing body in the organisation and is composed of member organisations with voting rights.
The GA meets once a year in Prague and once online.
| Year | GA Report |
|---|---|
| 2025 |
|
| 2024 |
|
| 2023 |
|
Information and documents
[edit]Stay updated!
[edit]You can join the following mailing lists to get updates from us:
Updates (updateswikimedia-europeeu) – this is a list of all news related to Wikimedia Europe, our meetings, organisational matters and Board activity. The people receiving those emails are both official representatives of their organisations to WMEU and other people from those organisations and groups who wish to be informed about Wikimedia Europe's internal affairs. If you or anybody else from your organisation would like to be there – let us know and we will make that happen[3][4].
Public policy list (publicpolicylistswikimediaorg) – this is a public list to share policy updates, look for experiences and perspectives in general policy and advocacy questions – both by us in Brussels and our subscribers. The subscribers are policy and advocacy experts, enthusiasts and followers from Wikimedia and other organisations, including EU institutions, media and entities we sometimes get on opposite positions in policy debates with. It has a moderate amount of traffic and serves to share a much-praised monthly digest on Brussels policy prepared by Dimi[5][6][7].
If you wish to join Wikimedia Europe or receive updates, please reach out to us at (networkwikimedia-europeeu)
Follow our blog wikimedia.brussels
Privacy and transparency
[edit]- 2024 financial transparency report
- Transparency obligations of the employer
- Privacy policy
- EU policy – strategic direction and 2030 Movement Strategy
Notes
[edit]- ↑ The 2-year Board term runs from the official incorporation of the organisation in January 2023
- ↑ Maciej resigned due to his appointment to the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
- ↑ Confidentiality level: unless the author of a message specifies differently (for example for data protection purposes), you are free to forward these messages to your colleagues, board and members of your organisation.
- ↑ People not added to the group can't post to its members.
- ↑ Confidentiality level: the list has a searchable public archive, so it is not suitable for passing on confidential information. You are free to forward these messages to anyone, within and outside your organisation.
- ↑ People not added to the list can't post to its members.
- ↑ Anybody can sign up, upon admin approval.