#Wikimedia - #empower the #chapters

It has been #budget time for the Wikimedia chapters. As it is centrally decided what chapters "get" and as the finances of the main organisation are not considered under equal terms, they are secondary by definition.

To prove this, a few points:

• The WMF director defined criteria for quality for the chapters
• The chapters are barred from involvement in the annual WMF fundraising
• The chapters rely on funding from the WMF AND the metrics of success do not exclude the cost of WMF related admin
• The chapters can not compete for the resources the WMF assumes its own for new endeavours
• The chapters are not represented at the office of the WMF

Many of these points have a long history and are sacred cows to some. My point is very much that there are many small things that can make the distinction less stark. It starts with an awareness that chapters support open culture and a community in a country. They would benefit from shared resources that can be made available after minor modifications of what is already there.  Our movement is not only English Wikipedia and does not only have an USA or alternatively a world view.

Thanks,

      GerardM