19/12/2024-25/12/2024

Community

• TomTom’s video celebrated OpenStreetMap’s 20th anniversary, highlighting its journey from a community-driven project, founded by Steve Coast in 2004, to one of the world’s most detailed maps. Steve Coast reflected on OSM’s evolution, its global impact on democratising mapping, and its role in empowering millions daily through open collaboration, as the video invites viewers to envision the future of mapping.
• As the year comes to an end, OpenStreetMap Utah community has spotlighted some of their key achievements of 2024.

Imports

• IVIDES.org has updated / their correspondence table between the CNEFE 2022 variables (The Brazilian National Address Register for Statistical Purposes) and the OSM labels for mapping educational POIs. This phase is part of the effort to import ► the CNEFE 2022 data, which is the result of the 2022 Brazilian Demographic Census and had its revised version released in 2024.

OpenStreetMap Foundation

• OpenStreetMap has been selected as one of the 10 beneficiaries of Proton’s 2024 Lifetime Account Charity Fundraiser.
• The OpenStreetMap Foundation has been awarded a 384,000 EUR service agreement by the Sovereign Tech Fund, supporting the modernisation of OpenStreetMap’s core software over the next two years. The funding will enhance code standards, improve documentation, and create new roles, including a Core Software Development Facilitator, to strengthen the platform’s infrastructure and community contributions.

Events

• SotM Latam 2024 was held from 6 to 8 December and many of the participants have shared their views on the event.

OSM research

• Researchers have developed the GURS dataset (Global Urban and Rural Settlements) at a 100 m resolution for 2000–2020, using OpenStreetMap data to classify urban and rural settlements worldwide. OSM’s ‘place’ feature provided essential labels for identifying settlement types, showcasing its critical role in creating accurate dynamic maps for global urban-rural studies.
• Raquel Dezidério has blogged /, in her diary, about two studies presented at the VII Geotechnologies’ Journey of the State of Rio de Janeiro, which used collaborative data from OpenStreetMap in researching high density urban areas in the City of Rio de Janeiro (Brazil). One of the studies was aimed at identifying public areas and the other at classifying images to detect smaller targets, such as rooftops and water tanks. Both extended abstracts can be accessed in the e-book of the event.

Maps

• Hywelm has built [CY] an OpenStreetMap-based interactive [CY]► map that shows the percentage of households with dependent children where all adults can speak Welsh, based on the 2021 Census data.
• Eugene Alvin Villar has created the classic 15-puzzle game featuring standard OpenStreetMap tiles as the sliding pieces. You can choose from 20 different map locations to play.

OSM in action

• Simon Poole noted that Niantic funds the Linux Foundation’s Overture Maps initiative but has not directly supported OpenStreetMap. Nevertheless the story about Pokémon Go helping a stranded group after Google Maps failed them is positive press for OSM.

Open Data

• Amanda McCann revealed that WaterwayMap now includes a first attempt at data export. This is updated daily and compressed into a 6.5 GB CSV file. The data is extremely detailed, but difficult to work with in some GIS software; feedback on preferred formats is welcome.

Software

• Organic Maps has celebrated its 4th anniversary, reflecting on its growth to nearly 3 million users globally, while remaining a privacy-focused, open-source alternative to proprietary map services. Launched during Christmas 2020 as a response to the decline of MAPS.ME, Organic Maps continues to thrive with no marketing spend, relying solely on community contributions and organic growth.
• The community is questioning whether the SCEE StreetComplete fork has been discontinued, as development has slowed significantly due to the lead maintainer’s limited availability, prompting discussions about its future and potential contributions from others.
• The Prototype Fund has funded OSM2World in its 16th round, supporting a roadmap focused on integrating 3D model generation into applications, introducing features including 3D tile generation in glTF and Cesium.js-compatible formats, customisable assets, modular architecture, and enhanced map styling. These improvements aim to simplify the tool’s use for developers and encourage its integration across diverse platforms.
• The yearly wrap-up of GNOME Maps highlighted significant advancements made in 2024, including client-side vector tile rendering with features like dark mode support, clickable POI icons, and localised labels. Other updates include UI improvements using modern libadwaita widgets, an enhanced OSM POI editing dialogue, and integration of public transit routing through Transitous with future updates expected for improved performance.
• Andreas Gruber is developing touring.studio, an iOS travel guide app powered by OpenStreetMap data.

Programming

• ^[1] Pascal Neis first conducted a study that identified regions (locations) in Germany that still had potential for more detailed OSM mapping in 2010. In 2016 Pascal extended the analysis to the whole world. He has recalculated the analysis as at 7 December 2024 and published the results on his website: ‘Unmapped Places of OpenStreetMap‘.
• Dmytro Lapko, a 17-year-old programmer from Kyiv, Ukraine, has developed a model of an autonomous navigation system for UAVs that uses OpenStreetMap data and laser rangefinders to map and navigate urban environments without relying on GNSS or internet connectivity, making it resistant to electronic warfare.
• SB-AI-Lab has developed ► RIDE, a Python library designed to perform shortest path calculations. The library includes built-in functionality for calculating routes directly from OSM data.

Releases

• Bryan Housel announced the release of Rapid v2.5, which comes with a boost in performance thanks to the upgrade of its rendering engine, Pixi, to version 8. This version also introduced a new kerb validator and added two new datasets: Overture places, containing over 50 million POIs, and Open Map Data footways, currently only available in 5 US cities.
• GeoTools 31.5 has introduced improvements including simplified feature collection handling, enhanced styling APIs, and extended support for raster data formats, providing developers with a more efficient tool for geospatial data management in Java-based applications.
• Kelsey Taylor shared the new release of Stamen Location Service, which shows land cover at zoom level 1. You can find it on AWS.

OSM in the media

• GeoGuessr user rainbolt showed how he uses Overpass queries to help him find the location used for an album cover photograph.
• wwwhatsnew.com highlighted ► WaterwayMap for its visually striking and interactive design, which uses OpenStreetMap data to represent rivers with widths based on tributary contributions, colour-coded systems for clarity, and tools to explore watershed and water flow dynamics, offering valuable insights for education and environmental awareness.
• EditorDavid has published a summary, on Slashdot, detailing the recent extended outage of OpenStreetMap.

Other “geo” things

• UNICEF’s Frontier Data Lab, in partnership with Thinking Machines, has developed Geowrangler, an open-source tool that simplifies geospatial data preparation by automating tasks like feature extraction from OpenStreetMap and satellite data. This innovation has enabled applications such as mapping internet connectivity for schools, estimating vaccination coverage, and improving air quality monitoring, significantly enhancing the efficiency of humanitarian projects.
• NASA highlighted the use of Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) data for tsunami detection, employing ionospheric ionisation waves caused by undersea earthquakes. This innovative method utilises GNSS signals to monitor atmospheric disturbances, offering a promising early warning system for coastal populations.

Upcoming Events

Where	What	Online	When	Country
Hamburg	OSM@38C3		2024-12-27 – 2024-12-30
Mathavaram	Chennai Mapping Meetup		2024-12-28
Montrouge	Réunion des contributeurs de Montrouge et du Sud de Paris		2025-01-02
	OSMF Engineering Working Group meeting		2025-01-03
Moers	Community-Hackday vom 3. – 5. Januar 2024 im JuNo, Moers Repelen		2025-01-03 – 2025-01-05
	Missing Maps London: (Online) Mapathon [eng]		2025-01-07
San Jose	South Bay Map Night	✓	2025-01-08
Stuttgart	Stuttgarter OpenStreetMap-Treffen		2025-01-08
	iD Community Chat		2025-01-08
Salt Lake City	OSM Utah Monthly Map Night		2025-01-09
Lorain County	OpenStreetMap Midwest Meetup	✓	2025-01-09
København	OSMmapperCPH		2025-01-12
Chambéry	Mapathon en ligne saison 24/25 CartONG		2025-01-13
中正區	OpenStreetMap x Wikidata Taipei #72		2025-01-13

Note:
If you like to see your event here, please put it into the OSM calendar. Only data which is there, will appear in weeklyOSM.

This weeklyOSM was produced by MatthiasMatthias, Raquel Dezidério Souto, Strubbl, TheSwavu, YoViajo, barefootstache, derFred, mcliquid.
We welcome link suggestions for the next issue via this form and look forward to your contributions.

The remote terrains, limited public transport options, expensive private travel and unpredictable climatic conditions make travelling to the Northeast a challenge. Although these factors have helped preserve the region’s natural habitats and diversity; making it a biodiversity hotspot and a dream destination for visit. When both of us learnt of this possibility to explore Dehing Patkai National Park (DPNP) under Wiki Loves Butterfly (WLB) Project run by the very own Wiki Butterfly lady Ananya Mondal we grabbed the opportunity. 

The Beginning: Embracing the Challenge 

Dehing Patkai National Park (232 Sq Km) is part of the Dehing Patkai landscape (575 Sq Km), which is the largest and only remaining stretch of lowland rainforests in India. These Rainforests are by the foothills of Himalayas called as “Patkai” and have Dehing River, (one of the largest tributaries of Brahmaputra) flowing by the foothills, therefore get the name, Dehing Patkai. 

Two three months before the trip we started with our ground work to know this place better. We spoke to friends, looked up on the internet; made more friends online, gathered every little bit of information from them, prepared our butterfly checklist and wishlist, found a local guide, booked our tickets, paid the token advance and waited for the day to begin our travel. 

Day 1: From Guwahati to Rani

Finally, the day arrived, we took early morning flights on 25^th September 2024 to reach Guwahati from where our adventure together began. First on the list was visiting Rani, a local butterfly hotspot very close to the airport. We spent a couple of hours here and were lucky to capture quite a few butterflies, including some lifers for both of us. 

Train Journey to Tinsukhiya: A Wet Welcome 

Happy and content with the day, we packed up and took the evening train to Tinsukhiya. This was where Dehing Patkai National Park is and we were going to spend coming 5 days. A lashing rain welcomed us on the railway station. 

Arrival at Naharkatiya: Meeting Our Guide

Our plan to take public transport outside for reaching our homestay in Naharkatiya from here went on hold. Killing time on the railway station we heard the announcements about the right time of a local train. Quickly we approached the enquiry counter, checked if there is any train going to Naharkatiya and there it was. We confirmed with our guide once and boarded this around 7 am. The local train took an hour and half to reach Naharkatiya. The rain was now reduced to a drizzle. Debojit dada picked us up and in 15 minutes we reached his home, our home stay. 

Dehing Patkai: The Jungle Adventure Begins

After a quick fresh up and breakfast we were ready for the adventures of the day. First, we hitched a ride on sand truck to arrive at Dehing Patkai. Standing on top of truck we spotted the entrance gate from a distance. It looked just so welcoming to us. A step inside the gate and looking at the towering Hollong trees (this is also state tree of Assam) we knew exactly why these lowland rain forests are called the “Amazon of the East”. 

A Birdwing and a Red Helen butterfly split both of us into two directions. The butterflies flew away and we both followed the guide on our trail for the day. We must have barely walked for 5 minutes when the nice cool atmosphere became wet. It started pouring heavily. We spent rest of the day hoping that rains might stop at any moment. 

Another happy realization came our way: why this is a rain forest, once it starts raining there is no stopping. We could still sense the richness of the habitat as in-between rains we got to spot forester, bushbrown sp, red eyes, archdukes and Jungle Glory etc. It wasn’t the right day to explore the habitat fully. 

Day 2: Sunshine and Butterfly Bonanza

Day two brought sunny weather and the best butterfly sightings. Like previous day, we hitch hiked another truck experiencing a ride straight from the amusement park. We were riding on back of a truck observing the moving jungle and flying birds, butterflies and branches coming close to our head making us duck down right in time.  Some filmy songs automatically started coming out of both of us and we had the best time balancing ourselves, giggling and laughing out loud at the same time. 

The day was filled with great butterfly activity, we could not move around much as at one spot we got just so many butterflies giving us good photo shoots. We were especially happy with the crow species. Unless you get the upper-side, its difficult to identify then and here they were inviting us to take photographs giving both the upper and underside. Also, the chocolate royals here gave us a chocolaty treat, there were just so many of them, few decided to hitch hike on our shoulder, head, camera etc. 

The Rain Gods: Dehing Patkai’s Eternal Downpour

The following three days again the rain Gods kept reminding us that we are in Dehing Patkai, the lowland rain forests. Bowing to them, taking them on our head, face and shoulders we managed to capture few more butterflies from our wish list. Overall, in 5 days, we documented over 135 species of butterflies from Jeypore Rain Forest, Saraipong Range and Jokai (this is a reserve forest and not part of DPNP) 

The Encounters: Connections Beyond Butterflies 

In between butterflying we feel lucky to having met Satyendra Dutta at his residence one evening. In our preliminary research about this area, his butterfly posts kept our adrenaline and resolve high to plan this trip. We not only received a warm welcome at his home but an entire tour of house with butterfly hosts and nectar plant, stories behind some exclusive captures and a lot of interesting photographs taken by Sir over the past couple of years exploring Dehing and nearby areas. While we got talking like long lost friends Ms Dutta turned out a quick delicious dinner for us. 

On our way back, one day, we also had an opportunity to meet our Guide, Debojit Dada’s family in Digboi. His parents have a small garden outside their home and here again we ran around with our camera and found a lifer, a Bush Hopper, resting quietly in their sugarcane plant. The elderly parents were quite amused to see two girls from far away land visiting Dehing Patkai for butterflies. They spoke about things that we could not fully understand due to language barrier still from the smiles and gestures, we gathered how fortunate we were on this trip. A small insect, a butterfly helps us explore and experience the rich and varied diversity our country has to offer us. 

A Dream Realized: The Future of Butterfly Conservation

Based on our short visit, we believe that conducting year-round monitoring in these areas will yield valuable photo documentation especially the early stages which are hardly documented or studied. Our photographs from the trip can be found on Wikimedia under the tag “WLB Dehing Patkai National Park” 

The trip was possible with guidance, support and funding from Wiki Love Butterfly, a digital conservation and scientific-based field documentation project aiming to improve Wikimedia’s coverage of butterflies in the North Eastern States of India. Our heartfelt thanks to Ananya Mondal for trusting us and encouraging us at every step to realise this dream to reality.

Co-authored by Ian Ramjohn

As the world grows more urbanized, urban and suburban areas provide a barrier to wildlife reliant on increasingly fragmented natural habitats while also providing new opportunities for species that can tolerate close association with humans. This fall, Brooklyn College students in Tony Wilson’s Principles of Ecology course brought their classroom content to Wikipedia to improve how the encyclopedia covers both of these interconnected topics.

“While the internet is a rich source of information, primary scientific sources are typically very dense and written in jargon that is difficult for the public to understand,” explained Wilson. “At the same time, many of the webpages, blogs and tweets that the public see on the internet are provided without attribution, creating potential confusion and discord. Wikipedia has built a unique brand associated with ‘knowledge integrity’, with an integrated network of writers and editors working to ensure that the information provided is truthful and provided without bias. ” 

At its best, Wilson explained, Wikipedia offers an invaluable service in providing accessible, user-friendly and accurate information in ecology, environmental science, and a range of other fields. 

Working as individuals and in groups, Wilson’s 21 students contributed nearly 31,000 words and more than 200 references to Wikipedia, helping raise public awareness of correlated topics such as wildlife species and their habitats, climate change, and ecological conservation. 

One trio of student editors focused their efforts on the urban evolution article, completely transforming nearly every section to outline the complex effects of factors like urban pollution, urban habitat fragmentation, and resource availability on urban evolution. 

For some species, urban environments offer a space to thrive with few predators and a ready source of food. For others, urban environments are habitats rich in prey species, with few other competitors. But urban environments are always challenging places to live, with higher temperatures (due to the urban heat island effect), higher levels of air, water and noise pollution, and greater oxidative stress. These factors create an environment where species are subject to very intense selective pressures, driving evolution in species populations that inhabit urban environments. 

As the three student editors expanded the article, they added detailed explanations of these selective pressures and highlighted examples of how species have evolved in response to them. Readers can now learn about how white-footed mice’s teeth have changed to handle the available food sources in New York City, and how raccoons have demonstrated increased behavioral flexibility and learning abilities by adapting to their urban environments. The student editors also discussed non-adaptive genetic changes in urban populations (like genetic drift) as a result of isolation and habitat fragmentation.

While some urban wildlife can use buildings, small parks, and backyards as habitat, other species depend on larger and more specialized areas. Coney Island Creek in Brooklyn is an important patch of habitat for many wildlife species that depend on wetlands. It also represents a heavily impacted and polluted area, illustrating how even wildlife habitat in cities can differ sharply from non-urban habitat.

This urban waterway is the product of centuries of human manipulation of a coastal wetland, coupled with recent efforts to restore parts of it. Three classmates, including biology major Arianna Arregui, added 4,400 words and 41 references to the Coney Island Creek Wikipedia article to enhance the coverage of its wildlife habitat, along with several of the aquatic and terrestrial species which depend on the area. Arregui’s group also added valuable information about the impacts of restoration projects, the limits of these efforts, and the many needs that still remain.

“Coney Island Creek holds significant historical and ecological value that often goes unnoticed,” explained Arregui. “With proper advocacy, meaningful changes can be made to support its restoration and inspire future ecological projects. As a native New Yorker, I’ve often felt that connecting with nature in an urban setting can be challenging, which is why Coney Island Creek resonated with my interests in urban ecology and environmental protection.” 

While urban habitat provides opportunities for some species, for most species it represents a loss of habitat and a barrier that fragments them into smaller populations with higher risks of extinction. Rapid development in Florida resulted in the loss of wildlife habitat, and fragmented what was left into smaller patches that are capable of supporting fewer species. Species in habitat fragments are more prone to extinction, and if they go extinct locally, it’s very difficult for others to recolonize these now-vacant patches of suitable habitat. The role of the Florida Wildlife Corridor – whose Wikipedia article was transformed by another group of students in Wilson’s course – is to improve the connection between Florida’s state parks, national forests, and wildlife management areas.

By expanding information about the bipartisan legislative efforts that created these corridors and the conservation benefits that they provided, the students provided readers with a more complete understanding of their history and ecological role. The student editors also highlighted the challenges faced by the network and the ways in which these kinds of networks hurt wildlife by allowing invasive species to spread between protected areas.

Thanks to the work of Wilson’s students this semester, Wikipedia now gives readers a more nuanced understanding of the way wildlife interacts with expanding urbanization – and provides critical insights into what the future may look like in a warmer and increasingly urbanized world.

Wiki Education thanks the Horne Family Foundation for their support of this work to improve Wikipedia content related to species habitat, wildlife populations, and the impact of climate change.

Interested in incorporating a Wikipedia assignment into your course? Visit teach.wikiedu.org to learn more about the free resources, digital tools, and staff support that Wiki Education offers to postsecondary instructors in the United States and Canada.

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From the parting of a mist’s ethereal cloak to the narrowing borders of a drying lake, the two winners of this year’s Wiki Loves Earth photo contest remind us of Earth’s timeless beauty and its fragility.

For more than a decade, the volunteer-organized Wiki Loves Earth has been capturing the breathtaking essence of the planet’s natural heritage. Photos of all sorts of nature, from iconic national parks to hidden gems in local green spaces, are eligible. Wiki Loves Earth’s winners fell into two categories: a “macro/close-up” category (including animals, plants, fungi) and a “landscapes” category for wider shots.

This year’s winner of the macro category captures a majestic deer emerging from a mist-shrouded forest a bit east of Rome. One of Wiki Loves Earth 2024’s judges called the deer “a scene straight out of a mystery film,” while another said that the connection between the deer and photographer Michele Illuzzi felt “supernatural.”

The equivalent winner of the landscapes category went up high to portray the scaly land that reveals Lake Burdur‘s evaporating footprint in western Turkey. A contest judge commended photographer Fatih Yılmaz’s artistry and “unusual dynamic composition” that found a balance between color and texture.  This year, Wiki Loves Earth received more than 80,000 submissions from over 3,800 participants in 56 countries — the highest number of countries ever in the contest’s history. From those, 583 were selected by local jury teams and forwarded to the international competition. You can learn more about Wiki Loves Earth and its full rules on its website. Check out the nineteen other winners below.

Landscapes

Photo by Maksat Bisengaziyev/Максат79, CC BY-SA 4.0

Second place (landscapes): The Ustyurt Nature Reserve in the far southwestern portion of Kazakhstan supports a wide variety of fauna across its varied landscapes, which range widely in elevation. It’s a bit larger than the country of Mauritius. Photographer Maksat Bisengaziyev framed this view of a few of the reserve’s many rock formations so that there would be a diagonal line running from the bottom left to the top right. One judge noted that this technique “created depth without compromising too much of the objects’ sharpness.”

Photo by İsmail Daşgeldi/Ismailtasgeldi, CC BY-SA 4.0

Third place (landscapes): The Wiki Loves Earth judges loved İsmail Daşgeldi’s composition and sense of scale in this photo. A viewer’s eye starts at the top of the enormous and looming mountains. Their true size is slowly revealed as the eye follows the winding road to Yaylalar, a small Turkish village of just 43 people, at the bottom.

Photo by Maksat Bisengaziyev/Максат79, CC BY-SA 4.0

Fourth place (landscapes): At least one blogger has called this range the ‘tiramisu mountains’, and anyone who has had the Italian dessert would think it’s easy to see why. This is another Maksat Bisengaziyev photo from Kazakhstan, with this one coming from the Kyzylsai Regional Nature Park. “There is something majestic about the composition,” one contest judge saw. “The low light brings out the structure in the surface really well without tinting the color on the stone too much.”

Photo by İsmail Daşgeldi/Ismailtasgeld, CC BY-SA 4.0

Fifth place (landscapes): İsmail Daşgeldi’s sense of scale was on display in this photo, which backdrops the Hürmetçi Marshes with Mount Erciyes on a mid-April morning. But what puts this image over the top is the lonely animal near the center, pausing for a moment to get a drink.

Photo by Missoni Francesco/Scosse, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sixth place (landscapes): Missoni Francesco’s photo of a glacial lake in extreme northeastern Italy brings chills, and not just for the temperature. Wiki Loves Earth’s judges loved the innovative use of the lake’s reflections and the mist swirling around the mountain peaks. “Such deep blues, and in so many shades,” they added.

Photo by Marat Nadjibaev, CC BY-SA 4.0

Seventh place (landscapes): The first thing you are likely to notice in this shot of Kyrgyzstan’s Madygen Formation are the colors, resulting from lakes and rivers running their way to a nearby ocean millions of years ago. One contest judge thought that Marat Nadjibaev’s photo “truly makes one appreciate the Earth’s many unseen wonders,” while another opined that the cloudy day helped ensure that a blue sky did not detract from the rock’s colors.

Photo by Turan Reis/Turreis10700, CC BY-SA 4.0

Eighth place (landscapes): On this crisp November morning, Turan Reis got out of bed early to capture a moment in time at Karagöl-Sahara National Park in northeastern Turkey. They discovered morning mist drifting through vibrant autumn trees, with a late-year sun creating lengthy rays of light and deep shadows across a few rolling hills.

Photo by Skander Zarrad, CC BY-SA 4.0

Ninth place (landscapes): Like something out of a Bond film, a fish trap provides the frame for Skander Zarrad’s photo of a fisherman returning at daybreak to sell their catch. This scene was found in Tunisia’s Kerkennah Islands.

Photo by Ekrem Kalkan/Kecags, CC BY-SA 4.0

Tenth place (landscapes): Wiki Loves Earth’s judges commended the “fantastic perspective” of this top-down shot of Turkey’s Yedigöller National Park, which includes a wide variety of trees in an array of autumnal colors. They also loved how the viewers would be drawn through the photo by the narrow road’s meandering path.

Macro/close-ups

Photo by Lukáš Kött/Luckhy86, CC BY-SA 4.0

Second place (macro): It’s a tender moment between parent and child: this Eurasian hoopoe prepares to feed its hungry offspring with a recently captured bug. Lukáš Kött took this visual poetry in South Moravia, located in the southern Czech Republic near its border with Austria. “Not only full of action, but educational too,” said one Wiki Loves Earth judge. Another photo from Lukáš Kött took tenth place in the macro category.

Photo by Mehmet Karaca/Mkrc85, CC BY-SA 4.0

Third place (macro): Mehmet Karaca’s fascinating image of two conehead mantises in Turkey’s Kapıçam Nature Park lends itself to all manner of personification. One judge who reviewed the photo found themselves humming the theme from the classic American comedy The Pink Panther. What do you see?

Photo by Lubomír Dajč, CC BY-SA 4.0

Fourth place (macro): It may look like these yellow-winged darters are taking a break from work, but they’re not old enough to fly yet. These newly hatched animals are drying out on a twig in the Czech Republic’s Žďárské vrchy protected natural area. One judge called out Lubomír Dajč’s photo for its “wonderfully crisp contours” and added that it was “oozing complementary colors”.

Photo by Anissheikh2647, CC BY-SA 4.0

Fifth place (macro): User:Anissheikh2647 helped this bonded couple of pheasant-tailed jacanas while the birds went through the difficult process of raising a chick. ” I love many aspects of this shot,” one judge said. “The color palette reinforces the composition, the sharpness of the details is just right and complements the bokeh effect, and the contrasting motion between the two birds is beautifully captured, adding levels to the image”.

Photo by Mark Kineth Casindac/Kramthenik27, CC BY-SA 4.0

Co-sixth place (macro): The first of two consecutive photos from Philippine photographer Mark Kineth Casindac, also known as User:Kramthenik27, sees these two Apodynerus flavospinosus or potter wasps hanging onto some sort of stalk in Northern Negros Natural Park. The Wiki Loves Earth judges loved the colors on display in this shot, as well as the sharpness Mark Kineth Casindac was able to obtain on the small creatures.

Photo by Mark Kineth Casindac/Kramthenik27, CC BY-SA 4.0

Co-sixth place (macro): Mark Kineth Casindac’s second shot found two leaf-cutting cuckoo bees sitting face to face in the same park. The photographer noted that these bees are endemic to the Philippines, and they can be commonly found in grassy areas. “The composition is simple and clean, but well-structured,” one contest judge noted.

Photo by Mehmet Karaca/Mkrc85, CC BY-SA 4.0

Seventh place (macro): Another photo from Mehmet Karaca, the third-place macro winner, shows that enjoying the morning sun is absolutely not limited to the human race. This baby chameleon, which is evidently no bigger than a flower, is getting a few rays in Turkey’s Kapıçam Nature Park.

Photo by Dasrath Shrestha Beejukchhen, CC BY-SA 4.0

Eighth place (macro): We do not know why this Nepalese spotted deer is in full sprint. But no matter why it got moving, photographer Dasrath Shrestha Beejukchhen ultimately benefited from the deer’s leap to get onto the path running along the right side. One judge noticed that the dots on the side of the deer were stretched—an indicator of the speed at which it was moving.

Photo by Asker Ibne Firoz, CC BY-SA 4.0

Ninth place (macro): This is not your standard nature photo. In this shot, Asker Ibne Firoz sharply captures a stationary lineated barbet chick in its nest right alongside its fast-moving mother. Wiki Loves Earth’s judges applauded the technical skill on display in this photo, with one adding that Firoz managed to take “an artistic approach” that nevertheless “retained its educational potential.” Firoz found this scene at the National Botanical Garden in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Photo by Lukáš Kött/Luckhy86, CC BY-SA 4.0

Tenth place (macro): This river kingfisher has gotten lucky today: it just caught its next meal in the Poodří Protected Landscape Area of the Czech Republic. This is Lukáš Kött’s second photo to place in Wiki Loves Earth 2024’s winners; the judges were a fan of the varied colors, including the contrasting background, and the action implied in the shot.

Volunteer-led and organized, Wiki Loves Earth asks people to venture out into nearby natural areas. The contest’s definition of a natural area is intentionally broad, which helps ensure that anyone, anywhere, is able to participate. The photographers’ submitted work is uploaded to Wikimedia Commons, a media library that holds many of the photos used on Wikipedia. All of the content within that library is freely licensed; it can be used by anyone, for any purpose, with only a few restrictions.*

If you would like to submit your own photos for Wiki Loves Earth 2025 next year, keep an eye on wikilovesearth.org for organizing information and dates. You can also see the winning images from Wiki Loves Earth’s special nominations category of human rights and environment.

———

Post by Ed Erhart, Communications Specialist, Wikimedia Foundation.

*Please be sure to follow each image’s copyright tag. All of the images above, for instance, are available under a Creative Commons CC BY-SA license—you are free to share them for any reason so long as you give credit to the photographer and release any derivative images under the same copyright license.

The post “Straight out of a mystery”: The winners of Wiki Loves Earth 2024 appeared first on Wikimedia Foundation.

12/12/2024-18/12/2024

Mapping

• The proposal to add oneway:foot=*, for marking one-way restrictions on pedestrian paths and improving data for routing in areas with controlled pedestrian movement, is open for voting until Tuesday 31 December.

Community

• Inspired by meeting someone at a conference in Ireland who teaches in Indianola, Anne-Karoline Distel decided to map the city of Indianola, Iowa, United States, on OpenStreetMap. She ended up mapping over 5000 buildings and 775 trees.
• Le_Sharkoïste has compiled a collection of OSM objects named after world-renowned music artists.
• Curious about the OSM element with the highest tag count in Belgium, M!dgard downloaded Belgium’s OSM .pbf file from Geofabrik and created a Python script to find an answer. The results were: Belgium, Brussels, the Council of the European Union, the River Meuse, the Irish Embassy, and a certain maritime beacon in the River Scheldt.
• Raquel Dezidério has posted, in her OSM user diary, a retrospective of the YouthMappers UFRJ’s activities in 2024 and thanked their partners and collaborators.

OpenStreetMap Foundation

• ^[1] On Sunday 15 December OpenStreetMap and related services went offline at approximately 04:00 UTC due to a router hardware failure affecting Internet Service Provider (ISP) servers in Amsterdam. The OSM Operations Team (one permanent and volunteers) reported on the OSM Community forum about the progress to get back online.
  • The ISP had confirmed the issue and was waiting for a replacement router shipped from California to the Amsterdam site.
  • OSM’s infrastructure includes a primary database in Amsterdam and follower databases in Dublin, synchronised through asynchronous replication. The uplink failure in Amsterdam led to a minor amount of map data being unsynced with Dublin. To avoid data loss, the Dublin database was not promoted to the primary role. Manual synchronisation over a 4G VPN was also deemed too risky, so as a precaution, OSM was placed in read-only mode to maintain data integrity.
  • In the meantime, the OSM operations were successful in moving to a new ISP for deployment in Amsterdam and Dublin, while awaiting the expedited delivery and installation of the replacement router.
  • On Tuesday 17 December, around 13:24:48 UTC, all services were back up and running again. OSM is now operating with a new IPv4 internet provider: Equinix Internet, IPv6 is also operational. The first historical changeset after this 57-hour outage was the mapping of a staircase in Lüneburg, Germany, made by KTim, using StreetComplete.
• Meta has donated 178,710 EUR to the OpenStreetMap Foundation to enhance its infrastructure and operations, support events like States of the Map, and promote collaborative mapping initiatives.

Events

• Frederik Ramm has announced that the next Karlsruhe Hack Weekend is scheduled for 15 and 16 February. As usual, developers will bring their own projects and discuss ideas with others.
• FOSSGIS has published the programme schedule ► for their 2025 conference.
• A lot of people have written about their experiences at SotM Asia 2024:
  • Aarogya Pandey
  • Rabina Poudyal with a second post
  • 
    Nafisa Nandini
  • Vivek Dumre
  • Sawan Shariar
  • Muhaimen Washi
  • Rojina Dhakal
  • Marzia Hossain
• Bastian Greshake Tzovaras gave a talk about citizen science and how it relates to OSM and Panoramax at the National University in Río Cuarto, Argentina on 11 December. The slides have been published under an open licence.

OSM research

• Researchers have utilised OpenStreetMap data, specifically building footprints with height tags, to validate a global urban building height model. OSM data played a key role in regions such as Brazil and China, showcasing its value in scientific research and enhancing its credibility for advanced geospatial applications.
• Do you have good examples of where community mapping and OpenStreetMap have contributed to urban climate adaptation or development planning and implementation? A coalition of open mapping advocates is looking for case studies to use as evidence in journal articles arguing for the increased use of open community mapping as an effective route in gathering accurate geospatial data and community knowledge.

Humanitarian OSM

• Gendy54 announced , on the OSM France forum, that there is a humanitarian mapping project in response to Cyclone Chido, which recently impacted Mayotte, a French overseas territory off the southeastern coast of Africa.

Maps

• ButterflyOfFire wrote about a geoportal for the tourism sector in Algeria. You can watch this video, in French, to learn more about the project.
• Wolfmond has developed Fedikarte, a shared interactive map where Fediverse users can self-identify their location data.
• geoObserver reported ► on Amanda McCann’s WaterwayMap. This successful global watershed interactive map uses OpenStreetMap data as a basis and provides visualisations of the structures and courses of rivers worldwide.

Open Data

• Trufi Association mentions that their public transport data (GTFS) generated from OSM has passed the rigorous Mobility Database tests.

Software

• Transform Transport has released its ’15 min City Score Toolkit’ and the results can be accessed through an interactive map, which shows the advantages of the tool in the optimisation of proximity services analysis, or with the web map displayed on PTV.
• Bastian Greshake Tzovaras has been working on creating a Docker-based version of Amanda McCann’s Mapping party before–after tool. The goal is to allow people to create before/after comparison maps, without having to install all dependencies by hand.
• Thibault Molleman learnt that the OpenStreetMap Router Project has a debug layer and it can be viewed by mode, for example a car.

Programming

• Jeremy Keith discussed progressively enhancing the maps on ‘The Session’ (a community website dedicated to Irish traditional music) by leveraging the Cache API and service workers to switch between lightweight bitmap map tiles and more detailed vector tiles from OpenFreeMap, while maintaining performance and flexibility by caching JavaScript off-thread.
• Jin Igarashi has added a new measure control to maplibre-gl-terradraw. You can add it to MapLibre with only one line of code and there is a demo on the MapLibre GL Terra Draw website. It is licensed under the CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 International.
• Romika Thapa is working on a project that focuses on creating an interactive OpenStreetMap-based web application that integrates dynamic mapping, visualisation, and data interactivity. This interactive web app, built with Leaflet, offers the ability to visualise geographical layers, including districts, municipalities, and states, perform student location searches by name, integrate real-time weather data into map pop-ups, and display nearby schools using custom map markers.
• Miles Alan has built Mobroute, an open-source public transportation trip planner that can directly ingest GTFS data from the Mobility Database.
• Ellen Poe has developed Farebox, a Rust-based implementation of the RAPTOR algorithm tailored for multi-criteria journey planning on public transit networks. Designed to operate efficiently on memory-constrained devices, Farebox is built on top of Valhalla, an open-source routing engine that leverages OpenStreetMap data.

Releases

• A new version of MapLibre Android with Vulkan Support was released on 12 December. You can get the package android-sdk-vulkan 11.7.0 from the maven central repository.
• HeiGIT has celebrated the release of openrouteservice version 9.0.0. This update featured several integral changes for users that run their own openrouteservice instance.

OSM in the media

• This feature from Die Sendung mit der Maus explored how traffic light systems are controlled, highlighting Cologne’s use of OpenStreetMap for monitoring and decision-making in coordination with traffic management centres.
• Newsweek (as usual) has utilised an OpenStreetMap-based interactive map to illustrate the range of the Russian tactical nuclear weapons recently deployed in Belarus.

Other “geo” things

• Ryan Abernathey has published the book Earth and Environmental Data Science. The content is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 International.
• Framasoft, which maintains ► the Framacarte and many other interesting projects, is celebrating 20 years (just like OpenStreetMap). We wish you a long life.
• nordmagazin reported > on an incident where the Altenpleen Fire Department in Germany was unable to reach the site of an emergency due to inaccurate data on Google Maps. Despite repeated requests from local authorities over the past five years, Google has yet to update its maps to reflect these changes.
• Caitlin Dempsey blogged on the subject of ‘Mapping Methane: the Launch of MethaneSAT and the Limitations of Satellite Data’, discussing the advantages and limitations of using hyper-spectral images to acquire data about methane emissions.
• Overture Maps has released a new update featuring 500 GB of monthly refreshed global geospatial datasets. Mark Litwintschik took a look at what it takes to join the various datasets together.

Upcoming Events

Where	What	Online	When	Country
Jevíčko	2. jevíčský mapathon		2024-12-20
	OSMF Engineering Working Group meeting		2024-12-20
gmina Krośniewice	Świąteczne mapowanie		2024-12-20
Bengaluru	OSM Bengaluru Mapping Party		2024-12-21
Hamburg	OSM@38C3		2024-12-27 – 2024-12-30
Düsseldorf	Düsseldorfer OpenStreetMap-Treffen (online)		2024-12-27
	OSMF Engineering Working Group meeting		2025-01-03
Moers	Community-Hackday vom 3. – 5. Januar 2024 im JuNo, Moers Repelen		2025-01-03 – 2025-01-05

Note:
If you like to see your event here, please put it into the OSM calendar. Only data which is there, will appear in weeklyOSM.

This weeklyOSM was produced by Grass-snake, MatthiasMatthias, PierZen, Raquel Dezidério Souto, Strubbl, TheSwavu, barefootstache, derFred, kabarmaz, mcliquid.
We welcome link suggestions for the next issue via this form and look forward to your contributions.

(Screenshot of the landing page https://adicita.gimpscape.or.id/)

From October to November 2024, Creative Commons Indonesia and Gimpscape ID (Open Source Community), supported by the Komunitas Guru Belajar Nusantara (KGBN) and SEAMEO SEAMOLEC, organized Kontes Ilustrasi Bahan Ajar.
The contest aimed to support educators in creating engaging and accessible digital teaching materials. By producing open-licensed illustration assets, educators now have more visual options that can be freely used without worrying about copyright issues.

This contest marked the third competition held by CCID and Gimpscape ID Community, continuing the two previous contests: the Infographic Design Contest in 2022 and the Adaptation Works Contest in 2019. In the previous two contests, participants were required to use open-source software. This year, the main focus shifted to the work format, with participants being asked to produce works in the open SVG format to reach a wider user.

From Idea to Realization

The contest began with an in-depth survey of educators, particularly those teaching kindergarten and elementary school children. The survey aimed to understand the types of illustrations most needed in the teaching and learning process. Based on the survey feedback, participants were guided to create illustrations based on themes that are relevant, educational, and engaging for children.

Participation and Results

(Screenshot of the category in Wikimedia Commons)

A total of 16 participants, consisting of talented illustrators, contributed to this contest. Within a limited timeframe, they managed to produce outstanding works. A total of 240 illustrations were uploaded to Wikimedia Commons. All illustrations are licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, allowing users to use and distribute the illustrations as long as they attribute the original creators. Furthermore, this teaching material illustration work will be recommended for participants of the Open Learning Resources (OER) Online Training to be used in creating digital teaching materials.

Responses from Participants and Judges

The winners were announced on November 10, 2024, coinciding with Indonesia’s Heroes’ Day. This timing was chosen to highlight that the participants are heroes for educators. Sarmina, one of the judges, noted that these illustrations are highly beneficial for teachers, especially in online classes, as they support the delivery of meaningful material. She also emphasized the SVG format’s ease of adaptation and safety for use, being free and open, making the contest’s outputs invaluable in the digital era.

Here are some responses from participants involved in the Kontes Ilustrasi Bahan Ajar:

• Galan, participant, a vocational high school student:
  “I joined this competition because I have experienced difficulty finding free and open illustration content.”
• Ermin, participant and first-place winner, a homemaker:
  “I joined this contest because it seemed interesting, and the illustrations created can be used for various teaching materials, modules, and presentations. While making the illustrations, my school-aged child also provided input and reviewed my work.”

Looking Ahead

The success of this contest opens up opportunities for similar activities in the future. With more collaboration between educators, illustrators, and digital platforms like Wikimedia Commons, the potential to enrich open learning resources will grow even further.

For those interested in viewing the participants’ works, all illustrations can be accessed on Wikimedia Commons under the category Category:Ilustrasi Bahan Ajar. If you have illustrations that you would like to add to support educators in creating teaching materials, your works can also be uploaded to the same category.

Let’s support inclusive education through creative works and sharing!

In late 2023, an article claimed that Wikipedia is one of the fastest websites in the USA. Flattering, right? I've been measuring web performance for over a decade, I couldn't help but wonder: How did they measure that? How do you know that Wikipedia is one of the fastest websites? The article does not say anything on how they did measure it.

I went to the Web Performance Slack channel (yes, there's a dedicated place where web performance geeks hang out). I asked the question:

“Has anyone seen the data or the actual “study” done by DigitalSilk about the fastest loading US websites? https://www.technewsworld.com/story/craigslist-wikipedia-zillow-top-list-of-fastest-us-websites-178713.html - I can only find references to it and a screenshot, nothing else?”

Not providing references? That's not Wikipedia! We're all about citations and verifiable sources. No one on the Slack channel knew anything about how the test was run. But then, one of the channel members took action: Stoyan Stefanov emailed the journalist and actually got an answer!

Methodology
The most visited websites based on web traffic were ran through Google's PageSpeed Insights tool, to find out how long it takes for each site to load in full on average“

So, while it's flattering to see Wikipedia crowned as one of the fastest websites based on Google's PageSpeed Insights tool, I couldn't help but feel a tricked. They seemed to rely on the onload metric. That's a metric that, in the web performance world was regarded as old and not correlating to user experience since 2013.

Understanding the limitations using the onload metric, let’s shift our focus to modern metrics that better reflect real-world user experiences: Google Web Vitals

Google Web Vitals

Google Web Vitals is Google's initiative to focus on the metrics that matter to users and also affects Googles core ranking system. Unlike the old-school onload time, Google Web Vitals better measure aspects of real world user experience.

The core metrics at the moment are three metrics:

• Large Contentful Paint (LCP) - when in time is the largest element painted on the users screen. For Wikipedia that is very often a paragraph, but sometimes its an image element or a heading.
• Interaction To Next Paint (INP) - measure the responsiveness of page, meaning that a page responds quickly to user interactions. For Wikipedia the responsiveness can be slow depending on the amount of JavaScript we ship, event listeners or click events.
• Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) - measure the visual stability of the page. That means it measures if content is moved around. In the Wikipedia case this means when campaigns runs and we move the content of Wikipedia.

Google also have two other web vitals, two metrics that are important for the user experience but not listed as core:

• Time To First Byte (TTFB) - measure the time between the request for a resource and when the first byte of a response begins to arrive. For Wikipedia TTFB depends on where the users are in the world and how far it is to the closest data center.
• First Contentful Paint (FCP) - measure the time from when the user first navigated to the page to when any part of the page's text/images painted on the screen. For Wikipedia this is often text.

Google pay special attention to the 75th percentile of those metrics. It was chosen because "First, the percentile should ensure that a majority of visits to a page or site experienced the target level of performance. Second, the value at the chosen percentile shouldn't be overly impacted by outliers.". But what does the 75 percentile mean for us at Wikipedia?

The 75th percentile at Wikipedia

Now let’s put the 75th percentile into perspective by applying it to Wikipedia’s vast global audience.

Imagine that there were 100 people visiting Wikipedia. Each person got a different user experience because of their device, the internet connection and how we build Wikipedia. For some users the experience will be really fast, for some it will be slower.

The 75th percentile focus on the worst experience of the best 75%. If you take all 100 users and then sort the experience from fastest to slowest, the 75th experience is where you draw the line. This means that 75% of the users had a better or equal experience and 25% had a worse one. So, how many users are in that 25% for us? We measure unique devices and not users so lets use that.

Well, for Wikipedia, those 100 users are actually 1,5 billion unique devices per month and 24 billion page views.

That means if we look at the 75 percentile and we see that a metric move we know that at least 6 billion page views per month ( 24 billion × 0.25) is affected. And 375 million unique devices (1.5 billion × 0.25).

That is many devices. Suppose we have a regression of just 100 milliseconds in the 75th percentile. That is at least 375 million devices are experiencing this delay. Collectively, those users are waiting an extra 434 days. Yes, over a year of extra wait time for the users with the worst experience because of a (tiny) 100 ms change.

Is the English Wikipedia the fastest website in the USA according to Google Web Vitals?

With the metrics Google collects from different web sites, you can compare different sites with each other! The metrics are available per domain (not user country), so we can not compare if the English Wikipedia is one of the fastest web sites in the USA, but we can compare the English Wikipedia against other web entities with users all around the world.

However before we do that, I want to point out that "Is the English Wikipedia fastest website in USA according to Google Web Vitals?" is a very exclusionary question to ask since:

• The English Wikipedia is used in more places than the USA
• There are many Wikipedias for other languages out there and we should not only focus on the English Wikipedia. We need to make sure that everyone independent of language has the same user experience.

Looking just at "Are we fast in the USA" we leave out a big part of the world. So today we gonna look at the English Wikipedia compared to other web sites and then also look at Wikipedias all around the world to see what kind of user experience all users have.

But first let's talk about how Google also categorises these experiences as good, needs improvement, or poor by setting specific limits for each metric. With Googles definitions we can see how many of our users have different kinds of experiences. In the data I will show, green means good, needs improvement yellow and red means bad/poor experience.

We collect all data that is available through the Chrome User Experience API and you can see that in our Chrome User Experience dashboard. There's a lot of metrics, so I will focus on just the Largest Contentful Paint today.

First let's look at the actual 75 percentile Largest Contentful Paint. We compare against a couple of other web sites. Lower numbers are better. Green is good. We will start to look at the numbers for mobile.

Mobile

This graph highlights that Wikipedia's mobile LCP performance is nearly as fast as Google's, which is quite remarkable!

We can also look at how many of our users have a slow/bad experience.

Wow we can see that we have less users in percentage with a bad experience than the rest of the sites. However the graph shows a small percentage of mobile users experiencing suboptimal LCP. For a website of Wikipedia's scale, this small percentage translates into millions of users, we need to be even better!

I wonder if it's the same for desktop users? Lets look at the 75 percentile again.

Desktop

Again we can see that Wikipedia is almost the fastest, outperforming many major websites! We seem to be fast on both mobile and desktop.

Yes we are really fast! Can we open the champagne and celebrate?

Are we the fastest site known to human kind?

Well I would take it a little easy here before we start to brag. Do you remember how we calculated how many users are left out when we use the 75 percentile? I would be careful with a web site with so many users. I would say that: "The English Wikipedia is really fast compared to other web pages looking at the Largest Contentful Paint at the 75% percentile for Chrome users that Google collects metrics from".

Another way of looking at the data we get from Google is to see how many users have a bad experience using Wikipedia. By taking the ones that need improvement and poor experience, we can see how many users in percentage we need to move to having a good experience.

First let's look at Largest Contentful Paint again for desktop users. This time we look at the number of users in percentage that have a non good experience per wiki.

And then we look at the same for mobile.

We can see that on desktop and mobile we have Wikipedias where we as developers have work to do to give more users a good experience.

As a last example I want to share the interaction to next paint data for mobile. This is interesting because here JavaScript comes into play and there are many things we can do on our side to give the user a better experience.

We see that for almost every Wikipedia, 5% of the users have a not so good user experience.

Summary

Wikipedia's performance story is one of scale and precision. By focusing on Google Web Vitals, we've seen how milliseconds of delay can impact millions of users. Metrics like Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) and Interaction to Next Paint (INP) can provide valuable insights into real-world user experiences, guiding us to optimize for both mobile and desktop users.

With billions of page views monthly, even the smallest regressions in performance ripple across the globe. Yet, Wikipedia stands as a benchmark of speed in the US, rivaling even the likes of Google. This achievement underscores the importance of continuous monitoring, fine-tuning, and maintaining a user-first perspective in web development.

As we celebrate, we also need to acknowledge the challenges. Moving the needle for those users with "non-good" experiences remains our mission. By using data and ongoing analysis, we can ensure that Wikipedia stays fast, accessible, and enjoyable for everyone, everywhere.

An increasing number of volunteers became the target of SLAPPs, particularly due to the widespread reach of Wikipedia. In the last ten years, more than a half of the reported SLAPP cases involving Wikipedians have taken place in Europe.

SLAPPs is an acronym, which stands for Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation, used to refer to lawsuits that are not initiated to genuinely assert a right, but to intimidate and silence critics. In such cases, plaintiffs are often powerful natural or legal persons who abuse their position and power, and ultimately also the legal system, to restrict the exercise of freedom of expression of journalists, activists, whistleblowers, artists, trade unions and so on. The negative consequences on the public debate and the right of the public to receive information, opinions and ideas in order to meaningfully participate in the democratic life are blatant. In other words, SLAPPs are a serious threat to fundamental rights and democracy. Unfortunately, this phenomenon has increasingly affected Wikipedians: one could think of the recent lawsuits started in Germany, Portugal or Estonia. Wikimedia Europe has since 2023 joined CASE, i.e. the Coalition Against SLAPPs in Europe, which has been actively advocating for the adoption of the anti-SLAPP Directive and yearly publishes a report identifying SLAPP cases and relevant trends.

From the recently released CASE 2024 SLAPPs Report analysing the situation in Europe between 2010 and 2023, it clearly emerges a growing trend of this vexatious form of lawsuits: in 2023 there have been 166 new cases and a total number of 1049 lawsuits has been reported in the period of reference (2010-2013).

Such numbers are a clear indication of how this worrisome phenomenon is far from being resolved in Europe: freedom of expression and the fundamental value of democracy cannot be taken for granted and need to be daily nurtured and protected.

The final episode of 2024, and 41st broadcast of WikiAfrica Hour, is a special edition! We are showcasing some of the African communities and individuals whose achievements over the past year have contributed to raising our voices as African Wikimedians. As a space where Africa’s Wikimedians can share their work and knowledge, and digest those learnings, WikiAfrica Hour has become “the voice” of the community. What better way to close out the year than with a celebration of those voices!

In this episode, our guest host Justice Okai-Allotey talks to some of the facilitators and community leaders of key African projects about what inspired them to found their projects. We also have explored what it takes to facilitate those projects and the challenges they’ve faced along the way. As African Wikimedians, we know about the importance of collaborations, so we also take a look at partnerships those projects have developed, both within and outside of the Wiki landscape. 

The WikiAfrica Hour In Focus segment was a video about echoes from WikiArabia and WikiIndaba 2024. 

“What is very interesting in the Wikimedia Community is collaboration. We used to collaborate with many people in the community. When we have some issues, you just have to ask for help, and somebody will come and give you a hand. “ – Fatima Oury Sow Gueye

“One thing that really worked well and helped the community sustain was the support that we had from not just only the foundation, but also the people around. So we had collaborations. And also we spoke to both people who are in wiki, and also we also spoke to people who are not in the wiki media space.” –Robert Jamal

This WikiAfrica Hour episode’s guest host is Justice Okai-Allotey ,  a digital engagement strategist and enthusiast with core skills in communications, business development, social media strategy, management, content creation and curation. He is also a  Ghanaian Wikipedian and interim Board Chair of the Wikimedia Ghana User Group, leading efforts to improve Ghanaian articles on Wikipedia.

Our guests include:

• Barakat Adegboye, Wikimedian-in-Residence for the Wiki Imagine Lagos project.
• Loubna Ait Oumasste, a teacher and a member of the communication team at the Wikimedia Morocco User Group. she prepares and presents the WikiPodcast program and contributes to organizing some projects that Wikimedia Morocco is working on
• Robert Jamal, co-founded the Fante Wikimedians Community and is an administrator on the Twi and Fante Wikipedias. Robert is also a Specialist for the Wikimedia Ghana User Group and an active volunteer within the community, advocating for open knowledge.
• Fatima Oury Sow Gueye, Co-founder of the Wikimedia Community User Group Senegal, Fatima Oury Sow Gueye is a librarian who joined the Wikimedia projects in 2020. After two years of Wiki training, first through IFLA and then AFLIA, she and her colleague Adjovi Essenam FUMEY set about organising Wikimedia events in Senegal.

Thanks to Ezin Ronny, we have a French facilitation for two guests during the episode.

Credits to people who joined us in the echoes video:

From WikiIndaba 2024:

• Reda Benkhadra: Wikimedia Morocco User Group
• Ibrahim Elaidy: Egypt Wikimedians User Group
• Mahmoud Sabir: Wikimedia Community User Group Tchad
• Ahmet Mohamed Taher: Wikimedia Community User Group Tchad
• Robert Jamal: Wikimedia Ghana User Group
• Habib M’henni: Wikimedia Tunisia User Group

From WikiArabia 2024:

• Ahmed Nagi: Egypt Wikimedians User Group and Wikimedians of the Islamic Civilization User Group
• Loubna Ait Oumasste: Wikimedia Morocco User Group
• Mohammed Amine Benloulou: Algerian Wikimedians User Group
• Salema: Wikimedia Libya Community

This WikiAfrica Hour episode aired live: check out our Website or the WikiAfrica Hour meta page to watch this or previous episodes.  All WikiAfrica Hour episodes are available on YouTube.

By Richard Nevell, Programme Manager for Wikimedia UK

In late September, Wikimedians from as far away as Malaysia gathered in Waterford in Ireland to share stories of success, challenges, and to learn from others, all with a focus on minoritised languages. The Celtic Knot Conference is a space for different communities to connect and support each other in their efforts to improve their languages’ representation online.

Back in the winter of 2023, WMUK and Wikimedia Community Ireland (WCI) began collaborating on the conference idea with a focus on the Irish language. We wanted to put together an ambitious programme of speakers with cultural events to tap into the local community. Linked to that was the planned launch of WCI’s WikiWomen Erasmus+ Project in 2024. The road to Waterford had started.

2024 was the first in-person Celtic Knot since 2019 in Cornwall, with online editions in between necessitated by Covid, so it was a special moment. Every edition of the conference has a different focus, and the idea is that it is an opportunity to boost that particular community. The conference had a celebratory feel, partly because of the WikiWomen Erasmus+ launch, and conversations flowed between engaging sessions. Each of the three days had a different theme in the programme: the past, the present, and the future of language communities.

Across the three-day conference, 150 people attended in-person or online, with 35 different language communities represented. While the core of the Celtic Knot’s focus is the Celtic family of languages – Welsh, Breton, Irish, Gaelic, Manx, and Cornish – one of the conference’s strengths is the way it can connect communities. Close language groups may face similar challenges, but wider participation gives more opportunity for unexpected connections and inspiration.

The conference sessions were recorded and uploaded to Wikimedia Commons. I won’t detail the whole programme as it is difficult to pick favourites from such an excellent programme – though ‘Count von Count teaches Basque’ was the most entertaining lightning talk I have ever been to! There were particular themes that were interesting. It struck me that the programme was very 2024 in its flavour, acknowledging the importance of the Wikimedia projects to translation tools and large language models. Large language models present challenges and opportunities to Wikipedia, especially smaller language communities, so it was an important topic to discuss.

WMUK is proud of the work of the Welsh Wicipedia, with numerous successes over the years – not least of which is the ongoing partnership with the National Library of Wales. Jason Evans and Siôn Jobbins represented the Welsh Wicipedia with stories of institutional collaboration and personal editing. The feedback after the conference showed that stories of success like these inspire others, showing what can be accomplished. Advocacy for languages can be a long journey, and knowing that others have travelled down that path and you might follow, or find a different route offers hope.

The Celtic Knot is one of the major events in WMUK’s calendar, and working with WCI has been a highlight of 2024. While this particular edition of the conference is done and dusted, we are starting to look to the future and what 2025 holds and how we can continue our support of language communities and make the most of the firmly established connection between WMUK and WCI. We look forward to gathering again to discuss languages, and share even more stories of success.

The post Looking back at the 2024 Celtic Knot Conference appeared first on WMUK.

Lagos, Nigeria – November 14, 2024.

The Wiki Imagine Lagos Webinar successfully brought together journalists, tourism experts, and cultural enthusiasts to explore the role of journalism in promoting and preserving Lagos’ rich heritage. Held virtually on November 14, the event featured an engaging panel discussion, insightful presentations, and the official launch of the Wiki Imagine Lagos Writing Contest.

The session opened with a warm welcome by Dr. Isaac Olatunde, Secretary to the Wikimedia Nigeria Board of Trustees, who reiterated Wikimedia Nigeria’s commitment to preserving Lagos’ culture and history. This was followed by an overview of the Wiki Imagine Lagos Project by Barakat Adegboye, the Wikimedian-in-Residence for the Wiki Imagine Lagos project and the webinar host, who highlighted the initiative’s goal to document Lagos’ cultural landmarks, tourist sites, and festivals on Wikipedia, ensuring global visibility and accessibility.

Barakat also introduced the Wiki Imagine Lagos Writing Contest, a unique opportunity for journalists to contribute by publishing articles about Lagos’ heritage in notable media outlets. The contest, which runs until November 30, offers cash prizes of ₦500,000, ₦300,000, and ₦200,000 to the top three contributors. Participants were encouraged to use the contest’s resources and meta page for guidance.

The highlight of the webinar was a lively panel discussion moderated by Airat Abdul-rahmon, featuring renowned experts:

• Mrs. Adetoke Benson-Awoyinka, Honourable Commissioner, Lagos State Ministry of Tourism, Arts, and Culture
• Ambassador Olushola Olaniyan, Chairperson, Wikimedia Nigeria Foundation Inc.
• Pelu Awofeso, CNN/Multichoice African Journalist Awardee
• Okorie Uguru, Publisher, Africa Travel Herald
• Melvin Iteghete, Information Technologist.

The panelists shared valuable insights on topics ranging from using technology to bridge tourism gaps to the importance of reliable media coverage for underrepresented cultural sites. Notable highlights included:

Ambassador Olusola Olaniyan: The Nigerian Story on the Global Stage. Ambassador Olusola Olaniyan, a passionate advocate for documenting Nigerian heritage, highlighted the importance of preserving the narratives that define the country’s identity.

“We document what Nigerians stand for—our heritage, our languages, our people, and our traditions—to domesticate the Nigerian story in a balanced and better perspective for the world to digest,” he remarked.

Ambassador Olaniyan also shared the innovative approach of integrating QR codes into Lagos’ heritage sites. These codes, linked to Wikipedia pages, will provide visitors instant access to the history and significance of these locations. He emphasized the potential of this initiative to empower local youth, not just in Lagos but across Nigeria, and to engage Wikimedia communities worldwide in amplifying Lagos’ visibility.

Pelu Awofeso: Showcasing Lagos as a Hub of Creativity and Culture, Award-winning travel writer Pelu Awofeso lauded the initiative as a historic move towards highlighting Lagos’ cultural and historical treasures.

“This is the very first time any organization, private or public, is deliberately focusing on trying to document the cultural and historical assets of Lagos,” he said.

He noted that Lagos has always been a magnet for people, owing to its vibrancy in commerce, entertainment, and creativity. Highlighting Lagos’ unique art seasons, Awofeso said: “From October’s creative arts season to December’s entertainment boom, Lagos is alive with festivals, exhibitions, and concerts. It is a city where culture and commerce intersect seamlessly.”

Awofeso also pointed out a significant challenge: the lack of accessibility to many heritage and nature parks in Lagos. “While Lagos boasts dozens of parks and cultural sites, most people don’t know about them, and even fewer can access them. Wikimedia’s work in digital documentation can help address these gaps by shedding light on lesser-known sites and improving public awareness.”

Okorie Uguru: Media as a Catalyst for Tourism. Publisher Okorie Uguru emphasized the critical role the media has played and continues to play in promoting Lagos’ tourism.

“You can’t promote tourism without the media, as tourism products are experiences people must hear about first before considering them. For decades, the media has been at the forefront of documenting Lagos’ beaches, heritage sites, and cultural events.”

He underscored the need to digitize archival stories, as much of Lagos’ history has been preserved in print but remains inaccessible online. He called on Wikimedia to engage experienced journalists and tap into their wealth of unpublished work to enrich the digital documentation of Lagos’ tourism assets.

Melvin Iteghete: Bridging Gaps Through Technology. Tech expert Melvin Iteghete highlighted how technology has transformed the way people explore heritage.

“Platforms like Wikipedia serve as bridges, enabling people worldwide to explore lesser-known sites through digital documentation. Initiatives like this partnership between the Lagos State Government and Wikimedia User Group Nigeria are pivotal in promoting sustainable tourism development.”

Mrs. Adetoke Benson-Awoyinka: The Honourable Commissioner from the Lagos State Ministry of Tourism, Arts, and Culture praised the collaboration with Wikimedia as a strategic step in preserving Lagos’ tourist sites.

“Journalists have a medium that we do not have because journalism is everywhere and it is global. Their role in amplifying the beauty of our tourism sites is invaluable. This partnership with Wikimedia User Group Nigeria is critical for digitally preserving Lagos State’s tourist sites and ensuring that the world can access and appreciate our cultural heritage,” the Commissioner said.

The Ministry has been identifying key tourist sites and installing plaques with essential details about their history and significance. These efforts, combined with Wikimedia’s technological expertise, promise to revolutionize how Lagos’ heritage is experienced by locals and visitors alike.

The event concluded after a photo session, with closing remarks from Barakat, thanking attendees and panelists for their participation and reiterating the importance of documenting Lagos’ cultural identity. Participants were encouraged to join the writing contest and leverage their work to enrich Lagos’ representation on Wikipedia.

As Lagos continues to grow as a cultural hub, the Wiki Imagine Lagos Initiative serves as a vital platform to amplify its stories and preserve its legacy for generations to come.

You can watch the recorded Facebook live session here. For more information about the Wiki Imagine Lagos project, visit our Meta page. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and X at @wikiimaginelagos to stay tuned for our next steps.

In September, 6,000 community members from more than 180 communities cast their vote in the 2024 Wikimedia Foundation Board Elections. The elections were held to fill four community-and-affiliate-selected spots on the Foundation’s Board of Trustees. They resulted in the selection of two first-time Trustees–Maciej Artur Nadzikiewicz and Christel Steigenberger–as well as two returning Trustees–Dr. Victoria Doronina and Lorenzo Losa. The Board includes both members selected by the Wikimedia communities and board-selected members who collectively volunteer their time to provide oversight to the Wikimedia Foundation. 

The Board has now completed its due diligence review on the selected Trustees, and all have officially been appointed to the Board. We’d like to congratulate the four selected Trustees and share a bit about first-time Trustees Maciej and Christel.

“..At our last [Board] meeting on December 11, we welcomed Maciej and Christel, veteran community members who bring their experience as volunteers and community leaders, as well as their commitment to our shared mission of free knowledge. We also appointed Lorenzo and Victoria to another term and appreciate the experience and continuity they will also provide to the Board.”

– Nataliia Tymkiv, Chair of the Board of Trustees

Maciej Nadzikiewicz is an editor, organizer, and activist with extensive experience in governance within the Wikimedia movement, including his past roles as a member of the Wikimedia Poland Governance Board, an administrator of Polish Wikipedia, and as a Board member and Secretary for Wikimedia Europe. Most recently, Maciej led the core organizing team of Wikimania 2024, which took place in his home country of Poland. Outside of the Wikimedia movement, Maciej has been a member of the Working Group on Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, and Disruptive Technologies at the Polish Ministry of Digital Affairs since 2023.

“We are at a pivotal time in the evolution of the internet, and I believe it is more important than ever to ensure that the Wikimedia projects continue to be relevant in this new era. I want to bring my experience as a Wikimedian, leader, community organizer, and member of the first digital generation to guide the organization and the movement on how we can best support our users and volunteers while growing and curating knowledge on the Wikimedia projects.”

– Maciej Nadzikiewicz

Christel Steigenberger is a Wikimedia volunteer administrator, social activist, and community organizer. She started her journey as a Wikimedian in 2014 on the German-language Wikipedia, where she served as an administrator from 2015–2018. In 2023, Christel was granted administrator rights on Wikimedia Commons, where much of her volunteer work is now focused. Christel also previously worked at the Wikimedia Foundation in both Trust and Safety and community support roles. Currently, Christel is working in social work as a Social Pedagogue supporting patients with mental health issues.

“My journey in the Wikimedia movement started as a volunteer, continued as a staff member at the Wikimedia Foundation, and now as a Trustee of the Board. I find joy in contributing to this ‘best place on the internet,’ and I want to bring to the Board my focus on closing knowledge gaps, attracting and supporting contributors from around the world, and helping the Wikimedia projects to stay technologically fit and ready for the future.”

– Christel Steigenberger

Christel and Maciej have terms that will run until December 2027. Current Trustees, Dr. Victoria Doronina and Lorenzo Losa, have been reappointed to the Board for another term, which also runs through December 2027.

The Board thanks its two departing members, Dr. Dariusz Jemielniak and Rosie Stephenson-Goodknight, for their service and contributions. The next Wikimedia Foundation Board selection process will take place in 2025.

Want to know more about the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees? Check out this short informational video or visit the Board’s page on Meta-Wiki.

Today, the Wikimedia Foundation, the global nonprofit that hosts Wikipedia, announced that two new members have joined its Board of Trustees: Maciej Artur Nadzikiewicz and Christel Steigenberger. In addition, current community-and-affiliate selected Trustees Dr. Victoria Doronina and Lorenzo Losa have also been reappointed to the Board for another term. The Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees includes both community-selected volunteers and board-selected members who collectively provide governance and oversight to the Foundation.

“In this year’s Board selection process, 6000 members of the Wikimedia movement from more than 180 communities cast their vote. As a result, at our last meeting on December 11, we welcomed Maciej and Christel, veteran community members who bring their experience as volunteers and community leaders, as well as their commitment to our shared mission of free knowledge. We also appointed Lorenzo and Victoria to another term and appreciate the experience and continuity they will also provide to the Board.” – Nataliia Tymkiv, Chair of the Board of Trustees.

Maciej Nadzikiewicz is an editor, organizer, and activist with extensive experience in governance within the Wikimedia movement, including his past roles as a member of the Wikimedia Poland Governance Board, an administrator of Polish Wikipedia, and as a Board member and Secretary for Wikimedia Europe. Most recently, Maciej led the core organizing team of Wikimania 2024, which took place in his home country of Poland. Outside of the Wikimedia movement, Maciej has been a member of the Working Group on Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, and Disruptive Technologies at the Polish Ministry of Digital Affairs since 2023.

“We are at a pivotal time in the evolution of the internet, and I believe it is more important than ever to ensure that the Wikimedia projects continue to be relevant in this new era. I want to bring my experience as a Wikimedian, leader, community organizer, and member of the first digital generation to guide the organization and the movement on how we can best support our users and volunteers while growing and curating knowledge on the Wikimedia projects.” – Maciej Nadzikiewicz

Christel Steigenberger is a Wikimedia volunteer administrator, social activist, and community organizer. She started her journey as a Wikimedian in 2014 on the German-language Wikipedia, where she served as an administrator from 2015–2018. In 2023, Christel was granted administrator rights on Wikimedia Commons, where much of her volunteer work is now focused. Christel also previously worked at the Wikimedia Foundation in both Trust and Safety and community support roles. Currently, Christel is working in social work as a Social Pedagogue supporting patients with mental health issues. 

“My journey in the Wikimedia movement started as a volunteer, continued as a staff member at the Wikimedia Foundation, and now as a Trustee of the Board. I find joy in contributing to this  ‘best place on the internet,’ and I want to bring to the Board my focus on closing knowledge gaps, attracting and supporting contributors from around the world, and helping the Wikimedia projects to stay technologically fit and ready for the future.” – Christel Steigenberger

Christel and Maciej have terms that will run until December 2027. Also, as part of the selection, current Trustees, Dr. Victoria Doronina and Lorenzo Losa have been reappointed to the Board for another term, which also runs through December 2027.

The Board thanks its two departing members, Dr. Dariusz Jemielniak and Rosie Stephenson-Goodknight, for their service and contributions. The next Wikimedia Foundation Board selection process will take place in 2025.

Want to know more about the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees? Check out this short informational video or visit the Board’s page on Meta-Wiki.

The post The Wikimedia Foundation welcomes community-and-affiliate selected trustees appeared first on Wikimedia Foundation.

Wikimania is turning 20, and what better way to celebrate than by coming together in Nairobi, Kenya? This milestone anniversary promises not just a journey through two decades of gatherings but also a chance to experience the vibrant culture and innovation of East Africa for the first time in Wikimania history. Every Wikimania has its own flavor, but this one is shaping up to be extra special. 

The setting couldn’t be more fitting. Nairobi, known as the “Silicon Savannah,” is a lively city buzzing with energy and creativity. Home to a thriving tech scene, it’s the perfect place to celebrate the legacy of a forward-thinking movement. 

If you’re looking forward to Wikimania as much as we are, it’s time to start planning. Whether you’re an experienced traveler or setting off for the first time, a little prep can go a long way. So, let’s talk travel essentials and insider tips to help you make the most of this experience.

Getting There

The main gateway to Kenya is Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA), just a quick 15-minute drive from Nairobi’s city center. But it’s not your only option. For those looking to soak up Kenya’s coastal beauty first, Moi International Airport in Mombasa (MBA) is a great alternative. The national airline is Kenya Airways (KQ), which flies to all major destinations in and out of Africa. 

In case you are traveling from neighboring countries in the region, you can consider buses from Easy Coach and Tahmeed that connect Nairobi to major African cities like Kampala, Dar es Salaam, and Kigali.

Visas & Vaccines

Now, here’s some great news: Kenya has abolished visa requirements for all foreign visitors for stays up to 90 days. But all travelers, with the exception of East African citizens, are required to apply for the Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) —it’s easy to apply online and approval is fast, no embassy visit required. You do need to apply at least 72 hours before your trip. As you start the application, don’t forget to double-check that your passport is valid for at least 6 months, and once you receive your eVisa keep a copy handy.

You’ll also need to show a Yellow Fever vaccination certificate if you are traveling from an endemic region. The certificate needs to be obtained at least 10 to 15 days before departure. While you’re at it, also confirm that your routine vaccinations are up to date, including Hepatitis A, Typhoid, Tetanus, and if you’re planning wildlife activities, consider Rabies as well.

Where to Stay

Nairobi offers a wide range of accommodation options, from luxury to budget – there’s something for everyone. If you want to be close to the Wikimania action, plan to stay around the Gigiri, or Westlands areas. They check all the boxes: they are safe, well connected, and close to Wikimania.

Getting Around

There are plenty of ways to get around. For ride-hailing, apps like Uber and Little Cab are reliable and affordable, but here’s a tip: skip the economy options like Uber Chap Chap. The cars are sometimes in rough shape and the drivers might not always deliver the best experience. Instead, choose Comfort or UberX for a smoother ride. The same goes for Little Cab—stick to their ‘Comfort’ option rather than ‘economy’ for better service.

If you want to travel like a local, the boldly decorated matatus (minibuses) are a beloved staple. They’re fun to experience but can be a bit overwhelming for first-timers, especially since some routes are hotspots for pickpockets. It’s best to try them when accompanied by local Wikimedians who know the ropes.

Motorcycle taxis, or boda bodas, are a quick way to dodge Nairobi’s notorious traffic, but if you’re unfamiliar with the city, it’s better to avoid them unless you’re with someone experienced.

And finally, walking. While daytime strolls in busy areas are generally safe, avoid walking alone at night or covering long distances on foot. Nairobi is largely safe for both locals and visitors, but like any big city, certain areas require a bit more caution. Muggings and pickpocketing can happen, especially in the bustling downtown areas. It’s best to avoid Nairobi downtown and limit your movements in the Central Business District if you ever find the need to check out the city center.

Packing Tips

In August, Kenya is at its coolest and driest weather—perfect for exploring! In Nairobi, expect daytime highs of around 24°C (75°F) and cozy nighttime lows near 14°C (57°F). There’s minimal rain and about 7 glorious hours of sunshine every day. Don’t forget to pack some layers for those crisp mornings and evenings—a light jacket or a sweater will be your best friend. 

Oh, and while you’re packing, toss in an electricity adapter. Kenya uses the Type G plug, with three rectangular pins in a triangular layout. The voltage is 240V, 50Hz, so confirm that your devices are compatible. 

While Nairobi isn’t in a malaria-prone area, it’s still a good idea to pack some mosquito repellent, just in case. If you’re planning to visit other parts of Kenya, check to see where malaria is prevalent and speak with your doctor about getting malaria tablets. 

Bringing some local currency is also a smart move—perfect for buying that cute souvenir or tipping a helpful guide. If you’ve got time before your trip, swing by your bank and grab some Kenyan Shillings (KES). If that’s not an option, no worries. Let us introduce you to a local favorite: M-Pesa, Kenya’s wildly popular mobile money platform. It’s a must-have for payments, and essential to download before your trip. Major credit cards like Visa and Mastercard are accepted in larger establishments, but having some cash or an M-Pesa for smaller transactions will make things much easier. 

For more on how to make the most of your time in Kenya, read the travel guide the Wikimania 2025 Core Organizing Team has prepared for you – it’s packed with insider tips to help you dive into the local scene and make the most of your experience.

Karibu Nairobi – see you there! 

As we wrap out a transformative year, let’s celebrate the progress Codex, the design system for Wikimedia, has made. From user-centric design enhancements to foundational upgrades that empower teams and volunteers for our global user reach.

Changes and Progress that Defined our Year

This year, the Wikimedia Foundation Design System Team has had the pleasure of welcoming many new contributors, from various teams within the Foundation to volunteers from around the world.
We saw significant contributions from both designers and developers alike, which have been instrumental in advancing Codex’s capabilities. These include enhancements like internationalization system, Codex PHP, native constraint validation, and the addition of various design tokens for expanded color palette and dark mode, new components like Table, and icons.

Codex in Action: Key User-Facing Projects of 2024

This year, Codex played a pivotal role in powering transformative projects across teams, showcasing its versatility and impact:

Dark Mode in Vector and MinervaNeue

Leveraging Codex’s enhanced design tokens and CSS variable infrastructure, the Web Team delivered a seamless dark mode experience in Vector 22 and MinervaNeue, the default desktop and mobile skins of English Wikipedia and many more wiki projects, ensuring aesthetic and functional parity across modes.

Community Configuration 2.0

The Growth Team harnessed Codex components to elevate user workflows in Community Configuration 2.0, offering a more intuitive and visually engaging interface for helping communities customize wiki features to meet their unique needs.

Collaboration List
Codex’s flexibility enabled the Campaigns Team to craft an accessible and cohesive interface for the new Collaboration List feature, empowering users to track, filter, and manage shared campaigns effortlessly.

Multiblocks

Still in progress, the Multiblocks project by the CommTech Team is shaping up to allow admins to create multiple, overlapping blocks on a single user. Codex’s foundational components and responsive styles are central to its streamlined, user-friendly design.

Migration of Mismatch Finder and Special: NewLexeme from WiKit to Codex

As part of the initiative to consolidate design systems, Wikimedia Deutschland’s migration team successfully transitioned Wikit-based tools to Codex, improving maintainability and aligning them with the latest design standards.

Accessibility, Inclusion, and Usability Features

As always, the Design System Team prioritizes accessibility, inclusivity and usability in designing and developing Codex.

• Components Accessibility: Accomplished fine-grained improvements throughout the components of the library by acting on evaluation by our partner, the American Foundation for the Blind.
• Internationalization (i18n): Basic internationalization system established for full language support in MediaWiki’s use of Codex.
• Bi-directionality for Vue apps: Proper RTL support in standalone Vue applications with bi-directional Codex stylesheets.
• Native Validation Support: Simplified validation for the TextInput and TextArea components leveraging the browser’s native Constraint Validation API.
• Field Status Clarity: Status messages gained flexibility with custom slots in Field components, ensuring clarity for varied use cases.
• Support for no-JS environments: Codex provides CSS-only versions of most components, and the new Codex PHP library promises to further streamline the development of high-quality UIs that don’t rely on JS in the user’s browser.

Crafting Design Consistency by Tokens and Styling:

Codex achieved fully supporting dark mode with parity to light mode through CSS variables embedded in design tokens, empowering teams to deliver one of the biggest user-experience rollouts this year, enabling dark mode on Wikipedia and sibling projects using Vector 2022 skin.

In sequence of introducing the modes, a substantial amendment and expansion of the color palette took place, providing more intentional hues which enabled more flexibility for designers and helped address long-standing accessibility and design debt.

Progressive design refinements were made in almost all Codex components for subtle yet impactful visual cues.

New Components

• Table as highly complex component turned into splendid developer experience
• MenuButton with custom menu items and groups
• MultiselectLookup
• Tooltip
• Accordion using details semantic HTML
• Image (WIP)
• Breadcrumb (WIP)
• Toast (WIP)
• ProgressIndicator (WIP)

New Library Capabilities: Codex PHP

Spearheaded by volunteer developer Doğu Abaris, we’ve collaboratively created a standalone PHP library for Codex markup generation as another piece of the Design System – Codex PHP. This library greatly streamlines the process of building complex Codex-based UIs that don’t require JavaScript.

Development Efficiencies: Smarter Code, Faster Builds

Codex’s codebase became more maintainable and forward-looking with:

• Enhanced Modularization: ESM migration across core packages, including tokens and icons, aligned with industry standards for JavaScript ecosystems.
• Design tokens: Made available as ES6 variables.
• Table Improvements: Refactored logic in getRowHeaderScope reduced complexity while bolstering functionality.
• Tables Evolved: Server-side pagination and CSS-only pagination streamlined workflows, while empty state visuals and sorting icons made data presentation more dynamic.
• Integration of native browser validation APIs for some components to reduce friction for developers.

Documentation: Clarity Meets Precision

Documentation saw a major overhaul, emphasizing transparency and ease of onboarding:

• Streamlined Color Guidance: Top graphics updated to reflect the unified color palette.
• Interactive Token Tables: Enhanced clarity on token usage with live previews, especially for dark mode tokens.
• Simplified and improved the components’ demo pages and guidelines.
• Added search capability 
• Included new guidelines in the Codex Style Guide, such as using links and buttons, constructing forms, and content overflow.

Icons: Simplicity and Utility

The addition of numerous icons underscored Codex’s commitment to universality and usability. These lightweight, versatile assets complemented improvements in accessibility and aesthetic consistency.

What’s Next for 2025?

The groundwork laid this year positions Codex for an exciting year ahead, with version 2.0 on the horizon:

• Accelerating wide adoption of Codex and gaining user satisfaction by providing high-class accessibility, internationalization, and consistent user experience.
• Further improving responsive layouts and behaviors. 
• Greater integration of native APIs to more components.
• Expanding the component library with data-rich visualization guidelines and tools.
• Exploring ways to improve internationalization support outside of MediaWiki.

We’d like to thank once more our global volunteers and peers for their relentless focus on innovation, collaboration, and excellence. Together, we are shaping a design system that not only meets the needs of today but anticipates the challenges of tomorrow.

Looking ahead to 2025, Codex 2.0 promises even greater integration, expanded components, and tools to empower Wikimedia projects with consistent, user-centered design.