Resolution: Draft Movement Charter and next steps
 | This proposal has been approved by the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees. It may not be circumvented, eroded, or ignored by Wikimedia Foundation officers or staff nor local policies of any Wikimedia project. Please note that in the event of any differences in meaning or interpretation between the original English version of this content and a translation, the original English version takes precedence. |
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| This resolution was approved on July 8, 2024. |
Whereas, in March 2020 the Board of Trustees endorsed in principle the Wikimedia 2030 movement strategy recommendations, which included a recommendation to create a movement charter in service of establishing a common framework for decision-making;
Whereas, in November 2021 the Movement Charter Drafting Committee formed and began work on drafting a charter;
Whereas, following many community conversations and iterations based on feedback from movement stakeholders, the Movement Charter Drafting Committee has produced a draft Movement Charter and submitted it for ratification to individual contributors, affiliates, and the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees, during the voting period of June 25 to July 9, 2024;
Whereas, the Board recognizes that this effort has been done in the spirit of advancing the Wikimedia movement in line with the movement strategy recommendations;
Whereas, the Board has reviewed, commented, and raised issues of concern regarding the draft charter, including in the feedback published in February 2024 and May 2024;
Whereas, on June 20, 2024, the Board liaisons to the Movement Charter Drafting Committee recommended that the Board not ratify the current draft Movement Charter, because issues previously raised have not been sufficiently addressed in the final text;
Whereas, the Board liaisons have also recommended that the Foundation develop concrete, practical, and time bound next steps, based on the areas identified in the final charter text;
Whereas, the Board has reviewed and considered the feedback and perspectives offered during the Movement Charter review phase by other stakeholders, including individual contributors and affiliates, in considering a constructive path forward;
Whereas, the need for the Wikimedia movement to make progress towards the Wikimedia vision has only increased in urgency, and new challenges and opportunities require efficient and effective decision-making, alignment, and operational readiness;
Whereas, in recognition of this urgency, the Foundation’s 2024-2025 annual plan includes a commitment to work on movement governance and decision-making, which includes implementing next steps following the ratification vote on the draft Movement Charter;
Whereas, since its inception, the intent of the movement strategy process has been to bring the Wikimedia movement closer together, especially when resolving complex matters; and
Whereas, the Foundation is committed to continuing and deepening collaborative efforts when implementing the next steps in advancing the Wikimedia movement, following our values.
Now, therefore, it is:
RESOLVED, that the Board of Trustees of the Wikimedia Foundation votes not to ratify the draft Movement Charter in its current form, and instead to move forward with some of its components on a pilot basis;
RESOLVED, that further components to experiment or try on a pilot basis can be identified, or brought forward for consideration by others in the Wikimedia movement;
RESOLVED, that the Board will work with the CEO, based on the public feedback from movement stakeholders, including individual contributors and affiliates, to identify, and to create and implement a collaborative process to clarify, and pilot components of the draft Movement Charter that will advance the Wikimedia mission and movement in alignment with the strategic direction and movement strategy recommendations;
RESOLVED, that this work will take the form of a set of experiments designed in collaboration with the Wikimedia project communities and affiliates to test the feasibility of proposals identified in the draft Movement Charter related to resource distribution, technology advancement, and support of Wikimedia movement organizations;
RESOLVED, solutions for these collaborative experiments should be designed for co-ownership and build on the capabilities of the entire Wikimedia movement;
RESOLVED, given the outcomes of these and other experiments, the Board will continue to evaluate overall governance structures and proposed changes as a result of what has been learned;
RESOLVED, that the timeline for this work will involve a preparation phase (to begin immediately), an implementation phase (from January 2025 to December 2026, with the Board committed to ongoing monitoring), and an evaluation phase (to be completed by April 2027) when the Board determines the next steps; and
RESOLVED, that a proposed framework with more detailed timelines and criteria for success to evaluate the experiments’ outcomes will be published on Meta for open feedback prior to January 2025.
Votes
- Approve
- Nataliia Tymkiv (Chair), Kathy Collins (Vice Chair), Lorenzo Losa (Vice Chair), Esra'a Al Shafei, Luis Bitenourt-Emilio, Shani Evenstein Sigalov, Victoria Doronina, Dariusz Jemielniak, Raju Narisetti, Rosie Stephenson-Goodknight, Jimmy Wales
- Not approve
- Mike Peel
References
- Appendix: Initial pilot outlines for resource distribution, technology advancement, and support of Wikimedia movement organizations
- Draft Movement Charter
- Movement Charter Drafting Committee election results
- Feedback on Movement Charter drafts
- Recommendation from Board liaisons to the Movement Charter Drafting Committee (June 20, 2024)
- Resolution: Updating Movement Charter Drafting Committee Liaisons (December 6, 2023)
- Strategic Direction
- Movement Strategy recommendations
- Resolution: Movement Strategy Endorsement (March 27, 2020)
- Wikimedia Foundation 2024-2025 Annual Plan: Equity Goal