Wikimania 2025

Decolonising knowledge on Wikipedia
Language: English

The roundtable "Decolonising Knowledge on Wikipedia" aims to contribute to inclusivity in the Wikimedia projects by interrogating our practices, structures, and sources and critically highlighting power dynamics. This roundtable involves current Wikimedia projects and initiatives already focusing on decolonising knowledge, it triggers a broader discussion and collects experiences, examples and recommendations to expand and scale those practices.


Decolonising knowledge on Wikipedia requires a critical examination of our practices, structures, and sources, while actively addressing power imbalances. It is a collective and global effort that necessitates engagement from both individuals and institutions to foster a more inclusive and representative knowledge ecosystem.

This roundtable brings together ongoing Wikimedia projects and initiatives dedicated to decolonising knowledge on an international scale in Africa, South America and Europe. By facilitating discussions both onsite and online, it serves as a dynamic space for enlarging the network and exchanging ideas, methodologies, and best practices. The hybrid format facilitates participation, enabling contributors from diverse backgrounds to share their perspectives and experiences in shaping a more equitable Wikimedia landscape.

The core objective of this initiative is to enhance inclusivity across Wikimedia projects by challenging existing structures and critically evaluating the sources that shape knowledge production. Through open dialogue and collaboration, the roundtable seeks to amplify underrepresented voices, recognise marginalised histories, and promote alternative narratives that have historically been overlooked or excluded.

By engaging in this discourse, participants contribute to a growing repository of knowledge that reflects diverse cultures, identities, and experiences. The session will not only highlight existing challenges but also identify actionable strategies for fostering a more just and representative digital knowledge space.

Through collective reflection and shared learning, this initiative aspires to build sustainable frameworks for decolonising knowledge on Wikipedia. The insights gathered from this discussion will inform future approaches, offering practical recommendations and concrete steps towards a more inclusive and equitable Wikimedia movement.


What other themes or topics does your session fit into? Please choose from the list of tags below.

Campaigns, Collaboration, Affiliates

What is the experience level needed for the audience for your session?

Everyone can participate in this session

How do you plan to deliver this session? You will be asked to confirm this closer to the date in case of changes to the format.

Hybrid, with some speakers in Nairobi and others dialing in remotely

Should your session be selected for the program, do you agree to release your session and supporting materials on-wiki and on the eventyay platform under CC BY-SA 4.0?

I agree

How does your session relate to the event theme: Wikimania@20: Inclusivity. Impact. Sustainability?

Decolonising knowledge is essential to guarantee that the knowledge the Wikimedia projects promote and disseminate is truly inclusive. It interrogates our practices, structures and sources and critically highlights power dynamics. Decolonising knowledge is a shared and ongoing process which involves anyone at an international level. Furthermore, it is a topic which allows us to openly discuss and reconsider provenance and the heritage preserved and valorised by GLAMs. It is a topic which deeply contributes to the theme of "Wikimania@20: Inclusivity. Impact. Sustainability."

See also: