Global Resource Distribution Committee/Proposal
Proposal: Establishing an Experimental Global Resource Distribution Committee
[edit]Executive Summary of Proposed Changes to Resource Distribution
[edit]- By March 2025, an interim global body will be created that has responsibility and decision-making authority over the adjustment of current resource distribution structures, strategies, and standards (including oversight of Regional Fund Committees - RFCs) in connection with the Community Fund, to better fit the evolving needs of the movement. In coordination with the Wikimedia Foundation, it will have the authority to adjust current grantmaking structures to better fit the evolving needs of the movement, including modifying how regions are categorized, and establishing global or thematic funding goals.
- As a starting point, this body will comprise a diverse set of individuals with experience in grantmaking processes and project budgeting, combining regional and thematic volunteers, and affiliate and Foundation stakeholders.This body will improve the Regional Funds Committees to better serve their communities. As a first step, it will define a new process to select RFC members (currently they are mainly appointed by the Wikimedia Foundation).
- Because the Board of Trustees holds ultimate financial and fiduciary obligations, they are ultimately responsible for approving how much of the Foundation’s total budget will be made available for the Community Fund, and the Board will seek the recommendations and insights of this body for proposals. For now, the Wikimedia Foundation will continue to determine the regional distribution of this budget in consultation with the interim GRDC, with the aim to delegate this decision to the GRDC if the two-year experiment is successful.
Full Proposal
[edit]The Wikimedia Foundation will, by March 2025, establish an Interim Global Resource Distribution Committee (GRDC) tasked to set regional, thematic and other funding allocations, including principles for distributing funds between regions and regular allocations to thematic and / or ad hoc funding envelopes, and to amend current resource distribution structures, strategies, and standards (such as the Regional Funds Committees selection process) to ensure mutual accountability for funds distribution between the Foundation and communities.
Anchored in the principle of subsidiarity, this mutual accountability ensures that communities and affiliates themselves decide who is accountable for funds distribution in their respective regions, and that communities, affiliates, and the Wikimedia Foundation are jointly responsible for ensuring equitable funds distribution across the movement.
The committee will be established as a two-year learning experiment, with a plan to engage in a further community consultation once the results of this 2-year experiment are completed and shared publicly in 2027. The Committee will provide interim updates to the Board and Wikimedia communities and affiliates. The pilot will have a mid-point review in March 2026 to review this and other open questions.
Purpose & Roles and Responsibilities
[edit]Global Resource Distribution Committee
[edit]The Wikimedia Foundation will create a global body (working title: the interim Global Resource Distribution Committee, GRDC) to set the Wikimedia Movement resource distribution strategy, and make recommendations to the Wikimedia Foundation for funding regional and thematic activities and initiatives in support of the mission of the Wikimedia movement. The GRDC shall be established by March 2025. Their decisions will inform the first round of regional and thematic funding decisions in the Foundation’s 2025-2026 fiscal year.
The interim Global Resource Distribution Committee will be responsible for:
- Setting resource distribution related policies, strategy and standards for the movement, including what type of activities and / or entities the movement will collectively support, and global diversity and equity policies.
- Setting principles for distributing funds between regions and regular allocations to thematic and / or ad hoc (e.g., movement strategy) funding envelopes. If needed, determine whether changes to Regional Funds Committees must be enacted, or whether new Funds Committees (e.g., thematic) need to be created. The GRDC will provide recommendations to the Foundation for resource distribution across the movement. The Foundation keeps setting the regional and thematic fund allocations based on the principles set by the GRDC until there is consensus that the GRDC should hold this responsibility.
- Determining movement-wide goals and metrics, including top-line outcomes the movement is seeking to achieve in both regions and thematics (e.g., increase in content by region, alignment to global education standards).
- Coordinating resource distribution decision-making with the Affiliations Committee, or another global body responsible for the support of the Wikimedia Movement Organizations ecosystem (if such a body is created in the future).
Because the Board of Trustees holds ultimate financial and fiduciary obligations, the BoT is responsible for approving how much of the Foundation’s budget will be made available for grants distribution, and will seek the recommendations and insights of this body for proposals. For now, the Wikimedia Foundation will continue to determine the regional distribution of this budget in consultation with the interim GRDC, with the aim to delegate this decision to the GRDC if the two-year experiment is successful.
The Wikimedia Foundation will appoint the initial members of the interim GRDC by March 2025, based on a second round of consultations with communities, affiliates, and RFCs, and a process for nominations during January and February.
Members
- 8 regional volunteers, one from each of the current Grants Regions.
- 1 global thematic volunteer.
- 2 affiliate stakeholders, volunteer or staff specializing in funding-related work.
- 2 Wikimedia Foundation stakeholders, trustees and/or staff.
The committee members will be supported with facilitation, note-taking, and communications.
Requirements:
- Experience in grantmaking processes and project budgeting. For instance, current or former Regional Funds Committee members, Affiliates or Wikimedia Foundation staff, and other Wikimedians with experience in grant applications and funded projects evaluation.
- Comply with a Conflict of Interest policy and the Wikimedia movement’s Universal Code of Conduct.
Regional Funds Committees
[edit]Based on the feedback received, the initial proposal to improve the selection of Regional Funds Committees has changed. Instead of creating a global body while reforming the RFCs, the new proposal is to focus on the creation of the interim GRDC, who will have the responsibility to propose and decide which regional committees should exist, how they are selected, and whether any of their current processes should be changed.