Grants:Project/Rapid/Requesting swag

Our responsibility

We all love getting swag from conferences and events -- it is a tangible way to share our love for Wikimedia and let folks know we are part of the community. However, over the last several years reports on event swag practices have made it clear that they have a very damaging environmental footprint. The damage is both environmental (water pollution, toxic chemicals, and waste) as well as human (workers at low-cost factories that often labor under inhumane conditions).

T-shirts make up more than 25% of swag sales, with bags, writing instruments, and tech accessories making up the rest.

We ask you to think hard about what is really necessary to make your event successful and consider both the environmental and human costs of producing those items. Thank you.

For references and further reading please see: "It's time to stop spending billions on cheap conference swag" -- Fast Company, November, 2, 2018.

Wikimedia Foundation Swag

Welcome to Wikimedia Foundation’s merchandise collections for the Rapid Fund program! Please allow at least 1 month to process and ship your order.

Accessories Collection

There are many accessories available, stickers, pins, buttons, etc. Our staff will put together a package, best suited for you and your event, designed also, to fit your event size, depending on availability.

Description of accessories

Globe stickers (50 pack)
Project stickers (14 pack)
Project pins (any combination of Wikimedia, Globe, Wikipedia W, Commons, MediaWiki, or Wikimedia Community logo dependent on availability)
Pack of 3 Pencils
Globe buttons (50 pack)

We ensure that our vendors for swag are committed to ethical manufacturing. It is important for us to work with suppliers that follow comprehensive employment policies, ensure employee well-being, and share environmental responsibility.

How to request your swag

Important - BEFORE placing your order:

1) contact the customs office of your destination country to find out any:

limitations (for example: value amount of packages sent as "Gift")
restrictions (for example: some countries do not allow shipping pencils)
and/or special instructions for packages sent from the U.S. to your destination country.

2) know the number of people registered or expected to attend your event. This information will allow us to create the appropriate swag package.

3) once you have the above information, you are ready to place your order.
Email merchandisewikimedia.org (who will process your order) and your Regional Program Officer (who will be the merchandise team's point of contact at Wikimedia Foundation)

Include the following information in your email:

Customs related information and/or instructions
The number of people registered or expected to attend your event or participate in projects and activities
Your full name
Link to the event page, a project planning page, or your approved Rapid Fund proposal on Meta-wiki.
Complete shipping address (include country)
Date when items are requested by (allow at least 1 month for order processing & delivery)

4) You will receive a confirmation email once your order been approved, and the order is released for fulfillment. We will make every effort to ship it to you by your requested delivery date.

Contact Wikimedia Foundation

If you have questions about requesting swag or are unsure which collection/s will fit your event, please contact your Regional Program Officer and include "Question about requesting swag" on your email's subject line.