Grants:Simple/Committee

This page is kept for historical interest. Any grant programs, policies, or related details mentioned may be obsolete. You can find Wikimedia Foundation's current funding programs at Grants:Start.

Simple Annual Plan Grants

The committee reviews applications and supports applicants throughout their grants.

Simple Annual Plan Grants Committee

The Simple Annual Plan Grants Committee is an exciting opportunity to be part of the grants programs' participatory grantmaking practice.

Participatory grantmaking ensures that resourcing community efforts in the movement is diverse, equal and inclusive. This practice aligns with the movement strategy recommendation to Ensure Equity in Decision-making: Establishing shared responsibility and accountability for decision-making and distribution of resources.

Serving committee members will have the opportunity to inform and advise funding decisions and proactively share recommendations and mentorship to support grantees worldwide in their development, growth, and sustainability strategies; that contribute to a world in which every single human being can freely share in the sum of all knowledge.

The committee reviews proposals to fund mission aligned groups and organizations with programs and operating expenses for 12 months. The groups and organizations need to already have experience managing programs and grant funding. Questions about joining the committee? Contact simplewikimedia.org.

Members

The committee currently has five active members, with terms listed below:

Isla Haddow-Flood, 21 May 2017 – 30 April 2021
Philip Kopetzky, 23 January 2018 – 31 January 2021
आर्या जोश, 25 March 2021 – 30 April 2022
Galahmm, 25 March 2021 – 30 April 2022
Kateregga1, 25 March 2021 – 30 April 2022
Anass Sedrati, 25 March 2021 – 30 April 2022

The committee currently has five people who have suspended membership and may rejoin in the future:

Chinmayi S.K., 1 February 2017 – 31 March 2020
Addis Wang, on leave (serving since October 2015)
Liang-chih Shang Kuan, 7 May 2017 – 30 April 2018
Rohini Lakshane, 2 June 2017 – 31 May 2021
Kai Alexis Smith, 11 May 2017 – 30 April 2021

Membership criteria

Requirements:

Sufficient facility with English, for reviewing and discussing grant proposals in English.
Experience with the Wikimedia movement, including experience contributing to at least one Wikimedia project.
Experience with Wikimedia programs, in addition to contributions to the online projects.
Committee members must understand and value diversity, including cultural, linguistic, and gender differences.
Commitment to the Friendly Space Expectations, and to engaging in supportive dialogue with applicants and grantees.
Consistent record of constructive engagement in community discussions, and an orientation toward collaborative problem solving.
Committee members must be volunteers who are not paid by the Wikimedia Foundation or any Wikimedia organization. No WMF or affiliate staff may join the committee while they are serving in paid roles.

We would love if you have:

Experience in a leadership role with a volunteer-focused organization.
Experience implementing programs that incorporate, understand and value diversity, equity including cultural, linguistic, and gender differences.
Relevant expertise, such as organizational development, institutional partnerships, or volunteer management.
Experience reviewing annual plan grant proposals, or significant experience reviewing other types of grant proposals.
A demonstrated commitment to sharing skills and experience, and helping others in the Wikimedia movement grow.
Increasing geographic, gender, or age diversity, or experience with different Wikimedia projects not yet represented.
Competence in reading and speaking in multiple languages including but not limited to Spanish, French, Arabic.

Guidelines for engagement:

Ability to commit to more extensive proposal review during the month of October, and to be available to review smaller numbers of proposals in April and throughout the year. If you are not available to work on a proposal, you will need to let Program Staff know when the proposal is submitted so that we can plan to make sure each proposal will have sufficient review. Otherwise, the expectation is that each committee member will be available to review each proposal. If you are not active enough, you may be replaced by a more active member because there is limited space on the committee.
Members may themselves apply for Simple Annual Plan Grants on behalf of their organizations, but must recuse from reviewing their proposal or other proposals for which they may have a potential bias.

Participation requirements

There will be a focused period of committee engagement during the month of April and October, to review the first round of proposals. This will require on wiki proposal review and discussion, as well as regular calls with the committee and a brief written assessment of each proposal. For most committee members, this will amount to 2-3 hours a week during the month of April and October.
Other opportunities to engage will happen throughout the year, as applicants can join the pilot at any time during the year.
While committee members are not required to engage with every single application, we do ask that members notify the rest of the committee if they are unable to participate in a particular discussion due to other commitments.
Active participation in e-mail discussions and calls is essential since we need a minimum number of participants in each discussion to make good decisions as a group. Inactive members will be automatically rolled off the committee at the conclusion of their terms, or replaced by active members during the course of their terms.

Candidates

Questions about joining the committee? Contact simplewikimedia.org.