Wikimedia Foundation

The Wikimedia Foundation is a nonprofit organization established in 2003 by Jimmy Wales in St. Petersburg, Florida. Its primary mission is to empower people worldwide to create and share educational content freely. The Foundation supports a range of collaborative projects, including Wikipedia, Wikibooks, Wikidata, and Wikimedia Commons, among others. It manages the technical infrastructure and legal framework necessary for these projects and develops the MediaWiki software that powers them. In addition to maintaining these platforms, the Wikimedia Foundation provides grants to support community initiatives and events that promote free knowledge. It has awarded over $9 million in grants to various projects and actively fosters a diverse community of over 220,000 contributors across 170 countries. The Foundation also engages in advocacy related to copyright and press freedom, collaborating with various organizations to further its goals. Additionally, it operates a merchandise store, with proceeds supporting its mission and recognizing the contributions of volunteers.