Good day all,
I think it's important to share this here too.
Best regards,
Bobby Shabangu
---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Alex Wang <awang(a)wikimedia.org>
Date: Thu, 12 Mar 2020 at 21:40
Subject: [COVID-19] Wikimedia Foundation Grants for public events -
IMPORTANT MESSAGE
To: Alex Wang <awang(a)wikimedia.org>
Cc: Grants Administrator <grantsadmin(a)wikimedia.org>
A Message from Katherine Maher, Executive Director of the Wikimedia
Foundation
Summary:
- All offline (in-person) public events funded by Wikimedia Foundation
grants must be cancelled or postponed until further notice
- Cancellation fees, other penalties, and expenses already incurred can
be covered through grant funds
- Not complying with these instructions might affect future grant
requests
- We will not be approving new grants for offline events happening
before September 15, 2020 until further notice
- Please contact your program officers for further guidance
Dear Wikimedia Foundation Grantees,
We are writing to provide guidance for grant-funded programs during the
COVID-19 pandemic.[1] This situation is rapidly evolving, and we have made
some decisions that we would like to communicate to you.
Cancelling events
We have reviewed the current global public health landscape and we ask all
grantees to postpone or cancel all public events and activities until the
World Health Organization declares the COVID-19 pandemic over.
We know this might be a difficult decision to make, and that this will mean
cancelling events of great importance to our community. We understand and
appreciate all the efforts you have put into preparing these events, from
requesting a grant to public outreach.
However, our first priority is the health and safety of you, your Wikimedia
community, and the general public health. Global public health guidance
indicates that the more quickly the world responds to a pandemic, the
better off the outcomes. In order to safeguard free knowledge, we must also
prioritize the well-being of the people who make it possible.
Next steps
It’s important to keep our communities together and connected during this
time. We encourage you to consider if there are other ways you can
repurpose the grant funds toward other mission-aligned activities, such as
holding events or meetings online.
Your program officer is available if you want to discuss ideas for other
ways to use your grant funds, so please reach out to us if you would like
to talk. If you are unable or decide not to repurpose your event, you and
your program officer will work together to repurpose the funds to a later
grant or return the funds to the Wikimedia Foundation.
We are asking people to take this seriously. If we learn that you held an
event using Wikimedia Foundation funds after receiving this request to
cancel, we reserve the right to withhold funding for future grants.
We are here to support you and your communities through these challenging
circumstances. Stay safe!
With thanks,
Katherine Maher
P.S. If you have any questions about this notice or your grant, please
contact your program officer.
[1]
https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019
--
*Alexandra Wang* (she/her)
Senior Program Officer, Community Resources
Wikimedia Foundation <https://wikimediafoundation.org/>