Hey all,
Are you interested in improving how funds are distributed across the Wikimedia Movement? Do you have experience in grantmaking, funding, financial planning, management, or strategic work? Check the call for candidates https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Global_Resource_Distribution_Committee/Creation_of_the_interim_GRDC for the interim Global Resource Distribution Committee https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Global_Resource_Distribution_Committee/Proposal (GRDC), starting today and running through February 25. The Wikimedia Foundation is looking for good team players to fill one Thematic and eight Regional seats, one for each of the grants regions https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Grants:Regions.
The Wikimedia Foundation will create the interim Global Resource Distribution Committee https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Global_Resource_Distribution_Committee/Proposal (GRDC) in March, as a 2-year experiment, in another step to decentralize the distribution of funds across the Wikimedia Movement. This body will be responsible for making decisions over how the Community Fund https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Grants:Start#Wikimedia_Community_Fund operates and the structures and processes to distribute it (with Regional Fund Committees https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Grants:Committees holding decisions over all specific grant applications). It will also oversee the Regional Fund Committees. The interim GRDC will advise the Foundation on how to allocate grants across regional, and if determined, thematic allocations. It will also provide recommendations and insights to the Foundation on how much of its budget should be made available for grants distribution.
The call for candidates is intended for volunteers who have experience requesting and handling funds, designing or participating in grantmaking processes, managing budgets for organizations and complex projects… The interim GRDC is a new body and we seek to build a team with diverse profiles and complementary skills. A candidate doesn’t need to have all the expected competencies and experience. Each member of the interim GRDC will bring different skills and experiences that will help to form a well-performing team. Potential candidates with questions can ask on the call for candidates Talk page https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Talk:Global_Resource_Distribution_Committee/Creation_of_the_interim_GRDC .
Best, Jorge Vargas
---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Jorge Vargas jvargas@wikimedia.org Date: Tue, Jan 14, 2025 at 9:50 AM Subject: Updates on resource distribution proposal and creation of interim Global Resource Distribution Committee To: Wikimedia Mailing List wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org
Hello everyone,
I'm Jorge Vargas, Director of Community Resources and Partnerships. I will be sharing an update on the Wikimedia Foundation's July 2024 proposal to create an experimental Global Resource Distribution Committee (GRDC) and to update the resource distribution models of the movement. This new version of the proposal comes after months of conversations with different stakeholders in the movement.
The Wikimedia Foundation will create the interim Global Resource Distribution Committee https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Global_Resource_Distribution_Committee/Proposal (GRDC) in March, as a 2-year experiment, in another step to decentralize the distribution of funds across the Wikimedia Movement. This body will be responsible for making decisions over the Community Fund https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Grants:Start#Wikimedia_Community_Fund and the structures and processes to distribute it. It will also oversee the Regional Fund Committees https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Grants:Committees (RFCs).
The interim GRDC will advise the Foundation on how to allocate grants across regional, and if determined, thematic allocations. It will also provide recommendations and insights to the Foundation on how much of its budget should be made available for grants distribution. The final decision on the total budget allocation for grants to later be allocated in different portfolios will remain with WMF, with the interim GRDC advising and working jointly with the Foundation throughout all the steps of the process. We will recruit the initial 13 members of the committee through self-nominations and invitations made in collaboration with the RFCs and affiliates.
Last July, the Board of Trustees proposed https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Wikimedia_Foundation_Board_noticeboard/Board_resolution_and_vote_on_the_proposed_Movement_Charter/Appendix#1/_PROPOSAL:_Establishing_an_Experimental_Global_Resource_Distribution_Committee an experimental resource distribution committee as part of their resolution and vote on the Movement Charter https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Talk:Wikimedia_Foundation_Board_noticeboard/Board_resolution_and_vote_on_the_proposed_Movement_Charter/Appendix#Proposed_Changes_to_Resource_Distribution . We have gathered community and affiliate feedback through several conversations at Wikimania, regional events, consultations with affiliates, Regional Fund Committees, and online. These are the main changes based on this feedback:
- Form the interim GRDC in March with a diverse group of specialized volunteers and staff. The initial proposal was to start in January and only with former RFC members. - Empower the interim GRDC to evolve the Regional Fund Committees after its creation. The initial proposal was to create the GRDC and evolve the RFCs at the same time and on a tighter schedule.
For more detailed information, please check the updated proposal https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Global_Resource_Distribution_Committee/Proposal (Diff version https://meta.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=Global_Resource_Distribution_Committee%2FProposal&diff=28101812&oldid=27539712) and the reasoning https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Global_Resource_Distribution_Committee/Changes_to_the_GRDC_proposal_based_on_the_feedback_received behind the changes. We continue to welcome feedback to improve the plan and polish details, and we will finish the plan to create the new committee https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Global_Resource_Distribution_Committee/Creation_of_the_interim_GRDC in the next few weeks. We want to start the call for self-nominations at the beginning of February. If you or someone you know might be a good fit, we encourage you to stay tuned and get involved.
Let us know if you have any comments or questions here or in the respective Meta talk pages.
Kind regards, Jorge