She Leads Bootcamp 2025
CIS-A2K is committed to bridging the gender gap within Indian Wikimedia communities, and to further this goal, last year we launched the impactful She Leads program. This initiative is designed to empower female Wikimedians to take on leadership roles within their language communities, promoting diversity and inclusivity.
She Leads offers vital support and resources, helping women bring their ideas and initiatives to life, while fostering an inclusive, supportive environment that encourages growth and collaboration.
The response and feedback from the first iteration of She Leads illustrated a larger need to nurture female leadership in the open knowledge movement. Subsequently, we had several conversations with remarkable women in the open knowledge space to explore avenues to foster female leadership. We are grateful to Rosie Stephenson Goodknight, Masana Mulaudzi, Netha Hussain, Sneha PP, Amrita Sengupta, Manavpreet Kaur, and Medhavi Gandhi for their support and guidance in conceptualizing She Leads Bootcamp 2025. A special shout out to Satdeep Gill for being an ally and contributing to the program design.
The She Leads Bootcamp 2025, which was held in Bangalore from January 31st to February 3rd, 2025, aimed to further these efforts by gathering budding women leaders from Indic Wikimedia communities. This immersive, in-person event provided participants with the tools, resources, and connections necessary to thrive as leaders. The She Leads Bootcamp 2025 helped create a robust network of women leaders who were able to collaborate and support each other’s initiatives. The training sessions focused on leadership skills, feminist methodologies, project management, and advocacy strategies. Organizers fostered a sense of belonging among participants, encouraging them to share experiences and learn from one another.
Click to download the event report authored by Soni Wadhwa and edited by Chris and Nitesh Gill.