Thank You/Q Miceli

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I'm vegan, which means I don't eat meat, dairy, or eggs. I'm also gluten intolerant, so I can't consume wheat. Despite these restrictions, I’ve embraced the challenge of baking.
Of course, vegan, gluten-free baking requires some creative thinking, and often some research. For that, I turn to Wikipedia.

Frequently, Wikipedia helps me identify the source and discover the history of a new food. For example, I learned about quinoa &mdash; a gluten-free grain that comes from the goosefoot plant. Since it’s an excellent source of protein, it's good for a vegan diet.

I love exploring things like that. It's wonderful to find both scientific knowledge and cultural knowledge about whatever it is I'm making. Not every cookbook is going to be a science book, but on Wikipedia I can find both.

Since I do a lot of research, I like to share what I learn. (I also maintain a blog about vegan, gluten-free baking.) Recently, I wrote a Wikipedia article about Tahinopita, a Greek Orthodox bread made during Lent. It has no animal products or oil, so it's considered permissible to eat without breaking the fast.

Writing about baking on Wikipedia makes me feel like I'm contributing to the greater good. They say that bread is the staff of life; everyone needs to eat.

One of the things that's surprised me most about my involvement with Wikipedia is the sense of community. It's an attitude of creativity and collaboration I’ve experienced nowhere else. If one person wants to start something, other people will jump onto it and say, "I can help you with this."

Wikipedia is built on sharing &mdash; and that's so refreshing to see.

 &mdash; Q Miceli

''Q Miceli comes from Byram, New Jersey. Ze recently graduated from Princeton University, where ze studied religion &mdash; inspiring hir interest in ethical, cruelty-free living. While at Princeton, ze helped organize two Edit-a-thons, gatherings where Wikipedians and new users write Wikipedia articles.'' (Q Miceli has asked to be identified with gender neutral pronouns.)

Attribution:''' by Victor Grigas, under [//creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/legalcode CC-BY-SA 3.0 Unported], from Wikimedia Commons.

Image Attribution: by Karen Sayre, under [//creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/legalcode CC-BY-SA 3.0 Unported], from Wikimedia Commons.