Archive:Press releases/Wikimedia Foundation announces new Board trustees and leadership at Wikimania 2016 in Esino Lario, Italy

Wikimedia Foundation announces new Board trustees and leadership at Wikimania 2016 in Esino Lario, Italy

Christophe Henner and Nataliia Tymkiv bring deep non-profit governance experience

San Francisco, California and Esino Lario, Italy. March 17, 2016 -- Today the Wikimedia Foundation confirmed two additions to its Board of Trustees: Nataliia Tymkiv and Christophe Henner. Christophe has also been chosen as Chair, and Board member María Sefidari has been chosen as Vice Chair. The announcement was made at the 2016 Wikimania conference, the annual celebration for the Wikimedia community, held this year in the northern Italian village of Esino Lario.

The Wikimedia Foundation’s Board of Trustees oversees the Wikimedia Foundation and its work, and serves as the organization’s ultimate corporate authority. The new Trustees were elected by 40 Wikimedia chapters and thematic organizations, independent organizations that support movement work globally. The affiliate-selected seats were created in 2008 to ensure that movement organizations are able to directly influence the governance of the Wikimedia Foundation.

As incoming trustees, Christophe and Nataliia will each serve for three-year terms. In the Chair and Vice Chair roles, Christophe and María will serve as officers for one-year terms.

Christophe, Nataliia, and María bring deep community experience and passion for Wikimedia values and the projects. They have each built extensive leadership experience in the Wikimedia movement, having served in a number of roles at Wikimedia France, Wikimedia Ukraine, and Wikimedia Spain, respectively.

Christophe Henner has been a leader in the Wikimedia community for more than 12 years. Most recently, he served as Board Chair of Wikimedia France, and has served as a member of the chapter’s Board since 2007. During this time, he spent nearly three years in Vice Chair and Chair positions. Christophe is currently the deputy CEO of the gaming division of Webedia, an international digital media group headquartered in France. At Webedia, Christophe has helped lead the division through organizational transitions and execute a clear strategic vision.

Nataliia Tymkiv has been an active contributor on Ukrainian Wikipedia since 2011, and administrator since 2012. She currently serves as Financial Director of the Centre for Democracy and Rule of Law, the Ukrainian media policy and human rights nonprofit. Nataliia has held a number of leadership roles in Wikimedia Ukraine since 2012, serving as Vice Chair and Treasurer of the Board in 2015, and as volunteer Executive Director in 2013. Nataliia first joined the Board of Wikimedia Ukraine in 2012 as Treasurer. In this role, she built the financial model for the chapter from the ground up, including detailed financial reporting, accounting, and grant-making activities for the organization.

María Sefidari Huici has been involved in the Wikimedia movement since 2006, and previously served on the Wikimedia Foundation Board from 2013 to 2015. She is a founding member of Wikimedia Spain and Wikimujeres Grupo de Usuarias, and created Spanish Wikipedia's LGBT Wikiproject. María is a professor in the Digital Communications, Culture and Citizenship Master's degree program of Rey Juan Carlos University at the MediaLab-Prado. She has served on several Wikimedia governance committees, including the Affiliations Committee, where she was the group’s first Treasurer, and on the Individual Engagement Grants Committee. María previously served on the Wikimedia Foundation Board from 2013-2015.

The affiliate-selected Board members will be replacing outgoing Board members Frieda Brioschi and Patricio Lorente. Patricio served two terms of two years as an affiliate-selected Board seat, including one year as the Board Chair. Frieda was elected as an affiliate-selected Board seat in 2014 and served for a two-year term.

Other seats on the Board include one seat for Wikipedia’s founder Jimmy Wales, three seats selected by the Wikimedia community, and four seats appointed by the Board for specific expertise and other needs.

The Wikimedia Foundation and Board of Trustees are excited to welcome the new Board members and look forward to the leadership our newly appointed Chair and Vice Chair will provide the Foundation.

Terms for these newly appointed roles and members start today, June 23, 2016, and will continue for three years. The new members join Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, new Vice Chair María Sefidari, and Board members Kelly Battles, Dariusz Jemielniak, Guy Kawasaki, and Alice Wiegand.

The Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

• Christophe Henner, Board Chair
• María Sefidari, Vice Chair
• Jimmy Wales, Wikipedia Founder
• Kelly Battles
• Dariusz Jemielniak
• Guy Kawasaki
• Nataliia Tymkiv
• Alice Wiegand

About the Wikimedia Foundation

The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that supports Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, and the other Wikimedia free knowledge sites. Wikipedia consists of nearly 40 million articles across hundreds of languages. Every month, roughly 80,000 active volunteer editors contribute to Wikipedia and the other Wikimedia projects. Based in San Francisco, California, the Wikimedia Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charity that is funded primarily through donations and grants.

About Wikimania

Wikimania is an annual conference centered on the Wikimedia projects (Wikipedia and its sister projects) and the Wikimedia community of volunteers. It features presentations on Wikimedia projects, other wikis, free and open source software, free knowledge and free content, and the social and technical aspects which relate to these topics. Wikimania 2016 marks the 12th year of the conference

Wikimedia Foundation press contact

Juliet Barbara
Communications Director
(415) 839-6885
press@wikimedia.org

About Christophe Henner

Christophe Henner is the former Chair of Wikimedia France and current deputy CEO of Webedia's gaming division, the international digital media group headquartered in France. He has deep and varied experience across the marketing sector, including leadership roles at at Webedia and L'Odyssée Interactive.

Christophe has been an active member of the Wikimedia community for more than 12 years. In 2007, he joined the Board of Wikimedia France and has remained an active Board member in various positions for the past ten years. He has served as both Chair and Vice Chair of the Board of Wikimedia France. During his time on the Board, Christophe helped lead Wikimedia France through a significant period of growth. This included leading the development of the chapter’s brand, and supporting the development of a clear organizational strategy and vision for the chapter.

About María Sefidari

María is a professor in the Digital Communications, Culture and Citizenship Master's degree program of Rey Juan Carlos University at the MediaLab-Prado. María graduated with a Psychology degree from Universidad Complutense de Madrid, and later a Master's degree in Management and Tourism at the Business faculty of the same university.

María started contributing to the Wikimedia projects in 2006, and has since served in many different roles across the Wikimedia movement. She was a founding member of Wikimedia España and Wikimujeres Grupo de Usuarias, and also created Spanish Wikipedia's LGBT Wikiproject. She has served on several Wikimedia governance committees, including the Affiliations and Individual Engagement Grants committees. In her time on the Affiliations committee, María served as the first Treasurer of the committee, effectively overseeing and monitoring disbursement of the committee's budget. María served a prior term on the Wikimedia Foundation board from 2013 to 2015.

About Nataliia Tymkiv

Nataliia currently serves as Financial Director of the Centre for Democracy and Rule of Law, a Ukrainian media policy and human rights nonprofit. Nataliia has a Masters degree in Public Administration and a Specialist degree in Records Management and Information Activities.

She has in-depth experience in executive leadership and financial management. Prior to her current role as Financial Director, Nataliia worked at a manufacturing firm and later, in finance at a construction company. Prior to her current role as Financial Director, Nataliia worked at a manufacturing firm and later, in finance at a construction company. On the Wikimedia projects, she’s been an active contributor since 2011, and shortly after became an administrator of Ukrainian Wikipedia. She has also been a member of the Wikimedia Ukraine community for nearly four years, and has served as the chapter’s Board Treasurer, Vice Chair, and volunteer Executive Director.