Celebrating Wikipedia means celebrating our community

Wiki-Festejo 25 Bolivia

This Saturday, March 7, 2026, at Café La Aspiazu in downtown La Paz, the ““Wikifestejo25 Bolivia” was held: a day dedicated to celebrating Wikipedia’s 25th anniversary. We gathered, shared, marveled at the magic, and celebrated how collective effort sustains free knowledge. Thirty-nine people attended; the event included lunch, games, art, and opportunities to strengthen the community.

I organized the event after applying for a grant through the Grants Wikipedia 25 program as a volunteer. I believe a celebration like this only works when you’re truly enthusiastic about what’s being celebrated. And that’s what we achieved: a party with Bolivian-style birthday traditions, featuring a cake-biting game, games, forfeits, and laughter.

Wikipedia is also created by hand

For a change, the participating Wikimedians took their hands off their keyboards or camera buttons and put them to work at a screen-printing station and a stencil table; the more daring among them customized their favorite clothes, and the most versatile took home multicolored patches as a memento of the event, the group, and our ability to create as a team.

Before blowing out the candles on the cake, each Wikimedian hung a puzzle piece on the wishing tree that adorns the garden: On the tree, the wishes reflected hopes such as having more time, a climate-just Wikipedia, a stronger community, and other goals that show how they envision Wikipedia’s future.

The magic of community

We were also joined by a magician, who reminded us of the importance of magic and play. It was a memorable experience to spend time with such fun people; the day showed that our community can welcome people from all walks of life.

Like any birthday celebration, we had a baby globe piñata that had us all competing for more souvenirs from the event.

I was thrilled to see our goal achieved through this initiative: a stronger community that knows itself better and, despite the world’s challenges, continues to embrace collaboration and persevere with joy. The event was held in La Paz and drew participants from the cities of La Paz, El Alto, and Oruro.

The program included birthday games, a welcome session with a community guidelines discussion, lunch, an entertainment and magic show, games and competitions, cake, a group photo, and the distribution of souvenirs. Each activity sought to celebrate and, at the same time, reinforce that building free knowledge involves creating connections and spaces of belonging.

In a context where wiki work is often scattered and digital, the in-person gathering allowed us to converse, get to know one another, and renew our energy to drive local initiatives. Thus, the celebration was both a commemoration and a way to continue building community.

Celebrating Wikipedia means celebrating the people who make it possible.