Wikimedia RU
Former Russian Wikimedia chapter that supported Russian-language Wikipedia and related Wikimedia projects.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
Wikimedia RU, also known as Wikimedia Russia, was a Russian non-profit organization and local Wikimedia chapter established to support the creation, improvement, and public use of Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects in the Russian Federation. Its work was focused principally on the Russian-language Wikipedia, while also connecting Russian contributors and cultural, educational, scientific, and media institutions with the wider Wikimedia movement. The idea of establishing a Russian organization to promote Wikipedia emerged around 2005. Preparatory work became active in the autumn of 2007, after which organizers developed the documents and institutional arrangements required for a Russian non-profit partnership. The Wikimedia Foundation’s Board of Trustees approved the founding documents on May 24, 2008. Wikimedia projects generally treated that date as the organization’s foundation date, although the separate legal-registration process continued. On November 21, 2008, the partnership was entered into Russia’s register of registered non-profit organizations. Wikimedia RU operated as a movement organization rather than as a commercial publisher. It did not sell a conventional product portfolio, and its principal activities centered on volunteer coordination, public outreach, educational and cultural partnerships, contests, events, and support for the production and maintenance of freely licensed knowledge. The chapter’s relationship with the Wikimedia Foundation was governed by agreements specific to local Wikimedia organizations. Russian law also required members of the non-profit partnership to be Russian citizens. The organization and Wikimedia projects received recognition in Russia during the 2000s and 2010s. Wikimedia projects were associated with Runet Awards in 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2012, and 2014, and Wikimedia RU received at least one Golden Site Award. Its science-photography initiative, Shoot Science, was organized with the Nauka television channel and received the Russian Ministry of Education and Science’s For Fidelity to Science award in 2017 and 2019. Wikimedia RU member Farhad Fatkullin was named Wikimedian of the Year in 2018. Vladimir Medeyko served as director from the organization’s establishment until May 2023. Stanislav Kozlovsky, identified as a co-founder and the chapter’s last director, was also among its most prominent representatives. The chapter’s operating environment deteriorated as Russian authorities increased pressure on Wikimedia-related contributors and organizations. Wikimedia RU was shut down in 2023. Medeyko subsequently moved to Ruwiki, a Russian Wikipedia fork that observers and reporting have characterized as more accommodating to the Russian government’s preferred narratives. On March 22, 2024, Wikimedia RU was designated a foreign agent by Russian authorities. Because the chapter had already ceased operating, its later legal designation is best understood as a post-shutdown regulatory development rather than evidence of renewed commercial or editorial activity.
History
Wikimedia RU developed from efforts to establish a formal Russian organization supporting Wikipedia and the broader Wikimedia movement. The concept appeared as early as 2005, when Russian Wikipedia was expanding and contributors sought an institutional structure capable of organizing public outreach, educational work, cultural partnerships, and relations with the Wikimedia Foundation. Active preparations began in the autumn of 2007. Organizers worked on the documents for a Russian non-profit partnership, whose membership was subject to the requirement that members be Russian citizens under the applicable legal framework. The Wikimedia Foundation’s Board of Trustees approved the prepared founding documents on May 24, 2008. Wikimedia projects treated that date as the foundation date of the Russian chapter. The chapter’s formal relationship with the Foundation was defined through separately signed agreements, consistent with the way local Wikimedia organizations operated within the international Wikimedia movement. Legal registration followed on November 21, 2008, when Wikimedia RU was entered into Russia’s register of registered non-profit organizations. Its purpose was to strengthen the volunteer ecosystem around Russian-language Wikipedia and related Wikimedia projects. Wikimedia RU was not a conventional media company or publisher: the underlying encyclopedia projects were built and maintained by volunteers under free-knowledge principles. The organization instead provided a local institutional framework for events, partnerships, competitions, communications, and advocacy for the use and creation of freely available educational content. Its activities brought Wikimedia projects into contact with scientific and cultural institutions and helped organize public-facing initiatives. The chapter’s public profile was reinforced by awards connected with Wikimedia projects. Russian Wikimedia activity was associated with Runet Awards in 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2012, and 2014. The organization also received at least one Golden Site Award. A notable program was Shoot Science, an annual science-photography contest conducted in cooperation with the Nauka television channel. The contest received the Russian Ministry of Education and Science’s For Fidelity to Science award in 2017 and again in 2019. In 2018, Wikimedia RU member Farhad Fatkullin was recognized as Wikimedian of the Year. Vladimir Medeyko was director from the organization’s establishment through May 2023. Stanislav Kozlovsky was a co-founder and was identified as the chapter’s last director. During the later period of Wikimedia RU’s existence, Russian authorities increasingly targeted Wikimedia-related participants and the wider information environment in which the Russian-language Wikipedia operated. The chapter was shut down in 2023. Medeyko subsequently moved to Ruwiki, a Russian Wikipedia fork that reporting and observers have associated with narratives more favorable to the Russian government. On March 22, 2024, Wikimedia RU was designated a foreign agent. This designation occurred after the chapter’s shutdown and represents the final major regulatory development recorded in the available reference material.
- 2024
Foreign-agent designation
[1]Russian authorities designated Wikimedia RU a foreign agent on March 22.
- 2023
Chapter shuts down
[1]Wikimedia RU ceased operating after mounting pressure on Wikimedia-related participants in Russia.
- 2019
Shoot Science receives the award again
[1]The science-photography initiative was again recognized with the For Fidelity to Science award.
- 2018
Farhad Fatkullin named Wikimedian of the Year
[1]Wikimedia RU member Farhad Fatkullin received the Wikimedian of the Year honor.
- 2017
Shoot Science receives a science communication award
[1]The Shoot Science contest received the For Fidelity to Science award from Russia’s Ministry of Education and Science.
- 2008
Wikimedia Foundation approves the chapter
[1]The Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees approved Wikimedia RU’s founding documents on May 24, a date treated as the chapter’s foundation date.
- 2008
Legal registration completed
[1]Wikimedia RU was entered into Russia’s register of registered non-profit organizations on November 21.
- 2007
Active formation preparations begin
[1]Preparatory work for the future Russian Wikimedia chapter became active in the autumn.
- 2005
Early proposal for a Russian Wikimedia organization
[1]The idea of creating a Russian non-profit organization to promote Wikipedia and related free-knowledge work emerged.
Products and positioning
A non-commercial Wikimedia movement organization focused on supporting Russian-language free knowledge, volunteer contributors, and public engagement with Wikipedia and related projects.
Open knowledge support · 2008
Russian-language Wikipedia support
Wikimedia RU’s central role was to support the volunteer creation, improvement, maintenance, and public use of the Russian-language Wikipedia. The organization provided a local institutional presence for outreach, partnerships, events, and communications rather than operating the encyclopedia as a commercial publisher. The underlying content remained part of the volunteer-driven Wikimedia project ecosystem.
Science photography contest
Shoot Science
Shoot Science was an annual science-photography contest organized by Wikimedia RU in cooperation with the Nauka television channel. It connected visual documentation of scientific subjects with Wikimedia’s free-knowledge mission and helped bring science communication into Wikimedia-related public programming. The initiative was recognized by Russia’s Ministry of Education and Science in 2017 and 2019.
Controversies
2024
Foreign-agent designation
Russian authorities designated Wikimedia RU a foreign agent on March 22, 2024, after the organization had ceased operating.
2023
Shutdown amid pressure from Russian authorities
Wikimedia RU was shut down after increasing attacks and pressure directed at its members and Wikimedia-related activity in Russia.
Marketing campaigns
- Shoot Science
Russia
A recurring science-photography initiative organized with the Nauka television channel to support science communication and Wikimedia-related free content.
Outcome. The initiative received the For Fidelity to Science award in 2017 and 2019.
Brand decisions
2023
Wikimedia RU ceases operationsStrategyBackground
The chapter faced increasing pressure and attacks on Wikimedia-related participants in Russia.
Action taken
The organization was shut down.
Aftermath
Vladimir Medeyko moved to Ruwiki, while Wikimedia RU later received a foreign-agent designation.
Sources2 sources
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