Exercise #1: What does free knowledge mean to you?

19 years ago Wikipedia was founded on the radical belief that knowledge belongs to all of us. It is one of the most visited websites in the world with a considerable global impact. Every month, over 1.5 billion users spend a collective 60,000 years learning on Wikipedia. Each year 6 million donors support its continuing growth. From the free encyclopedia, to free dictionaries, media repositories, databanks, travel guides, and more Wikipedia has inspired a global movement of free knowledge projects and the thousands of volunteers who make them possible.

“Imagine a world in which every single person on the planet is given free access to the sum of all human knowledge. That’s what we’re doing.” 

– Jimmy Wales, Founder of Wikipedia
The Wikimedia Projects

This brand project is exploring how to explain a broad, generous movement of knowledge sharing to anyone, anywhere. And we need your help!

We are building on a year of brand research, strategic planning and community consultation towards a goal shared across all of our projects and communities: By 2030, we will become the essential infrastructure of free knowledge, and anyone who shares our vision can join us.

Here’s the question for you… no matter where you live, or how you interact with our knowledge movement: 

What does free knowledge mean to you?

If you have questions or input regarding this project, please join the discussions on the Wikipedia brand network or on the project Wiki page.

Anyone can post anonymously on this website, therefore it is moderated to prevent spam and off-topic posts. Users can also post responses on the Brand Network on Facebook or Meta-Wiki.

  1. I think Wikipedia it’s more than free knowledge. The way the information is upload in base a the contribution of his community made Wikipedia no only a free knowledge page it Also gives a free platform were the people can construct the knowledge of everyone

  2. The ability to learn about our world in a time where finding reliable information is critical (in a world of fake news).

  3. Free knowledge, in a common man’s point of view, is simply defined as access to all the resources, in all the possible forms of representation. And by access, it must be understood that people across the globe reach out to resources through an interface that is easy to use, perhaps made use of. Not just that, access to open editing of resources, but through controlled and credible means. Free knowledge reaches out to a broader spectrum of readers. It enables and enhances discussion more often and helps people to share ideas, thoughts and concepts that become resources for knowledge. This becomes even more valuable when these resources are exhibited in an open-source medium where people irrespective of their geographical location, financial identities and most importantly, educational identities gain much-needed access and reference. Free knowledge takes into account the minimization of commercial value-additions to access its complete content (articles that need the payment for them to be accessed) by partnering with organisations, schools, universities and interested individuals who lean towards the cause and concept of free knowledge. This happens when each contributor pools their resources summatively to bring in a unified spectrum. The scale of knowledge could include the simplest of ideas, to the most complex of lessons. The key focus in realizing the concept of Free knowledge is not just about bringing the resources together, but how they are translated to people amidst constraints. Free knowledge, like design, is and must be barrier-free, and must be relevant to serve a greater cause, beyond its own purpose.

  4. Wikipedia helped me through my undergrad and masters. I savour a world where everyone who wants to learn has access to learn.

  5. Free Knowledge doesn’t equal to easy to understand or to learn. Another hard part is ‘why’ people should learn ‘what’?
    In addition, one same key word may shows multiple meanings which will lost our attention to continue explore knowledge in only one website or source.

  6. Democracy. Sadly this is a dieing idea as politicians continue to lie and get away with it, thus undermining the very definition of democracy. With democracy, there is trust for free knowledge, otherwise it is deemed as tained knowledge which is never free.

  7. Free knowlege is knowledge based on facts (and not «fake news» based on feelings and personal/political agenda) and should be as objective and scientifically as possible. Free knowledge can come from any parts of the world. Free knowledge needs to gather the world and create understanding for one another as opposed to creating fear, violence and war.

  8. Free knowledge means equality, for everyone to be able to be informed. It means inclusivity, for every person on the opposite side of the world to meet in one wide world platform. It means progress and freedom, for the world to be elevated from a time where population were kept ignorant therefore submissive.

  9. Libraries have been making knowledge available for thousands of years. As Wikipedia continues to develop its identity it should collaborate with libraries to enable knowledge sharing in both digital and print mediums.

  10. Providing access to intellectual, technological and documentation resources for making sense of the world and acting upon it for the benefit of one’s community, independent of material and symbolic barriers.

  11. the ubunto spirit, knowledge is the best way to create universal balance and respect.

  12. More information and verifiability, less spin, less disinformation, misinformation, propaganda and other bullshit.
    Free licensing for re-use with attribution. (you want to know where it came from)
    Open to fact checking, correction, discussion and improvement.

  13. Free knowledge means anyone anywhere in the world can learn and grow regardless of their culture, religion or socioeconomic status. Free knowledge means freedom to expand your world, feed your curiosity, free of the restrictions society has placed on you.

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