People are charmed to learn that Wikipedia editors hang out in a public library once a month

Wikipedia is pretty much the first storehouse of information we turn to, to know about practically any topic. This "know it all" is a free online encyclopedia maintained by the Wikimedia Foundation and created and edited by volunteers all over the world. Like any other remote working platform, many of its contributors also feel like engaging with their co-contributors from time to time.

How they choose to engage with each other might make us want to join the club as well. Anna Rauwerda (@depthsofwikipedia), a Wikipedia editor, recently posted a TikTok video of all the volunteers who help run and edit the site getting together for their monthly hangout.

The video clip which gathered more than 200 thousand views was captioned, "most wholesome part of my month." "Once a month at the Brooklyn Public Library, Wikipedia editors come together and hang out," she explained in the video. "We talk about what we’ve been editing, what’s frustrating us, we ask questions and sometimes we just chit chat about random topics."

Rauwerda shares that she enjoys these meetings and even introduces some of the other volunteers. Viewers were blown away by how wholesome and nice it is that Wikipedia editors have a place to gather every month. They might even receive a few more volunteers to join the meeting. 

"You guys are holding civilization together," commented @antigone_zero. "Glad meetups like this exist and happen. What a positive thing about society," wrote @f1_on_film. Following the interactions between Wikipedia editors, several people expressed an interest in joining the editor fraternity—which has no formal screening process. The editors are volunteers who enjoy writing and editing content on their favorite topics. The website does not have a formal editing process, but editors make every effort to cite their sources to limit errors.

"How does one become a Wikipedia editor? I’ve [been] fighting urges to bulk up/edit pages on Wikipedia for years," asked @supersophistocated420 in the comments. Rauwerda replied, "You kinda just... go for it! Start small, use a visual editor if you’re new (easier to navigate), and remember to cite everything!"

Rauwerda, a neuroscience major at the University of Michigan, in April 2020, also created Depths of Wikipedia which is a group of social media accounts dedicated to highlighting strange, obscure and interesting facts from Wikipedia. The account shares excerpts from various Wikipedia articles on humorous or absurd topics.

Rauwerda has hosted a Wikipedia editing workshop and live comedy shows in connection with Depths of Wikipedia. According to her, the project was inspired by a collage of Wikipedia excerpts she created for a friend's zine. She was interested in Wikipedia before starting the project, having spent time reading it as a child.

Talking about contributing well to Wikipedia, a physicist from London, Jessica Wade, was greeted at Buckingham Palace as she received the prestigious British Empire Medal. She was there, interestingly, to be recognized for her efforts to change the gendered status quo in science. Her doctoral research at Imperial College in London has been widely cited for advances in digital display technology for TV, computer and phone screens, and she has been an active participant in her personal crusade to encourage more women to pursue STEM careers.

Dr. Wade has written over 1,600 Wikipedia articles about historically underrepresented women scientists and is passionate about encouraging young women to pursue careers in science. She rose to prominence when, while still in her twenties, she began compiling Wikipedia biographies of female and marginalized community scientists who had gone unnoticed by employers, peers or the general public. "I’m tirelessly pro-equality, and spend all my free time working with the Institute of Physics and Women’s Engineering Society (WES) to increase the representation of women in physics," she expressed.