[1][2] This community directly builds and administers these projects[3] with the commitment of achieving this using open standards and software.

Thematic organizations are charities, similar to chapters, founded to support Wikimedia projects in a subject focal area.

[14] WMF was founded in 2003 by Jimmy Wales so that there would be an independent charitable entity responsible for the domains and trademarks, and so that Wikipedia and its sister projects could be funded through non-profit means in the future.

Its purpose was "... to empower and engage people around the world to collect and develop educational content under a free license or in the public domain, and to disseminate it effectively and globally.

"[15][16][17] There are over 800 language editions of different Wikimedia projects, each with groups of editors working on areas of shared interest.