One day at the United Nations: 34 editors, 5 new articles, and 6,500 words
On Monday, June 22, Wikimedia NYC joined the United Nations Tech Over for our second annual Wikipedia Edit-a-thon at UN Headquarters in New York City.
This year's event organized editing around two key themes: the impact of AI and other emerging technologies on the Wikimedia platform, and how editing Wikipedia contributes to the UN Global Digital Compact's goal of developing shared principles for an open, free, and secure digital future for all.
Wikimedia NYC brought together 34 participants at the UN, some of whom were editing Wikipedia for the very first time.
Hackathon participants collaborated alongside UN experts and staff, open-source advocates, and experienced editors from the NYC Wikipedia community. Together they improved public knowledge on topics including the UN eTIR, artificial intelligence, open source software, and digital public infrastructure.
In a single day, hackathon participants:
Created 5 new Wikipedia articles
Improved 27 existing articles
Added more than 6,500 words to Wikimedia projects
The hackathon was part of UN Open Source Week 2026, an annual event that showcases how open, collaborative technology can advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The series brings together governments, developers, and civil society to co-create practical solutions and promote inclusive, transparent approaches to digital innovation.
Thank you to our volunteer trainers, to the United Nations for hosting, and to the Wikimedia Foundation for their partnership.
And thanks as well to our friend Hari Adivarekar for capturing the event!
