DCW organises first annual convening, honors its best contributors
The DCW First Community Convening 2025 brought together members of the Deoband Community Wikimedia (DCW) to reflect on DCW’s journey, share learnings, and strengthen community capacity. The convening was held on 20-21 December 2025 at the Ibn Sina Academy of Medieval Medicine and Sciences in Aligarh. Guided by the spirit of "Collaborate, Impact and Sustain," this annual gathering served as a keystone event to celebrate the achievements of the community, discuss challenges, and honour individuals who acted as catalysts in the growth and success of Deoband Community Wikimedia.
The convening brought together over 20 volunteers of the community to acknowledge and celebrate their contributions to both the local and global Wikimedia movement. It treasured the selfless efforts of individuals as well as the collective work of the community in advancing the goals of the Wikimedia movement at large. Over the span of two days, the community convening hosted various sessions, focused on DCW's past, current and future. These included the conversations on metrics, impact, design, strategy and sustainability.
Wikimedians of the Year 2025
The highlight of the annual convening was the "Wikimedian of the Year" awards, which added significant value to the event. The awards aimed to acknowledge and commend individuals who chose to remain consistent in their efforts and create a meaningful impact within the community. Aafi, the founder of the community, named three contributors from diverse backgrounds as the Wikimedians of the Year 2025.
Newcomer of the Year 2025
Sabaaya was named as the Newcomer for the year 2025. She joined during the 6th Heritage Lens iteration, and very quickly became a translation administrator on Wikimedia Commons and Meta-Wiki.
Media Contributor of the Year 2025
Ausad Jamil was named the Media Contributor of the Year 2025. An undergraduate student at Aligarh Muslim University, he began as a photography volunteer with Wiki Club AMU. His contributions across diverse photography areas were admired.
Wikimedian of the Year 2025
Khaatir was named as the Wikimedian of the Year 2025 and was appreciated with a Wikipedia bag. Aafi noted his consistent contributions since the inception of the Deoband Community Wikimedia. One of the founding volunteers of the DCW, Khaatir has previously participated in WikiConference India 2023, and has created over 694 articles on Arabic, English, and Urdu Wikipedias.