About this project

So much of the unique knowledge and experiences we acquire through years of living in a community gets spread only by word of mouth, or worse—just stays “locked up” in our heads. But this is great stuff, valuable expert knowledge that can benefit everyone! After all, when it comes to the communities where we live, we are all experts.

The LocalWiki project is an ambitious effort to create community-owned, living information repositories that will provide much-needed context behind the people, places, and events that shape our communities. And we have already proven it can work and provide tremendous benefits to a community. In 2004 we started the Davis Wiki, an experimental project to collect and share interesting information about the town of Davis, California, that soon became the world's largest and most vibrant community wiki. Today, the residents of Davis use it for everything from learning about local news and local history to helping return lost pets to their owners.

With your help, we want to help as many communities as possible realize the full potential of such an amazing information resource. We have received a grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, as part of its Knight News Challenge, to develop the next generation of wiki software that is tailored to the needs of local communities. But the software is only one major aspect of our project, which will require extensive community outreach, coordination, and education to ensure success. That's where we need you!

Pledge today, choose a thank-you gift, and help us bring community-owned collaborative media to all of our communities. Your donation is tax-deductible and will be used to start more pilot communities and help them grow. Once several pilot communities become successful, they can start helping each other.

Sign up at www.localwiki.org to get involved, receive updates on our progress, and suggest new pilot communities. How about yours?

Our plan:

WE develop the open-source software that will power local wikis

YOU suggest and vote for pilot communities

WE work closely with pilot communities to help get their projects off the ground

TOGETHER we forever change the way local communities share news and information

Who we are:

LocalWiki is a project of Wiki Spot, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization based in San Francisco. It was started by Philip Neustrom and Mike Ivanov, co-founders of the Davis Wiki, with the help and support of many of our friends from Davis and beyond. Special thanks to Arlen, Ryan, Jason, Paul, Brent, Graham, Jennifer, Julia, and the Knight Foundation.