Wikipedia Test
Everyone wants a safer internet and yet, sometimes new policies can inadvertently wreck Wikipedia. Working closely with the Global Advocacy team, we created the Wikipedia Test, a simple checklist for policymakers to use to create better informed legislation that won’t cause harm to one of the best places on the internet.
We created the first iteration of the Wikipedia Test as a card game for RightsCon 2025, a human rights summit in Taiwan. This game, roughly inspired by Apples to Apples, shows policymakers the potential very serious consequences (from censorship to government surveillance) that can come from passing, even well-intentioned, new legislation. It also made an appearance at SXSW.
The second iteration of the Wikipedia Test, an all-digital rubric that lives on the Global Advocacy’s blog, came out of a need to educate a greater number of policymakers. Borrowing from the visual aesthetic of reviewing (including circling, underlining, and doodling) of documents, these seven thought-provoking questions aim to prevent new laws from making it easier or harder for people to read, contribute to, and/or trust free knowledge projects like Wikipedia.
