Nilo Velez: Making, nurturing, and capturing memories

With over two decades of experience in creating websites, WordPress has become an integral part of Nilo Velez’s professional and personal life.

Originally from Madrid but now based in Seville, Nilo’s deep involvement in the Spanish WordPress community reflects his passion for the platform. Proudly sponsored by Hostinger, he actively contributes to several teams, including Polyglots, Photos, Community, and TV.

While many contributors focus on just one or two teams, Nilo’s journey proves that it’s possible and even beneficial to contribute to multiple teams at once.

Keep reading to learn more about how Nilo makes meaningful contributions to different areas of the WordPress ecosystem.

The creative equilibrium

A seasoned web developer, Nilo has carved a niche for himself in the world of digital creation.

His skills go beyond website development – he’s also into multimedia development, which shows his versatility. He’s always working on his craft, training himself in system administration, media integration, design, and video editing. It’s clear he’s committed to staying on top of his game.

Outside of the digital world, Nilo finds solace and inspiration in creating things with his hands. Whether it’s tinkering with 3D printing, electronics, woodworking, or a combination of them all, Nilo finds the change of pace refreshing.

“Growing up, I was taught that it’s always better to fix things than to throw them away, and to make things rather than buy them,” he explains. It’s a philosophy that aligns well with Nilo’s creative pursuits.

It turns out Nilo’s passion for building things in the physical world also inspired his first digital creation.

Nilo was an avid kite builder and flier, so in 1998, he created his first website, Kite Plan Base. It started as a directory for online kite plans published by other amateur builders.

“I drew much inspiration from directories like DMOZ and Yahoo!,” Nilo reminisces. “Early on, I realized that many amateur websites tend to disappear without warning, so I began making backups of the plans I listed.”

Although not really updated these days, this online archive remains the largest kite plan directory in the world and has contributed significantly to the kite-building community.

Journey of passion and dedication

In Nilo’s early days as a web developer, he had some experience with various content management systems. But when he discovered WordPress, he was instantly drawn to its simplicity, flexibility, and self-hosted nature.

“WordPress immediately resonated with my maker instincts,” he says. This love for WordPress grew into a passion for giving back.

A defining moment came around 2005-2009. Nilo attended and volunteered at Evento Blog España (EBE), a prominent blog-related event in Spain. When the same organizers announced a WordCamp in Seville, he jumped at the chance to be involved. This decision, as Nilo puts it, “opened up a whole new world” and is one of the best decisions in his life.

From then on, Nilo became increasingly involved in WordPress-related activities. He began helping out on forums and meetups, participating in WordCamps, and serving as a general translation editor (GTE) for the Spanish locale (es_ES).

Beyond contributing to the Make WordPress project, Nilo understands fellow WordPress users’ pain points and takes action to address them.

He created Machete, a plugin offering lightweight tools for everyday WordPress tasks, such as site optimization, analytics, and WooCommerce utilities. Initially developed to clean up pre-built websites at a web agency, Machete has become a valuable resource with over 7,000 active installations.

For Nilo, the true power of WordPress lies not just in the code, but in the people who contribute to the project. His involvement with the community has deepened his understanding and appreciation for this collaborative project.

“The community has this unique magic: the more you give, the more you receive,” he says.

A team player across the board

Nilo actively contributes to several teams, each offering a unique and fulfilling experience.

“When you get involved with the WordPress community, you meet people from many different teams, and you might end up contributing to several of them. But there’s always one team that feels like ‘your team,’” Nilo explains. “For me, that team is Polyglots.”

It was Nilo’s first point of entry into the open-source community. He has devoted countless hours to it since then, helping ensure a great WordPress experience for Spanish users.

“Polyglots translates plugins, themes, and core projects, making them accessible to everyone. This relates strongly to WordPress’ mission of democratizing publishing and promoting open-source freedoms,” he says, emphasizing the team’s impact.

Nilo recalls that his first contribution to the Polyglots team was during the first WordPress Global Translation Day in 2016. Luis Rull, one of the es_ES Global Translation Editors, brought him into the team. While Nilo had already made small contributions to the WordPress community, he regards this event as his true starting point as a contributor.

Beyond Polyglots, Nilo contributes to the Photos, Community, and TV teams.

The Photos team’s mission resonates with him – creating a directory of free CC0-licensed images embodies the open-source spirit.

The Community team, responsible for organizing events, fuels Nilo’s passion for connection. “Volunteering, organizing, and mentoring at WordCamps is my happy place,” he shares. His signature at these events? Capturing memories as ‘the man with the big camera,’ a role that has opened doors and forged connections.

Finally, TV, WordPress’ video archive, allows Nilo to contribute to preserving WordPress history and sharing knowledge.

Each team has its own challenges, but there’s a common thread: a need for more contributors. It’s an ongoing struggle to attract new members to contribute to the open-source project, replace those who leave, and maintain engagement.

“Many people aren’t aware of the massive workforce needed to keep the WordPress community thriving,” Nilo says. “Meanwhile, those who want to help usually have limited time to do so, as they need to earn a living, so they are unsure how to contribute.”

Fortunately, initiatives like Five For the Future and the Contributor Mentorship Program offer solutions. The Five For the Future program offers company sponsorship of contributors, while the latter pairs seasoned mentors with new contributors.

“Personally, I wouldn’t be able to dedicate so many hours to the WordPress community without Hostinger’s sponsorship,” Nilo remarks. He has participated in all three batches of the mentorship program, too.

Keeping the spirit alive

Besides dedicating his time to contributing to the global network of contributors, Nilo is also very dedicated to his local WordPress community.

He is one of the driving forces of the Spanish WordPress community, particularly in Seville. Since 2011, he has volunteered at local WordCamps, witnessing the group’s transformation into a thriving hub.

“The best tip I can give to local community organizers is to keep it consistent,” Nilo shares. “Organize regular meetups, online or in-person, to cultivate a sense of connection.”

After consistent meetings, community members can start improving the quality of their meetups by getting speakers, involving more members, and organizing bigger events.

Seville’s WordPress community is notable for consistently hosting at least one local event per month, even throughout the pandemic. They organized online events, which have their own perks because they’re accessible to everyone, no matter where they are.

After the pandemic passed, turned out many people experienced online fatigue, and the enthusiasm for virtual events seemed to wane. However, Nilo remained an optimist. “The right content attracts the right audience,” he says.

He came up with creative solutions to keep people interested. This included mentoring about remote work for a small-budget event and organizing an online event with pre-recorded material. He even managed to record it during a plane flight!

Currently, he’s working on getting people involved in an online contributor day. Besides that, throughout the past year and a half, he has co-organized Quedadas WordPress en Español, a monthly online meetup for Spanish-speaking countries.

With all these contributions, it’s no wonder that Nilo has countless memories with his cherished WordPress community members. Among those, Nilo fondly recalls these moments:

• Taking a group photo of over 2,000 people from an 18-meter cherry picker crane
• Escorting Matt Mullenweg, the co-founder of WordPress, off the stage through a hallway that was supposed to be empty, and ended up high-fiving a hundred volunteers
• Organizing a Mario Kart tournament on a giant 88-square-meter screen
• Sharing an online Christmas dinner with all the speakers of WordCamp Sevilla 2021

These experiences highlight the spirit of camaraderie that Nilo thrives on. The WordPress community has become his extended family, a global network built on a shared passion.

As for aspiring contributors who want to follow in his footsteps of joining multiple teams, Nilo’s message is simple: “Find a team that sparks your interest, then offer your help.” He suggests connecting with local meetup groups or attending WordCamps to get started.

For those interested in the Photo team, Nilo offers a straightforward entry point: just submit a photo to the directory. “It’s one of the easiest projects to contribute to. Just head to the WordPress Photo Directory, read the guidelines, and submit a photo. That’s it – welcome aboard!” he concludes.