The WordPress Themes and Hosting teams have officially announced their representatives for 2025, ushering in a new year of leadership and contributions to the platform’s continued growth and innovation. These individuals, chosen for their expertise, dedication, and impactful work within the WordPress community, will guide two of the most crucial aspects of the ecosystem: themes and hosting.
The Themes Team began its search for representatives in November 2024, inviting nominations from the global WordPress community. This open call allowed anyone to nominate themselves or others, ensuring broad participation. While there was excitement about potential new faces, many community members suggested retaining the current representatives for another term, citing their outstanding contributions and leadership. After careful consideration and discussions with current and former representatives, the Themes Team decided to extend the terms of the 2024 representatives for an additional year.
The team includes Alexandru Cosmin from Romania, Ganga Kafle from Nepal, and Shiva Shanker Bhatta, also from Nepal. Alexandru, sponsored by Extend Themes, has been an integral part of the WordPress community since releasing his first theme in 2008. Over the years, he has taken on various roles, including reviewer, developer, and team representative, demonstrating a deep understanding of the platform’s needs. Ganga Kafle, sponsored by Rank Math, has been an active contributor since 2012. He is a WordCamp Asia 2025 organizer and a moderator for WordPress-related podcasts, further showcasing his engagement within the community. Shiva Shanker Bhatta, founder and CEO of AF Themes, brings over a decade of experience in WordPress themes, plugins, and community contributions. His leadership has been instrumental in ensuring the Themes Team’s continued success.
In 2024, the Themes Team accomplished remarkable results, closing 39,796 tickets and conducting 1,708 reviews collectively handled by Alexandru, Ganga, and Shiva. Their efforts have been pivotal in maintaining high-quality themes for WordPress users, ensuring accessibility, functionality, and design standards are met.
The Hosting Team also underwent a nomination process to select its representatives for 2025. Four candidates were proposed: Matthias Pfefferle, Javier Casares, Zunaid Amin, and Lucas Radke. While Matthias and Javier declined the opportunity, the team used an anonymous survey to finalize the selection of representatives. The results brought a mix of continuity and fresh leadership, with Zunaid Amin and Lucas Radke taking on the roles.
Zunaid Amin, based in Bangladesh, is a WordPress Engineer at Rocket.Net and joins as a new representative. His technical expertise and commitment to the WordPress ecosystem position him as a valuable addition to the Hosting Team. Meanwhile, Lucas Radke, a Product Manager at WordPress VIP from Germany, continues in his role as a Hosting Team representative. His ongoing contributions have played a significant role in advancing WordPress hosting solutions and fostering collaboration with hosting providers.
Both teams play critical roles in the WordPress ecosystem. The Themes Team is responsible for reviewing and improving WordPress themes, ensuring they meet the platform’s high standards for design, usability, and accessibility. Their work directly impacts the user experience for millions of WordPress users worldwide. The Hosting Team focuses on collaborating with hosting providers to enhance WordPress performance, scalability, and reliability, ensuring a seamless experience for website owners and visitors alike.
The announcement of the 2025 representatives reflects the WordPress community’s trust in their abilities and their track record of meaningful contributions. These leaders will be pivotal in addressing emerging challenges, fostering collaboration, and driving innovation within the ecosystem. Their combined expertise ensures that both teams remain at the forefront of efforts to make WordPress a more robust, user-friendly, and accessible platform.
As WordPress continues to power over 40% of websites worldwide, the work of these teams becomes increasingly critical. Themes and hosting are foundational to the platform’s success, influencing everything from user experience to site performance and scalability. The representatives selected for 2025 are well-positioned to build on the achievements of their predecessors, guiding WordPress through another year of growth and evolution.
The Themes and Hosting teams’ leadership for 2025 underscores the importance of continuity and fresh perspectives. By retaining experienced contributors while welcoming new representatives, these teams strike a balance that benefits the WordPress ecosystem as a whole. The decisions made today will shape the platform’s future, ensuring it continues to thrive as the web’s most popular content management system.
Angela Rogers