We would like to introduce (and thank!) Amol Meshram, who has joined us here at the OSI to provide monthly summaries of both the License-Discuss and License-Review mailing lists. We hope these reports provide you with a helpful snapshot of the monthly activities on the lists, keeping you up to date with the latest topics, while also providing a reference point for further discussion. Of course all suggestions are welcome as we continue to enhance our reporting. We will try our best to include the feedback from OSI community members to make the summaries as accurate as possible and the discussions lively and fruitful.
In Oct 2019, License-Review mailing list members discussed below mentioned topics;
We would like to introduce (and thank!) Amol Meshram, who has joined us here at the OSI to provide monthly summaries of both the License-Discuss and License-Review mailing lists. We hope these reports provide you with a helpful snapshot of the monthly activities on the lists, keeping you up to date with the latest topics, while also providing a reference point for further discussion. Of course all suggestions are welcome as we continue to enhance our reporting. We will try our best to include the feedback from OSI community members to make the summaries as accurate as possible and the discussions lively and fruitful.
In Oct 2019, License-Discuss mailing list members discussed below mentioned topics;
The Open Source Initiative has seventy affiliate members. They represent a broad swath of the open source community, representing educational institutions, projects, and communities. We’re especially proud of our affiliates’ excellent work: thought leadership in open source philosophy; forward-thinking, community-building initiatives; and the work they do as part of fulfilling their missions to develop, innovate, and encourage the adoption of open source technology.
We wanted to take a moment to share the work of some OSI affiliate organizations and their stellar leadership across the greater open source community in community, design, and technology. Our goal is to offer just a few examples of how some of our affiliates are working which may inspire andinform your own efforts.
Brandeis University recently launched a program in Open Source Technology Management, to help train those seeking leadership roles in companies and communities, giving them a foundation in the value and necessity of open source software and philosophy. The program at Brandeis also creates a space for students to work directly with individuals active in the open source movement.
Creative Commons completely revolutionized licensing for content and media through the creation of the Creative Commons suite of open licenses. Their optimism and dedication to building a cultural commons have inspired countless people around the world to adopt open licenses and share their creative works.
The Debian community is best known for the Debian “universal” operating system, which powers everything from home computers to servers to the International Space Station with 100% free software. The Debian Social Contract highlights how a community’s commitments can further its mission by centering both users and developers.
The Document Foundation supports open source in many forms through their work with LibreOffice and the Document Liberation Project. LibreOffice provides a robust desktop and online office suite, allowing broad-scale adoption of open source software in homes, schools, and workplaces. Additionally, the Document Foundation does a great job providing a model of how a foundation can support a project while staying true to the values of open source.
Building maps and mapping tools are not just a matter of convenience to help us get around — they are necessary for humanitarian efforts, disaster response, and creating social equity. OpenStreetMap provides technical and social infrastructure for community map building. They also show the greater community how an open source project can be involved in humanitarian efforts while building world-class software.
The Python Software Foundation demonstrates excellence in community building and organizational leadership. Among other activities, PSF supports PyCon events around the world, providing opportunities for people just getting started in open source to learn and get involved wherever they are.
The Software Freedom Conservancy works on a number of fronts for the free and open source community. In addition to licensing enforcement efforts and assisting developers in understanding and protecting software freedom, they provide fiscal sponsorship and a home for a growing collection of communities and projects. These projects flourish with the help of the Conservancy.
Wikimedia provides a home for several projects and initiatives, including Wikipedia. Wikipedia has completely changed the way societies interact with knowledge and information. The Wikimedia community builds amazing things in open, collaborative communities that together build a reusable knowledge commons.
This is by no means an exhaustive list of our amazing affiliates and the inspiring work they are doing. It just demonstrates a small sample of what is happening with the OSI community. We’re proud of our affiliates and their commitment to open source. We would be excited to promote the great work of our affiliates with the broader open source community, so please let us know what you’re up to. We invite both our affiliate members to share those projects that provide open source leadership, and we also invite the community to reach out to us to find colleagues and peers within our affiliate communities that may be able to help them and their projects toward open source success.
- The OSI Board of Directors
Image credit: "Post1020Header.png" by Open Source Initiative, 2019, CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication, is a derivative (cropped, scaled, and color adjusted) of "Glacier National Park" a U.S. National Park Service photo, available under Public Domain, via the U.S. National Park Service.
Foundation working to ensure digital information remains accessible and usable through open source software and communities becomes latest OSI affiliate member.
The Open Source Initiative® (OSI), the global non-profit formed to educate about and advocate for the benefits of open source software, development, and communities, is proud to announce the affiliate membership of the Open Preservation Foundation (OPF). Enabling shared solutions for effective and efficient digital preservation, the OPF leads a collaborative effort to create, maintain and develop the reference set of sustainable, open source digital preservation tools and supporting resources.
Founded in 2010 as the Open Planets Foundation to sustain the results of EU-funded R&D, OPF currently stewards the leading portfolio of open source digital preservation software and enables the development of best practice through webinars, interest groups, community events, and training. Open Preservation Foundation's vision is open sustainable digital preservation.
"The OPF joined the OSI because we share a commitment to raising awareness and advocating for open source software," said Martin Wrigley, Executive Director of the OPF. "We maintain a set of open source file format validation tools and look forward to exchanging ideas with new communities and sharing our experience in digital preservation."
The OSI Affiliate Member Program, available at no-cost, allows non-profit and not-for-profit organizations—unequivocally independent groups with a clear commitment to open source—to join and support the OSI's mission to educate about and advocate for the benefits of open source and to build bridges among different constituencies in the open source community.
"Open Preservation Foundation's work exemplifies multiple dimensions of openness, not only as a maintainer of several open source tools and an open community for collaboration but also through their work ensuring digital content in many formats remains accessible and usable," said Patrick Masson, OSI General Manager. "We're grateful for OPF's support as a member and look forward to their contributions as a community."
OSI affiliate members participate directly in the direction and development of the OSI through the Board of Directors elections as well as incubator projects and working groups that support software freedom. OSI membership provides a forum where some of the world's most successful open source software leaders, projects, businesses, and communities engage through member-driven initiatives to promote and protect open source software, while also extending and improving their open source efforts through co-creation, collaboration, and community.
About the Open Preservation Foundation
The Open Preservation Foundation (OPF) is a global not-for-profit membership organization that leads a collaborative effort to create, maintain and develop the reference set of sustainable, open source digital preservation tools. Founded in 2010 to steward the results of EU-funded R&D, the Foundation enables the development of best practice through interest groups, community events, webinars, and training. The OPF's vision is open, sustainable digital preservation. To learn more about The Open Preservation Foundation see, https://openpreservation.org/
About the Open Source Initiative
Founded in 1998, the Open Source Initiative promotes and protects open source by providing a foundation for community success. It champions open source in society through education, infrastructure, and collaboration. As the steward of the Open Source Definition, the OSI is recognized internationally as the sole standards body for certifying open source licenses and preventing abuse of the open source concept by bad actors. The (OSI) is a California public benefit corporation with 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status. You can find more about the OSI at, https://opensource.org/
The Open Source Initiative (OSI) has worked for over 20 years to promote and protect open source software and communities, animated by the principles of software freedom and recognition of the value of collaborative development. While open source is distinct from free software, this distinction isn’t clear for many, and our shared roots bind us together.
It is because of our shared history and our commitment to elevating the very best qualities of the open source movement that we choose to make this statement today:
OSI applauds the efforts of every individual who has ever spoken up and taken steps to make free, libre, and open source software communities more inclusive. Without you, the movement would be less vibrant, less welcoming, and irreversibly diminished.
Whether you’ve led your community to implement a code of conduct or taken the time to mentor someone who isn’t like you, whether you’ve reported toxic behavior or pressured community leaders to act: thank you. It takes courage to change the status quo, and all too often, that comes at a personal expense.
Ultimately, ours is a moral movement, and our integrity hinges on whether we rise to meet the challenge of seeking justice and equity for all.
As we move forward, we hope that we can learn as a community and incorporate the lessons of the past into building a better future. Further, we hope we can build bridges to those who have been shut out of our movement, whether by omission or commission, at the hands of systemic bias as well as toxic and predatory behavior.
As the saying goes in open source, “Many eyes lead to shallower bugs.” So too do many perspectives lead to better software. Here’s to a better, more inclusive tomorrow.
- The OSI Board of Directors
Image credit: "CommitmentToElevatingTheVeryBest.png" by Open Source Initiative, 2019, CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication, is a derivative (cropped, scaled, and color adjusted) of "American avocets flying above Floating Island Lake" a U.S. National Park Servicephoto, available under Public Domain, via the U.S. National Park Service.