Call for Proposals: Funding the FOSS Ecosystem We are pleased to announce the Call for Participation for the first "Funding the FOSS Ecosystem" devroom at FOSDEM 2025. We bring together developers, maintainers, policymakers, entrepreneurs, donors and funders to explore various funding models and mechanisms that ensure the longevity and security of FOSS projects. The goal of this devroom is for developers to gain insights into funding strategies, their feasibility, and communication with end-users, while companies, governments, inter-governmental and social organisations as well as individual donors are encouraged to better understand and support developer needs in FOSS projects. We especially seek to help developers decide which projects are worth pursuing, in which ways to fund their projects, and learn about the challenges on the way. This devroom is organised by FSFE <https://fsfe.org/>, Linux Foundation <https://www.linuxfoundation.org/>, NLNet <https://nlnet.nl/>, Probabl.ai <http://probabl.ai/>, Prototype Fund <https://prototypefund.de/en/>, Sovereign Tech Fund <https://www.sovereigntechfund.de/en/> and Andriy Utkin <https://autkin.net/>. Topics and Criteria The topic of your submission must be related to the topic of the devroom. We want to cover a wide range of perspectives on the topic, for example: What are strategies for positioning open-source projects to clarify their value and unique offerings? How to access grants, investments, and alternative funding models for FOSS projects? What is/should be the roles of public and private sectors in FOSS funding? What is the impact of funding on developer well-being, project security, scalability, and innovation? How can we expand funding sources for FOSS? How can we engage more stakeholders in FOSS funding, such as industry, governments, and intergovernmental organizations? Therefore the criteria for accepted talks would be: Does it align with the topic of the devroom? Does it provide a unique or under-represented perspective? Is it engaging and accessible to a wide audience OR demonstrate significant impact to FOSS maintainers and contributors? No self-promotional talks. Please make sure you are able to attend FOSDEM, as there won't be remote or pre-recorded talks accepted. Submission Guide Submissions must be submitted through the FOSDEM pretalx system <https://pretalx.fosdem.org/fosdem-2025/cfp>. Note that this is a new system and accounts from pentabarf were not migrated: Presenters will have to create a new account. Your submission must include the following information : Please select the "Funding the FOSS Ecosystem" as the track. Name Short bio Contact info Title Abstract Duration (Please make sure to not submit talks that are over 30 minutes as those will be disqualified) Important Dates Submission open: 30th October 2024 Submission deadline: 1st December 2024 Acceptance notifications: 6th December Final schedule announcement: 15th December 2024 "Funding the FOSS Ecosystem" Devroom: February 2nd 2025 (｡♫⋆Sunday Morning, Rain is Falling ⋆♫｡) Code of Conduct We'd like to remind all speakers and attendees that all of the presentations and discussions in our devroom are held under the guidelines set in the FOSDEM Code of Conduct <https://fosdem.org/2025/practical/conduct/> and we expect attendees, speakers, and volunteers to read, understand and follow the FOSDEM CoC at all times. If you submit a proposal and it is accepted, you will be required to confirm that you accept the FOSDEM CoC. If you have any questions about the FOSDEM CoC, please email us and we will do our best to assist you. Contact Us NLNet stand is there on both days, come and talk to us. We seek to form a group of practicing participants! Please join the mailing list <https://lists.sr.ht/~autkin/FOSDEM25DevroomOnFunding> for continued discussions. Subscribe to devroom's Mastodon account <https://fosstodon.org/@FOSDEM25DevroomOnFunding>. Members of the organization team: FSFE <https://fsfe.org/about/contact.en.html> Linux Foundation <https://www.linuxfoundation.org/about/contact> NLNet <https://nlnet.nl/contact/> Probabl.ai <http://probabl.ai/> Prototype Fund <https://prototypefund.de/en/> Sovereign Tech Fund <mailto:info@sovereigntechfund.de> Andriy Utkin <mailto:fosdem25@autkin.net> Volunteering FOSDEM is a free event for software developers to meet, share ideas and collaborate. Every year, the FOSDEM team is assisted by an enthusiastic team of volunteers to help out with various tasks and make the event a fun and safe place for all our visitors. There are some benefits to being a volunteer, but most importantly you help make FOSDEM possible! Visit https://volunteers.fosdem.org/ to sign up.