Sustain

Guest Jack Skinner Panelist Richard Littauer Show Notes In this episode of Sustain, host Richard Littauer talks with Jack Skinner, PyCon AU organizer and freelance consultant/fractional CTO, to explore why regional conferences matter so much to the long-term health of open source communities. Their conversation looks at how events like PyCon AU do far more than host talks, they create local connections, nurture future leaders, support first-time speakers, and help sustain the broader Python ecosystem in ways that global conferences alone cannot. Drawing on Jack’s experience as a conference organizer and community builder, the episode offers a behind-the-scenes look at the challenges of running volunteer-led events, from sponsorships and logistics to burnout, accessibility, and building a stronger pipeline of future organizers. Press download now to hear more! [00:01:49] Jack shares his background and how he got involved in Python and event organizing. [00:02:48] We hear about Jack’s first PyCon AU experience. [00:04:14] Jack describes PyCon AU, who it serves, and how it’s changed after COVID. [00:07:01] Why do regional conferences exist alongside PyCon US? [00:09:24] Jack talks about what makes Australia and New Zealand different as conference communities. [00:10:55] PyCon AU’s attendance goals are discussed as Jack mentions his big goal is to bring attendance back to roughly 500-600 people, restoring pre-pandemic strength. [00:12:04] The discussion turns to conference structure: tracks, workshops, and sponsor interest, with Jack emphasizing sponsorship is not just about money. [00:14:54] Richard asks how organizers know whether conferences help people learn, connect, or build community. Jack explains how they’re measuring community impact beyond “good vibes” and rebuilding local Python communities. [00:17:34] Jack explains PyCon AU is trying to build a future organizer pipeline by letting people observe how conference planning works and introduces his proposed program/project, “shadow team.” [00:19:09] Another project Jack is working on is documenting the behind-the-scenes work of organizing the conference through long-form writing. [00:20:38] Jack admits he feels imposter syndrome because he’s not paid to write Python, his contribution is centered on the sociotechnical side. [00:23:20] PyCon AU’s independence from government and institutions is discussed, and how the conference community is globally aware, even if locally focused. [00:27:05] Call for proposals details, deadline is March 29, and the in-person focus for this year’s event are mentioned. Richard discusses the return of the academic track and Jack details more info on poster sessions and workshop submissions. [00:32:08] Volunteering and buying tickets are explained and why you should buy tickets early if you can. Quotes [00:32:20] “Volunteering is an awesome way to be involved in PyCon.” Spotlight [00:35:16] Richard’s spotlight is two of his lecturers at the University of Edinburgh, Simon Kirby and Andrew Smith, who introduced him to Python. [00:35:55] Jack’s spotlight is two companion projects: pretalx and pretix. Links SustainOSS podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Jack Skinner LinkedIn Jack Skinner Website PyCon AU, August 26-30, 2026, Brisbane PyCon AU News & Updates Sustain Podcast-Episode 75: Deb Nicholson on the OSI, the future of open source, and SeaGL Sustain Podcast-Episode 137: A How-to Guide for Contributing to Open Source as an Employee, for Corporations (featuring Deb Nicholson as Host) Guido van Rossum Whale song shows language-like statistical structure Simon Kirby (co-lead author) pretalx (GitHub) pretix (GitHub) Sponsor CURIOSS Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Special Guest: Jack Skinner.

Guest Miranda Heath Panelist Richard Littauer Show Notes In this episode of Sustain, host Richard Littauer is joined by PhD student Miranda Heath to discuss her research on altruism and maintainer burnout in open source, and specifically her report on burn out in open source maintainers. Miranda shares insights from her study on what motivates people to act altruistically and how these behaviors manifest in open source communities. She delves into the common issues maintainers face, such as changing motivations and the systemic challenges that contribute to burnout. Drawing on examples from her research, including kidney donors and open source maintainers, Miranda explores how community support, mentorship, and better funding can help mitigate burnout. The conversation also touches on the unique challenges neurodiverse maintainers face and the importance of creating supportive environments for them. Press download now to hear more! [00:00:44] Richard introduces Miranda Heath, whom he met at FOSDEM, and she’s built a major report on maintainer burnout. [00:02:04] Miranda studies what motivates people to benefit others, how “altruism” is often framed too narrowly, and she points out neglected forms. [00:03:40] Richard asks about a name for the type of altruism, and they land on “collective altruism” as a useful label for shared/commons based giving. [00:04:25] Miranda explains her work on anonymous kidney donors and the key insight from the kidney donors is that altruism can be mundane. [00:06:45] Looking at the motivations of open source developers, Miranda sees overlap between altruistic impulses and open source and contrasts this with academia’s paywall-driven publication system. [00:08:36] They discuss how motivation changes which leads to burnout risk, and Richard brings up Miranda’s maintainer burnout report and what it was based on. [00:10:13] Miranda describes how this report started and what she wanted to change. [00:13:21] What are some systematic solutions for burnout? Miranda argues “money vs people” is a false dichotomy: respecting maintainers includes making it possible to live. Burnout is worsened by “double shift” dynamics and “Labor of love is still labor.” [00:16:18] Richard notes many maintainers are paid through employers, Miranda talks about paid maintainer roles still carry burnout risk, and some research done by Robert Karasek in the late 70’s. [00:20:14] Miranda draws from social psychology: communities run on group norms (often unspoken), and emphasizes we need to make beneficiaries feel part of the in-group, so they adopt norms. [00:22:36] Richard highlights the Open Source Pledge and policy approaches like the Cyber Resilience Act, and Miranda notes policy could reduce autonomy and increase burnout if rigid. [00:26:22] What happens after burnout? Miranda believes we should prevent unwanted exits, normalize “sunsetting” conversations, and have a plan to wind down a project. [00:31:17] There’s a discussion on how burnout shouldn’t equal personal failure, and an example is brought up with the Tailwind CSS tensions. [00:35:19] Miranda stresses the importance of mentorship for community roles to be filled, Richard cites Abby Cabunoc’s “3 C’s” for mentor-worthy contributors, and Miranda mentions the concept of “Mentorship Triangle.” [00:38:03] Find out where you can follow Miranda and her work online. [00:38:27] We wrap with Miranda sharing there’s an important gap with neurodivergence and autistic burnout and how more research needs to be done. Quotes [00:15:13] “Maintenance work is work, but a labor of love is labor.” Spotlight [00:40:47] Richard's spotlight is the klezmer band, OCH VEY. [00:41:33] Miranda’s spotlight is the puzzle game, TR-49. Links SustainOSS podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Miranda Heath Website Sentry Open Source Pledge Job Demands, Job Decision Latitude, and Mental Strain: Implications for Job Redesign by Robert Karasek, Jr. (Sage Publications) Cyber Resilience Act Abby Cabunoc Mayes-The Synthetic Senior: Rethinking Free Software Mentorship in the AI Era (FOSDEM 2026 talk video) OCH VEY Instagram TR-49 Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Special Guest: Miranda Heath.

Guest Trent Van Epps Panelists Eriol Fox | Victory Brown Show Notes In this episode of Sustain, host Eriol Fox and co-host Victory Brown are at the Devconnect Conference in Buenos Aires with Trent Van Epps, an organizer of Protocol Guild and member of the Ethereum Foundation. They discuss the vital role of Protocol Guild in funding core protocol developers, addressing systemic issues of under-compensation in open-source projects. Trent also explores the similarities and differences between funding in the open-source community and the Ethereum ecosystem, emphasizing the importance of collective representation and the unique financial structures of blockchain technology. The conversation highlights the necessity of diversity and inclusion within the Ethereum community and shares insights on the impact of adverse regulatory pressures and funding challenges. Press download now! [00:00:29] Trent explains Protocol Guild and he connects Guild work to his EF role coordinating network upgrades and ensuring stable funding and continuity. [00:02:35] Trent tells us why core contributors are under compensated and notes there’s a “hot ball of money” problem. [00:05:21] Eriol and Trent discuss discomfort around money in open source. the myth of pure altruism, and the reality that “you can’t eat your code.” [00:06:28] What can open source learn from Ethereum? Trent points to classic charitable giving practices and highlights Ethereum’s difference and stresses that funding can be used as a political lever. [00:11:07] Trent contrasts different contributor needs and points out diversity/heterogeneity as essential to Ethereum’s robustness and security. [00:15:40] Trent describes tight social bonds in Ethereum formed by “youth of the ecosystem” and shared regulatory pressures, which push the community to cooperate defensively, and he talks about how Protocol Guild operates like a loose union/syndicate. [00:20:03] He outlines their funding vehicle called the 1% Pledge. [00:22:07] Trent acknowledges high-profile scams and speculative excess get media attention, overshadowing serious work, like the technological waves with railroads. He points to Argentina, Kenya, and other places with weak institutions. [00:24:59] Eriol closes the discussion with a call to widen your bubble. [00:26:08] Trent’s project spotlight is ZKP2P and a great book by Benjamin Birkinbine. Also, he shares where you can find him on the internet. Links podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Eriol Fox X Victory Brown X Trent Van Epps X Devconnect- 2025, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 17-22 November Ethereum Ethereum Foundation Protocol Guild ZKP2P Incorporating the Digital Commons: Corporate Involvement in Free and Open Source Software by Benjamin J. Birkinbine Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Logistical support by Tina Arboleda from Digital Savvies Special Guest: Trent Van Epps.

Guest Nuno Loureiro Panelists Eriol Fox | Victory Brown Show Notes In this episode of Sustain, host Eriol Fox and co-host Victory Brown are live with Nuno Loureiro, Lead Designer at the Ethereum Foundation, at Devconnect Conference in Buenos Aires. Nuno shares his journey in digital design and discusses his role in focusing on ethereum.org. He highlights the challenges of designing for open source platforms, including the difficulty of onboarding and collaborating with designers. He also touches on UX challenges in the context of blockchain technology, emphasizing the importance of trust and design for mass adoption of open source tools. The discussion further explores how the Ethereum Foundation engages with the community for design feedback and the decentralized nature of project narratives. The episode concludes with Nuno spotlighting Penpot, a tool he believes is changing the landscape design. Hit download now to hear more! [00:00:34] Nuno shares his background in digital and product design and joining Ethereum Foundation to focus on Ethereum.org as a learning portal. [00:02:13] He shares the biggest design challenges at the Ethereum Foundation starting out with a major challenge which was opening a design system to open source collaboration. [00:04:08] Eriol asks how good design and usability relate to sustainable open source. Nuno argues UX is the main blocker for mass adoption of open source tools and uses tools like GIMP as an example. [00:05:00] Victory asks how Nuno brings more designers into the ecosystem and elevates design conversations. He admits he’s “not doing enough” and notes how hard it is to balance paid work with open source contributions and critiques designers, including himself, as poor collaborators compared with developers. [00:06:27] Eriol reflects on how both coders and designers get deeply attached to their work, and notes that vulnerability and openness to critique are hard but necessary for sustainability of open source to grow. [00:07:54] Eriol brings up Vitalik’s talk, Founder of Ethereum, at Funding the Commons, where he emphasized reliability as critical to UX and poses a question to Nuno. He explains what Ethereum Foundation’s current “three mantras” are. [00:11:49] A question is brought up about how design decisions for new features are made inside Ethereum and what others can learn. Nuno clarifies the Ethereum Foundation does not own the protocol or roadmap and is a community based approach. [00:13:26] Victory asks how Ethereum gathers UX feedback from users. Nuno says they rely heavily on third party projects that do their own UX research. [00:14:43] Nuno spotlights Penpot, an open source design tool he uses and believes is changing the design landscape. Links podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Eriol Fox X Victory Brown X Nuno Loureiro X Nuno Loureiro Website Ethereum Foundation Ethereum Devconnect- 2025, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 17-22 November Funding the Commons Penpot Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Logistical support by Tina Arboleda from Digital Savvies Special Guest: Nuno Loureiro.

Guest Lucas Fada Panelists Eriol Fox | Victory Brown Show Notes In this episode of Sustain, host Eriol Fox and co-host Victory Brown speak with Lucas Fada, the head of partnerships at Drips Network. Lucas shares insights from his over a decade of experience in early-stage startups, focusing on making open source software projects financially sustainable through strategic partnerships. They discuss the methodologies Lucas employs to secure funding for open source projects, the types of projects that attract funders, and how Drips Network aims to create a 'super app' for funding open source builders. Lucas also provides valuable advice for open source projects on becoming more visible to funders and highlights the essential role of ecosystems like Web3 in supporting open source. Additionally, he emphasizes the importance of moving beyond traditional philanthropy and crisis management in open source funding. Press download to hear more! [00:00:23] Eriol introduces Lucas, and he explains what doing partnerships for Drips Network entails. [00:01:50] Before approaching funders, Lucas shares that Drips looks for people or teams that have already funded OSS or spoken publicly about it. [00:02:56] Victory wonders what kind of projects funders are interested in. Lucas explains funders tend to focus on high-visibility libraries rather than deep dependencies and goes into funder motivations to “give back” vs ecosystem needs. [00:05:17] How can projects become more fundable? Lucas dives into this in two parts and he announces they are building a ‘super app’ for funding open source builders. [00:07:49] Lucas elaborates on what package registries could do. One example he mentions is that Drips launched a “Fund Me” button for GitHub repos, like “Buy Me a Coffee” but crypto-based and fee free. [00:09:19] Eriol notes that many projects associate marketing with proprietary, corporate culture, but marketing is really just communication. Lucas suggests the community could develop a shared marketing team that helps projects share their story. [00:10:53] What can funders do proactively to support open source and critical digital infrastructure? Lucas’ top advice is: Talk to your own developers. [00:13:07] Why Web3? It’s one of the most OSS-driven spaces; blockchains are typically open source and modular. Lucas wants OSS funding to move out of philanthropy/emergency rescue mode into something more strategic and ongoing. [00:15:25] Lucas shares how they are making OSS maintenance a viable elaborating on how Drips is building funding pathways for different stages of an OSS career: Dependency funding, Direct grants, Retroactive grants, and Drips Wave. [00:17:58] Drips is working with UNICEF to create funding mechanisms for several high use Digital Public Goods and how governments in the global south could encourage youth to join open source bounties. Eriol acknowledges skepticism about bounties and highlights their benefits. [00:19:54] Find out where you can follow Lucas on the internet and he shares his project spotlight, Ethers.js and its maintainer, Richard “ricmoo” Moore. Links podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Eriol Fox X Victory Brown X Lucas Fada X Lucas Fada LinkedIn Drips Drips Discord Devconnect- 2025, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 17-22 November Ethereum Ethereum Foundation Ethers.js Web3 Richard “ricmoo” Moore Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Logistical support by Tina Arboleda from Digital Savvies Special Guest: Lucas Fada.

Guest Devansh Mehta Panelists Eriol Fox | Victory Brown Show Notes In this episode of Sustain, host Eriol Fox and co-host Victory Brown are at Devconnect Conference in Buenos Aires with Devansh Mehta from the Ethereum Foundation, to unpack one of the hardest problems in open source: how to fund the public good infrastructure that everything else depends on fairly, ethically, and at scale. They dig into quadratic funding, “credit assignment,” dependency graphs, Goodhart’s Law, and how AI can help, without taking over. Also, why open networks still struggle to compete with corporations and what new funding mechanisms like Deep Funding are trying to change. Hit download now to hear more! [00:00:22] Eriol introduces Devansh, and he tells us about the work he does at Ethereum Foundation. [00:01:32] He explains two core problems: Funding loop and Credit assignment. [00:03:57] He identifies two failure modes: Popularity contests and lobbying & favoritism and shares why he found quadratic funding very liberating. [00:05:48] Devansh uses Bitcoin as a simple model: miners get all the credit for a block and the new BTC is the funding loop. [00:06:51] He defines public goods as value created minus value captured and argues the real challenge is linking revenue centers to cost centers. [00:09:19] Devansh proposes a 3-step model for connecting revenue and OSS dependencies: Build an accurate dependency graph, weight the edges, capturing “how much value I get from you, and send money into one address and let it flow through the graph by weights. [00:11:28] Goodhart’s law is explained, and Devansh warns metrics like stars/downloads break once tied directly to money and he gives some solutions to use non-deterministic AI and human judgement. [00:16:04] Victory wonders how we can make this more ethical. Devansh notes that experts have the biggest conflict of interest, and he introduces cryptographic ideas: Confusion and Diffusion. [00:18:27] Devansh analogizes funding mechanisms are like recommendation algorithms and critiques the current RFP/grant system common in non-Web3 open source. [00:21:01] Find out where you can follow Devansh on the internet and he shares the Ethereum Foundation believes in the “policy of subtraction” and highlights some key partners in deep funding: Seer, Pond, and Drips. Links podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Eriol Fox X Victory Brown X Devansh Mehta X Deep Funding Deep Funding GG24 Web3 Tooling and Infra Round Agent Allocators Devconnect- 2025, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 17-22 November Ethereum Ethereum Foundation Ethereum Foundation Blog Goodhart’s law Seer Pond Drips Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Logistical support by Tina Arboleda from Digital Savvies Special Guest: Devansh Mehta.

Guest Nixo Rokish Panelists Eriol Fox | Victory Brown Show Notes In this live episode of Sustain from Devconnect in Buenos Aires, host Eriol Fox and co-host Victory Brown sit down with Nixo Rokish, Protocol Support Lead at the Ethereum Foundation, to unpack how Ethereum’s deeply decentralized governance actually works in practice. They dive into the nuts and bolts of coordinating 100+ core contributors across 11+ client teams, why neutral facilitation is crucial, how Ethereum’s upgrade and EIP process avoids “single maintainer” failure modes, and what lessons other open source projects can steal to make their own governance more sustainable. The episode concludes with Nixo promoting the EthStaker project focused on decentralized staking. Hit download now to hear more! [00:00:38] Nixo explains Ethereum as a rare example of truly decentralized governance and she describes the Protocol Coordination team. [00:02:25] Why does this governance model matter for sustainability? Nixo says most projects rely on 1-2 key people and if they leave, the project can stall or die. [00:04:09] Eriol asks if anyone resists this decentralized, community-led governance model. Nixo says active participants are mostly enthusiastic about the process and the main friction from VCs wanting more control and social media “ship faster” pressure. [00:05:51] Eriol talks about money and influence entering open source projects and Nixo shares that core devs are motivated by building systems for many people, not concentrating profit. [00:08:00] Nixo walks through the Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) process. [00:11:38] Victory asks how they manage consensus with so many people and companies involved. Nixo explains 11+ client times, only one is within EF, other are independent companies/nonprofits. [00:13:36] Eriol reacts to how impressive it is that devs can reach consensus via facilitation and asks Nixo for advice for smaller open source projects that want to adopt similar practices. Her key advice is to have a neutral facilitator. [00:16:13] Nixo shares where you can find her on the internet and she spotlights a project she used to work at called, EthStaker. Links podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Eriol Fox X Victory Brown X Nixo Rokish X Devconnect-Buenos Aires, Argentina 2025, 17-22 November Ethereum Ethereum Foundation Institute of Forecasting & Planning EthStaker Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Logistical support by Tina Arboleda from Digital Savvies Special Guest: Nixo Rokish.

Guest Shubhranshu Choudhary Panelists Eriol Fox | Victory Brown Show Notes In this episode of Sustain, host Eriol Fox and co-host Victory Brown speak with Shubhranshu “Shu” Choudhary. They delve into his work with Democratic Media and its connections to open source technology. Shu discusses the aristocratic nature of current media, the importance of democratizing journalism, and the potential role of open source and decentralized technologies like Web3 and blockchain in making media more inclusive and representative. He shares his vision of community-led journalism, the challenges of sustaining independent media, and the importance of technology in addressing these issues. The conversation highlights the need for democratic platforms, the role of AI in reducing costs, and the potential for blockchain to create financially independent media. Shu also touches on the trust and inclusivity required for effective community journalism. Press download to hear more! [00:00:33] Shu tells us what his work involves and how it connects to open source software. [00:02:52] Eriol asks why Shu finds open source, Web3, and decentralization critical to the democratic media work that he’s doing. He explains that media should be commons and inclusive, not controlled by media owners. [00:05:04] Shu details the challenges and solutions in media representation. He envisions a “News Commission” (like an Election Commission) where everyone can submit stories and AI’s role. [00:09:27] Eriol recalls a Ugandan project she worked on where farmers reclaimed radio to broadcast their issues. Shu admits he previously associated Web3 only with scammers, but DevConnect showed him serious, positive work. Also, he sees potential for AI and Web3 joint platforms and explains designing for the “last person first.” [00:16:18] Victory asks about trust in tech, given risks to Shu and his family and wider distrust of Web3/open source. Shu’s trust is multi-layered, during conflict, anonymity is crucial, but in calmer times, trust also means community control. [00:20:02] Eriol and Victory connect Shu’s ideas to open source governance and community driven tool design. Shu points out that voters/reporters must not be paid per story but should be compensated through impact. [00:22:19] Find out where to follow Shu and his work on the internet and he stresses this is a humanity-wide challenge, not just a journalists’ one. Links podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Eriol Fox X Victory Brown X Devconnect- 2025, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 17-22 November Ethereum Ethereum Foundation Shubhranshu Choudhary LinkedIn CGNet Swara Democratic Media Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Logistical support by Tina Arboleda from Digital Savvies Special Guest: Shubhranshu Choudhary.

Guest Mário Havel Panelists Eriol Fox | Victory Brown Show Notes In this episode of Sustain, host Eriol Fox and co-host Victory Brown are live at Devconnect Conference in Buenos Aires, with Mário Havel, protocol support at the Ethereum Foundation and co-founder of the Bordel Hackerspace in Prague. Mário shares his experience working in protocol support, contributing to the evolution and scalability of Ethereum. He dives into the significance of the Hackerspace 'Bordell' in Prague, discussing its role in fostering a creative and collaborative community focused on free and open source software. Mário also highlights the philosophical underpinnings of free software, emphasizing user freedom and security, and discusses the impact of corporate involvement in open source projects, the complexities of sustaining such initiatives, and the innovative “crowd-loaning” model used to fund their Hackerspace through Ethereum. Hit download now to hear more! [00:00:40] Mário explains working at the Ethereum Foundation, his role on the protocol support team, the Ethereum Protocol Fellowship, and he introduces Bordel Hackerspace as a community space for hackers, makers, and artists. [00:04:08] He elaborates on the Hackerspace which is explicitly free and open source software users and contributors and his free and open source software philosophy. Eriol reflects on her own journey learning what “free” really means in this context. [00:07:54] Mário dives into how scalability, security, and new devs/fellowships link directly to sustainability. [00:12:48] Mário discusses corporate influence on free/open source. He emphasizes the need for more neutral, community driven structures so projects can accept money without losing independence. [00:15:25] Eriol contrasts joyful, playful hacker culture with the pressure many projects feel to “look corporate” to survive. Mário shares his personal stance: he avoids proprietary software and doesn’t use banks or KYC, preferring free/open monetary systems like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Monero. [00:17:41] Mário details “crowdloaning” smart contracts they built on Ethereum. Eriol suggests many open source projects doing individual donation drives could learn from this crowdloaning model. [00:21:10] Find out where you can follow Mário and the projects on the internet, and he spotlights the project GrapheneOS, a highly secure, privacy-respecting, easy-to-use mobile operating system. Links podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Eriol Fox X Victory Brown X Mário Havel X Mário Havel GitHub Devconnect- 2025, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 17-22 November Ethereum Ethereum Foundation Ethereum Foundation Blog Bordel Hackerspace Bordel Hackerspace First Ever Pure DeFi Mortgage/Contribute to the crowdloan GrapheneOS Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Logistical support by Tina Arboleda from Digital Savvies Special Guest: Mário Havel.

Guests Rynn Mancuso | Maryblessing Okolie | Mo McElaney Panelist Richard Littauer | Eriol Fox Show Notes In this episode of Sustain, Richard and Eriol talk with members of the Organization for Ethical Source (OES), Rynn Mancuso, Maryblessing Okolie, and Mo McElaney, about how ethics, licensing, and codes of conduct intersect in open source. They unpack the origins and challenges of the Hippocratic License, the community driven overhaul of Contributor Covenant 3.0, what it really takes to collaborate across borders and cultures, and how OES is now turning its attention to ethical AI, translations and practical resources for communities to make it a safer and more inclusive space. They also suggest ways for listeners to get involved in these important initiatives. Hit download now! [00:02:17] Rynn gives the elevator pitch on what the Organization for Ethical (OES) is. [00:04:57] Mo explains the Hippocratic License is modeled on “do no harm” and it’s an open source license. [00:06:06] Richard wonders if the Hippocratic License is open source since we’re not using OSI’s definition. Mo explains that OES still uses “open source” in a broader, “big tent” sense focused on work done in the open, and Rynn adds why definitions need to evolve. [00:09:27] Rynn shares rewriting the Contributor Covenant 3.0, starting from their background, to being a limited scope, and getting feedback from translators that language was too American/Western and 3.0 needed a broader cultural fit. [00:15:12] Maryblessing was brought in to lead v3.0 from an African, non-US perspective and to make the process community driven. She tells us what’s new in the Contributor Covenant 3.0. [00:19:43] The discussion covers how they all worked together. It was a highly collaborative, consensus driven process where anyone could propose edits. They talk about how long it took, not work entirely on GitHub, and why not everything was public. [00:24:59] We hear about some adoption challenges for codes of conduct for small projects and enterprises. [00:28:53] Rynn, Mo, and Maryblessing touch on how they are approaching ethical AI work, they share options to support OES, how to get involved, and translation needs. Quotes [00:12:32] “It was a very limited scope, and we always designed it to work on the internet and be for open source projects.” [00:13:23] “I would get these problems that really had to do with caste, but nobody would say anything about caste.” [00:16:37] “This new version also emphasizes restorative justice, and we’re keen on using inclusive languages.” [00:17:06] “We’re making progress on bringing in African translation.” [00:17:38] “One of the things we did with the new website was to include the CC3 builder which was going to help make it easy for people to adapt the code of conduct.” [00:21:37] “Every bit of feedback we got, we took it seriously, we talked about it.” [00:22:13] “It took is a year and six months to do the entire thing, to make sure people were available. It took that long because we wanted to make sure we were incorporating every feedback.” [00:23:14] “We do not do everything in the open on GitHub. One reason is structural. GitHub is not great at document management. Another reason we do that is we’ve received a lot of harassment form groups on the internet that were frankly invested in being able to cause trouble for a lot of people.” [00:29:14] “We’re in the early stages of considering how we could approach ethical AI.” Spotlight [00:33:12] Mo's spotlight is for more folks to get involved with this project and other projects through the OES. [00:33:34] Rynn’s spotlight is a shoutout to the folks at IBM and RedHat and Dev/Mission and JVS where they volunteer. [00:35:25] Maryblessing’s spotlight is all the amazing people that helped put together the Contributor Covenant v.3.: Greg Cassel, Coraline Ada Ehmke, Gerardo Lisboa, Rynn Mancuso, Mo McElaney, Maryblessing Okolie, Ben Sternthal, and Casey Watts. [00:36:11] Eriol’s spotlight is the OpenSSF Working Group on Securing Software Repositories. [00:36:44] Richard’s spotlight is a fun paper called, Paradoxes of Openness: Trans Experiences in Open Source Software by Hana Frluckaj, Nikki Stevens, James Howison, and Laura Dabbish. Links SustainOSS podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Eriol Fox X Rynn Mancuso LinkedIn Maryblessing Okolie LinkedIn Mo McElaney LinkedIn Organization For Ethical Source (OES) OES- What We Do OES-What We Believe Donate-The Organization for Ethical Source (Open Collective) Contributor Covenant Contributor Covenant 3.0 Code of Conduct Code of conduct enforcement guidelines (MDN Web Docs) Coraline Ada Ehmke Ethical Source- Beacon Adopt Contributor Covenant Resources for Community Moderators Dev/Mission JVS (Jewish Vocational Services) Techtonica OpenSSF Working Group on Securing Software Repositories Paradoxes of Openness: Trans Experiences in Open Source Software (ACM Digital Library) Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Special Guests: Maryblessing Okolie, Maureen Mcelaney, and Rynn Mancuso.

Guests Dawn Wages | Loren Crary Panelist Richard Littauer Show Notes In this episode of Sustain, Richard Littauer talks with Dawn Wages, former Chair of the Python Software Foundation board and Loren Crary, Deputy Executive Director of the PSF, about how the PSF sustains Python and its community, governance, fundraising, and events like PyCon US, and why they ultimately turned down a $1.5M NSF grant rather than accept new anti-DEI conditions. They walk through what the grant was for, how the decision unfolded, the financial and ethical risks involved, and the overwhelming community response in donations and support, ending with a call to participate in the PSF fundraiser and submit talks to PyCon US 2026. Press download now to hear more! [00:02:41] Dawn explains she just finished her term as Chair at the PSF Board, previously served as Treasurer, and that board seats are elected volunteer toles with three-year terms. [00:03:40] Loren describes her job as Deputy Executive Director, #2 to ED Deb Nicholson. She leads fundraising and revenue strategy, handles internal operations and strategic planning, and she clarifies that the Python Steering Council steers the language itself and mentions PyCon US will be in Long Beach, CA May 2026. [00:05:38] Dawn shares a personal story how PSF funding and local Python user group helped her start in Python a decade ago and encourages listeners to donate and use company matching. [00:06:57] Loren speaks about sponsors and individual donors and plugs the fundraiser and the “cute snake thermometer” on the donate page. [00:08:00] Richard, as a board member of Python New Zealand, underscores PSF’s support for Python user groups and conferences. He then pivots to ask about strategy where Loren describes how the board leads strategy. [00:13:34] Dawn reflects on learning to chair the board for the first time, praising staff expertise, and she describes the ‘flywheel’ model where staff and board collaborate closely, with staff often joining board meetings to co-develop strategy. [00:15:18] Loren highlights the PSF board and representation. [00:16:59] Richard gives a special shout-out to Phyllis Dobbs as one of the “unsung heroes” of open source, noting her work with OSI and Deb in the past. [00:17:26] The convo turns to the NSF Safe OSE program and what happened with the large grant the PSF was awarded and then declined. Loren details everything that happened and gives a shout-out to Seth Larson, whom she collaborated with. [00:29:00] Loren reads the key clause that PSF would need to affirm, and the board ultimately made the call that it was too risky to their mission to accept the terms. [00:31:42] Dawn explains the board’s decision to withdraw and Loren notes that no one on the board or staff ever floated “dropping DEI to take the money.” [00:33:55] Dawn points to Python’s reputation as a welcoming, diverse community and DEI is portrayed as “lifeblood,” not an optional extra. [00:35:03] What happened after they said they weren’t taking the money? Dawn and Loren recount an outpouring of support after the public statement, and we find out how much money the fundraiser has made so far along including an anonymous donation. [00:38:33] Dawn zooms out to decades of conversations about funding open source, arguing that individual donors and major AI companies profiting from Python should be contributing at scale. [00:41:20] Richard reinforces the ongoing donation, and Loren plugs the PyCon US Call for Proposals (open through December 19) with new AI and security tracks and invites listeners to submit. Quotes [00:07:09] “If you want to know what a nonprofit does, look at who their funders are and that’s who they’re working for.” [00:12:07] “The board sets a strategy, but there needs to be a ‘flywheel’ from the staff to keep things like that going.” [00:18:45] “We dipped our toes into grant funding, and we thought that would be a great way to make our work more sustainable.” [00:32:40] “The $1.5 million is not net worth putting the future health and safety of the language in the organization in jeopardy.” [00:32:58] “I am proud that at no point did anyone float: What if we just stopped doing everything DEI and take the money?” [00:38:09] “I like my boss to be the users.” [00:38:41] “We’ve been talking about what it means to fund open source for decades…I think this is an interesting arc that we’re experiencing. I’m hoping that the numbers will have two or three commas from individual donations.” Spotlight [00:42:15] Richard’s spotlight is Phyllis Dobbs. [00:42:26] Dawn’s spotlight is PyScript. [00:42:42] Loren’s spotlight is The Carpentries. Links SustainOSS podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Dawn Wages Website Loren Crary LinkedIn Python Software Foundation PSF Donate PyCon US 2026, Long Beach, CA The Philadelphia Python Users Group (PhillyPUG) Safety, Security, and Privacy of Open Source Ecosystems (Safe-OSE) PSF Welcomes New Security Developer in Residence with Support from Alpha-Omega Seth Michael Larson-GitHub Seth Larson Blog post: I am the first PSF Security Developer-in-Residence Python Software Foundation turns down $1.5 million NSF grant because of the anti-DEI strings attached (The Verge) The PSF has withdrawn a $1.5 million proposal to US government grant program (PSF Blog post) PSF Board Meeting Minutes Archive (Python) Phyllis Dobbs PyScript The Carpentries Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Special Guests: Dawn Wages and Loren Crary.

Guest Richard J. Acton Panelist Richard Littauer Show Notes In this episode of Sustain, host Richard Littauer speaks with Richard J. Acton, a research data outputs manager at the Human Developmental Biology Initiative based near Cambridge. He discusses his involvement with open source software through bioinformatics and his development of a comprehensive checklist for researchers producing code. This checklist aims to guide researchers in making their software outputs more citable, reproducible, and user-friendly. The conversation delves into various themes covered by the checklist, such as source control, licensing, documentation, testing, and governance. He also shares his insights on the importance of open science and transparent research practices, the challenges of balancing open source work with academic demands, and the potential role of funders and publishers in supporting these efforts. Press download more to hear more! [00:00:43] Richard Acton explains his job at the Human Developmental Biology Initiative and how the checklist started. [00:01:23] He transitioned into open source via bioinformatics and Linux and advocates for open science and reproducibility in software. [00:02:26] We learn why the checklist was created and the design and structure of the checklist. [00:05:46] Richard Acton talks about lack and time and incentives prevent open sourcing and the how the checklist makes code more citable and boost academic recognition. [00:09:17] There’s a discussion on the trade-off between citing a paper vs. citing the code. [00:12:05] The tier system is mentioned and Richard Acton explains how the checklist encourages progression from bronze to platinum and goes over the key areas in the checklist categories. [00:14:21] Governance and community is discussed with Richard Acton explaining that governance also includes continuity and community management is addressed especially for reusable pipelines. [00:16:29] We hear about the three categories for research code: one-off code, web-based services, and reusable packages and how the definitions were tailored for the checklist. [00:17:23] Richard Acton presented the checklist at the SSI workshop and he’s seeking contributors, reviewers, and testers. [00:19:18] Richard Action advocates for publishers to enforce code quality and universities and funders can hire staff to ease researcher workload, and he speaks about transparency and quality assurance. [00:24:59] Implementation and badging is discussed and he shares the grading is currently designed for self-assessment, but open to expert review in the future. [00:26:33] Richard Acton is open to collaborating with CHAOSS and he aims to grow the project into a broader community standard. [00:27:23] Find out where you can follow Richard Acton and his work on the web. Quotes [00:02:13] “Software being an integral part of modern research means that it needs to be open in order to be reproducible effectively.” Spotlight [00:27:58] Richard’s spotlight is attending the Birds New Zealand annual conf. [00:28:55] Richard Acton’s spotlight is ‘rix: Reproducible Environments with Nix.’ Links podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Richard J. Acton Website Richard J. Acton Mastodon Research Software Sharing, Publication, & Distribution Checklists Birds New Zealand rix: Reproducible Environments with Nix Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Special Guest: Richard J. Acton.

Guest Qianqian Ye Panelist Richard Littauer Show Notes In this episode of Sustain, Richard hosts a conversation with Qianqian “Q” Ye, an artist, creative technologist, and educator who recently led the p5.js project, an open-source JavaScript library designed to prioritize accessibility and diversity in learning to code. Q shares her journey from an architectural background to contributing and eventually leading p5.js, a library created by artists for artists with a strong focus on visual feedback and accessibility. They discuss the importance of decentralizing leadership, setting boundaries to avoid burnout, and empowering contributors to ensure the project's sustainability. Key topics include the role of care work in open source, the community-driven evolution of p5.js, and strategies for maintaining a collaborative and inclusive environment. Q also highlights the significance of providing clear documentation and recognizing all forms of contributions to foster a welcoming community. Press download now to hear more! [00:001:01] Q explains what p5.js is and how it teaches people to code. [00:02:11] Q shares her journey from former architect turned creative technologist and highlights her community progression through translation and outreach. [00:04:19] Why is p5.js different? Q emphasizes the output is art, not code, making it more inclusive and intuitive for beginners. [00:05:40] Richard inquires about the p5.js community and contributors and Q tells us there are 700-800 contributors officially recognized. [00:06:33] Q elaborates on the relationship with the Processing Foundation. P5.js operates semi-independently under its support, and she talks about the staff size for p5.js. [00:07:49] Q believes the traditional open source volunteerism is problematic and the Sovereign Tech Agency provided funding to support mentors and contributors. [00:09:19] Q’s essay “Care Work in OSS” explores the invisible labor behind software projects and advocates for recognizing emotional labor and decentralized decision making. [00:10:15] We hear about the rotating leadership and inclusivity and how documentation and mentorship is the key to smooth transitions. [00:13:18] Q talks about the translation stewardship with a decentralized structure with language-specific stewards and using inclusive onboarding and translations. [00:15:31] Richard questions preventing burnout in stewards and Q elaborates how p5.js handles this and why access includes joy and inclusivity. [00:18:05] We hear how decisions about feature acceptance are made through community review and discussions, as well as how some users challenged the access-first policy. [00:20:15] Balancing art and community is discussed here as Q clarifies that open source and the arts often conflict due to individualism vs. collectivism. [00:21:48] How does Q help the open source community learn and give credit to other people well all the time? She gives routine shoutouts in release notes, social media, and seeks to credit all contributions, not just code. [00:24:48] Q shares how she deals with emotional burnout and boundaries and tips for setting boundaries. [00:28:18] What’s next for Q? She’s returning from maternity leave as Manager of Community and Partnerships for the Processing Foundation, and focus on building relationships and discussing sustainable funding at UN Open Source Week. [00:29:32] Find out where you can follow Q and p5.js on the web. Quotes [00:08:00] “I strongly believe that the volunteer-based model in open source is very problematic, and I’ve been trying to experiment different ways on doing thing alternatively.” [00:09:55] “OSS appears faceless, but there are so many people behind OSS.” [00:11:17] “Creators and maintainers of OSS carry bias of their own when they maintain the software.” [00:16:20] “Having to say no helped us to clarify the vision for the p5.js project.” Spotlight [00:30:01] Richard’s spotlight is the book, Things Become Other Things by Craig Mod [00:30:50] Q’s spotlight is two contributors, Dave Pagurek and Kenneth Lim. Links SustainOSS podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Qianqian Ye LinkedIn Qianqian Ye Website p5.js p5.js Access Statement All Contributors Processing Foundation Sovereign Tech Agency Lauren Lee McCarthy Making p5.js by Lauren Lee McCarthy UN Open Source Week 2025, NYC, June 16-20 Things Become Other Things by Craig Mod P5.js 2.0 and an open source philosophy by Dave Pagurek Designing an addon library system for p5.js 2.0 by Kenneth Lim Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Special Guest: Qianqian Ye.

Guest Federico Mena Quintero Panelist Richard Littauer Show Notes In this special Maintainer Month episode of Sustain, host Richard Littauer chats with Federico Mena Quintero, a foundational GNOME hacker and board member. Federico shares his journey from learning image processing in high school, becoming a key contributor to the GIMP project, and founding the GNOME desktop environment. He discusses the historical context, challenges, and achievements of GNOME and open source development. The conversation delves into the importance of maintaining infrastructural software, adapting to new technologies like the Rust programming language, and the socio-economic factors influencing the open source community's demographics. Press download now to hear more! [00:01:29] Federico describes GNOME as the “surface of your desk”- the visual and interactive layer of the Linux desktop. [00:02:16] Federico started writing image processing programs in high school and discovered GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program) and began contributing plugins. Encouraged by positive feedback, he continued developing filters and building community resources. [00:10:20] The proprietary Motif GUI toolkit used by GIMP prompted the creation of GTK (GIMP Toolkit), a free alternative. GTK was split from GIMP and became a foundation for GNOME. Miguel de Icaza learned about modular component design from Microsoft and brought those ideas to the GNOME team. [00:14:48] Federico explains KDE was already launched but used the non-free Qt toolkit and GNOME was created as a fully free alternative using GTK. [00:17:58] They discuss GNOME’s long-term success which has thousands of contributors and institutional backing from its foundation. [00:21:06] Federico reflects on his privilege. He never had to apply for his first job because he was recruited and recognizes the barriers to entry for underrepresented communities. [00:24:32] The conversation turns to global south and diversity. Federico discusses the limitations on who can participate in open source due to time, money, and societal roles, and notes that women and people outside the Global North often face greater barriers. [00:30:37] Richard inquires what Federico means by “maintaining infrastructure.” He explains that open source today is less about new features and more about keeping infrastructure working. [00:32:59] Federico talks about a recent project to replace a vital but abandoned infrastructure component and emphasizes the need for sustainable maintenance strategies. [00:36:25] Federico became maintainer of Librsvg image rendering library from C to Rust. [00:40:00] Find out where you can follow Federico on the web. Quotes [00:31:10] “Software doesn’t rot, but the environment around it changes.” Spotlight [00:40:57] Richard’s spotlight is the book, 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus. [00:41:49] Federico’s spotlight is two books: Malintzin’s Choices and James. Links SustainOSS podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Federico Mena Quintero Blog Federico Mena Quintero Mastodon GNOME GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program) GTK Librsvg 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus by Charles C. Mann La Malinche Malintzin’s Choices by Camila Townsend James by Percival Everett Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Special Guest: Federico Mena Quintero.

Guest Sarah Rainsberger Panelists Richard Littauer | Abby Mayes | Eriol Fox Show Notes In this special Maintainer Month episode of Sustain, hosts Richard, Abby, and Eriol talk with guest, Sarah Rainsberger, a documentation lead at Astro, who shares her journey from teaching high school mathematics to becoming an open source contributor. Sarah elaborates on her approach to documentation, emphasizing the importance of clear, supportive, and inclusive communication to onboard new contributors effectively. She also discusses using low-tech tools like Chromebooks and cloud-based editors for open source contributions. The episode highlights the strategies employed by the Astro Docs team to recognize and value contributions. Press download now to hear more! [00:02:30] Sarah shares her background, role at Astro, how she got involved in documentation that started by fixing a bad choir website, and why she chose Astro over Gatsby and quickly became a key contributor. [00:06:49] She reflects on the moment she connected her work with the concept of “open source.” [00:07:54] Sarah talks about becoming a leader using Chromebook, taking lessons on Scrimba, and using cloud tools like CodeSandbox and Gitpod, the Astro community embracing her methods, and how she built a reputation as someone making meaningful contributions regardless of hardware. [00:14:24] Sarah explains how docs are “self-serve support” and essential to project success. [00:16:28] The conversation turns to combatting the stigma that docs are low value and Sarah addresses the false perception that documentation isn’t real development. [00:18:28] Sarah shares that Astro has over 1,000 docs contributors and details their intentional process of welcoming, crediting, and celebrating new contributors. [00:24:37] How does Astro handle lower-quality contributions? Astro uses the motto: “Not worse than what we had before.” They edit or mentor rather than reject, to build confidence and retain contributors. [00:29:12] Astro maintains a separate documentation site (“D Squared”) that outlines its processes for contributing to documentation. [00:33:25] Sarah shares where to find her work at the Astro Docs and where to find her. Quotes [00:05:26] “If I’m going in, let’s go all in.” [00:12:50] “I have chosen to maintain low tech.” [00:12:59] “I am known for my evil devices.” [00:14:36] “Docs are so important to a project that you want someone else to use or contribute to.” [00:15:28] “Docs is the most scalable type of support that you can have.” [00:16:37] “Everyone complains about docs until it’s someone else’s project.” [00:26:51] “PRs don’t just fall out of the sky; they are effort, and they are work.” [00:27:05] “There is some motivation behind this PR.” [00:31:41] “Several of our maintainers started by translating the docs.” [00:31:49] “If you want to find mistakes in your English docs, you want translators.” Spotlight [00:34:40] Abby’s’ spotlight is CommunityRule. [00:35:04] Eriol’s spotlight is State of Docs. [00:35:19] Richard’s spotlight is Nathan Schneider and the Protocol Oral History Project. [00:36:08] Sarah’s spotlight is Better GitHub Co-Authors. Links SustainOSS podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Abby Cabunoc Mayes GitHub Eriol Fox GitHub Sarah Rainsberger Website Sarah Rainsberger Mastodon Non-code contributions are the secret to open source success (The ReadME Project) Astro Astro Docs Contribute to Astro Gitpod Scrimba Hugo Server CommunityRule State of Docs Better GitHub Co-Authors Sustain Podcast-Episode 85: Geoffrey Huntley and Sustaining OSS with Gitpod Sustain Podcast- 2 episodes featuring Nathan Schneider Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Special Guest: Sarah Rainsberger.

Guest Kade Morton Panelists Richard Littauer | Eriol Fox Show Notes In this Maintainers Month episode of Sustain, host Richard Littauer and co-host Eriol Fox talk with cybersecurity expert Kade Morton from Arachne Digital. The conversation dives into how Kade’s unconventional path through criminology and international relations led him into cybersecurity and open source. They explore the unique challenges of sustaining open source security tools, particularly for human rights activists and under-resourced groups, the tension between proprietary and open solutions, and how geopolitical contexts and human motivations influence modern digital threat landscapes. Hit download now to hear more! [00:01:41] Kade explains his work is split between a day job working security operations and a startup he runs called Arachne Digital. [00:02:51] Kade tells us about his background, how he got into cybersecurity through self-teaching and open source, and how his criminology and international relations studies informed his interest in cyber threats. [00:05:17] Kade discusses the open source projects he maintains, specifically ‘Thread.’ [00:06:50] We learn about the difficulty of getting others invested in better tools and Kade discusses challenges explaining open source values to corporate environments. [00:12:26] Richard asks whether closed-source software is more secure and Kade highlights how most real world exploits target proprietary software. [00:14:57] Eriol brings up security perceptions in non-tech orgs using digital tools. Kade shares how Arachne Digital offers free services to vetted human rights orgs and he they discuss challenges balancing funding and access in human rights cybersecurity. [00:19:17] Richard reflects on monetization models for sustaining open source cybersecurity. Kade explains his company avoids fear-based marketing and promotes awareness instead. [00:22:40] Kade outlines how their threat-informed defense model works. [00:25:42] Eriol asks what changes could help improve open source sustainability. Kade discusses feeling out of place in both government and open source spaces and emphasizes cross-pollination between sectors to reduce polarity. [00:28:29] Richard introduces the concept of “digital sovereignty.” Kade warns of the risks of splintering the internet through nationalism and advocates for a balanced middle ground between centralization and fragmentation. [00:31:41] Kade shares where you can find his work on the web. Quotes [00:13:44] “It’s mostly proprietary software that’s being hacked.” [00:29:40] “The internet is the world’s largest shared resource.” Spotlight [00:32:56] Eriol’s spotlight is a repository called: The Design We Open. [00:33:49] Richard’s spotlight is 1Password and Robin Riley. [00:34:31 Kade’s spotlight is a shoutout to Mitre for TRAM and Justin Seitz who wrote a blog post on a project called, Searx. Links SustainOSS podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Eriol Fox GitHub Kade Morton LinkedIn Arachne Digital Arachne Digital LinkedIn Arachne Digital (Medium) Arachne Digital (YouTube) Arachne Digital (Bluesky) Arachne Digital (GitHub) Thread-GitHub The National Digital Forum (NDF) The New Design Congress Open Technology Fund -Security Lab The Design We Open (GitHub) 1Password TRAM Searx Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Special Guest: Kade Morton.

Guests Ben Nickolls | Andrew Nesbitt Panelist Richard Littauer Show Notes In this episode of Sustain, host Richard is joined by guests Ben Nickolls and Andrew Nesbitt to discuss the ecosyste.ms project. They explore how ecosyste.ms collects and analyzes metadata from various open-source projects to create a comprehensive database that can help improve funding allocation. The discussion covers the importance of funding the most critical open-source projects, the existing gaps in funding, and the partnership between ecosyste.ms and Open Source Collective to create funding algorithms that support entire ecosystems. They also talk about the challenges of maintaining data, reaching out to project maintainers, and the broader implications for the open-source community. Hit the download button now! [00:01:58] Andrew and Ben explain ecosyste.ms, what it does, and how it compares to Libraries.io. [00:04:59] Ecosyste.ms tracks metadata, not the packages themselves, and enriches data via dependency graphs, committers, issues, SBOMs, and more. [00:06:54] Andrew talks about finding 1,890 Git hosts and how many critical projects live outside GitHub. [00:08:37] There’s a conversation on metadata uses and SBOM parsing. [00:12:49] Richard inquires about the ecosystem.ms funds on their website which Andrew explains it’s a collaboration between Open Collective and ecosyste.ms. that algorithmically distributes funds to the most used, not most popular packages. [00:15:45] Ben shares how this is different from previous projects and brings up a past project, “Back Your Stack” and explains how ecosyste.ms is doing two things differently. [00:18:59] Ben explains how it supports payouts to other platforms and encourages maintainers to adopt funding YAML files for automation. Andrew touches on efficient outreach, payout management, and API usage (GraphQL). [00:25:36] Ben elaborates on how companies can fund ecosyste.ms (like Django) instead of curating their own lists and being inspired by Sentry’s work with the Open Source Pledge. [00:29:32] Andrew speaks about scaling and developer engagement and emphasizes their focus is on high-impact sustainability. [00:32:48] Richard asks, “Why does it matter?” Ben explains that most current funding goes to popular, not most used projects and ecosyste.ms aims to fix the gap with data backed funding, and he suggests use of open standards like 360Giving and Open Contracting Data. [00:35:46] Andrew shares his thoughts on funding the right projects by improving 1% of OSS, you uplift the quality of millions of dependent projects with healthier infrastructure, faster security updates, and more resilient software. [00:38:35] Find out where you can follow ecosyste.ms and the blog on the web. Quotes [00:11:18] “I call them interesting forks. If a fork is referenced by a package, it’ll get indexed.” [00:22:07] We’ve built a service that now moves like $25 million a year between OSS maintainers on OSC.” [00:33:23] “We don’t have enough information to make collective decisions about which projects, communities, maintainers, should receive more funding.” [00:34:23] “The NSF POSE Program has distributed hundreds of millions of dollars of funding to open source communities alone.” [00:35:47] “If you have ten, twenty thousand really critical open source projects, that actually isn’t unachievable to make those projects sustainable.” Spotlight [00:39:35] Ben’s spotlight is Jellyfin. [00:40:20] Andrew’s spotlight is zizmor. [00:42:21] Richard’s spotlight is The LaTeX Project. Links SustainOSS podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Ben Nickolls LinkedIn Andrew Nesbitt Website Andrew Nesbitt Mastodon Octobox ecosyste.ms ecosyste.ms Blog Open Source Collective Open Source Collective Updates Open Source Collective Contributions Open Source Collective Contributors Open Collective 24 Pull Requests Libraries.io The penumbra of open source (EPJ Data Science) FOSDEM ’25- Open source funding: you’re doing it wrong (Andrew and Ben) Vue.js thanks.dev StackAid Back Your Stack NSF POSE Django GitHub Sponsors Sustain Podcast-Episode 80: Emma Irwin and the Foss Fund Program Sustain Podcast- 3 Episodes featuring Chad Whitacre Sustain Podcast- Episode 218: Karthik Ram & James Howison on Research Software Visibility Infrastructure Priorities Sustain Podcast-Episode 247: Chad Whitacre on the Open Source Pledge Invest in Open Infrastructure 360Giving Open Contracting Data Standard Jellyfin zizmor The LaTeX Project Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Special Guests: Andrew Nesbitt and Benjamin Nickolls.

Guests Marianne Bellotti | Greg Wilson Panelist Richard Littauer Show Notes In this episode of Sustain, host Richard Littauer talks with Marianne Bellotti, author of *Kill It with Fire, *and Greg Wilson, co-founder of the Carpentries, about what happens to your code when you leave your job and how to make sure it survives. They discuss their new paper, "10 quick tips for making your software outlive your job," and share practical strategies for protecting, documenting, and sustaining code in open source, research, and civil service environments. Whether you're preparing for a job change or want to future-proof your work, this conversation offers real-world advice for developers and researchers alike. Hit the download button now! [00:03:04] Greg and Marianne talk about challenges in code sustainability. [00:05:46] Greg speaks about how scientists often prototype rather than build production quality code. [00:09:48] We start with Step 1 in the paper: “Consider your threat mode.” Greg explains the different plans needed for individual vs. systematic departures, Marianne speaks about the importance of understanding code lifecycle-some code has a “fruit fly” lifespan others a “tortoise” one, and Richard adds to think about reframe threat modeling around future usefulness. [00:15:53] There’s a discussion on Step 2: “Get sign-off on releasing it publicly.” [00:21:30] Greg discusses Step 3: “Choose an open license” and emphasizes to stick to well-known licenses (MIT, BSD), don’t write your own, and he shares a funny story. [00:25:29] Richard talks about Step 4: “Put your code somewhere safe” and shares to upload code to GitHub, Codeberg, OSF, Zenodo, etc. Greg suggest peer-to-peer methods like torrents could help long-term preservation and Marianne emphasizes the importance of verified identities when sharing. [00:29:21] Marianne introduces Step 5: “Document your code.” Greg shares that most documentation goes unread and LLMs could help mine useful documentation from conversation records and Marianne emphasizes to focus on “how to run it” first and tests are a part of your documentation. [00:35:17] Step 6: “Make your code reproducible.” Greg and Marianne discuss using tools like Docker, uv for Python lockfiles, etc., for dependency management. [00:36:23] Step 7: “Make your code citable” and Step 8: “Encourage community adoption.” Richard mentions to add a CITATION.cff file so others can cite your code and Greg mentions a great book he read that changed the way he viewed this called, Marketing for Scientists, by Marc Kuchner. [00:38:49] Step 9: “Write a succession or sunsetting plan.” Marianne shares to define success and failure criteria for projects explicitly. [00:40:36] Step 10: “Talk about what you’re doing.” Greg emphasizes to celebrate and grieve project endings properly and Richard encourages listeners to check out the paper, read it, and if you see something missing you can contribute back. [00:43:12] Fnal thoughts from Greg and Marianne: Organize collectively to protect science and code sustainability and find your team. Quotes [00:12:10] “Weapons begin as toys.” [00:14:09] “All code is throwaway code.” [00:27:34] “Sooner or later every library burns.” [00:29:44] “Most documentation is never read by anybody because it’s not answering the questions that you actually have.” [00:41:05] “Take some time to celebrate and to grieve.” Links SustainOSS podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Marianne Bellotti (Medium) Marianne Bellotti LinkedIn Greg Wilson GitHub Greg Wilson LinkedIn “10 Quick tips for making your code last beyond your current job” (draft) Kill It With Fire by Marianne Bellotti Marketing for Scientists: How to Shine in Tough Times by Marc J. Kuchner Codeberg Zenodo OSF Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Special Guests: Greg Wilson and Marianne Bellotti.

Guest Dirkjan Ochtman Panelist Richard Littauer Show Notes In this special Maintainer Month episode of Sustain, host Richard speaks with Dirkjan Ochtman, a long-time open source contributor and Rust advocate. They dive deep into what it's like maintaining critical infrastructure libraries, the motivations behind taking over "abandonware," and how funding ecosystems like GitHub Sponsors and thanks.dev help sustain low-level dependencies. Dirkjan also reflects on how Rust’s design lends itself well to long-term maintainability and shares thoughts on the challenges of burnout, context switching, and ensuring project continuity. Hit the download button now! [00:01:33] Dirkjan explains how he chooses which projects he’s maintaining, being passionate about memory safety via Rust, and maintaining tools like Rustls, Hickory DNS, and Quinn. [00:03:14] Dirkjan describes his motivation for maintaining abandonware and sees it as providing value to the community. [00:04:23] ISRG funds Dirkjan’s work on memory-safe DNS and TLS libraires, and they are replacing C-based libraires with Rust equivalents. [00:05:33] Dirkjan uses thanks.dev to help fund maintainers through the full dependency graph and revenue is limited but promising. [00:08:06] Richard brings up Tidelift and Dirkjan mentions it’s not yielding results for Rust projects yet because the Rust ecosystem is smaller. [00:09:30] We hear Dirkjan’s journey into Rust, starting in Python but frustrated by lack of type safety and performance, and creating his own compiler before appreciating Rust’s complexity. [00:12:20] Dirkjan talks about his transition from Python to Rust. [00:13:39] Dirkjan uses PyO3 to create Python bindings for Rust libraries. [00:15:31] Richard wonders why projects become unmaintained and Dirkjan responds that people have life events, job changes, or shifting interests. [00:17:11] How are unmaintained projects flagged? Dirkjan uses the RustSec Advisory DB to detect projects with no active maintainers. [00:18:47] Dirkjan avoids burnout as a maintainer by keeping the scope narrow, only responds to PRs, doesn’t overcommit, and focuses on high-efficiency, low-effort maintenance. [00:19:51] Rust has a strong system, built-in unit tests, great CI support, and Dirkjan encourages atomic commits to simplify code review. [00:21:28] Dirkjan speaks about languages that are more maintainer safe. [00:22:18] Richard brings up attack vectors and the ‘left-pad incident.’ Dirkjan shares how he builds trust via his public GitHub record. [00:24:17] We hear Dirkjan’s offboarding and succession planning as he explains handing off projects like Askama and promoting multiple maintainers to reduce bus factor. [00:26:08] Dirkjan’s long-term vision for OSS sustainability is he hopes to move higher in the stack and wants to make high-quality software easier to build. [00:27:38] Dirkjan explains why he prefers to do asynchronous collaboration over pair programming. [00:28:52] Dirkjan discusses Rust’s long-term ecosystem stability. [00:31:09] Find out where you can follow Dirkjan on the web. Quotes [00:03:23] “You call it abandonware and I call it a dependency that has a million users.” [00:19:02] “[When I take on a project], I don’t take on the burden of proactively improving the project.” [00:19:11] “I will be there when someone submits a PR." [00:20:37] “I ask folks to make small changes: atomic commits.” Spotlight [00:31:37] Richard’s spotlight is Allan Day. [00:32:20] Dirkjan’s spotlight is Xilem. Links SustainOSS podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Dirkjan Ochtman LinkedIn Dirkjan Ochtman Blog Dirkjan Ochtman Mastodon Dirkjan Ochtman GitHub Dirkjan Ochtman Bluesky Rust Rustls Hickory DNS Quinn Internet Security Research Group (ISRG) Let’s Encrypt Automatic Certificate Management Environment PyO3 user guide Sustain Podcast-Episode 108: Sarah Gran and Josh Aas: Sustainable Digital Infrastructure with Memory Safe Code Sustain Podcast-Episode 148: Ali Nehzat of thanks.dev and OSS Funding Tidelift RustSec Advisory Database-GitHub Askama Allan Day’s GNOME Blog Xilem Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Special Guest: Dirkjan Ochtman.

Guest Michelle Barker Panelist Richard Littauer Show Notes In this episode of Sustain, host Richard Littauer welcomes Michelle Barker, Director of the Research Software Alliance (ReSA), for an in-depth conversation about the critical yet often overlooked role of research software in open science. Michelle shares her journey from sociologist to open science advocate, unpacking how ReSA fosters global collaboration to support software developed for research. Together, they explore what it means to build “social infrastructure” in the open source ecosystem, the challenges of aligning international stakeholders, and how ReSA is shaping the future of research through strategy, connection, and community-driven solutions. Press the download button now to hear more! [00:01:58] Michelle explains how she got involved in open science and open source software. [00:04:35] Why Research Software? Michelle shares that ReSA was founded to coordinate globally on research software, which lacked unified international representation unlike open data. [00:07:21] We hear about ReSA’s engagement strategy and the three main strategies: knowledge sharing, stakeholder collaboration, and governance evolution. [00:09:37] ReSA includes RSEs as one of many stakeholders and works broadly across funders, policymakers, infrastructure providers, and more. [00:10:26] Research software is defined as software developed within a research context to solve a research problem and most is open source but not all. [00:13:12] Richard asks about tracking engagement, and Michelle shares it’s hard to quantify outcomes, but standard metrics include newsletter subs, citations, and forum attendance. [00:15:08] Michelle explains the role of social infrastructure. [00:17:37] What’s hard about being a social infrastructure? Michelle talks about the challenge of how to motivate groups of people to work together. [00:19:52] Michelle shares her personal approach to networking: research, targeting key individuals, emotional engagement, and strategic planning for conferences. [00:24:35] A new strategy plan is rolling out and Michelle shares what’s different. [00:27:32] ReSA is working to establish research software as its own recognized field. [00:29:57] Michelle recognizes shared challenges of both open source and research sectors. The keys to success are spotlight wins and demonstrate value through supported infrastructure and recognized contributions. [00:30:40] Find out where you can find out more about ReSA. Spotlight [00:31:11] Richard’s spotlight is the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). [00:31:48] Michelle’s spotlight is Softcite. Links SustainOSS podcast@sustainoss.org richard@sustainoss.org SustainOSS Discourse SustainOSS Mastodon SustainOSS Bluesky SustainOSS LinkedIn Open Collective-SustainOSS (Contribute) Richard Littauer Socials Michelle Barker LinkedIn Research Software Alliance (ReSA) ReSA LinkedIn ReSA Mastodon ReSA Bluesky Sustain Podcast-Episode 264: Neil Chue Hong on the Software Sustainability Institute USRSE’25: Philadelphia, PA Oct 6-8, 2025 US-RSE NOAA Softcite Strategic Report Overview Full Strategic Report Defining Research Software: a controversial discussion Credits Produced by Richard Littauer Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound Special Guest: Michelle Barker.