There’s been very troubling news and some talk online lately about what’s going on in EU regarding funding of open projects. EU has given millions to open projects over the years but maybe even more importantly, it has actually used some of them, which is a pretty good way to support as well (even though that didn’t last).
““Contrary to common perception, technical innovations often originate from European rather than North American programming communities, and are mostly initiated by small-scaled organizations,”” (Pierre-Yves Gibello, CEO of open-source consortium OW2)
This may not be important to your particular needs and interests or relative to the particular app you use on your device, but it is a big thing to the ecosystem that supports those apps and makes them possible, kinda like infrastructure.
So, A) if you are from these parts, send messages to appropriate entities (see end of this page: EC cuts funding support for Free Software projects - FSFE), and, B) I hope one/some of these linux phone HW and SW projects could use something like this to get financial support.
[This has been labelled Round Table and lacks visibility because of it. It would be nice if it was made open but I’m not sure where that would be in the current forum structure. Or that Purism could perhaps make an official post on the matter…? ]
I know it may be a bit much to ask but could/should this be pinned on top for a few weeks? That hasn’t been used that much so I don’t know what’s the policy.
There is not a clear policy, but highlighting political campaigns are more appropriate for digital rights organizations such as the Electronic Frontier Foundation, OpenMedia, and Digitalcourage, not Purism. Crowdfunding/fundraising campaigns associated to Purism, such StartEngine, can be applied as a banner across the entire forum until dismissed by the user.
I’m not much in support of even this much political to this kind of forum but this one seems to be more about getting support for just our kind of things and things that even Purism would benefit. That being said, not having it up there is fine too.
Btw. If someone is wondering, what this EU fund is (and also pinging @dos and @dcz if they might be eligible):
The grants (between 5,000 and 50,000 euro) are available to individuals and organisations of any type. One requirement for receiving a grant is that the project outcomes must be made publicly available under a Free Software license. For projects with high scalable potential, a scale-up programme is also available.
The scope of the open calls is broad, meaning that those working on technology commons across the entire technological spectrum can apply: operating systems, front and backend apps, AI, open hardware, encryption and security technologies, and many more areas are included.
The first call of the NGI Zero Commons Fund opens on 1 February 2024, with a deadline of 1 October 2024 12:00 CET (noon). It will be followed by new opportunities every two months until the budget is fully allocated.
Besides financial support, the projects can count on a range of support services to improve the quality, maturity, and deployability of their efforts. Practical services such as security, accessibility audits, and packaging help to improve the quality and promote adoption of the projects. Services like mentoring and diversity management aim to strengthen the communities behind them or, in the case of the FSFE, to help with legal and licensing questions.
[Edit to add: You should spread this info to other forums too, but the point is the top post!]
Recent elections, both of the new EU parliament and in the Netherlands could explain the swing.
Those now in power do not have the same feelings (or interests) for FOSS and Libre as the former PMs had…
Europe has always been 10 years ahead of america. Even chour of ommercials (Carnival) are (or were) the most watched in some parts of Europe.
How can it not help. Every voice matters. I hope Purism don’t put it through a Google translater like a lot phising is.
Prehaps there are no taxes on free. Everywhere, countres are cutting back. Those on the brink of cutng back, are in election mode promising a fire truck on ever street corner and a free toasterin ervy kitchen. That’s what people vote for, not a candidates history and résumé
It is a sad day for freedomware. Perhaps candidates will promise if elected they’ll continue the program.
~s
Now you can ask for these funds and criticise the Commission’s decision, by taking part in the ongoing consultation on the Digital Europe Programme. […]
By participating in this consultation, which closes on 20 September (midnight Brussels time) you can help to advocate for a digital future that puts users in control of technology. Your input makes a difference.
As far as I understand, the evaluation hasn’t been done and won’t be done until fourth quarter 2025. The public consultation part of their process to gather evidence that the Digital Europe programme is effective. The amount of participation should strengthen a favourable evaluation.
According to the Call for evidence for an evaluation - Ares(2024)4637884 PDF linked on the initiative page, they will be summarizing the feedback received from the public consultation and also be surveying and gathering additional evidence through “Targeted and interactive consultations”.
The Commission plans to conduct the following consultations:
• A 12-week public consultation published in English, French and German on the Have Your Say website in the second quarter of 2024. Replies to the consultation may be submitted in any official EU language.
After this period, a factual summary report outlining the main elements of the feedback received will be
published on the same website, together with the replies from stakeholders.
• Targeted and interactive consultations (e.g. in the form of focus groups, surveys and interviews)
engaging the main stakeholder groups, such as national and regional/local authorities, academia, and
business representatives across sectors and associations. These consultations will be conducted by the
Commission and in the context of the external study supporting this evaluation.
An analytical summary of the results of all consultation activities will be presented in a synopsis report. This will be published as an annex to the evaluation report and published in English on the Have Your Say platform after the evaluation has been finalised.
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