Funding FOSS
2023-03-14 , Stage 1

Funders speaking on this panel are supporting open source software development as a key area of focus. Representatives are from organizations funding the development, maintenance, and sustainability of FOSS projects around the world. Panelists will discuss experiences, best practices, as well as challenges in supporting FOSS.

Marie is an open source and privacy advocate, campaigner, event organizer and information security trainer. She studied cultural journalism and researched new models for online journalism platforms. Since then, she has worked as a freelance journalist, campaigner, communications officer, infosec trainer and event organizer for various projects in journalism, privacy and open source.

Di has been connecting the dots between social justice and technology-centric solutions at the Open Technology Fund since 2018. Prior to this role, Di has designed and conducted ethnographic research and evaluations using participatory methods for USAID, UNICEF, and the World Bank to strengthen the digital infrastructure of rural communities.

Tara is a technologist working on designing support models and mobilizing resources to encourage, sustain and maintain the FOSS ecosystem infrastructure with the Sovereign Tech Fund.

They have helped manage and incubate core infrastructure FOSS projects providing access to and security on online, led advocacy campaigns against online censorship and spreading a culture of online safety, and worked on research mapping internet infrastructure, legislation, control and policy.

Previously, they have worked with the Center for Cultivation of Technology, Open Technology Fund, Jordan Open Source Association (JOSA), and the Association for Progressive Communications (APC)

Ramy Raoof is a technologist, privacy and digital security researcher, who works on the intersection of technology and social causes such as privacy, security and access to information, by devoting his skills as a techie and passion for free/open culture. His recent works focus on researching targeted digital attacks against human rights defenders and NGOs and developing digital security protocols and capacity building with activists in the Middle East and Central America around targeted surveillance and mass censorship. Over the past 10 years he developed digital security strategies for NGOs and members of the media, as well as rapid response plans in cases of physical threats and operational plans for human rights emergency response teams in Egypt, the Middle East and the Northern Africa Region. Ramy also developed strategies in support of publishing sensitive material and secure systems for managing information about sexual violence and torture survivors. He also contributed to the testing of privacy apps, the localization of few privacy apps into Arabic and the development of organizational privacy protocols.

In October 2017, Ramy received the international award Heroes of Human Rights and Communications Surveillance, "for exhaustive efforts to reveal invasive and harmful surveillance tactics that are being used to harm users at risk.", by Access Now. In May 2016 he received the international Bobs Award - Best of Online Activism in recognition for his work in digital security and privacy. In January 2016, he was named in the World Top 100 Info Security Influencers list by CISO Platform in India. In 2012, he was ranked number 10 by the Newsweek Magazine in the Revolutionaries list of the Digital Power Index, after being ranked number 14 by Forbes Middle East in Top 100 Arab Presence on Twitter a year earlier.

Prior to joining OTF, Ramy worked as Tactical Technologist at Amnesty International’s Security Lab, and was Research Fellow with Citizen Lab. He also served on Tor Project's Board of Directors from 2017 to 2022.

Email: ramy@opentech.fund
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RamyRaoof