Keynote - A View From My Window - An Outside Perspective of Open Source Scientific Computing From t…

Education is crucial for open source project sustainability - it drives project success by helping gain new contributors, users and maintaining existing community members

Over 50% of Fortune 500 companies use open source software for mission-critical work, yet many don’t contribute back financially or otherwise

Leadership in open source is about empowering others, providing direction, and serving the community - anyone can be a leader regardless of their technical background

Having both internal and external perspectives on open source projects is valuable - outside views can bring fresh approaches while understanding internal needs

Projects should be viewed as the people behind them, not just the code or tools - recognizing and supporting maintainers and contributors is essential

Companies readily pay for proprietary tools but often resist funding open source projects they depend on - this creates sustainability challenges

Knowledge sharing and communication between users, contributors and maintainers is key for project health

Project support requires ongoing education at every stage - from new contributor onboarding to maintainer development

Diverse contributor bases and community growth depend on accessible education and mentorship opportunities

Sustainable open source requires both technical and non-technical contributions - including organization, events, documentation and community building