Name: Open Source Is a Sewer - Powen Shiah, Sovereign Tech Agency
Start: 2025-08-26T16:20:00+0200
End: 2025-08-26T17:00:00+0200

25-27, August 2025
Amsterdam, Netherlands
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Tuesday August 26, 2025 16:20 - 17:00 CEST

G105

Who maintains the software components everyone uses? Without open source libraries, protocols & tools, the world would grind to a halt. When it comes to sewers, roads & bridges, the government pays. For bits & bytes? There's a German phrase: digitale Daseinsvorsorge.

Who builds and maintains the sewers under our feet? The government! The same goes for the trains we ride and the roads we walk on. When we ask these questions about the basic components that underpin our world's digital infrastructure, the answer is very different. It's Daniel for curl, Piotr, Christian & Volkan for Log4j, a small team for Fortran, Sarah for Nominatim, Richard at Yocto and countless other maintainers.

At a time when software is eating the world, these foundations are terrifyingly precarious. We hope we're paying the right people to do the critical work of maintaining/securing these systems. Is it possible for governments & nations to help secure this public digital commons without running roughshod over the sprawling ecosystem of FOSS communities that created it?

As governments provide education, clean water and transport in the public interest, they can invest in digital services and open source.

Speakers

Powen Shiah

Communications Lead, Sovereign Tech Agency

Powen handles communications at the Sovereign Tech Fund, highlighting the importance of open source digital infrastructure and the government's role in supporting it in the public interest. He’s worked in product marketing, communications, and internationalization in technology... Read More →

Tuesday August 26, 2025 16:20 - 17:00 CEST
G105

OpenGovCon

Audience Experience Level Intermediate

Open Source Summit Europe 2025

Powen Shiah

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