CHAOSScast

Thank you to the folks at Sustain for providing the hosting account for CHAOSSCast! CHAOSScast – Episode 131 In this episode of the CHAOSScast, host Georg Link sits down with guest, Elshad Humbatli, and panelists, Alice Sowerby and Adrian Edwards, to answer the question "How can CHAOSS metrics help you quickly assess the health of an open source project that you might want to use or join?" Elshad, creator of Repo-Health, explains why he created the tool, and how he used the CHAOSS metrics to produce high-level insights on the health of an open source repo. The conversation goes further, to discuss breaking down project activity to navigating the rise of AI-generated contributions, and dives deep into the human and technical sides of open source. Hit download now to hear more! [00:00:00] – The hosts introduce the episode and welcome the panelists and guest [00:01:41] – Elshad shares how he discovered CHAOSS metrics and got inspired to build Repo Health. [00:03:10] – A deep dive into the four pillars: activity, maintenance, community, and documentation. [00:06:15] – The group debates how different metrics reflect project health and what “community” really means. [00:10:07] – Elshad explains what Repo Health does and how users can benefit from it. [00:12:00] – Discussion around the pros and cons of combining metrics into a single health score. [00:17:01] – Exploring how context and goals shape which metrics matter using the GQM framework. [00:21:00] – Real-world contributor experiences highlight the importance of documentation and responsiveness. [00:23:00] – The impact of AI and LLMs on open source contributions and community dynamics. [00:29:07] – Elshad shares future plans for Repo Health and opportunities for collaboration. Value Adds (Picks) of the week: [00:32:00] Gerog's pick is enjoying the in-between time after ending his last job. [00:33:11] Alice's pick is the vernal equinox. [00:33:58] Adrian's pick is spending time with friends and new experiences. [00:34:35] Elshad's pick is low level language coding. Host Georg Link Panelist: Alice Sowerby Adrian Edwards Guests: Elshad Humbatli Links: CHAOSS CHAOSS Project X CHAOSScast Podcast CHAOSS YouTube podcast@chaoss.community CHAOSS Calendar CHAOSS Slack Alice Sowerby LinkedIn Adrian Edwards LinkedIn Elshad Humbatli LinkedIn Georg Link Website Repo-Health toolSpecial Guests: Adrian Edwards and Elshad Humbatli.Support CHAOSScast

Thank you to the folks at Sustain for providing the hosting account for CHAOSScast! CHAOSScast – Episode 130 In this CHAOSScast episode, host introduces Rowland Mosbergen, a research software engineer at Australia’s WEHI, and discusses experiences in CHAOSS Asia and open source community connections. Rowland compares research labs to startups and explains that CHAOSS Asia’s regular online meetings help him engage with the broader open source ecosystem despite not traveling to conferences. They mention tools like the OSC DB directory for finding communities and discuss how Chaos Asia helps share events and CFPs. Rowland describes his “practical diversity and inclusion” approach: embedding inclusion into processes by centering marginalized people, sharing power, creating safe spaces, and offering online, non-exploitative open source internships that assess achievement relative to opportunity. He also describes organizing Research Software Asia Australia (RSAA 26) and supporting new Research Software Africa and Latino America conferences through shared documentation and a large, flexible volunteer committee to prevent burnout. They close with personal value-adds: Rowland’s family time and the host’s move to Bangkok. 00:00 Welcome to CHAOSScast 00:21 Meet Rowland 01:41 Startups and Research Parallels 03:04 Why CHAOSS Asia Matters 03:40 Finding CHAOSS Asia 07:03 Mapping Asian Communities 09:38 Practical DEI in Action 13:31 Internships as Micro PhDs 16:27 Conferences and Global Expansion 20:17 Building Inclusive Frameworks 25:09 Value Adds 28:03 Wrap Up and Call to Action Panelists: Leon Nunes Guests Rowland Mosbergen Links CHAOSS CHAOSS Project X CHAOSScast Podcast CHAOSS YouTube CHAOSS Slack podcast@chaoss.community https://www.wehi.edu.au/ https://www.solo.io/ [https://equersa.org/]([https://equersa.org/) - Research software Africa and Latin America https://developers.events/#/2026/calendar - OSCDB https://chaoss.github.io/oscdb/ https://www.practicaldiversity.org/Special Guest: Rowland Mosbergen.Support CHAOSScast

Thank you to the folks at Sustain for providing the hosting account for CHAOSScast! CHAOSScast – Episode 129 In this episode of CHAOSScast, host Harmony Elendu is joined by Matt Germonprez and Johan Linåker to explore how Open Source Program Offices (OSPOs) can use metrics to understand and demonstrate impact. The discussion centers around Chapter 6 of the TODO Group’s OSPO book and how organizations can systematically measure the value of their open source engagement. [00:02:00] Introduction to OSPOs Johan explains what an Open Source Program Office (OSPO) is: a center of excellence that supports organizations in adopting open source strategically, aligning culture, governance, and business goals. [00:04:41] The Four Impact Areas Matt outlines the four key impact dimensions OSPOs should measure: Partner Impact Community Impact Ecosystem (Supply Chain) Impact Organizational Impact [00:06:29] Partner Impact How to assess which companies are contributing to the same projects, their level of influence, and how agendas align or conflict. [00:11:00] Community Impact Measuring contributor influence, merged pull requests, leadership roles, and employee growth within open source communities. [00:15:19] Ecosystem & Supply Chain Impact Why organizations must evaluate upstream dependencies and long-term project viability, especially in light of regulations like the Cyber Resilience Act. [00:23:00] Organizational Impact & Governance Aligning open source strategy with business goals, managing risk, automating dependency health checks, and enabling developers to contribute upstream efficiently. [00:29:31] Metrics Over Time (Not Snapshots) Why there is no universal red/yellow/green metric set. Context matters, and observing trends over time is critical for meaningful health assessments. [00:36:00] Resources & Working Groups Introduction to CHAOSS practitioner guides, OSPO metrics working groups, and research publications. Value Adds (Picks) of the week: [00:39:25] Harmony’s pick is reflecting on old photos. [00:36:10] Matt's pick is embracing the opportunity to do winter sports. [00:37:54] Johan’s pick is to enjoy parenting moments. Panelists: Harmony Elendu Matt Germonprez Guests Johan Linåker Links OSPO Book TODO Group CHAOSS Project OpenSSF Scorecard CHAOSS OSPO Metrics Working Group Harmony Elendu website Harmony Elendu LinkedInSpecial Guest: Johan Linåker.Support CHAOSScast

Thank you to the folks at Sustain for providing the hosting account for CHAOSSCast! CHAOSScast- Episode 128 Check out the original GR-OSS OUT episode on the GR-OSS OUT podcast: https://podcast.gr-oss.io/15-openssf-community In this episode of CHAOSScast, we have a special crossover episode with the GR-OSS OUT podcast, hosted by Tabatha DiDomenico from G-Research and featuring special guest Stacey Potter, Community Manager at the Open Source Security Foundation (OpenSSF). Stacey shares her journey into open source, which started in software license compliance and marketing before she found her passion in community-building through projects like Weaveworks and the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) ecosystem. Her experience spans the full project lifecycle from early-stage incubation to graduation, giving her a unique perspective on how healthy, sustainable open source communities grow. A central theme of the conversation is what makes open source communities truly welcoming. Stacey emphasizes the importance of clear documentation, accessible contribution guidelines, well-labeled “good first issues,” and, above all, kindness. Reducing the fear of “doing it wrong” is critical, especially for newcomers who may feel intimidated by contributing code in public. Creating psychological safety helps transform curiosity into long-term participation, and contributors feel mentored rather than judged. Community health, she notes, is fundamentally about people, not just processes or tooling. The discussion also explores how marketing skills translate into community leadership. Stacey reflects on the difference between top-down messaging aimed at executives and bottom-up engagement with developers. Understanding your audience, meeting contributors where they are, and fostering authentic relationships are essential to building trust. At OpenSSF, she is helping shift perceptions so contributors understand that participation is open to everyone, not just member organizations. She also believes it's important to support education initiatives and strengthen developer experience across projects. Finally, Stacey highlights several OpenSSF initiatives and projects that could benefit from broader community involvement, including Scorecard, Minder, and OpenVEX. She also previews upcoming events and a new ambassador program designed to make open source security more accessible, and even fun! The episode closes with encouragement for listeners to get involved, contribute to the projects they rely on, and help build secure, welcoming open source ecosystems. Links: CHAOSS GR-OSS OUT podcast G-Research G-Research vacancies Open Source Security Foundation (OpenSSF) OpenSSF Training & Education Linux Foundation Scorecard Sigstore SLSA (Supply-chain Levels for Software Artifacts) Minder OpenVEX Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) Flux Kubernetes KubeCon + CloudNativeCon North America OpenSSF Community Day KoreaSpecial Guests: Stacey Potter and Tabatha DiDomenico.Support CHAOSScast

Daniel Izquierdo, CEO of Bitergia and CHAOSS co-founder, tracks community collaboration and sustainability. Matt Trifiro, executive director of COSSA and former CMO, aligns startups, investors, and customers around commercial open source. They discuss why community health matters for startup value. They cover measurable collaboration networks, moving beyond vanity metrics, and turning community signals into commercial outcomes.

Thank you to the folks at Sustain for providing the hosting account for CHAOSScast! CHAOSScast – Episode 126 On this episode of CHAOSScast, host Alice Sowerby introduces a special episode welcoming Leon Nunes as the new host for the CHAOSS Asia podcast. Leon shares his background in customer success, his work with CNCF, and hardware hacking, along with his role in growing the CHAOSS Asia chapter. Together, Alice and Leon talk about the current state of the Asia community, Leon’s curiosity-driven approach to podcast hosting, the stories he wants to surface from across Asia, and how listeners can get involved or pitch episode ideas. Hit download now to find out more! [00:00:35] Leon shares his background. [00:01:24] Leon explains his customer success role, supporting customers running software in production, and his many side interests. [00:02:48] We learn how Leon started with Raspberry Pi in college, building a motion triggered music stand, being inspired by GitHub badges, and shares a recent side project assembling RGB LED Christmas tree kits and gifting them to people. [00:05:52] How did Leon find CHAOSS? He traces his path into CHAOSS Asia via a friend doing lots of outreach, and his desire to join open source communities beyond just code contributions. He also helps maintain CHAOSS Asia’s LinkedIn and Twitter. [00:09:03] Alice asks what drew him to hosting a podcast. Leon shares his love of talking to people and using conversations to understand people. [00:10:48] Alice connects Leon’s curiosity and his love of talking with podcast hosting, and reviews CHAOSScast episode types. [00:11:51] What kind of stories does Leon want to tell from Asia? He wants to explore how other communities handle challenges like participation and growth and then apply those learnings to CHAOSS Asia. He suggests inviting active CHAOSS Asia contributors to share their experiences on the podcast. [00:13:55] Alice agrees on a more exploratory approach, using conversations with active members to both document and strengthen the Asia chapter. [00:14:48] Find out where you can contact Leon on the internet. Value Adds (Picks) of the week: [00:15:30] Alice’s pick is looking at a way to make Christmas crackers that are reusable. [00:18:04] Leon’s pick is doing a lot dancing, like Lindy Hop, and his 3D printer. Panelist: Alice Sowerby Guest: Leon Nunes Links: CHAOSS CHAOSS Project X CHAOSScast Podcast CHAOSS YouTube podcast@chaoss.community Alice Sowerby LinkedIn Leon Nunes Website Leon Nunes LinkedIn Leon Nunes X CHAOSS Community Chapters Most recent CHAOSS Asia Chapter meeting- November 13, 2025 (YouTube) What are Christmas crackers? (YouTube) Whiteys Lindy Hoppers - Hellzapoppin (YouTube)Support CHAOSScast

Join Sean Goggins, co-founder of the CHAOSS community, Anita Ihuman, a dedicated advocate and technical writer, Georg Link, a leader in community metrics, and Elizabeth Barron, CHAOSS Community Manager. They delve into the impact of AI on open-source funding and the crucial role of psychological safety for contributors. The group discusses the exciting growth of CHAOSS, including new working groups and global outreach, while also emphasizing the need for community-driven identity solutions. Their hopes for 2026 reflect a commitment to inclusion and sustainability.

Thank you to the folks at Sustain for providing the hosting account for CHAOSSCast! CHAOSScast – Episode 124 This episode of CHAOSScast kicks off a new Practitioner Guide series focused on “Building Diverse Leadership” in open source communities. Harmony Elendu hosts with co-host Georg Link and guests Dawn Foster and Peculiar Umeh, exploring why diverse leadership matters, how CHAOSS’ practitioner guides turn “walls of metrics” into practical action, and how three specific metrics: Board/Council Diversity, Sponsorship, and Inclusive Leadership, can help projects become more welcoming, representative, and sustainable. Hit download now to hear more! [00:00:35] Dawn, Peculiar, Georg, and Harmony share their backgrounds. [00:02:57] Dawn gives us an overview of the Practitioner Guide series and emphasizes that the guides focus on how to improve projects using metrics, not just on measuring. [00:05:13] Georg asks Peculiar what inspired her to write the “Getting Started with Building Diverse Leadership” guide. She describes working on CHAOSS metrics templates and wanting to help non-data science people use them. [00:08:09] Harmony connects the topic to broader industry conversations on diversity and inclusion. Peculiar explains that diverse leadership brings different perspectives, experiences, and voices into decision making and uses CHAOSS as an example. [00:10:30] Dawn expands on how seeing leaders “who look like you” motivates people to participate and aspire to leadership. [00:11:28] Georg talks about diversity as social justice and explains benefits for the projects: resilience, innovation, and better products for diverse users. [00:14:25] Peculiar shares the three metrics and why there were chosen. Dawn adds that guides are designed to change projects, not just describe them. [00:18:09] Georg notes Board/Council Diversity is the most intuitive to measure and Dawn cautions that many aspects of identity are invisible and the guide recommends surveys to ask community members whether they feel represented and heard. [00:21:03] Georg explains sponsorship vs. mentorship. Peculiar shares her own experience of being advocated for and supported in open source. Dawn tells the story of Danese Cooper sponsoring her showing how sponsorship accelerates careers. [00:25:27] Georg explains Inclusive Leadership as the governance scaffolding and Peculiar describes what the guide offers. [00:27:50] Harmony asks how they can implement the guide and monitor progress. Peculiar highlights some implementation steps and Dawn re-emphasizes using recurring surveys as monitoring tools. [00:33:27] Dawn notes that every practitioner guide includes a Cautions and Considerations section, and Georg reminds us that interpersonal relationships are crucial for understanding how people experience the community. Value Adds (Picks) of the week: [00:35:25] Harmony’s pick is n8n and automations. [00:36:10] Georg’s pick is looking forward to the holidays with his family. [00:37:54] Dawn’s pick is watching chunky squirrels play outside her window. [00:38:24] Peculiar’s pick is taking time to rest. Panelists: Harmony Elendu Georg Link Guests: Dawn Foster Peculiar Umeh Links: CHAOSS CHAOSS Project X CHAOSScast Podcast CHAOSS YouTube podcast@chaoss.community Georg Link Website Harmony Elendu X Dawn Foster X Peculiar Umeh LinkedIn CHAOSS Practitioner Guide: Getting Started with Building Diverse Leadership About the CHAOSS Practitioner Guides The Linux Foundation Report -Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Open Source The Linux Foundation-Decentralized innovation. Built on trust. Inclusive Leadership: Effecting change: Introduction | OpenLearn-Open University CHAOSS Data Use Awareness Recommendation: Privacy and Ethics n8n Previous Practitioner Guide Episodes: Episode 85: Introducing CHAOSS Practitioner Guides: #1 Responsiveness Episode 88: Practitioner Guides: #2 Contributor Sustainability Episode 89: Practitioner Guides : #3 Organizational Participation Episode 97: Practitioner Guides: #4 Security Episode 120: Practitioner Guides: #5 Demonstrating Organizational Value Episode 123: Practitioner Guides: #6 Sunsetting an Open Source ProjectSpecial Guest: Peculiar Umeh.Support CHAOSScast

Dawn Foster, a director of data science with over 25 years in open source, teams up with Stefka Dimitrova, an open source practitioner celebrated for her work at VMware. They dive into sunsetting open source projects, discussing the vital need for responsible project lifecycle management. Key points include metrics for identifying inactive projects, the significance of thorough communication, and practical steps to ensure a smooth transition. They emphasize that sunsetting should be an integral part of project planning, not just a last-minute decision.

Thank you to the folks at Sustain for providing the hosting account for CHAOSSCast! CHAOSScast – Episode 122 In this episode of CHAOSScast, host Georg and co-host Alice introduce a special feature showcasing the “CHAOTICS of the Month” who are members recognized for their exceptional contributions to the CHAOSS open source community. Today, they chat with David Lippert, Victoria Ottah, and Cali Dolfi.  David Lippert, Director of the Open Source Program Office at George Washington University, discusses his journey into academia and open source with a focus on public interest technology. Victoria Otta, a UX designer and accessibility advocate, shares her experiences and contributions to the CHAOSS community, particularly in accessibility auditing and inclusion of people with disabilities in open source. Cali Dolfi, a senior data scientist at Red Hat, talks about her work in community data analysis and the Data Science Working Group. Hit download now to hear more! [00:01:42] Georg highlights the purpose of the today’s episode that includes three guests from the “CHAOTICS of the Month” series. [00:01:56] The first CHAOTIC guest is David Lippert. He shares his background being a former software and data engineer, now in academia, and works under a Sloan Foundation grant supporting university OSPOs. [00:05:17] Georg addresses the lack of open source awareness among faculty and encourages integration of open source into academic programs. [00:06:37] David shares his connection to CHAOSS, joining through the CURRIOSS network of academic OSPOs and talks about working with the UN SDG Working Group to measure global impact through open source. He mentions two GWU students won a UN hackathon related to open source data management. [00:10:56] David talks about how metrics vary based on context ( IT department vs. researcher focus). [00:12:44] The next CHAOTIC guest is Victoria Ottah. She shares her background and her journey into CHAOSS, which is the first open source community she joined. CHAOSS provided clarity and mentorship since she was initially struggling as a designer and mentions having early support from Ruth and other maintainers. [00:16:18] Victoria discusses the need to make GitHub and contribution platforms more welcoming to designers and suggests simplified onboarding and linking repositories to Figma or design workspaces. [00:17:45] Victoria’s career goals and focus for 2026 is being a certified accessibility advocate to CHAOSS web projects and advocates for including people with disabilities early in the open source design and development process. [00:20:39] Find out where you can connect with Victoria online. [00:21:33] The last CHAOTIC guest is Cali Dolfi. She shares her background, starting as a data science intern in 2020, and focused on community analytics. She works with CHAOSS tools Augur and 8Knot for data visualization and analysis. [00:25:26] Cali is really excited about working in the Data Science Working Group, collaborating with researchers to explore methods for analyzing open source communities, and developing Practitioner Guides to help organizations interpret metrics effectively. [00:28:03] Cali encourages new contributors to start by joining working groups aligned with their interests and notes that groups are small and welcoming, offering mentorship and practical work. Value Adds (Picks) of the week: [00:30:40] Georg’s pick is drying garden herbs in a dehydrator to make tea. [00:31:06] Alice’s pick is tending a backyard pond and raising goldfish. [00:33:03] David’s pick is hosting a movie night featuring, The Internet’s Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz, to inspire ethics in open source*.* [00:34:59] Victoria’s pick is being proud of reaching her fitness goals. [00:35:23] Cali’s pick is celebrating recovery from ACL surgery and returning to running and playing volleyball after two years. Panelists: Georg Link Alice Sowerby Guests: David Lippert Victoria Ottah Cali Dolfi Links: CHAOSS CHAOSS Project X CHAOSScast Podcast CHAOSS YouTube CHAOSS Slack podcast@chaoss.community Georg Link Website Alice Sowerby LinkedIn David Lippert Bluesky David Lippert GitHub Victoria Ottah Website Victoria Ottah LinkedIn CHAOSScast Podcast episode featuring Victoria Ottah Cali Dolfi LinkedIn CHAOSScast Podcast episodes featuring Cali Dolfi CHAOTIC of the Month - David Lippert (CHAOSS Monthly-GitHub) CHAOTIC of the Month – Victoria Ottah (CHAOSS Monthly-GitHub) CHAOTIC of the Month - Cali Dolfi (CHAOSS Monthly-GitHub) CURIOSS CHAOSS United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDG) Working Group CHAOSS Data Science Working Group The Internet’s Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz Special Guests: Cali Dolfi and Victoria Ottah.Support CHAOSScast