📖 Link collection finances and (sustainable) funding

To read, listen & watch

Funding

Two summaries with case studies and experiences on open source funding:

https://opensource.guide/getting-paid/ 

https://github.com/nayafia/lemonade-stand#grants 

On finding sponsors:

A guide to creating a sponsorship prospectus in order to attract and retain sponsors

How to attract corporate sponsors for funding OSS

On donations/donor acceptance policies:

Example of a donation acceptance policy

Tips for gift acceptance policies

Tips on applying for grants to fund OSS by Sumana Harihareswara

Growing Open Source Projects with a Stable Foundation by Martin Milchmayr

Specifically the section “Umbrella organizations” explains what you get from a fiscal sponsor like OpenCollective

Business models

Linux Foundation, From Project to Profit: Business Models for Startups Developing Open Source Software

Info World, Forming a software foundation? Think again

Some resources around monetizing OSS:

How do you monetize open source

How to monetize your open source project (and pay your developers)

Sustainability

Sustain has various podcasts on sustainability in open source software, i. a. open source design, documentation or climate: https://sustainoss.org/podcasts/ 

Methods & tools

Various business model canvases:

Circulab offers the Circular Canvas, a business model canvas: https://circulab.academy/circular-economy-tools/circular-canvas-business-models/ 

There is also a business model canvas by CASE: https://www.case-ka.eu/wp/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/SustainableBusinessModelCanvas_highresolution.jpg 

The business model canvas by Strategyzer: https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/64830736e7f43d491d70ef30/65d36b6f31059e94e2ff517c_A3-Business%20Model%20Canvas-2023.pdf

Using Business Model Canvas to Launch a Technology Startup or Improve Established Operating Model: https://www.altexsoft.com/blog/using-business-model-canvas-to-launch-a-technology-startup-or-improve-established-operating-model/ 

Financing options

The Civic Tech Field Guide provides an overview of different ways to fund projects and lists them by category: https://civictech.guide/funding/ 

List of funding opportunities

Open Funding List: https://github.com/ralphtheninja/open-funding 

The list of the Stiftung Erneuerbare Freiheit: https://erneuerbare-freiheit.de/foerderung/foerderquellen/ 

The list of NLNet: https://nlnet.nl/foundation/network.html 

The list of the Open Tech Fund: https://docs.opentech.fund/otf-application-guidebook/appendix-iv-alternative-sources-of-support 

The DSEE funding list: https://www.deutsche-stiftung-engagement-und-ehrenamt.de/foerderung/aktuelle-programme/

The German federal funding database: https://www.foerderdatenbank.de/FDB/DE/Home/home.html

A curated list of funding programs supporting the awesome work of Open Source maintainers:

Codeberg

Github

This site consists of a hand-picked selection of paid open calls, fellowships and residencies for artists, journalists, writers, researchers and technologists working in the realm of digital media, AI, and technology and society.

Fiscal hosts

Fiscal hosts can support you administratively and in the search for funding

The Center for the Cultivation of Technology: https://techcultivation.org/ 

On the border between fiscal host & crowdfunding platform:

Open Collective: https://opencollective.com/ 

Open Collective Europe: https://opencollective.com/europe 

Crowdfunding & similar models

Crowdfunding list for FOSS projects: https://www.oss.fund/categories/crowdfunding/

Crowdfunding platforms:

Liberapay is a non-profit and very transparent: https://liberapay.com/

Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/

Givebutter is a platform specifically for non-profits: https://givebutter.com/

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/

Github Sponsors: https://github.com/sponsors

Every.org: https://www.every.org/

Crowdfunding for hardware at Crowdsupply: https://www.crowdsupply.com/ 

Finding business partners

Civic Match is a platform to find co-founders and collaborators: https://www.civicmatch.app/