📖 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: https://github.com/google/opendocs/blob/main/sponsorship/sponsor-prospectus.mdsponsors

  • How to attract corporate sponsors for funding OSS:OSS https://docs.oscollective.org/guides/recruiting-financial-sponsors

• On donations/donor acceptance policies:

  • Example of a donation acceptance policy: https://numfocus.org/donation-acceptance-policy

  • Tips for gift acceptance policies: https://www.councilofnonprofits.org/running-nonprofit/fundraising-and-resource-development/gift-acceptance-policies

• Tips on applying for grants to fund OSS by Sumana Harihareswara:Harihareswara https://www.changeset.nyc/resources/quick-intro-to-grants.html

• Growing Open Source Projects with a Stable Foundation by Martin Milchmayr: https://cyrius.com/foss-foundations/growing-open-source-projects.pdfMilchmayr 

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

• A curated list of funding programs supporting the awesome work of Open Source maintainers:
  • Codeberg: https://codeberg.org/mechko/awesome-maintainer-funding
  • Github: https://github.com/mechko/awesome-maintainer-funding

Business models

• Linux Foundation, From Project to Profit: Business Models for Startups Developing Open Source Software: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTVmwW3uTkg

• Info World, Forming a software foundation? Think again: https://www.infoworld.com/article/2273463/forming-a-software-foundation-think-again.html

• Some resources around monetizing OSS:

  • How do you monetize open source: https://dev.to/orliesaurus/how-do-you-monetize-open-source-4g4c 

  • How to monetize your open source project (and pay your developers): https://www.scaleway.com/en/blog/how-to-monetize-your-open-source-project/#open-source-monetization-models

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/