Ruby Central is proud to announce our support of the Open Source Pledge, spearheaded by our OSS sponsor Sentry, which asks companies to pay open source maintainers fairly and make the open source ecosystem more sustainable.
As a member company, Ruby Central has committed to paying for the use of open source software (directly or through a funding organization) and compensating maintainers for the important work they do.
We join many of the most prominent open source organizations across the world in supporting the Pledge, which reflects our deeply felt values and our commitment to maintainers and Rubyists who rely on our open source work (such as RubyGems and Bundler).
As businesses and individuals rely more heavily on OSS, the strain on maintainers to provide timely updates and security patches continues to grow—often without fair compensation for their crucial work. Recent high-profile security incidents like XZ and Log4Shell have put a spotlight on the security challenges developers face against a backdrop of burnout that has reached an all-time high. The Pledge will ultimately support OSS maintainers and inspire a shift toward healthier work-life balance and more robust software security practices.
Ruby Central raises funds through donations and grants, which we use to fund crucial open source projects that support the Ruby software ecosystem. Although the majority of development work is paid for through these donations, some is done through volunteer efforts. We recognize that the model of donated development efforts is unsustainable, contributes to burnout, and results in turnover, which is why we’re dedicated to making this shift.
How you can help:
If you are an organization that uses open source work, join us and Sentry in committing to the Open Source Pledge. The minimum requirement to join is a commitment of $2,000 per year per developer on staff, paid directly to any open source maintainer or Foundation of your choice. Then, call your peers to join the Open Source Pledge and learn more about issues around sustainability in maintaining OSS.
Chad Whitacre, Head of Open Source at Sentry, says it best:
"This isn't just about cutting a check. It's about recognizing the enormous value that open source maintainers provide to the tech community. We’re inviting companies to step up and give back to a system we rely on. We believe this pledge will not only build goodwill with the developer community but more importantly, it will create a safer, more resilient OSS ecosystem for everyone."
“As the non-profit organization dedicated to supporting and advancing the Ruby programming language, Ruby Central understands the importance of a collaborative community and what is needed for a thriving ecosystem,” says Adarsh Pandit, Executive Director at Ruby Central. “We are pleased to see the initial Open Source Pledge members do their part to support the sustainability of open source software and look forward to participating.”
For more information about the Open Source Pledge and how to participate, please visit osspledge.com.