fossy-placeholder/content/pages/about.md

title: About FOSSY
slug: about

**FOSS is back in Portland, OR - July 13-16th 2023 at the Oregon Convention
Center!**

<figure class="tc">
<img src="https://sfconservancy.org/img/occ.jpg" alt="Aerial photograph of the Oregon Convention Center" >
<figcaption class="tc mt2">Oregon Convention Center (CC-BY 2.0)</figcaption>
</figure>

Software Freedom Conservancy is so proud to announce that we are hosting a
community oriented conference this coming summer. FOSSY (Free and Open Source
Yearly) is focused on the creation and impact of free and open source software,
uplifting contributors of all experience. We are also mindful of having a safe
environment for all. In this new time of conferences, we will be focused on
COVID safety and making sure all attendees feel safe participating as much as
they feel comfortable (we will have a detailed policy published in the coming
weeks).

Taking place in Portland, OR, we hope FOSSY will be a community focused
event that invites local community, as well as the wider internet and global
communites we have formed over the years. Whether you are a long time
contributing member of a free software project, a recent graduate of a
coding bootcamp or university, or just have an interest in the possibilies
that free and open source software bring, FOSSY will have something for
you.

For this first year we are running a conference of this scale, we are having
around 12 tracks with talks over 4 days. With tracks for community building,
development and legal and licensing issues, our conference will provide ample
learning and networking opportunities for contributors of all levels of
experience. There will be hands on workshops, lightning talks and
traditional 50 minute talks.

As we look to the future of conferences, we are excited to focus on using
free software to run a conference and will seek to help reduce the amount of
proprietary software that is treated as default.

If you are interested in sponsoring our conference, please see our [Sponsorship
Prospectus](https://sfconservancy.org/docs/Fossy-Prospectus.pdf) or contact us
at [conference@sfconservancy.org](mailto:conference@sfconservancy.org).