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Read and share online: https://www.fsf.org/news/emacsconf-joins-free-software-foundation-fiscal-sponsorship-program

BOSTON, Massachusetts, USA -- Thursday, November 30, 2023 -- The Free Software Foundation (FSF) announced today that EmacsConf will join the Working Together for Free Software Fund. The one and only conference dedicated to the joy of Emacs is joining just before their event on December 2 and 3, 2023.

As part of its Working Together for Free Software Fund, the FSF provides fiscal sponsorship for a number of important free software and GNU technical projects, such as the GNU Toolchain and Replicant. Starting today, EmacsConf will also receive this sponsorship.

EmacsConf is the premier Emacs conference. EmacsConf is a volunteer-run, community conference with sessions on all things GNU Emacs, Emacs Lisp, and popular Emacs features like Org-mode. The conference has grown rapidly in the last few years. It welcomes speakers of all backgrounds and all levels of experience from across the world. EmacsConf is rooted in the active, passionate community surrounding GNU Emacs, and like Emacs itself, it is committed to user freedom. It is organized and run using an entirely free software stack. It is also accessible to all, safeguarding the possibility to fully participate in the conference using only free software.

"All kinds of people use GNU Emacs for all kinds of things. With EmacsConf, we hope to highlight interesting perspectives and reflect the diversity of our community. Naturally, we welcome speakers of all backgrounds and all levels of experience, including those giving their first talk. We strive to be a friendly, kind, and welcoming bunch, and love seeing both new and familiar faces in our lineup of speakers, volunteers, and participants for each rendition of the conference. We are very excited to be joining the FSF's Working Together for Free Software Fund and being fiscally sponsored by the FSF," said Amin Bandali, one of the EmacsConf core organizers.

As a fiscal sponsor, the FSF will assist EmacsConf by providing services required by a legal entity, including the signing of contracts and receiving and processing payments. All those interested in supporting EmacsConf can donate to the conference today.

"We have participated in EmacsConf several times in the last few years and thoroughly enjoyed its welcoming atmosphere and dedication to GNU Emacs," said Zoë Kooyman, executive director of the FSF. "We are excited to support their work and see them grow even further in the upcoming years. The EmacsConf organizers are all dedicated free software advocates and stars at building momentum and community within free software."

The FSF has participated in several ways over the years, from a satellite instance at the FSF Boston office, to sponsoring a GNU Emacs pack as a prize for the event. FSF Campaigns Manager and avid Emacs user Greg Farough has spoken at the event as well.

Organizations interested in learning about sponsorship opportunities for EmacsConf can contact the organizers or email [email protected], and individual supporters can visit the conference's contribution page. You can still participate in this year's event on December 2 and 3, 2023 as well. Read more at https://emacsconf.org/2023/.

The FSF's fall fundraiser continues until December 31. You can support its work by making a donation.

Other free software focused events interested in fiscal sponsorship should contact the FSF at [email protected].

About the Free Software Foundation

The Free Software Foundation, founded in 1985, is dedicated to promoting computer users' right to use, study, copy, modify, and redistribute computer programs. The FSF promotes the development and use of free (as in freedom) software -- particularly the GNU operating system and its GNU/Linux variants -- and free documentation for free software. The FSF also helps to spread awareness of the ethical and political issues of freedom in the use of software, and its Web sites, located at https://fsf.org and https://gnu.org, are an important source of information about GNU/Linux. Donations to support the FSF's work can be made at https://donate.fsf.org. Its headquarters are in Boston, MA, USA.

More information about the FSF, as well as important information for journalists and publishers, is at https://www.fsf.org/press.

About EmacsConf

EmacsConf 2023 will be held as an online conference this year. Fully committed to freedom, they will continue using their infrastructure and streaming setup consisting entirely of free software, much like previous EmacsConf conferences.

There is also a satellite event in Lucerne, Switzerland. You can contact the organizers if you're interested in organizing one in your area!

For general EmacsConf discussions, join the emacsconf-discuss mailing list. For discussions related to organizing EmacsConf, join the emacsconf-org mailing list. You can email publicly at [email protected] or privately at [email protected].

Hang out with them in the #emacsconf channel on irc.libera.chat (Libera.Chat IRC network). You can join the chat using your favorite IRC client, or by visiting chat.emacsconf.org in your web browser.

If you want to get involved, you can volunteer to help with the conference or help spread the word!

Media Contact

Miriam Bastian
Program Manager
Free Software Foundation
+1 (617) 542 5942
[email protected]