Maintainer Month returns this May, and the Open Source Initiative (OSI) is proud to join GitHub and a global community of contributors in honoring the individuals who steward and sustain Open Source projects. In 2025, Maintainer Month enters its fourth year with a clear and urgent theme: Securing Open Source.
Throughout the month, OSI and our affiliates will be highlighting maintainers who prioritize security in their projects, sharing their stories, and providing a platform for collaboration and learning. These efforts are not just celebrations—they are opportunities to recognize the essential role maintainers play in safeguarding the Open Source infrastructure that underpins so much of our digital world.
Today, Jeff Luszcz will give a talk about " What Maintainers need to know about Open Source Licensing, SBOMs and Security" as part of Maintainer Month:
50 Maintainers share their stories for Maintainer Month
The Open Source Initiative (OSI) is proud to join GitHub and a global community of contributors in honoring the individuals who steward and sustain Open Source projects.
About 50 maintainers came together for Maintainer Month in May to share their stories behind the scenes. These maintainers not only review issues and merge pull requests—they also navigate community dynamics, mentor new contributors, and increasingly adopt security best practices to protect their code and users.
Let’s amplify their voices. Together, we can ensure maintainers receive the recognition, support, and resources they need—not only in May, but all year long.
Today, the OSI will host a Town Hall celebrating Maintainer Month. The Town Hall is happening on May 21 at 11:30am ET (15:30 UTC). It’s a great opportunity to connect with fellow maintainers, OSI affiliates, and members of the broader Open Source community.
During this past month, I’ve had the privilege of keeping in touch with 50 maintainers across the Open Source ecosystem and reviewing their stories to celebrate GitHub’s Maintainer Month.
Reading these stories left me feeling deeply grateful and inspired. These maintainers not only review issues and merge pull requests—they also navigate community dynamics, mentor new contributors, and increasingly adopt security best practices to protect their code and users. They literally keep the digital infrastructure up and running for the benefit of all.
I’m also immensely proud of the work the OSI does in collaboration with its affiliates behind the scenes to support maintainers and protect the Open Source ecosystem, including maintaining the OSI Approved Licenses database, educating legislators and policy makers about Open Source, and holding global conversations with multiple stakeholders to improve our understanding of Open Source and the opportunities and challenges we face.
You can read all the stories we’ve gathered so far here:
Let’s amplify their voices! Together, we can ensure maintainers receive the recognition, support, and resources they need—not only in May, but all year long.