MOSS/Friends

Whether your MOSS application is successful or not, you may be interested in (additional) ways of raising money to support your project. We know of the following organizations which may be able to provide financial support or help you raise it, or provide infrastructure for doing so:

Core Infrastructure Initiative

The Core Infrastructure Initiative (CII) is a program within the Linux Foundation to substantially improve security outcomes for the FOSS projects on which the internet, and the businesses built on it, depend. The CII supports a variety of projects ranging from security specific tools and libraries such as OpenSSH and OpenSSL to core components such as ntpd. The CII also supports projects to identify key, at risk projects, to locate and responsibly report vulnerabilities, create tooling to make development more secure by default and to improve security process in FOSS projects.

OpenCollective

OpenCollective helps open source projects, online communities and meetups to raise money through donations and spend it transparently. No need of a legal entity or bank account. Open Collective acts as their fiscal sponsor providing a dedicated page to manage the funds, submit expenses and invoices and get reimbursed for them.

An Open Collective is an group of people with a shared mission that handles its financials transparently. Many open source projects have set up collectives to allow their community to chip and make their work sustainable for the future. Apply here.

Open Technology Fund

The Open Technology Fund (OTF) supports open technologies and communities that increase free expression, circumvent censorship, and obstruct repressive surveillance as a way to promote human rights and open societies. OTF funding mechanisms include support for both organizations and individuals working on technologies that expand internet freedom globally.

OTF focuses on funding efforts that increase access to the internet (including tools to circumvent website blocks, connection blackouts, and widespread censorship); enhance privacy (including the ability to be free from repressive observation and enable online anonymity); strengthen digital security (including encryption tools and holistic security assessments); and raise awareness among at-risk users and communities of the aforementioned technologies. Apply here.

snowdrift.coop

Snowdrift.coop funds public goods through their sustainable crowdmatching system. Patrons pledge to donate to their chosen projects a tiny amount monthly, multiplied by the number of patrons who donate together. This mutual assurance helps address the freerider / public-goods dilemmas faced by public goods including software, art, research, journalism, educational resources, and more.

While not fully operating yet (as of late 2016), Snowdrift.coop hopes to have a successful prototype launch and then begin full operations soon. The core requirements include free/libre/open licensing, and the focus will be on downstream, ongoing projects that have the potential to reach a wide audience. The platform itself will run as a non-profit cooperative with membership open to all participants.

Software Freedom Conservancy

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If you think your organization should be mentioned here, email Gerv.