Open Source Endowment (OSE) Looking to Raise Money for Free Software, But It's Hard to Know who Runs the Open Source Endowment Foundation
Putting aside the name and its use of "Open Source", there's this ambitious new initiative whose official site says: "OSE is the world's first endowment fund for open source software. It invests donations into a low-risk portfolio and spends only the returns to fund maintainers of critical yet underfunded OSS across the globe. OSE is a US 501(c)(3) public charity, incorporated on February 14, 2025."
So it was formally formed (founded) one year ago.
On "Governance" it says: "OSE is a grassroots nonprofit governed by individual donors — people with a passion for open source and skin in the game. Endowments require a 20+ year horizon, and most organizations plan for far shorter periods. We are intentionally building a lasting global neutral institution, not a corporate nonprofit — similar to the best universities. [...] The Board of Directors is the main governing body, responsible for OSE strategy, investments, grants, etc. It combines board-appointed and member-elected directors. All directors serve unpaid and must be Members. The Board meets at least four times a year; meeting minutes are published in our docs. See the bylaws for full details. The Executive Director manages day-to-day operations and reports to the Board. The ED is appointed by the Board for up to three years and must be a Member. OSE also engages Advisors — thematic experts who help the Board on various topics and, unlike directors and officers, are not required to be Members."
Their Web site does not (easily) show who the Board of Directors includes, but it does have this page:
It is too new to show names of administrators, finances (including salaries) etc.
They appear to have deleted the page which names administrators: "Konstantin Vinogradov – Chair of the Board · Chad Whitacre – Secretary · Maxim Konovalov – Treasurer · Jonathan Starr – Executive Director."
Why was this page removed? █
Photo credit: Richard Stallman visita la Universidad