10 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0100

February is a reminder of why our Free Software community matters and why it's such a joy to be part of it. After FOSDEM, we are now looking ahead to the celebrations of the I Love Free Software Day across Europe. We are also catching up with our latest episodes of the Software Freedom Podcast focused on European policy and a Legal Corner about the freedom to study source code.Support FSFE: https://my.fsfe.org/support

From FOSDEM to "I ❤️ Free Software Day”: community, policy, and the freedom to study code

February is a reminder of why our Free Software community matters and why it's such a joy to be part of it. After FOSDEM, we are now looking ahead to the celebrations of the I Love Free Software Day across Europe. We are also catching up with our latest episodes of the Software Freedom Podcast focused on European policy and a Legal Corner about the freedom to study source code.

It all started in Brussels, at FOSDEM. As always, the weekend was intense, inspiring, and full of familiar and new faces. Our booth quickly became a place to stop, chat, and exchange ideas while getting your hands on our newest merchandise: two new T-shirts (cool kids and PMPC!) and a new design of our ilovefs red socks! -remember you can get all the merchandise at our website-. Connecting with so many people in person, hearing your stories, and feeling the shared energy around Free Software was a real highlight for us.

FOSDEM is also an important opportunity for us to present and discuss our work. Once again this year, the FSFE was among the organisers of the Legal & Policy Issues Devroom. The day opened with Gabriel's talk, "An Introduction to Law and Free Software", which set the stage for a series of engaging discussions. Among them, Alex, together with Michael Schuster and Tommaso Bernabo, addressed the role of Free Software in the Cyber Resilience Act. This was followed by a lively Q&A with the audience. Later that day, Lucas led a panel discussion on Interoperability regulation in the EU, joined by representatives from the European Commission and the Data Rights organisation.

During FOSDEM, we launched a new survey to collect input on how voluntary security attestation programmes for Free Software could be designed under Article 25 of the Cyber Resilience Act. The survey contains 27 questions, but participants are not required to answer all of them. We welcome feedback until the end of February. Take part in the survey!

As in previous years, the Legal & Policy Devroom attracted significant interest, with highly engaging topics and thoughtful questions from attendees. We would like to thank our co-organisers Karen Sandler, Tom Marble, Bradley M. Kühn, and Richard Fontana for helping make this Devroom happen. It is truly a pleasure to organise it together with all of you.

Besides this Devroom, and in addition to co-organising two others (Funding the Free Software Ecosystem and Free Software Mobile), several FSFE staffers were also busy participating in other Devrooms. Tobias was invited to speak about Friendica in the Social Web Devroom, while Bonnie and Sofía presented our European coding competition for teenagers, YH4F, which is currently in its programming period (registration is still possible!). Besides, Bonnie together with our volunteer Øjvind, introduced the audience to podcasting with Free Software, as part of the Audio, Video & Graphics Creation Devroom. They also seized the opportunity to record a live episode at FOSDEM, which we can't wait to publish soon!

Speaking of podcasts, in the busy weeks leading up to FOSDEM we released two episodes of the Software Freedom Podcast focused on European policy: one offering an overview of the most relevant current EU initiatives affecting Free Software, and another covering the latest news on the RED directive.

Back in Brussels, we also received exciting news about Ada & Zangemann! Matthias and our volunteer Nico participated in the FOSDEM main track with a talk on automating the translation of a bestseller to spark children's interest in coding. For the first time, the Dutch version of the book was available for purchase at our stand! Thanks to Nico, who put in a lot of work, for making it possible! Moreover, our volunteer Stephane produced several copies in English and German using a homemade Braille printing device. If you know anyone who is visually impaired, please get in touch with us!

Meanwhile, more volunteers, this time in December in Denmark, sent a letter to a Danish parliamentary commission regarding the implementation of the digital wallet. The FSFE local group participated in a follow-up, which was ultimately submitted by IT-Politisk Forening, a local association better equipped to provide input on Danish policy issues. This prompted numerous questions to the Minister about why the upcoming digital wallet is not fully Free Software, as such solutions must be.

We also come with news from Spain. The newest Legal Corner article focuses on a September 2025 ruling from the Spanish Supreme Court, that provides a legal precedent and underlines the importance of transparency in source code and algorithms, and support for the freedom to study! When public authorities in Spain use algorithms, in decision-making that affects citizens, they are obliged to allow citizens to understand how the algorithms work.

Celebrate with us the I Love Free Software Day!

While all of this has been happening, we have also been busy preparing for something very close to our hearts: I Love Free Software Day, which is coming up this week. We are getting ready to celebrate Free Software and the people behind it: developers, activists, translators, designers, and supporters who make this movement what it is, across Europe.

This year, we shine a spotlight on Free Software maintainers, the dedicated individuals who ensure Free Software projects stay available, functional, and up-to-date across systems. Their work is essential for all of us who rely on Free Software every day. Maintaining packages is often time- and resource-intensive, requiring powerful systems to build, test, and troubleshoot them.

With I Love Free Software Day 2026, we celebrate their commitment, expertise, and passion that keep the Free Software ecosystem thriving. Let’s recognise their efforts and say a heartfelt thank you to all maintainers!

How you can celebrate this day:

🇦🇹 Austria: 15 February in Villach 🇩🇪 Germany: 13 February in Nuremberg | 14 February in Berlin | 14 February in Frankfurt | 14 February in Moers |21 February in Bonn 🇳🇱 Netherlands: 12 February in Eindhoven | 13 February in Rotterdam | 14 February in Amsterdam 🇵🇱 Poland: 13 February in Warsaw | 14 February in Poznan 14 February in Lodz 🇵🇹 Portugal: 14 February online 🇪🇸 Spain: 13 February in Madrid | 14 February in Barcelona 🇨🇭 Switzerland: 12 February in Zurich 🇬🇧 UK: 10 February in Potteries, Staffordshire Check the ilovefs website for the last updates. More to come!

Play our new "I ❤ Free Software Day" quiz with your friends!

Show your gratitude: Think of a Free Software project you appreciate and reach out to the maintainers. Say thank you using our sharepic, stickers, balloons, artwork, or merchandise for #ilovefs.

Spread the love on social media: Share your appreciation with #ilovefs, write a blog post, post pictures or video messages, or send your thanks directly to Free Software developers and contributors.

Take action: Talking is silver, contributing is gold! Help a Free Software project by donating, translating, or assisting its users. You can also support our work with a donation to the FSFE.

Your support helps us move our work forward. Thank you!

We want to send a huge THANK YOU to everyone supporting us, including our amazing donors! We may be behind the wheel, but you are the ones keeping us moving forward. You can also support us, contribute to our work, and join our community. Are you using social media? If so, do not forget to follow us there! You can also follow the FSFE news in your RSS Reader.

Your editor, Ana

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