19/11/2025 –, Main Room
Open source software (OSS) underpins modern digital infrastructure globally, yet its contributor base is strikingly homogeneous. OSS is dominated by White men from Europe and North America, with only 10% women and an underrepresentation of Black, Hispanic, Indigenous, and multiracial contributors. Furthermore, while younger contributors continue to join OSS, OSS contributors are skewing older, as fewer and fewer younger developers choose to join and remain in OSS –the percentage of maintainers under the age of 26 has dropped from 25% in 2021 to 10% in 2024 (Tidelift, 2024).
Younger developers aren’t advancing to maintainership roles, compounding concerns for the longevity of OSS, and thus for digital infrastructure writ large.. Diversity is critical for effective OSS, yet non-diverse projects risk exclusionary outcomes, sustainability issues, and neglect community health. The aging maintainer pool, coupled with a lack of diverse representation, threatens OSS sustainability. Understanding younger contributors is crucial—tracking their entry, engagement, and barriers to leadership could enhance diversity. This work seeks to develop a richer understanding of potential OSS newcomers, their concerns and experiences, and how their participation evolves over time through a survey study of undergraduate introductory programming students across the US. This work has implications for OSS sustainability and diversity, for the distribution of OSS benefits amongst different groups, and for encouraging broader participation in online communities.
Open source software (OSS) underpins modern digital infrastructure globally, yet its contributor base is strikingly homogeneous. OSS is dominated by White men from Europe and North America, with only 10% women and an underrepresentation of Black, Hispanic, Indigenous, and multiracial contributors. Furthermore, while younger contributors continue to join OSS, OSS contributors are skewing older, as fewer and fewer younger developers choose to join and remain in OSS, and the percentage of maintainers under the age of 26 has dropped from 25% in 2021 to 10% in 2024 (Tidelift, 2024). Younger developers aren’t advancing to maintainership roles, compounding concerns for the longevity of OSS, and thus for digital infrastructure writ large. Diversity is critical for effective OSS, yet non-diverse projects risk exclusionary outcomes, sustainability issues, and neglect of community health. The aging maintainer pool, coupled with a lack of diverse representation, threatens OSS sustainability. Understanding younger contributors is crucial—tracking their entry, engagement, and barriers to leadership could enhance diversity. In tackling these issues, this ongoing research seeks to develop a richer understanding of potential OSS newcomers, their concerns and experiences, and how their participation evolves over time, building on a survey study of undergraduate introductory programming students across the US. The paper discusses the implications of this research for OSS sustainability and diversity, for the distribution of OSS benefits amongst different groups, and for encouraging broader participation in online communities.
I'm interested in researching social aspects of modern technology collaboration in the context of open source software communities and participation. My research goals are to promote diversity and inclusion in open source software and other software development communities, facilitate welcoming and equitable online collaboration, and understand how personal identity impacts software use and development.