"Tackling the Big Issues" at the FSF Annual Associate Member Meeting, Saturday, March 15
Keynote speeches from FSF board members Mako Hill and Henri Poole and the director of the FSF-backed End Software Patents campaign Ben Klemens will each address the 2008 theme, "Tackling the Big Issues." They will look at the projects that will demand the Free Software Foundation's attention in 2008: from software patents to freedom for web services, from advancing free software adoption to the changing relations with the entertainment industry brought about by this year's Hollywood writers strike.
This year's meeting will also host the ceremony for the FSF's annual free software awards, where winners of the "Award for the Advancement of Free Software" and the "Award for Projects of Social Benefit" will be announced and recognized. Previous winners have included community luminaries like Andrew Tridgell, Theo de Raadt and Alan Cox and projects of social benefit such as the Sahana Disaster Management System and Wikipedia.
The meeting will also feature practical discussion among FSF members and its board of directors led by FSF president Richard Stallman, who will discuss current FSF campaigns and projects, as part of an interactive "Members Forum" session.
Peter Brown, FSF executive director said, "With the launch of the End Software Patents campaign, we are tackling head-on the major threat the free software movement faces—interestingly, this is a campaign that was instigated at last year's meeting. At the same time we see the incredible success that free software is having and how promotion and adoption can be driven by ethical concerns."
Now in its sixth year, this annual gathering has become a sounding
board for activities of the Foundation, and a place to develop ideas
with the free software community on future campaigns and actions. You can join the meeting by becoming an FSF member and registering online.
The full schedule of speakers and details for attendees and registration is published at http://www.fsf.org/associate/meetings/2008.
About the FSF
The Free Software Foundation, founded in 1985, is dedicated to promoting computer users' right to use, study, copy, modify, and redistribute computer programs. The FSF promotes the development and use of free (as in freedom) software -- particularly the GNU operating system and its GNU/Linux variants -- and free documentation for free software. The FSF also helps to spread awareness of the ethical and political issues of freedom in the use of software. Its Web site, located at www.fsf.org, is an important source of information about GNU/Linux. Donations to support the FSF's work can be made at http://donate.fsf.org. Its headquarters are in Boston, MA, USA.
Media Contacts
Joshua Gay
Campaigns Manager
Free Software Foundation
(617)542-5942
membership@fsf.org
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