OpenStreetMap Foundation (OSMF) members will vote to elect a new board at the Annual General Meeting in October 2024.
The board candidates’ manifestos and answers to the official questions by @ZeLonewolf, based on questions by the community, are now published on the OSM wiki:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Foundation/AGM2024/Election_to_Board/Answers_and_manifestos
The page also includes a table linking to individual answers and some statistics.
The suggested community discussion period is:
2024-09-27 to 2024-10-12 16:00 UTC, when voting for the election will open.
If you are automatically translating this message via community.osm.org, the text of the questions (and links to the answers) are below.
1. Motivation and Objectives
Why do you want to join the OSMF Board, and what do you hope to accomplish as a board member over the next two years?
2. Conflict of Interest Management
Do you currently have any conflicts of interest that might affect your role on the Board? If so, what are they and how would you manage them? Can you share examples of how you have handled conflicts of interest in the past?
3. Transparency and Accountability
How would you ensure that the Board’s decisions and actions are transparent and accountable to the OSM community?
4. Strategic Vision and Sustainability
What are your thoughts on the OSMF’s strategic plan, and what changes would you suggest to ensure OpenStreetMap’s long-term sustainability? If elected, what would be your top priority? Do you think the OSMF should proceed with the planned relocation outside the UK?
5. Decision-Making and Collaboration
How do you plan to collaborate with other Board members and Working Groups to make decisions and resolve conflicts? Have you been in touch with current Board members to understand the challenges and responsibilities of the role? Which Working Groups would you like to collaborate with, and which Board Officer role or Committee Chair position interests you most, and why?
6. Fundraising and Resource Development
How important do you think fundraising is for the OSMF, and what experience do you have in this area? Have you participated in direct fundraising, grant writing, or public speaking to raise funds?
7. Handling Legal and Political Challenges
The OSMF sometimes receives legal threats or faces political pressure due to controversial topics or disputed territories in the map data. How would you deal with these situations? Are you prepared for potential travel restrictions or government pressure because of the nature of OpenStreetMap data?
8. State of the Map
In 2023, the SotM conference was not held. In 2024, the conference was held, however, some community members expressed concern about safety for participants from marginalized groups and pointed to the OSMF’s SotM participant safety policy. How should the OSMF ensure that SotM is held annually, while also being safe and accessible for all members of the global community?
9. Your Community Contributions
The OSMF’s primary mission is supporting the global OpenStreetMap community. What specific contributions have you made to OpenStreetMap that reflect your commitment to this mission? Have you participated in cooperative mapping, tagging development, OSM-related software or map style development, or spoken at events or conferences? Have you engaged with the OSM community in your local area or in languages other than English?
10. Promoting Community and Attracting Volunteers
How would you promote diverse voices and perspectives from the global OpenStreetMap community? What steps would you take to attract and retain high-quality volunteers and contributors, especially in underrepresented groups and locations? How would you ensure the OSMF is a safe and welcoming place for all contributors?
11. Technology and Innovation
OpenStreetMap relies heavily on technology. How satisfied are you with the current state of the technology that powers OSM? How would you support or encourage technological advancements and innovation within the OSM ecosystem? What technology changes are the most pressing?
12. Data Quality and Protection
In light of recent vandalism incidents, what if anything should the Board do differently in the area of data protection and quality assurance?
13. Perspective on Open Source
In the leadup to the election, the OSMF encountered issues with its open-source membership management system, CivicCRM. This reignited a long-running debate about whether the OSMF should consider using non-open-source third-party software to address such challenges. Is it acceptable for the OSMF to use non-free software if it supports OSM’s goals?
14. Perspective on Overture Maps
The Overture Maps Foundation has been a topic of discussion within the OSM community. What is your position on this initiative and how does it impact the project?
All board candidates’ manifestos are here.
Additional resources
For more information regarding the 2024 board election and the 18th Annual General Meeting please see the following links:
