During the week of July 8, 2019, the Living Open Source Foundation hosted its first event in Kenya. Through the help of generous sponsors, the event was offered for free. Those in attendance had the opportunity to develop their Linux skills, connect with like-minded people and build a local community. A pre-assessment exam was offered as part of the event, the 50 highest scoring attendees were given free LFCS exam vouchers provided by the Linux Foundation.
“Being a part of it (open source community), you feel a sense of belonging, a sense of ownership.”
—–Attendee of the Living Open Source Event
The Living Open Source Foundation is a non-profit organization which was initiated by Sander van Vugt and ITGilde. ITGilde is a cooperative of 100+ exceptional Open Source DevOps entrepreneurs. Sander is a best-selling author and a trainer in the Open Source field who has benefited greatly from his knowledge of open source technologies. He now wants to share what he has learned with others.
” ‘Open Source has been good to me. I want to be good for Open Source as well’
—–Sander Van Vugt, Advisor and Initiator of The Living Open Source Foundation
The project was created after Sander sponsored Santos Venter Chibenga in obtaining a Linux certificate. Santos is now the team lead of the Living Open Source Africa Community. The foundation strives to support local African economies by helping motivated individuals become IT professionals. The goal is to bring similar events to other countries in Africa including Rwanda, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Morocco, DR Congo and Botswana.
“I’m impressed (by the event). I was blown away from day one.” “The quality that you guys are giving us, I don’t take that lightly”
—–Attendee of the Living Open Source Event
The next event will take place in Malawi during the month of December. With 273 attendees already registered it seems clear the foundation is meeting its mission to enable local talent to further educate and build the local communities.
