Do-ocratic Communities - When Merit Is Not the Only Metric

Explore the complexities of decision-making in open source communities through this thought-provoking conference talk from Ubuntu Summit 2023. Delve into the challenges of implementing meritocracy in open source projects like Ubuntu, and examine how this approach can inadvertently reinforce societal inequalities. Discover the concept of do-ocracy, a governance system popular in Hackerspaces and art collectives, and its potential to empower minorities. Reflect on the difficulties of creating truly fair and inclusive open source communities while learning from the experiences of do-ocratic organizations. This 54-minute presentation by Merlijn Sebrechts and Anne Fonteyn aims to stimulate critical thinking about governance models in tech communities rather than offering ready-made solutions.