Who Will Maintain the Future? Tackling the Graying of Open Source Software

Explore the critical challenge of aging maintainers in open source software through this 36-minute conference talk that examines how overburdened and aging maintainers are creating sustainability risks for the entire open source ecosystem. Learn about the systemic barriers preventing new leadership from emerging and discover practical solutions for ensuring project continuity across generations. Gain insights from real-world examples of maintainer challenges drawn from extensive experience with GitHub Maintainer Programs, Mozilla Open Leaders, and SustainOSS initiatives. Understand how balancing technical, community, and financial responsibilities leads to burnout and project stagnation, while discovering actionable strategies for lowering barriers to maintainership and strengthening leadership pipelines. Whether you're a contributor, project lead, or company investing in open source, acquire concrete steps to support maintainers, sustain healthy projects, and ensure the continued growth of the open source ecosystem beyond just code maintenance to encompass the human elements that make projects thrive.