Originally published by OpenForum Europe
The OpenForum Academy (OFA) is pleased to announce its roster of Content Partners for the upcoming OFA Symposium 2025. This year’s Symposium will benefit from the perspectives and expertise of three leading organisations in this space as Content Partners: the Open Knowledge Foundation, the Open Source Initiative, and the Digital Public Goods Alliance.
Set to take place at FGV Rio Law School in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on November 18-19, 2025, the OFA Symposium will address critical questions facing open technology ecosystems under the theme “Open Technology Impact in Uncertain Times.” The event will bring together academics and practitioners – including policymakers, researchers, industry leaders, and civil society representatives – to explore new, interdisciplinary research and ideas.
Why announce new partners for the Symposium?
This year’s event focuses on new understanding and innovative approaches related to shared digital challenges in an era of geopolitical shifts, economic instability, and rapid technological progress. To help advance our understanding of this space, it required new partners to help the Symposium expand its content and programming, as well as reach new audiences.
By bringing in Content Partners, OpenForum Europe (OFE) aims to grow and institutionalise this conference as a best-in-class, global, and collaborative research effort that supports the advancement of research and scholarship related to Open Source and Open Technologies. Said OFE Executive Director Astor Nummelin Carlberg: “The partnership with these three esteemed organisations reflects our commitment to bringing diverse perspectives and expertise to the Symposium. Their contributions will ensure rigorous, forward-thinking discussions that can inform policy and practice in the Open Source and Open Technology space.”
Let’s talk a little bit more about each of our partners and what they bring to the event.
Open Knowledge Foundation: Building a world open-by-design, where all knowledge is accessible to everyone
Open Knowledge Foundation (OKFN) has worked at the intersection of cutting-edge digital tools and a distributed network of communities and movements to serve the public interest with open knowledge since 2004. It is the organisation behind the Open Definition, Open Data Commons, the Global Open Data Index, School of Data, Open Data Day, and cutting-edge tools like CKAN and the Open Data Editor (ODE)
To the OFA Symposium, OKFN will bring its extensive expertise in open data, open content, and open knowledge to the event, expanding the OFA Symposium’s solicitation of research from different corners of the Open Technology Ecosystem. They will also contribute their expertise in network building to help us build a new model for the OpenForum Academy itself.
Renata Avila, CEO of the Open Knowledge Foundation, welcomes the announcement. “I encourage everyone to come to Brazil and join the OpenForum Academy Symposium 2025. This conference is becoming a cornerstone for the open movement; let’s create hard evidence and vital primary research together to make the case for Open Technologies. Equipped with facts, we can shift the tech landscape and guide policymakers to the right decisions for people, the economy, and the planet.”
Open Source Initiative: Strengthening collaborations with legal experts, policymakers, and maintainers, as well as addressing the complexities of the Open Source Definition in the age of AI
The Open Source Initiative (OSI), the stewards of the Open Source Definition, has existed for over 25 years. It remains actively involved in Open Source community-building, education, and public advocacy to promote awareness and the importance of Open Source software. As a leading organisation in the Open Source space, OSI participates in conferences and events, and meets with developers and users to discuss the economic and strategic advantages of Open Source technologies, licences, and models.
OSI’s collaboration with the OFA Symposium will contribute its deep understanding of Open Source licensing, governance models, and community development to the agenda, and ensure that its diverse community submits research on the important work they are doing. OSI’s participation will help ensure focus on sustainable Open Source ecosystems and the evolving relationship between Open Source and emerging technologies like AI.
Says Nick Vidal, Community Manager for OSI, commenting on the value of the event: “The OFA Symposium is a unique event that brings together voices across academia, industry, and civil society. We’re honoured to support it as a Content Partner, helping to foster the cross-sector dialogue essential to unlocking the full potential of openness for the public good.”
Digital Public Goods Alliance: Unlocking the Potential of Open Source Technologies For a More Equitable World
The Digital Public Goods Alliance (DPGA) joins as a content partner to highlight the importance of digital public goods in addressing global challenges. They steward the digital public goods (DPG) definition, which recognises DPGs as “… open-source software, open standards, open data, open AI systems, and open content collections that adhere to privacy and other applicable laws and best practices, do no harm, and help attain the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).”
The DPGA will help the Symposium to facilitate discussions on international cooperation, equitable access to technology, and the role of open solutions in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The DPGA is excited to advance their foothold in the research space, collaborating with global partners to support and amplify research that advances understanding of the sustainability and impact of DPGs projects – open source technologies and communities which support social impact around the world.
Liv Marte Nordhaug, CEO of the DPGA Secretariat, embraces the enthusiasm driving the event and is excited to support the initiative. “Research on DPGs is crucial for an evidence-based approach that drives real impact, and the Digital Public Goods Alliance is pleased to support the OpenForum Academy Symposium as a content partner!”
How to get involved
Thanks to all our Content Partners for helping to shape the agenda for this upcoming event. The Call for Proposals for the OFA Symposium 2025 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil will remain live until 1 June, so do not delay in preparing your submissions. More information on submission requirements and deadlines are available on our website, over at https://symposium.openforumeurope.org/.
If you are interested in sponsoring the Symposium, please reach out to OFE’s Senior Policy Advisor, Nicholas Gates, at nicholas@openforumeurope.org.