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626 lines
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<html newsdate="2021-11-23">
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<head>
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<title>20 Years FSFE: Interview with Nico Rikken on country teams' activities</title>
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</head>
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<body>
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<h1>20 Years FSFE: Interview with Nico Rikken on country teams' activities</h1>
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<p>
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In our fifth birthday publication we are interviewing Nico Rikken,
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and we focus on the FSFE Netherlands country team. Through our
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discussion you can also get a glimpse of how FSFE country teams
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work. And if there is no FSFE team in your country, this is a great
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opportunity for you to see how one forms.
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</p>
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<p>
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Nico Rikken, an electrical engineer and programmer, is one of the
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Coordinators of the <a
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href="https://wiki.fsfe.org/LocalGroups/BNL">FSFE Netherlands country team</a>.
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His interest in technology, combined with his
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appreciation for community and disdain for central control, led him
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to the FSFE in 2014. Since then, he has helped the FSFE with his
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technical skills while contributing greatly to community building.
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With this interview, you do not only get to meet Nico Rikken, but
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also the FSFE Netherlands country team.
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</p>
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<h3 id="interview-with-Nico-Rikken">Interview with Nico Rikken</h3>
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<p>
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<strong> FSFE: Do you remember the first contact you had with the
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FSFE? How did it evolve from there? </strong>
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</p>
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<div class="answer">
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<p>
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<strong>Nico Rikken:</strong> I do remember most of my
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'firsts' I had with the FSFE. Strictly my first contact was
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reading the FSFE website and becoming a Fellow (the construct at
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that time). But after this quite formal arrangement I was looking
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for more informal contact and a feeling of community. So I still
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have good memories how Felix Stegerman, then Deputy Coordinator
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Netherlands, invited me to the <a
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href="https://linuxnijmegen.nl/">Linux Nijmegen</a> User Group to
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get to know each other and learn more about the FSFE. Up until that
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evening my efforts in Free Software were a solo effort and that
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changed in that evening. I became part of a larger community of
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like-minded people, thanks to Felix.
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</p>
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</div>
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<figure>
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<img src="https://pics.fsfe.org/uploads/medium/9a408b5ca6564ccb1702149f1dd47603.jpeg"/>
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<figcaption>FSFE booth at T-Dose. The Netherlands, 2016.</figcaption>
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</figure>
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<blockquote>
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Up until that evening my efforts in Free Software were a solo
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effort and that changed in that evening. I became part of a larger
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community of like-minded people, thanks to Felix.
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</blockquote>
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<div class="answer">
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<p>
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Later that year I attended my first Free Software conference, <a
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href="https://blogs.fsfe.org/flx/tag/t-dose/">T-Dose,</a> and a few
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months later my first FOSDEM. From there my FSFE journey evolved
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with events, booths, presentations, community events, political
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efforts, and meeting ever more community members along the way. In
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2019, André and I took over Coordinatorship from Maurice Verheesen
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and Felix with the goal to give a new impulse to the local group.
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We have a growing group of active supporters with multiple ongoing
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activities, which I feel proud to be a part of.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div class="question">
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<p>
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<strong>Together with André Ockers you coordinate the <a
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href="https://wiki.fsfe.org/LocalGroups/BNL">FSFE's country
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team in the Netherlands</a>. Can you describe to us a typical month
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in terms of activities and engagement within the
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community?</strong>
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</p>
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</div>
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<div class="answer">
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<p>
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Since the pandemic, the monthly online get-together has become the
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heartbeat of the Netherlands country team. The lack of travel has
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enabled us to meet more frequently and have a great attendance.
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Before we would meet in the center of the Netherlands at the NLLGG
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Linux User Group, but that required travel and so the turnout was
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quite low. During our online get-togethers, we discuss a variety of
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topics, from recent news and personal findings, to more strategic
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opportunities to present the topic of Free Software, and ongoing
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efforts. André and I facilitate by acting as a bridge to the rest
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of the FSFE and to other organizations.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div class="question">
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<p>
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<strong>In the last months we have seen <a
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href="/news/nl/nl-202106.html">rising demands
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for digital autonomy in the Netherlands</a> followed by <a
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href="/news/2021/news-20210805-01.html">positive
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developments regarding Router Freedom</a>. How do you see these
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developments? What was the role of the FSFE Netherlands
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country team?</strong>
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</p>
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</div>
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<div class="answer">
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<p>
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I'm very concerned about the lack of Free Software and Open
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Hardware adoption in the Netherlands, and the whole of Europe and
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the world for that matter. Increasingly we rely on computer systems
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rather than humans. This automation does bring a lot of benefits,
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but also comes with risks of losing transparency, losing privacy, and
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centralizing control. With the wide-scale adoption of cloud
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services, AI, and algorithms and an increase in cyber attacks, more
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and more people become aware of the need for better solutions and
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more regulation. I see Free Software, Open Standards, and Open
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Hardware as ways to improve technology itself and the social
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structures around it, and so I think we need more of them and they
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need to be prioritized by our governments.
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</p>
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<figure>
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<img src="https://pics.fsfe.org/uploads/medium/33cb24a31832f99bd9be19df12840810.jpg"/>
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<figcaption>Nico Rikken, FSFE Netherlands team coordinator, talks about <a href="https://wiki.sha2017.org/w/Session:Free_Software_in_the_Dutch_public_sector">Free Software in the Dutch public sector</a>
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at Still Hacking Anyway. The Netherlands, 2017.</figcaption>
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</figure>
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<blockquote>
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I see Free Software, Open Standards, and Open Hardware as ways to
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improve technology itself and the social structures around it, and
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so I think we need more of them and they need to be prioritized by our
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governments.
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</blockquote>
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<p>
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The issue of the Netherlands (citizens, companies, and government)
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becoming too reliant on specific vendors and solutions is not new
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and has been discussed many times over the last years. In that sense,
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this <a
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href="/news/2021/news-20210521-01.html">report
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by the Dutch Cyber Security Council</a> was just another call for
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change. As this report comes from an organization closer to
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government and the call has urgency to it, hopefully we will see
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some more action from companies and government. When called upon to
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vote, Dutch PM's generally are in favor of adopting Open
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Standards and Free Software, but in practice it is low on the
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priority list and so the government is not held accountable to
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follow up. The role of the country team in this
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respect is limited. Rijk Ravestein wrote an article reviewing the
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report and suggesting the adoption of Free Software as a viable
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solution to this issue. Outside of the article, we have been
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speaking with various government bodies on the topic of Free
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Software to highlight opportunities and discuss ways to improve the
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situation. I find it important that we not only follow the
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developments critically but that we also constructively engage in
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discussions where we can.
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</p>
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<p>
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The topic of router freedom is quite different. The Router Freedom
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campaign has made our members take a closer look at the situation in
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the Netherlands. This included André writing Internet Service
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Providers (ISP's) about their practices and Kevin Keijzer
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informing us how router freedom works out for him in practice. Kevin
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has some of his findings documented on his <a
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href="https://wiki.quietlife.nl/doku.php">wiki page</a>. Router
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Freedom in the Netherlands in practice wasn't too bad, but
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there are now stronger guarantees in
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place. I think the practical freedom that was already in place stems
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from the tech-savvy community in the Netherlands that would already
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install their own router rather than the one provided by the ISP.
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These new more formal guarantees can be attributed to the lobbying
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of the FSFE in Europe and not to the country team in the
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Netherlands. The FSFE contributed to the BEREC Guidelines on the
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Implementation of the Open Internet Regulation, which were quoted as
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the reason for the new rules. In the Netherlands, we missed the
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opportunity of the consultation on the new rules
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as this was not on our news radar. The consultation was
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mostly by ISP's opposing the new rules, but regardless the rules
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were put in place in accordance with the BEREC Guidelines.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div class="question">
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<p>
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<strong>
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What do you see as the most rewarding activities or biggest
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achievements of the Dutch team?
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</strong>
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</p>
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</div>
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<div class="answer">
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<p>
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This question is difficult to answer because our activities have
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been diverse and some have been in collaboration with people
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outside of the country team. I think our biggest achievement has
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been the level of translation of the FSFE website and marketing
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material. André has been a persistent translator and together with
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other valued contributions from other community members we now have
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most of the information material and news in Dutch for an increased
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reach and impact.
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</p>
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<p>
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I think our biggest impact came from our involvement with the
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recent court case by Jos van den Oever about getting the source
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code of the <a
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href="/news/2021/news-20210611-01.html">Debat
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Direct App</a>. This was not strictly a country team effort, but we
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were involved and also got support from the FSFE. The final verdict
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didn't result in public source code, but through the court case
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Jos showed that source code can be requested via a Freedom Of
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Information (FOI) request. The success will depend on the specific
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situation and country-specific implementation of the EU directive.
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Inspired by this request, Daniel Joffe has also filed a request for
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source code and I'm pretty sure this will not be the last legal
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request for source code in the Netherlands.
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</p>
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</div>
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<figure>
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<img src="https://pics.fsfe.org/uploads/medium/a61362c7d81161d3c48bffb1a08e37c3.jpg"/>
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<figcaption>FSFE spot in a non-profit hacker camp. The Netherlands, 2017.</figcaption>
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</figure>
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<div class="question">
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<p>
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<strong>
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What would you say are peculiar factors that challenge or
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facilitate the advance of Free Software in the Netherlands?
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</strong>
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</p>
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</div>
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<div class="answer">
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<p>
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Please take my answer with a pinch of salt, as this comes down to
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personal convictions and generalizations. I think for a start the
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broader tech-savvy community in the Netherlands is helpful. There
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are plenty of system administrators and programmers who value
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control over technology from a do-it-yourself perspective and so
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have an inherent preference for Free Software, Open Standards, and
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solutions that protect user privacy. This group follows
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developments or regulation and company offerings with a critical
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eye on forums like <a href="https://tweakers.net/">Tweakers</a> or
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technology podcasts which helps move forward the discussion on
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these FSFE-related topics. There is also a smaller but active group
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that shares our concerns from an ethical non-technical perspective
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by questioning our reliance on big tech and the privacy violations
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that typically go along with it. Both groups move the debate of
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user control and digital sovereignty forward and nudge politics,
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government, and companies in the right direction.
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</p>
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<blockquote>
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I think this critical view on technology is strengthened on the
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level of the European Union where these countries align and do
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favor a more strategic play for which Free Software makes a lot of
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sense.
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</blockquote>
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<p>
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Possibly our biggest factor is our participation in the European
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Union, as it seems to me that the European Union has more capacity
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to develop policies to protect civil rights and regulate digital
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infrastructure. On a national level this topic doesn't win deciding
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votes in the election, so it is hardly discussed in public. Also
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there is a general lack of knowledge about technology and its
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social constructs in parliament to question current policy and
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develop a new one. I get the impression that a large part of the IT
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solutions in the Netherlands are centered around US vendors. And so
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regulations that prevent companies storing private information in
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the USA are considered a burden on companies, rather than a good
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safeguard for the general public. My impression is that it is more
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common in France and Germany to question offerings by US vendors
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and to prefer national offerings. These regulations do not directly
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relate to the adoption of Free Software, but I do think that
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questioning the ethics of offerings and valuing digital sovereignty
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are the moral grounds which fit well with Free Software. I think
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this critical view on technology is strengthened on the level of
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the European Union where these countries align and do favor a more
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strategic play for which Free Software makes a lot of sense. In
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that sense I think the European Union is also advancing Free
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Software in the Netherlands.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div class="question">
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<p>
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<strong>
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How can people start participating in the Dutch team? Can you
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share some examples of how the existing members found out about
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the FSFE Netherlands country team?
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</strong>
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</p>
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</div>
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<div class="answer">
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<p>
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The easiest is to join the conversation on XMPP or our online
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get-togethers and align with our efforts there. We do have a mailing list
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but in practice it is only used for announcements. As we are all
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volunteers, I think it is important that our supporters do what they
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enjoy doing. Most of us have our own topics and efforts we work on,
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and the country team is a way to align and get support. As with
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any work, formulating concrete steps and delegating work to others
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can be a challenge. So I think there is an opportunity for more
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collaboration between supporters on certain topics and hopefully
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that will grow in the future when we gain more experience
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working together.
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</p>
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<p>
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I have asked around and it seems our stories of joining the country
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team are quite similar. People somehow gained in interest in Free
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Software and found the FSFE as the designated party to uphold these
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values in Europe. Then they found out about the NL country team,
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joined the mailing list and attended a physical meeting. André also
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met Felix at Linux Nijmegen as it was close to him, but for Kevin
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living on the other side of the country the T-Dose conference was
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the first time to physically meet the community. If anything I
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think it highlights the importance of letting people know you exist as a
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local team, being open to newcomers, and making it easy to join
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community meetings.
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</p>
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</div>
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<figure>
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<img
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src="https://pics.fsfe.org/uploads/medium/4ea17d3a24d7f008d26cfdf3a388d83b.jpg"
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/> <figcaption>FSFE stand at NLLGG booth in Utrecht. The Netherlands, 2019. </figcaption>
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</figure>
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<div class="question">
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<p>
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<strong>
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What are your recommendations for others who want to start local
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activities for the FSFE? Although the Netherlands FSFE country team
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was already formed when you joined, could you recall
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some of the early activities carried out there?
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</strong>
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</p>
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</div>
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<div class="answer">
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<p>
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First, I think it is good to know what sets the FSFE apart from
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other organizations. In the Netherlands, there are various other
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groups with similar or even the same members, like a Linux user
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group, a Debian community, the digital rights organization Bits of
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Freedom. and multiple hacker spaces. Although at the FSFE we talk
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plenty about technology, our focus at the FSFE is to inform the
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general public and to bring about policy change. As a result our
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community has a different aim than other Free Software related
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communities in the Netherlands, and knowing the difference can help
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you stand out and attract like-minded people. I don't know exactly
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how it started in the Netherlands, but the behavior I typically see
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with forming new groups is to start with like-minded people you
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already know, announce your presence in related communities, and
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then just start holding open meetings and let it grow from there.
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</p>
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<p>
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Over the last few years, we did experience such a growth path in the
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Netherlands. There was already a national group that communicated
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via mail and chat, and we would have a booth and country team
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meeting at the yearly T-Dose conference. Other activities were
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organized mainly when the opportunity arose. We increased our
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frequency of contact by having a stand at the bi-monthly NLLGG
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meeting in Utrecht where some of our supporters would be present,
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and we had the opportunity to meet like-minded people. The online
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get-togethers let us spend more time to grow and align our local
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group and cause plenty of people to join the conversation. Some
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people joined for only one meeting, which I think is fine as
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it was still a nice way to meet, and these relationships might be
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helpful in the future. And from these conversations new ideas for
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activities grew. Only recently we started having a more formal
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agenda and minutes of our meetings as we'd often have more talking
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points than time would allow.
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</p>
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<p>
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Don't think our relative success is the straightforward execution
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of an upfront well laid-out plan. Growing a community is very much
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an iterative process based on learning and feedback. Our supporters
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become active because they want to make a difference in the world,
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and we have to find the ways that suit us best. Personally I like
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to take things one step at a time, just make one change or do one
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activity and see where it leads. In doing so, we have developed
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our own way of doing things and have gained a lot of experience
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with a variety of activities. Say we want to write a letter to
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politicians, then we have some earlier work already lying around
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for potential reuse, and we know already what support we can expect
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from the FSFE Core team and what part we have to provide ourselves.
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</p>
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<figure>
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<img src="https://pics.fsfe.org/uploads/medium/3a478907d21f1aa97a6ef140c2ae3a93.jpeg"/>
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<figcaption>European Coordinators Meeting in Essen. Germany, 2015.</figcaption>
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</figure>
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<blockquote>
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Don't think our relative success is the straightforward execution
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of an upfront well laid-out plan. Growing a community is very much
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an iterative process based on learning and feedback.
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</blockquote>
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<p>
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Our activities have been quite diverse. There is of course an
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ongoing effort to translate information material. We wrote to
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national and local politicians on multiple occasions based on
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various developments and news articles. We took part in multiple
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consultations on laws and policies and offered our expertise on
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free software to government. We have had stands at the yearly
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T-Dose conference and bi-monthly NLLGG meetings. We handed out FSFE
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tool flyers in a university and a library. We gave presentations
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about Free Software. We helped organize an Educational Freedom Day
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and the SHA hacker camp. We organized a privacy café at Erasmus
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University to educate media students about solutions to protect
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your privacy. We hosted a Freedomvote for national elections. And
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we were involved in the court case for the source code of Debat
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Direct. From the diversity of topics and methods it is apparent
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that activities were sparked from opportunity or interest by our
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community members. The campaigns from the FSFE help us to
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prioritize and link our efforts to a topic, but we don't feel
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constrained to just the campaigns. I have found that politics
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especially requires a strong organization because topics can become
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big quite quickly. Ideally, you want to play into that attention
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span and so you have to act fast. Also politics revolves around the
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election cycles and so every couple of years you have to start all
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over explaining to politicians why Free Software is common sense
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and should be on their agenda.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div class="question">
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<p>
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<strong>
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How did you get involved in Free Software in the first place?
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</strong>
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</p>
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</div>
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<div class="answer">
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<p>
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From a young age I spent a significant amount of time on the computer,
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experimenting with various software also as a creative outlet.
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Being a kid I mostly started out with gratis software that came
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bundled with our computer or printer. With the arrival of unlimited
|
|
internet downloading, other software became an option. I learned
|
|
about the importance of open standards and access to software
|
|
because I had encountered situations where I could no longer open
|
|
my files as software had become unavailable due to operating system
|
|
incompatibility or the expiration of the trial duration. Using
|
|
various gratis software over time I found out that the Free
|
|
Software was generally the best, not having annoying advertisements
|
|
or spyware and generally being well-documented. I learned the value
|
|
of Free Software and Open Standards the hard way, from a practical
|
|
standpoint, and so it was not very explicit.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
Once at the University studying Electrical Engineering, I learned
|
|
more about programming and how computers were built. But during
|
|
that time I also learned more about privacy and security and how my
|
|
privacy was actually being violated by a lot of services I was
|
|
using. Being technically educated it was clear to me that to
|
|
guarantee privacy and security in the long run you need control
|
|
over technology and so over the software you are using. Following
|
|
this reasoning led me to discover the philosophy behind Free
|
|
Software. The value of Free Software felt so logical at that point
|
|
I asked myself why I did not find out about it earlier. Not just
|
|
the practical implications of it, but also the philosophy behind
|
|
it. I felt that Free Software needed more promotion to the general
|
|
public and that is why I joined the FSFE, to support their effort
|
|
in promoting this common sense.
|
|
</p>
|
|
</div>
|
|
|
|
<figure>
|
|
<img
|
|
src="https://pics.fsfe.org/uploads/medium/fc053d1493738f6dcc615b440c59a5c3.jpg"
|
|
/> <figcaption>'We got a
|
|
call in the morning by Matthias Kirschner that we had to bring
|
|
'Bügel' (clothing hangers) to hang the T-shirts at the
|
|
stands. Normally Maurice and I could cope with the German we got
|
|
taught in secondary school, but this time it failed us.'</figcaption>
|
|
</figure>
|
|
|
|
<div class="question">
|
|
<p>
|
|
<strong>
|
|
Can you tell us one of the stories that still warm up your heart
|
|
or that always makes you laugh or smile when you remember it?
|
|
</strong>
|
|
</p>
|
|
</div>
|
|
|
|
<div class="answer">
|
|
<p>
|
|
I always have a laugh thinking back to the time I visited Open
|
|
Rhein Ruhr with Maurice in 2016. If I remember correctly, we got a
|
|
call in the morning by Matthias Kirschner that we had to bring
|
|
'Bügel' (clothing hangers) to hang the T-shirts at the
|
|
stands. Normally Maurice and I could cope with the German we got
|
|
taught in secondary school, but this time it failed us. Maurice
|
|
understood the world 'Bügel' to mean a clothing iron from
|
|
the conversation ("Bügeleisen"), assuming the T-shirts
|
|
were crinkled and had to be ironed. As Matthias had asked for two,
|
|
Maurice asked me to bring mine as well. So we both added our
|
|
clothing irons to the luggage and off we went. Only when we arrived
|
|
at the booth did we find out about the miscommunication and had a
|
|
great laugh about it. We took this memorable picture posted on the
|
|
<a
|
|
href="https://mehl.mx/blog/2016/openrheinruhr-2016-a-report-of-iron-and-freedom/">blogpost
|
|
by Max Mehl</a>.
|
|
</p>
|
|
</div>
|
|
|
|
<div class="question">
|
|
<p>
|
|
<strong>As a last question, what do you wish the FSFE for the next 20 years?</strong>
|
|
</p>
|
|
</div>
|
|
|
|
<div class="answer">
|
|
<p>
|
|
I wish the FSFE will gain more active local supporters. I think the
|
|
FSFE stands out from other organizations with the topics it
|
|
addresses, and I would love to see each European nation have a
|
|
fruitful local group to table the topic on a national level. In a
|
|
world using mostly the same software and being bound by the same EU
|
|
directives, the foundation of our activities will probably be
|
|
similar in all countries. But each country comes with a different
|
|
language, different political system, different values and norms,
|
|
and various other differences. By having a strong local
|
|
representation, the FSFE can be 'united in diversity' (EU motto) and
|
|
be more effective in bringing about change. I also wish this
|
|
because I have a good time being part of the FSFE and a local group,
|
|
and I think there are a lot of like-minded people that would also
|
|
enjoy it. So I wish other supporters can be a part of a local group
|
|
and also experience the value of community.
|
|
</p>
|
|
</div>
|
|
|
|
<blockquote>
|
|
I think the FSFE stands out from other organizations with the
|
|
topics it addresses, and I would love to see each European nation
|
|
have a fruitful local group to table the topic on a national level.
|
|
</blockquote>
|
|
|
|
<div class="question">
|
|
<p>
|
|
<strong>FSFE: Thank you very much!</strong>
|
|
</p>
|
|
</div>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
For more by Nico Rikken, you can read his <a
|
|
href="https://blogs.fsfe.org/fellowship-interviews/?p=672">interview</a>
|
|
focusing on technical aspects of Free Software and Free Hardware
|
|
such as sustainability and scaling. You may also be interested in
|
|
his blogpost on <a
|
|
href="https://blogs.fsfe.org/nico.rikken/2021/06/23/how-the-netherlands-group-grew-in-covid-times/">how
|
|
the Netherlands group grew in covid times</a>.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<h3>About "20 Years FSFE"</h3>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
In 2021 the Free Software Foundation Europe turns 20. This means
|
|
two decades of <a href="/about/about.html">empowering users to
|
|
control technology</a>.
|
|
</p>
|
|
<figure>
|
|
<img src="https://pics.fsfe.org/uploads/medium/53aeebdafa0a0c83324dcafc1e4bef1c.png" alt="Banner with FSFE 20 years. FSFE since 2001" />
|
|
</figure>
|
|
<p>
|
|
Turning 20 is a time when we like to take a breath and to look back
|
|
on the road we have come, to reflect the milestones we have passed,
|
|
the successes we have achieved, the stories we have written, and
|
|
the moments that brought us together and that we will always
|
|
joyfully remember. In 2021 we want to give momentum to the
|
|
FSFE and even more to our pan-European community, the community
|
|
that has formed and always will form the shoulders that our
|
|
movement relies on.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
<strong>20 Years FSFE is meant to be a celebration of everyone who
|
|
has accompanied us in the past or still does. Thank you for your
|
|
place in the structure of the FSFE today and for setting the
|
|
foundation for the next decades of software freedom to
|
|
come.</strong>
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
</body>
|
|
|
|
<tags>
|
|
<tag key="front-page"/>
|
|
<tag key="interview">Interview</tag>
|
|
<tag key="fsfe20">20 Years FSFE</tag>
|
|
<tag key="nl">Netherlands</tag>
|
|
</tags>
|
|
|
|
|
|
<discussion href="https://community.fsfe.org/t/760"/>
|
|
<image url="https://pics.fsfe.org/uploads/big/5348a47e91da536190b08858a41f894a.png"/>
|
|
|
|
</html>
|