Fedora Linux declared a ‘digital public good’

Fedora Linux has been recognized as a “digital public good” by the Digital Public Goods Alliance (DPGA), a strategy group set up by UNICEF to promote sustainable development through open-source solutions that contribute to an equitable world.

The reasons Fedora was recognized include that Fedora:

• promotes best practices and adheres to standards
• creates an innovative platform for hardware, clouds, and containers that enables software developers and community members to build tailored solutions for their users
• is free of charge and comes with permissions to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense and/or sell copies of the software without restrictions other than that the same permissions must be granted to anyone using resulting products
• adheres to privacy and other applicable international and domestic laws
• shares personal information in limited and acknowledged ways
• causes no harm
• follows privacy policy guidelines and makes privacy policy available to partners

DPGA also notes that Fedora is actively used in 483 countries.

To be recognized by DPGA as a “public good”, a product or project must use:

• Open-source software
• Open data
• Open-AI models
• Open standards
• Open content

A public good must adhere to privacy laws, other relevant laws and best practices. It must also support and promote the United Nations’ sustainable development goals.

DPGA recognition isn’t solely for operating systems. Other areas of focus include early grade reading, financial inclusion, health, and climate change adaptation, especially in low- and medium-income countries. DPGA maintaints Communities of Practice, which are groups of experts who support the discovery, assessment and advancement of digital public goods that address critical needs.

Why Fedora?

Open source is not just code that can be shared, but an impetus for innovation and collaboration that spans the globe. In this way, Fedora is following in the footsteps of numerous efforts to create a more equitable world, according to DPGA.

As a long-standing Linux user and advocate, I’m very pleased to see one of the top Linux distributions honored in this way. I’m also happy to learn of the existence of the DPGA and its efforts to promote a more equitable and sustainable world.

For more information on digital public goods and nominees, visit DPGA’s registry.