UN Open Source Week 2025
An Open Community for the Global Digital Compact
Express your interest in attending UN Open Source Week 2025.
About UN Open Source Week
UN Open Source Week 2025 facilitates global dialogue and collaboration on open source, digital public infrastructure (DPI), and the development of innovative solutions to global challenges. Since its inception in 2023, the event has captured significant international attention, reflecting strong demand for a UN-led forum on open source and digital cooperation.
The event features a full week of networking, insightful panels, hackathons, and breakout sessions exploring topics related to open source, digital public infrastructure, problem solving, and digital cooperation. This evolved program will offer increased opportunities for ideation, co-creation, and meaningful networking in response to the ecosystem's growing demand for deeper engagement. This is an opportunity to learn from and connect with fellow industry professionals while deepening understanding of open source and its global potential.
Agenda Overview
Interested in a specific topic, theme, or event? Explore the week-long program schedule below:
The UN Tech Over is a series of hackathons and tech-related challenges that aim to celebrate the great potential of technology and its pivotal role in advancing progress on the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The event fosters collaboration, awareness, and engagement with the open source community, demonstrating the transformative power of technology and multi-stakeholder cooperation in solving real-world problems.
*Please note that the UN Tech Over events will only be taking place in person.
Express your interest in participating in one of our three UN Tech Over Events below!
Dates: 16 June (10:00 – 18:00) & 17 June (10:00 – 17:00)
Location: ECOSOC Chamber on 16 June, Conference Room 2 on 17 June
Co-Hosts
Partners
Bringing together global technologists, innovators, and climate change enthusiasts, the Ahead of the Storm: Open Geospatial Analytics for Children-Centric Climate Emergency Response hackathon aims to accelerate progress on the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through open source innovation. Participants will co-create scalable solutions to urgent, United Nations-identified challenges, showcasing the power of technology and collaboration to drive meaningful change.
Teams of up to five will tackle high-impact challenges developed by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), each focused on critical global issues aligned with the Global Digital Compact. Solutions will build on and enhance existing methods, data and tools, delivering lasting impact for vulnerable communities and marginalized groups around the world.
Note: This information is provisional and will be updated as details are confirmed.
Date: 16 June (10:00 – 18:00)
Location: ECOSOC Chamber
The Edit-A-Thon aims to leverage the research and critical thinking capacities of participants worldwide, fostering collaboration to update Wikipedia pages and descriptions on relevant themes and key moments in the history of the United Nations. This event celebrates the 70th anniversary of the admission of the Italian Republic and of Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka to the United Nations.
The event will host participants interested in employing their research, analytical, and communication skills, as well as participants interested in education and in the creation and subsequent evolution of the United Nations as an organization. Throughout the day, experts and mentors will assist participants in updating these pages so as to publish in-depth, accurate reports.
Attendees will need to have a Wikipedia account to edit pages. Please create your account prior to the event. Wikipedia usernames are public, so you do not have to use your real name; it is recommended to use a pseudonym or nickname as your username.
Stay tuned for additional information about the Edit-A-Thon event during UN Tech Over.
Note: This information is provisional and will be updated as details are confirmed.
Date: 16 June (10:00 – 18:00)
Location: ECOSOC Chamber
The Maintain-A-Thon invites participants to explore the vital but often invisible work of maintaining critical open source infrastructure. As part of the 2025 UN Open Source Week and “UN Tech Over” event, this Maintain-A-Thon convenes key maintainers from all over the world and highlights the importance of sustainability and long-term stewardship in open source digital infrastructure.
Experienced open source maintainers and interested participants will take part in hands-on activities that tackle the working realities of open source maintenance, from practices of issue triage, documentation, and software upkeep. For aspiring maintainers and current contributors alike, this is an opportunity to learn from each other on the challenges and rewards of maintaining open source projects. Senior maintainers will offer mentorship for anyone interested in contributing to the critical and open components that form the foundations of our digital lives and power the projects achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
Stay tuned for additional information about the Maintain-A-Thon event during UN Tech Over.
Note: This information is provisional and will be updated as details are confirmed.
OSPOs for Good will highlight the role of Open Source Programme Offices (OSPO) in connecting open source ecosystems across UN Member States, advancing AI policy, digital governance, and innovation. It will showcase global collaboration and multistakeholder engagement, highlighting real-world open source impact to drive action.
- Open Source and Humanitarian
- Scaling Open Source Principles Internally: The InnerSource Journey
- Open Source & Public Interest
- From Policy to Practice: Establishing Effective Government OSPOs
Note: This information is provisional and will be updated as details are confirmed.
DPI Day brings together the UN system and its partners to drive collaborative action on Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) for sustainable development. It fosters coordination among UN entities, Member States, and stakeholders, aligning efforts with the Global Digital Compact (GDC). Through open-source collaboration, shared learning, and resource optimization, the event promotes inclusive, effective DPI strategies.
- DPI Safeguards and Inclusion
- Data Governance
- Financing and Sustainability
- Artificial Intelligence
Confirmed Panelists:
Note: This information is provisional and will be updated as details are confirmed.
Two community-led off-site side events will complement the main conference programme, offering additional opportunities for focused dialogue and stakeholder engagement.
- Tuesday, 17 June at the LinkedIn offices in New York City, and
- Friday, 20 June at the PricewaterhouseCoopers offices in New York City.
As space for both events is limited, kindly confirm your attendance for either Community-Led Side Event day by responding below.
Location: LinkedIn Corporation, Empire State Building, 350 5th Avenue, New York, New York, 10018
Building on our previous study and joint report between the United Nations Office for Digital and Emerging Technologies (ODET) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) on the impact of artificial intelligence on the workforce, we have expanded our study to develop a framework for assessing this impact. In this session, we will present the milestones achieved so far in shaping this approach, along with preliminary findings focused on the ICT sector and the implications of AI integration. The panel will feature high-level experts from human resources, the ICT industry, and senior government leadership, offering a multidisciplinary perspective on the evolving dynamics of work in the age of AI.
Speakers:
- Mehdi Snene, Head of Programme, AI and Digital Transformation, ODET
- Sarah Steinberg, Head of Global Public Policy Partnerships, LinkedIn
- Craig Ramlal, Head of the Control Systems Group, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine
- Emily Dickens, Chief of Staff, Head of Government Affairs & Corporate Secretary, SHRM
- Hebert Paguas, Former General Director of the Presidency of the Republic, Paraguay; Fellow, Future Government Institute
Moderator:
- Lucia Velasco, Senior Advisor, ODET
In addition to the main session, several relevant panels featuring partner organisations will take place throughout the day.
The schedule for the day will be as follows:
Open source is undergoing a generational shift—especially as AI transforms the future of work. This session explores how the open source ecosystem, industry, education, and government must collaborate to rapidly upskill a global workforce and sustain innovation.
Moderator: Nicholas Gates, Senior Policy Advisor, OpenForum Europe
Panelists:
Amandine Le Pape, COO & Co-Founder at Element; Co-founder at The Matrix.org Foundation; Member of the European Open Source Academy
David Cuartielles, Co-founder of Arduino; Assistant Professor Interaction Design at Malmö University; Member of the European Open Source Academy
Sachiko Muto, Senior Researcher at RISE Research Institutes of Sweden; Chair, OpenForum Europe
Breakout Session 2: Advancing Open Source AI for the Public Good
This session explores how open source AI can serve the public good, focusing on requirements for qualifying as a digital public good (DPG) and aligning with the Open Source AI Definition (OSAID). Presentations and group discussion will examine definitions, principles, and their implications.
Speakers: Stefano Maffuli, Executive Director, Open Source Initiative (OSI); Amreen Taneja, DPG Standard Lead, Digital Public Goods Alliance (DPGA)
Facilitators: Katie Steen-James (OSI), Lucy Harris (DPGA), Jon Lloyd (DPGA)
Location: PwC Building, 300 Madison Avenue, New York (registration in the lobby)
The Friday side event, organised by Research Institutes of Sweden (RISE) and OpenForum Europe (OFE), will feature a full day of curated, community-driven sessions focused on the role of open source in advancing the UN’s goals, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Global Digital Compact.
Selected from an open call for proposals, sessions will cover a range of topics such as digital public infrastructure, open source for the public sector, AI and open collaboration, and building inclusive, sustainable digital ecosystems.
The programme will be organized into five thematic tracks, with an emphasis on showcasing diverse perspectives – including voices from civil society, academia, the private sector, and public institutions.
Co-Hosts
