Ian Kelling
Ian is President of the Free Software Foundation (FSF) and works at FSF as a Senior Systems Administrator. He discovered free software while studying for his bachelor's degree in computer science in 2006. Early in his software career, he experienced working as a software developer for proprietary software companies, while using, learning, and contributing to GNU/Linux on his own time, which solidified his personal belief in complete software freedom. He started working at FSF in 2017, joined the FSF board in 2021, and became FSF president in 2025. He has contributed to pieces of free software like GNU Emacs, community efforts like the Free Software Directory and others, and has been a speaker at the Seattle GNU/Linux conference (SeaGL) and FOSDEM.
Some experiences which inform him as a speaker in the 2026 FOSDEM session "Unique Challenges in Elected Governing Bodies for FOSS": Along with Aaron Wolf he coauthored the Petition to the Open Source Initiative: Publish the Full 2025 Election Results. From 2021 through 2025, he helped the FSF design and implement a formal, transparent process for identifying and appointing board members. He helped write Anchoring the FSF in its values, published in 2025. He has been involved with governance of various other groups including a small labor union, soccer teams, a roller derby team, online gaming groups, and small companies.
Events
| Title | Day | Room | Track | Start | End |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unique Challenges in Elected Governing Bodies for FOSS |
Saturday | UB5.230 | Legal & Policy | 17:00 | 18:00 |