Better Together: Impact Through Contribution

Drupal is one of the largest and longest-standing Open Source communities, yet it can feel difficult to make an impact. How do you find your place in such a large and diverse community? Many community members have made contributions to the project outside of code that have had a significant impact. I will share some stories and examples, to provide ideas of how you might be able to provide your contribution to the project. And using the framing of a “hero’s journey” we will explore how all the pieces fit together to make an impact on the greater whole.

The Drupal community remained sustainable and vibrant compared to other projects because of the opportunity to provide contributions beyond code. Community members are able to provide both technical and non-technical contributions. In this talk we will look at the appeal beyond just technical contribution and explore the interplay between contribution, impact, and alignment of our personal interests with community work.

When we all pitch in, we can change the world because every new contribution adds up to our community doing new and bigger things. Together we can all continue to create a vibrant community built upon our creativity, passion, and interests.

About the Speaker(s):
Over the last four years, I have given various presentations at many Drupal events in the United States and several events multiple times. I have been fortunate to provide the keynote for several of those events, including Drupal GovCon, Drupal Asheville, Drupal Colorado, and Drupal Camp St Louis. I have been featured at Florida Drupal Camp, Drupal Asheville, MidCamp, and others. I have given international talks at Drupal North and Drupal Camp Costa Rica. I have presented remotely at Drupal Europe, Stanford Drupal Camp, Drupal 8 Day, and at the DC Drupal Meetup. Topics vary from Drupal 8 development, contribution, technical leadership, security, DevOps, design systems, community, agile, and more