DSF Board monthly meeting, March 12, 2026

This meeting was led by Jeff Triplett (Chair) and Abigail Afi Gbadago (Vice Chair).

Board members in attendance:

• Jeff Triplett
• Abigail Afi Gbadago
• Jacob Kaplan-Moss
• Paolo Melchiorre
• Priya Pahwa
• Ryan Cheley
• Tom Carrick

Also in attendance:

• Catherine Holmes (Assistant to Treasurer)

Apologies:

• None

Finance

Balance

USD $260,989

Grants approved

• PyCon Italia: USD $500

Individual members approved

• Yasser Toruno
• James Gutu
• Amar Ahmed Deina

Ongoing business

Discussions under this section are confidential and have been omitted from the public minutes for this month.

New business

Django Individual Members In-Person Meetings

• The Board discussed in-person gatherings of Django Individual Members at events such as DjangoCon US, Europe, and Africa.
• Consideration was given to whether these meetings align with DSF guidelines.

Adoption of Contributor Covenant 3 as DSF Code of Conduct

• The Code of Conduct Working Group has spent the past year discussing how to best update the DSF Code of Conduct, marking the first major revision since 2014.
• The Board discussed about the proposal Adopt Contributor Covenant 3 which is expected to be merged on April 15th following an open public comment period of 30 days.
• The Board acknowledged the ongoing work and upcoming timeline for Board members to review and provide feedback.

Trademark Renewal and Protection Strategy

• The Board approved a motion to proceed with trademark renewal with Pranger Law PC as a consultancy partner.
• The renewal of the existing U.S. trademark registration for DJANGO in Class 9 (Reg. No. 3117015) was confirmed as a priority. The estimated cost for this renewal is $1,400–$2,000, which is within the organization’s current budget.
• The Board emphasized the need for a more proactive and structured approach to trademark protection going forward. Future considerations include expanding trademark protection beyond the United States.

Fellows’ Contract Renewal Process

• The Board discussed about the current Fellows’ contract renewal process. It was noted that existing contracts are a bit outdated and need minor updates.
• Jeff Triplett to coordinate with Fundraising Working Group for the execution.

Outreaching Potential Donors

• Catherine Holmes and Ryan Cheley outlined a plan on identifying and engaging potential donors.
• Board members to review the shared prospecting strategy async.

Community Platform Ownership (Discord and Others)

• The Board discussed long-term ownership and management of community platforms, including Discord.
• A motion to allow the Online Community Working Group to manage Discord ownership was approved.
• Paolo Melchiorre highlighted the importance of transparency regarding ownership on DSF-managed (primary) and non-DSF-managed (secondary) community platforms.

Action items

• Jeff Triplett: Look into fellow renewal options with the Fundraising Working Group.
• Tom Carrick: Follow up with ops team for Discord ownership.
• All Board Members: Review DSF Code of Conduct changes and vote async on DSF Slack.
• All Board Members: Review and provide feedback on proposed donor outreach list.

Postponed conversations

• Review new charters of Working Groups.