Software and Hardware Freedom in Health Public Policy – FOSDEM

On February 02 2021, a panel was held as part of the FOSDEM event.

Panelists were Karen Sandler (Software Freedom Conservancy), Fabio Balli (Breathing Games), Adriana Groh (Prototype Fund Germany) and Luis Falcon (GNU Health).

The video recording is available on the FOSDEM page.

Blurb

On this panel, we will discuss the extent to which the use of Free Software and open hardware can be used in the public health sector. Software and hardware can help to solve global problems together. The wheel does not always have to be reinvented and through cooperation common innovation can succeed.  The Corona crisis has clearly shown us that we also need to work together in the area of software and hardware. Hackathons were held in various countries, for example, to find software solutions to counter this crisis. The development of tracing apps or solutions for hospitals and health authorities has also shown that Free Software can help many people and that isolated solutions are counterproductive. In the panel we want to discuss what lessons we can learn from the crisis and how Free Software and Open Hardware must be used in the future.