Venue & How to Get There
For the second year running FOSS Backstage takes place at the former transformer station bUm (Paul-Lincke-Ufer 21, 10999 Berlin). It’s conveniently located in the popular district of Kreuzberg and offers a great starting point for some post-conference explorations of Berlin.
We recommend arriving by public transport or bike. Speaking of transport, we have two recommendations for your journey to FOSS Backstage: Find or offer ride-sharing opportunities with HopHub or book your event ticket of Deutsche Bahn from any train station in Germany at fixed prices starting from 59€!
We want to host a conference that is open and accessible to everyone. Our venue, bUm, is fully wheelchair accessible. There will be wheelchair-accessible toilets. We will have an Accessibility Assistant on-site to help attendees who need assistance navigating the venue. If you know in advance that you will need help, please email info@foss-backstage.de so that we can plan ahead.
Programme
We received a record 165 submissions in response to our call for participation. Our Programme Committee has diligently blind-reviewed all submissions to curate the most exceptional sessions, resulting in 45 talks including online talks, 2 panel discussions and 2 workshops. Be sure to check out our schedule to make sure you don’t miss any of the sessions you want to attend.
Also, make sure to join our Lightning Talk session on Monday after the official programme! Lightning Talks at FOSS Backstage are short, five-minute presentations on a topic of your choice. We will open the Call for Lightning Talks close to the event date.
And finally, join us for a drink and a chat at our Get Together directly after the conference! Take the opportunity to meet old and new friends or maybe the person to collaborate with on your next project in a relaxed atmosphere. Thanks to our partner Grafana Labs, food and drinks will be provided: We will offer a range of vegetarian and vegan snacks as well as alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks.
Join FOSS Backstage online
Attend flexibly from anywhere in the world with your FOSS Backstage Online Ticket!
Venueless is the central hub of the FOSS Backstage online experience. It runs seamlessly in your browser without the need to install any additional software. Venueless is where you will find the live streams of our 3 stages during the conference. As an online participant, you will be able to ask the onsite speakers questions using our Q&A tool.
Please note that workshops will not be streamed or recorded.
Good to know: On-site ticket holders will also have access to our online event platform and are welcome to join the live streams if they are unable to attend on-site.
Food & Drinks
Monday, 10.03.
Assorted breakfast snacks
Lunch
Eggplant and chickpea tagine with couscous and herbal yoghurt (warm)
Coffee Break
Vegan Carrot Cake
Tuesday, 11.03.
Assorted breakfast snacks
Lunch
Rice bowl with marinated tofu, pickled vegetables and fresh salad (warm)
Coffee Break
Chocolate Ganache Cake (vegan)
Coffee, tea, water and soft drinks will be provided throughout the day thanks to our drinks sponsor – SearchGuard!
If you have any questions about the food (intolerances, allergies, etc.), please send us an e-mail at info@foss-backstage.de.
Fringe Events
There are plenty of other great events around Free and Open Source Software topics going on in the week of FOSS Backstage.
FOSS Backstage Design
At FOSS Backstage Design we will dedicate a whole day to UX and Design in Free and Open Source Software. Join us on March 12 for the second edition of #FOSSDesign and discuss this crucial and often neglected topic in a friendly and welcoming atmosphere.
📅 When: March 12, 2025
📍 Where: bUm, Berlin
FOSS eGov Breakfast
Our FOSS eGov Breakfast is the place to connect with professionals from public and private institutions who are working on digitizing public administration.
Grow your network and meet like-minded people enthusiastic about the opportunities of free and open-source software for public administrations.
📅 When: March 11, 2025 – 9 am
📍 Where: Lobby @ FOSS Backstage, Berlin
InnerSource Gathering
InnerSource means fostering an open source-like culture within a company and realizing highly transparent collaboration. At the InnerSource Gathering, you can not only learn about the latest trends and practical examples of InnerSource but also meet and connect with members of the ISC community.
📅 When: March 12, 2025
📍 Where: bUm, Berlin
Join the team!
We are still looking for motivated volunteers to help with registration or as accessibility assistants. Join our team and receive free access to the entire conference, including food and drinks, as well as a FOSS Backstage 2025 T-shirt. Learn more here or send an email to team@foss-backstage.de.
Ticket Shop
If you haven’t already, make sure to get your ticket or voucher by 3 March, 23:59 CET. After that, only Last Minute Tickets at 500€ will be available.
For the first time, we also offer a free Child Ticket for Children under the age of 16. Learn more about this ticket on our dedicated blog post.
