Open Call for Nominations: European Open Source Awards 2027
The European Open Source Awards recognise exceptional contributions to Open Source Software, Open Source Hardware, and Open Technology across Europe. Our 2027 ceremony will take place at the historic and classical Théâtre du Vaudeville in Brussels, celebrating individuals and organizations whose work has advanced innovation, collaboration, and digital sovereignty throughout the European open source ecosystem.
We welcome nominations from anyone in the open source community – colleagues, collaborators, users, researchers, and self-nominations are all explicitly encouraged.
The nomination window opens on 1 September 2026 and remains open for two months, ending at EOD on 1 November.
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Award Categories
Main Prizes:
- Prize for Excellence in Open Source Software - Recognising outstanding impact in open source software development, technical leadership, and sustained excellence over at least ten years.
Special Recognitions:
- Business and Impact - Honouring individuals who have demonstrated excellence in open source innovation, commericalisation, and impact.
- Outstanding Achievement in Advocacy and Awareness - Honouring individuals advancing open source policy impact, recognition, and awareness.
- Outstanding Achievement in Skills and Education - Honouring individuals who have pioneered educational projects or initiatives advancing open source skills, education, and knowledge.
- Outstanding Achievement in Community Impact - Honouring communities that embody collaborative innovation and sustainability and which have made a demonstratable positive impact on the open source ecosystem or in advancing the interests of open source collaboration and innovation.
Eligibility Criteria
The Academy evaluates all nominations holistically, recognising that exceptional contributions sometimes emerge from non-traditional paths. Our goal is to recognise excellence that advances the European open source ecosystem in all its diversity.
Who Can Be Nominated?
All nominees must demonstrate a meaningful connection to the European open source ecosystem. We recognise that open source is inherently global, but these awards celebrate contributions that have strengthened or affirmed the role of Europe and its people in open source innovation and community building.
Examples of European connections include:
- European citizenship or long-term residency;
- Significant contributions to projects with European origins or substantial European user bases;
- Leadership roles in European open source organizations or communities (past or present);
- Employment with European organizations making notable open source contributions; and,
- Educational or community affiliations with European institutions advancing open source.
We evaluate each nominee's European connection individually, understanding that in our interconnected world, these ties manifest in diverse ways. What matters is demonstrable impact within the European context, even when contributions have global reach.
What We're Looking For
All nominees should demonstrate:
- Innovation that has influenced practices or solved significant challenges through open source collaboration and principles
- Community impact through mentorship, collaboration, or knowledge sharing
- Sustained commitment showing consistency and long-term value creation
- Alignment with open source values of openness, collaboration, and inclusion
For the Prize for Excellence in Open Source, we specifically seek sustained excellence over at least ten years, along with contributions that have shaped their respective fields.
For the Special Recognitions, we look for excellence in specific domains: businesses successfully integrating open source principles, advocates increasing adoption and awareness, educators advancing skills development, and communities embodying collaborative innovation.
What Disqualifies a Nomination?
We cannot consider nominees whose work primarily benefits commercial and/or proprietary initiatives without meaningful open source contribution, promotes discriminatory practices, or conflicts with European values of openness and collaboration. Commercial use of open source is welcomed and celebrated; what matters is a commitment to the public interest, embodying the goals and practices of openness, and practicing genuine contribution back to the community.
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