The vibrant and diverse pyOpenSci community is driven by volunteer Pythonistas that care deeply about the scientific Python open source software that drives open science.
pyOpenSci volunteers come from diverse backgrounds
Our volunteers come from a diverse array of backgrounds, including industry, academia, agencies, national labs, and more. pyOpenSci volunteers are primarily engaged in both the peer review process and developing resources to support the scientific Python community. Volunteers help improve the quality, maintainability and usability of the software that scientists need for open science. They also support maintainers in developing scientific Python software.
pyOpenSci volunteers build skills and community
When you volunteer with pyOpenSci, you’re both giving back and developing professional skills. As a volunteer you will:
- Learn new skills: you don’t have to be a Python expert to get involved with pyOpenSci. We can help you level up your packaging game and learn how to constructively review both code and copy through contributions to our online learning resources.
- Meet and connect with new peers. Our public Discourse forum is a great place to ask and answer questions, as well as discuss packaging and open science with other Pythonistas.
- Get recognized on the pyOpenSci website and in our GitHub repositories: your contribution matters, and we want to ensure your work is recognized and celebrated in a public forum. If you serve as an editor you can also connect with pyOpenSci professionally as a volunteer for our organization on LinkedIn
Volunteer opportunities with pyOpenSci
There are many ways to get involved with pyOpenSci! We’re always looking for folks to:
Lend a Hand on GitHub
Got some time to help? Check out our GitHub Project Board for a list of current issues that we could use help with. Any issue that is tagged help-wanted in our repos is also fair game for anyone to tackle! We add anyone who contributes to pyOpenSci to our community page.
Sign up to be a scientific Python package reviewer
Finding reviewers is one of the more challenging parts of running a peer review process. We are always looking for new reviewers from a broad range of scientific domains. Some reviewers have extensive packaging expertise and others have domain expertise. We think that mix is great, so sign up today! If you are new to reviewing we are happy to support you through our peer review mentorship program.
Get involved as software peer review Editor
We also often recruit new editors to support our peer review process. Keep an eye out on our Discourse forum for calls for new editors. In the meantime if you are interested in learning more about the editor role, check out our peer review guidebook.
Share your expertise and experience with the broader community through blogging
And last but not least, we’d also love for you to be a guest blogger on the pyOpenSci blog! If you’d like to write about a pyOpenSci package, your experiences with pyOpenSci, or how you’re using free and open Python tools in your scientific endeavors, we’d love to hear from you! Email our Community team at media@pyopensci.org for more information.
Meet the most recent PyOpenSci community contributors
pyOpenSci has a diverse and vibrant community of pythonistas! To date, 268 wonderful people have contributed to pyOpenSci.
Mason Ng
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Daniela Huppenkothen
SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research
Matteo Bachetti
INAF/Osservatorio Astronomico di Cagliari
Learn more about volunteering with pyOpenSci
If you still have questions about volunteer roles at pyOpenSci, email our Community team at media@pyopensci.org, and we’d be more than happy to help! You can also ask questions and network with the broader pyOpenSci community on our Discourse forum.