Free Resources for Improving Diversity In Open Source STEM Projects

Three individuals are intently watching a computer screen together.

In open source projects, different voices converge to share ideas, exchange knowledge, and solve problems, giving new and current web developers the opportunity to gain skills, enhance their portfolios, and learn from one another through collaboration. However, many open source communities have an ongoing diversity issue, as evidenced by the results of a 2017 global GitHub survey, below.

chart that shows the lack of diversity in open source projects

Fortunately, open source communities are beginning to recognize the need for new initiatives to tackle the lack of diversity in their projects. In fact, a recent article by The Next Web claims that 2021 will be the year open source projects overcome their diversity problems.

In order for that to happen, these communities will need the proper resources to address injustice and inequality and then create an inclusive environment where people from different backgrounds are able to collaborate. The free resources provided in this article are designed to help members of underrepresented groups contribute more freely, even in the face of inequitable access. But first, we will examine what may be holding them back.

Factors That Affect Diversity in STEM

In order to encourage diversity in open source STEM projects, it is important to look at what prevents individuals in minority groups from participating. Here are some factors that may explain the imbalance.

Gender Bias: According to research conducted by the American Association of University Women, many people assume that STEM fields are dominated by men, whereas arts and humanities are dominated by women. The stereotype that STEM is a male discipline may be causing women to shy away from working on open source projects or even entering the field altogether.
Hidden Bigotry: Open source platforms like GitHub connect 27 million developers, who are able to find and share code for almost anything. However, some bloggers and articles have reported finding code containing extremely offensive racist, sexist, and homophobic language. Additionally, open source projects commonly use terms like “master” (referring to the main version of code) which has been widely interpreted as racially insensitive. Fortunately, GitHub recently began removing the terms from their platform.
Imposter Syndrome: Another problem for contributors is the fear of expressing their opinions in the open source community, says Lin Sun, a former technical lead at IBM. “The community is [mostly] male, and what if you don’t get any ‘+1s’ because your ideas are different?” says Sun. In turn, this may discourage contributions from women and newcomers alike.

Why Diversity in STEM Is Important

When people from different disciplines and backgrounds collaborate, innovation occurs, says IBM. This is consistent with a study conducted at the University of Michigan, which found that diverse groups of problem solvers perform better than homogenous groups of high-ability problem solvers. These findings are further supported by the World Economic Forum in a recent article on the impact of diversity on team performance.

As open source becomes more mainstream, unique perspectives and experiences will be essential to accelerating innovation. In order for open source to be truly open, everyone in the community — and those interested in joining — must feel welcome, says TODO Group. Contribution must be possible for all regardless of gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, ability, race, ethnicity, age, religion, educational background, political position, or economic status.