Elevating open source contributors to open source maintainers

Maintaining open source projects involves significant responsibilities such as developing features, addressing issues, and fostering community engagement, which can be overwhelming for a single individual. To mitigate burnout, project maintainers often seek trustworthy co-maintainers by elevating active contributors within the community. This process involves identifying individuals who exhibit initiative and collaboration skills, offering them guidance, and gradually increasing their responsibilities. Different approaches are used for onboarding, such as informal mentoring or more structured processes like those at Python’s triage team. Onboarding includes introducing new maintainers to communication channels, sharing internal documentation, and providing administrative support. Disputes are resolved by focusing on technical issues, maintaining open communication, and understanding diverse perspectives. In rare cases, maintainers may be removed if they consistently breach conduct codes. Delegation is crucial for maintainers to share workload and leverage diverse expertise, with encouragement to let others take the lead on ideas and tasks, fostering a collaborative environment.