GitHub, in collaboration with the eScience Institute at the University of Washington, is organizing a Town Hall event focusing on the intersection of academia and open source software. The event aims to address the challenges faced by academic researchers in gaining recognition for software development and maintenance as credible research activities. It will feature discussions on how academic institutions can evolve to better support software tools and their creators, and what lessons can be drawn from the open source community. Scheduled for February 2nd at the University of Washington in Seattle, the event will also be available via live stream for those unable to attend in person. Panelists include experts from various institutions, such as the University of Washington, UC Berkeley, the National Science Foundation, and Amazon Web Services.