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How we celebrate "I Love Free Software Day" in Potteries, UK
How we celebrate "I Love Free Software Day" in Potteries, UK
Every year on 14 February we celebrate our "I Love Free Software Day". On this day we thank all Free Software contributors for their commitment to use, study, share and improve Free Software. Without them there is no software freedom. We want to thank the all for contributing to Free Software <3
To mark this special occasion the FSFE's local groups organise local events and celebrations. Each celebration is unique and show-casts the commitment of our community. From local gatherings with pizza and fun Free Software games from our toolkit to larger events addressing new people with talks and networking.
One local group has been celebrating the “I Love Free Software Day” for the past 3 years – our group in Potteries, UK. But to take you back to the beginning of the FSFE local group meetings in the UK we have to go back to 1999. In 1999 a local Linux user group started and organised meetings, talks and many other activities. In 2019 the local group met a long-term volunteer from the FSFE at a conference. They hit it of and started talking about Free Software and this was the beginning of a new era for the local FSFE group in Potteries. For now six years the local group has stayed active and participated in various FSFE activities. Read more about the only FSFE local group on British soil and their celebration of the “I Love Free Software Day”.
FSFE: How many people are active in the group ? Can you also give us an overview of what Potteries is?
Steven, FSFE local group Potteries coordinator: It is tough to put a number on it as we communicate through lots of different channels, but it is not uncommon to see more than a dozen regulars at meetings, plus new faces that then often become new regulars!
We are situated right in the middle of England between Manchester and Birmingham. Most of the urban area of North Staffordshire is known as ‘The Potteries’ due to the city of Stoke-on-Trent and the surrounding towns being historically instrumental in the ceramic industry. It is a name that everyone local knows and understands, which is why we chose it. It is not uncommon to see many local groups using the Potteries in its name, and the FSFE President signed off on the name!
FSFE: What are the usual activities the Potteries local group does?
Steven: Online the activities are mostly just organising meetings, people sharing their experiences, and offering help and recommendations where they can. Workshop meetings involve using Free Software itself and attending talks given by anyone that fancies sharing their knowledge. We also have socials particularly in the summer, as well as trips to unconferences such as Oggcamp. At the moment we have two annual larger events which are ILoveFS and our end of year Flörgåsbord! event which we co-run with other groups too.
FSFE: When was the first time you celebrated the “I Love Free Software Day” and how did it work out?
Steven: The first time was Tuesday 14 February 2023 which initially we thought the date worked really well. This is because we cooperatively take turns to run meetings on Tuesday evenings with other similar local groups, increasing turn out as attendees always know to keep that evening free. We also used the same location that we used for formal scheduled talks, which was not really a particularly social venue, more like a computer lab.
Unfortunately that is also Valentines Day and people in the UK take it quite seriously and so the turn out was not great! We often got told their significant other would lynch them if they did not spend the evening with them!
First "I Love Free Software Day" celebrations in Potteries.FSFE: How did the celebration of the “I Love Free Software Day” evolve over the next years and what was you personal highlight while celebrating this special day?
Steven: Well in subsequent years we were told we could use a date near to the 14 instead! So doing that, together with using a great new sociable space, has meant things have worked perfectly ever since! I would have to say my personal highlight was playing the games at ILoveFS 2025 event, that really helped to bring people together competing as teams, rather than lots of little groups talking amongst themselves.
"I Love Free Software Day" celebrations in Potteries.FSFE: What did you do for the I Love Free software Day 2025?
Steven: Well we had the upstairs room of the KPA Clubhouse (on the Keele University campus) which is a great free venue with plenty of character and comfortable seating. The room was decorated with plenty of balloons and promotional material, as well as laptops loaded with Free Software that people could just pick up and try. Add to that some great company, as well as free food and drinks and it was a brilliant atmosphere for playing the Free Software quiz game, a quick presentation, and socialising about our love of Free Software, particularly those often forgotten smaller and hidden projects we take for granted.
FSFE: What would you recommend to others when they want to organise an “I Love Free Software Day” celebrations and what are pitfalls you would say should be avoided?
Steven: The first thing I would say is that if your event is not set up to easily explain what Free Software is and why it is important, to literally anyone walking in off the street, then you’re not doing it right! Accessibility of the topic is key, so if you have got a few spare laptops to run software that people will find familiar, but perhaps did not associate with Free Software, that’s a great start! Add to that some welcoming regulars who have the patience and skill to explain things without confusion (or fighting about which distro is better!) and you’re already off to a winning start. Try to steer conversations away from being too heavy, keep things social and lighthearted, and offer people comfortable seating, drinks, and food to get them willing to open up about their experiences.
FSFE: Why do you think I Love Free Software Day is important and why should everybody be celebrating this day?
Steven: Free Software should be celebrated and appreciated just as much as the concepts of democracy, the rule of law, equal opportunities, and the free exchange of other information than just Software! Things that people take for granted but took years of work to establish and constantly need defending. It is a great way to remind people that lots of community spirit has gone into creating the tools we use every, which is often more and more powered by software.
FSFE: Do you already have plans for celebrating “I Love Free Software Day 2026”?
Steven: We plan to have a plan! The venue we used for the least two years has been a great success, so we’ll be looking to mostly replicate that again in 2026 but this time with the focus on thanking maintainers.
FSFE: Steven, Thank you very much for your time!
