Cristián 
Continuing the tradition I started in 2023, I kept track of all the community contributions, participation, and collaborations of 2025.
2025 Results
After the jump from 2023 (531.7 hours) to 2024 (650.4 hours), I decided to reduce the amount of things I was doing, but I failed a bit because I couldn’t get under 600 hours, and managed to do 628.2 hours in 2025.
I am very conscious that such high amount of hours, from something that comes from my spare time is not very recommendable, and can bring people to burn out quickly. I promise you I have been looking for people that could take over different roles in many communities, I don’t like being “the person” that has been working on a specific initiative for so long, because some people might start thinking I’m keeping others away, and things should run as I say, so if you are reading this and have the time and motivation to help, let me know! :)
(Note the y-axis, hours, is log due to some initiatives having less than an hour)
EuroPython again took most of my time, because I was the co-chair of the Program committee, followed by PyLadiesCon from which I was working in the infrastructure of the conference, including the Website, the Discord server, the Pretix and Pretalx platforms, but this time I was not alone, and a great team joined the initiative as well.
What was interesting to me, is that after the ~50 hours I spent on PSF related tasks last year, by being elected to the board in July, are completely shadowed by the current 105 hours, which are mostly related to the initiatives that we have been working since the beginning of 2025.
Besides the work I put on PyConUS by being in the Committee and also helping with the Program team, there were a few other conferences where I spent a lot of time by preparing the talks/tutorials, and being there.
Why is this important?
Many projects have a large amount of contributors that are in charge of doing the heavy lifting, and most of the time are people that are not widely known by the rest of the community.
Clarifying that not only the most popular names are the people doing things is essential to motivate more people to collaborate, and to join initiatives that might look “up and running” but can really benefit for motivated people.
Conferences like PyConUS or EuroPython, seemed very professional and well established to me when I started contributing to communities, so I was very much doubtful of even trying to help. To my surprise, there were many tasks in them that could easily be handled by new contributors, so I was very happy to learn this, and join the initiatives to make a better event.
Similarly with projects, you might think they are OK with the current amount of contributors, but having new people joining can be refreshing. A clear example in my opinion is the Python Docs ES initiative, that has been having different groups of motivated people showing up every year, and each group have managed to improve the translation process, add new automation, improve the relationship between people, and of course translate more! as long as Python continues being developed the documentation will be updated, so more people is needed to catch up!
Where to start?
Approach your nearest Meetup group, conference, or community you know and ask them! The worst that can happen is not to have a reply, of they telling you “we are good”, and it’s not like we have a shortage of activities, so you can even join online initiatives.
Can you do it?
Impostor syndrome is real, and is everywhere, even with the people you think know a lot, because the standards are always different. We tend to compare ourselves with people that know more, but it’s hard to think of the knowledge we have compared to people that might not have it, so please, I know it’s hard, but you are surely capable of helping initiatives!
Even in the rare case, you have limited Python experience, I know a few people with almost no Python knowledge that has become essential part of different conferences and communities!
Final words: you can also make an impact
Please, please, please, track your contributions! You might have no idea of the impact you are doing in some communities until you sum up the time you spend on them! ❤️
The couple of hours here and there, do make a difference, and you need to be proud of it! 🎉
…and please, if you spend at least 5 hours per month volunteering in Python-related projects and initiatives, become a PSF contributing member here 🐍
Is there something you believe is missing in some communities? do you need some advise in how to start? let me know!