Florian Snow
Free Software Foundation Europe
Technical Advisor
Florian Snow is a software developer based in Nuremberg, Germany with a background spanning programming, teaching, linguistics, and design. His journey into Free Software began around 1999 and has deepened steadily since then, with continuous engagement in the community from around 2006 onward.
Beyond his professional work in software development, Florian dedicates significant time and energy to the Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE), both as a volunteer, but more recently also as a Technical Advisor. He has contributed across a broad range of activities over the years and is one of the maintainers of the REUSE initiative, a project that helps developers make licensing and copyright in Free Software projects more understandable and compliant. He has also represented the FSFE at numerous conferences, running booths, giving talks, and building connections within the wider Free Software ecosystem.
His speaking engagements have taken him to events such as RMLL in France, Chemnitzer Linux-Tage, Tübix (both in Germany), and COSCUP in Taiwan, where he has addressed topics ranging from licensing clarity to the broader philosophical underpinnings of software freedom. Florian is passionate about outreach and enjoys creating spaces where people can learn about the social and ethical dimensions of technology. In all of this work, he actively encourages collaboration and is passionate about bringing people and organizations closer together to strengthen the Free Software movement as a whole.
With a background in education and years of experience training apprentices in IT, Florian values clarity, inclusion, and the long-term empowerment of users and developers alike. His interdisciplinary experience, drawing from studies in language, teaching, and technology, shapes his approach to both code and community, bringing together perspectives from communication, pedagogy, and user-centered thinking.
At the heart of Florian’s work is a firm belief that software freedom is not just a technical concern, but a human rights issue. He advocates for Free Software not only as a developer but as someone committed to building a society where users are empowered, not controlled, by the tools they use.
