This guide was generated from real Apache Incubator mailing list discussions and reflects governance and community process topics that appeared during incubation.

Who This Guide Is For

This guide is intended for:

  • Podling PPMCs
  • Incubator mentors
  • IPMC members

It is designed to support understanding of the kinds of governance and process questions that surfaced during incubation.

Unifying Principle

Incubator governance relies on clear, visible process and decisions made through the project’s public record.

Purpose

This guide documents specific governance and process topics that arose in incubation discussions: what participants questioned, what they asked to be clarified, and what was deemed relevant to proceeding.

Guidance in this document complements, but does not replace, ASF policy or Incubator policy.

1. PMC Means the Committee, Not an Individual

Discussion clarified that a PMC refers to the committee as a whole, not to individual members acting independently.

2. Adding PPMC Members and Waiting-Time Process Changes

The discussion covered changes to the process for adding PPMC members, including how any waiting period should be handled.

The discussion followed a familiar pattern:

  • a change was proposed
  • objections were invited
  • the change was concluded in the absence of objections

3. IPMC Roster Actions and Private List Subscription

Discussion addressed whether IPMC membership was accurately reflected in practice.

Topics included:

  • IPMC roster accuracy and whether individuals wished to remain on the IPMC
  • requests to be added to the IPMC roster
  • subscribing to the relevant lists after roster changes

4. Mentor Availability as an Incubator Process Constraint

Discussion highlighted mentor availability as a practical constraint on incubation progress.

Topics included:

  • requests for additional mentors or IPMC support
  • individuals volunteering to mentor
  • noting that mentors needed to be identified in order to proceed

5. Releasing Build Tools and When Votes Are Required

Discussion examined whether releasing a build tool required formal votes.

Topics included:

  • whether a podling vote was required
  • whether an Incubator vote was required when publishing under ASF coordinates
  • dependency licensing considerations

6. Governance Questions Around Guidance Documents and Authority

Discussion examined how governance guidance documents are adopted and what authority they carry.

Topics included:

  • whether a document was intended to be policy or guidance
  • what a vote on guidance text represented
  • how prior discussion and review, including legal input, factored into adoption

Clarification focused on scope and intent.

7. Licensing Constraints and Contributor Rights as Preconditions

The discussion covered cases in which licensing and contributor rights affected whether a project could proceed.

Topics included:

  • a codebase under GPL-2.0
  • the need to relicense or otherwise resolve compatibility
  • whether contributors held the rights required to relicense

These issues appeared alongside concerns about mentor availability.

8. Key Takeaways for Mentors, PPMCs, and the IPMC

  • Governance authority sits with committees, not individuals.
  • Roster and list subscription accuracy affects day-to-day governance and communication.
  • Mentor availability can constrain progress and must be addressed explicitly.
  • Vote requirements should be clear before publishing or releasing under ASF coordinates.
  • Guidance documents need a clear scope and authority to avoid confusion.
  • Licensing and contributor rights must be resolved before a project can move forward.
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