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The May long weekend is behind us—a time when many took the chance to escape the hustle and bustle of the city. A few days spent hiking, mountain trekking, or kayaking does wonders for clearing the mind, while serving as a timely reminder of the priceless value of nature. As part of this month’s #SidnetDonations initiative, we’re spotlighting two organizations vital to our ecosystems—both aquatic and digital.

The non-profit and open-source projects we’re financially supporting this May were chosen by Wojtek Wąsik, a Full Stack Developer and DevOps expert who is celebrating his 9th anniversary with the Sidnet team today!

Linux Mint

While various GNU/Linux distributions enjoy immense and steady popularity within the programming community, they are still often perceived as overly complex. Many home users associate Linux with a steep learning curve that can feel intimidating. Linux Mint tackles these issues with ease; by embracing the classic Windows look and feel, it significantly lowers the barrier to entry for new users.

Mint started as a system built on the foundations of Ubuntu, but it quickly developed its own identity and infrastructure (including a parallel edition based directly on Debian). Its flagship desktop environment, Cinnamon, was created in response to the radical interface changes in GNOME 3, restoring a classic, intuitive desktop layout for all users. With easy installation of proprietary drivers and codecs, as well as support for a massive library of games and apps, Mint stands today as one of the best choices for those seeking a stable, free alternative to commercial operating systems.

“I wanted to support Linux Mint once again; I’ve been using it for several years now, both at work and at home. Its ease of use, friendly interface, and overall smoothness are simply unbeatable,” Wojtek explains.

Wolne Rzeki (“Free Rivers”) Foundation

Wolne Rzeki Foundation is a recently established organization, yet it draws on many years of experience from its dedicated team. It began in 2016 as a grassroots environmental movement before formally incorporating as a foundation in 2024. From the very beginning, they have combined a data-driven scientific approach with fieldwork, activism, and educational outreach.

The impact of their work often takes years to become visible, but when it does, the scale and complexity of their projects are remarkable. The Foundation developed a restoration plan for the Bukowa River, successfully opening up 150 km of waterways. Their spectacular achievements include the creation of the Sochy, Targowisko, and Dolina Smarkatej nature reserves. 

“Wolne Rzeki Foundation is a group of people truly dedicated to environmental protection. One aspect of their work is nature education—I highly recommend their YouTube channel. Living in Warsaw, I often visit the Masovian Landscape Park, but many of the forest lakes and wetlands there now only exist on maps. From their channel, you can learn why our forests are becoming so dry and what can be done about it,” says Wojtek.

The Foundation does more than just monitor water quality and create protected areas. One of its primary goals is to restore the natural role of waterways within the ecosystem and to limit or halt their industrial exploitation. While humans have used rivers for centuries, today’s level of exploitation is not only harmful but often inefficient. Dams, hydroelectric plants, and river transport create massive barriers for migratory fish, cutting them off from spawning grounds and contributing to species extinction.

Wolne Rzeki operates primarily through volunteer efforts, making external support a crucial part of their funding. Anyone can donate via the Foundation’s website or Patronite.

Following Wet Monday—a Polish Easter tradition of playfully splashing others with water—we are staying in a water-themed atmosphere, as Łukasz Kozłowski, Frontend Developer and React expert, has taken the helm for the April edition of #SidnetDonations. Łukasz navigates code efficiently, and outside of work, he manages quite well at the helm of a sailboat. It is no wonder that when choosing the recipients of our April support, he pointed to an open-source browser built around a water-themed brand, as well as the ocean-protecting non-profit organization Sea Shepherd.

Waterfox

In an era of AI assistants serving up ready-made summaries, web browsers remain the essential tool for those who prefer to go straight to the source. However, the rise of ubiquitous AI integrations is turning modern browsers into complex ecosystems where it’s easy to lose control over your privacy.

The answer to this challenge may be Waterfox, a browser built on Firefox’s source code and developed for 15 years now by Alex Kontos. It is a raw, stripped-down program that focuses on its users’ needs. One of the creator’s core principles is avoiding the forced integration of LLMs—a trend currently sweeping through almost every industry. For a short time, Waterfox even had its own ethical search engine, Storm, which passed on commissions from purchases in partner online stores to charities.

Today, the browser comes pre-configured with helpful features, such as automatically declining cookie banners. It is also available on Android.

“Waterfox is an alternative to popular browsers, free of telemetry, with better default privacy settings, additional personalization options, and—what is most important to me—it does not force an LLM (which is a conscious choice). I use Waterfox daily, both at work and beyond,” says Łukasz.

Waterfox remains an open-source project; however, for a short period starting in 2019, it was under the control of System1—an online advertising company—which caused much controversy. In 2023, it was bought back by the creator to maintain the project’s independent character.

Sea Shepherd

Since 1977, Sea Shepherd has combined environmental education with direct-action interventions to protect the world’s oceans. To date, nearly 30 vessels have passed through its fleet, including the now-retired flagship patrol vessel Steve Irwin, named after the famous Australian naturalist known as the Crocodile Hunter. Sea Shepherd ships operate in many waters around the world, reaching even Antarctica.

The organization goes beyond simple awareness campaigns. Their fleet actively collaborates with governments worldwide to help block initiatives that violate marine protection laws. Activists document their front-line struggles, resulting in powerful films like Edge Of The World: Krill Crisis. While Sea Shepherd’s methods can be controversial, their effectiveness ensures that the destruction of marine ecosystems stays in the mainstream media spotlight.

“It is an organization that started with one ship and now has an entire fleet in the most remote parts of the world. They fight against the illegal fishing of whales, dolphins, and octopuses, among others. They expose the destructive impact of krill fishing in Antarctica, chase poachers in Mexican waters, and free animals accidentally caught in nets (so-called bycatch). Bycatch is one of the main factors devastating the oceans and stripping animals of their ecological niches. Animal protection is very important to me, and Sea Shepherd deals with an area where few dare to act,” Łukasz explains.

Anyone who cares about the health of our oceans can support Sea Shepherd. Financial donations can be sent via the website; however, help is accepted in every form: from cryptocurrency transfers and organizing fundraisers to donating vehicles or real estate—a true sea of possibilities to help.

Every change—whether in a code repository or the physical world—demands precision and the right stack. This edition of #SidnetDonations is our way of “debugging” reality, guided by the choice of Emil Maruszczak, a Backend Developer in a project for THG.

Emil, who optimizes global-scale systems daily, selected these open-source and non-profit projects for one reason: they tackle problems at the source, fixing faulty mechanisms where it matters most.

Lazygit

The Git version control system is a staple tool widely used across the international development community. While valued for its ability to seamlessly track changes across code versions, its base form is a simple, text-based tool with a stark interface. Lazygit, created by Jesse Duffield in 2018, simplifies Git commands by introducing intuitive keyboard shortcuts and streamlining version management. This open-source tool quickly won over developers worldwide—earning over 70,000 stars on GitHub and becoming a permanent fixture in the IT landscape.

“As a backend developer, I spend most of my time in the terminal, but having a clear overview of what’s happening in the repositories I work on is essential. Git is the standard for countless projects globally, but the text interface provided by the git command is flat and can be clunky. Lazygit allows you to view local and remote changes from a broader perspective without leaving the terminal—using a clean TUI and Vim-like keybindings,” says Emil.

Lex Nova Animal Legal Protection Foundation

While there is no shortage of aid organizations, animals in need still lack adequate legal protection. Pervasive abuse, “dead” regulations, and shockingly low penalties for violations remain a daily reality. The Lex Nova Animal Legal Protection Foundation takes under its wing those creatures for whom legal representation is hardest to find.

The foundation strives to implement legislative changes and create a functioning animal protection system in Poland. Beyond organizing administrative interventions to compel local governments to act, they also defend the rights of harmed animals in criminal proceedings. Lex Nova members are involved in regular educational campaigns, sit on committees reviewing animal rights cases, and work closely with public administration—including participating in parliamentary work.

Lex Nova volunteers also care for Poland’s stray cat population by organizing foster homes, spaying and neutering programs, and vaccinations through their “Purr Factory” (Fabryka Mruczenia) initiative.

“This year’s winter was exceptionally cold and long, which meant a struggle for survival for many animals. When temperatures drop drastically below zero, every zloty for heating or medical treatment is worth its weight in gold. That’s when help is needed most—after all, there is no nobler gesture than supporting those who cannot ask for it themselves,” Emil explains.

The Lex Nova Foundation accepts donations via the RatujemyZwierzaki.pl portal and publishes ongoing fundraisers, petitions, and news on their Facebook profile (content in Polish).

While New Year’s resolutions often start to fade by February, our monthly initiative to support open-source and non-profit projects has remained a constant for years.

This edition is special: for the eighth time, the projects were selected by the person without whom the #SidnetDonations campaign wouldn’t exist. This month, we are supporting causes close to the heart of Michał Wojciechowski, the founder and CEO of Sidnet and Centuran, and the originator of our charitable initiative.

curl

Gothic architecture introduced the concept of the keystone—the central stone at the top of an arch, without which soaring cathedrals would collapse into a pile of rubble. Many in the IT industry believe that the command-line tool curl serves a similar function in modern software architecture.

Together with the libcurl library, it provides a seamless way to automate network communication in scripts and applications, making it easy to test APIs using the HTTP(S) protocol. The tool is so ubiquitous that API documentation often includes ready-to-use curl commands by default. It is also a standard component in the base versions of many operating systems.

The widespread use of curl—and the fact that it often serves as the interoperable “common denominator” between different environments—makes the keystone an ideal metaphor. This was humorously captured in a curl-themed parody of the famous xkcd comic:

“curl is one of the ‘unsung heroes’ of the tech world. This open-source project, developed over several decades by a small team, has become an indispensable tool in IT. The best proof of this is that curl comes pre-installed in major Linux distributions, as well as macOS and Windows.

In our team, we use curl across many projects—whether for automation within CI/CD pipelines or for API testing—and we occasionally use the libcurl library within the code of the web applications we build,” Michał explains.

Historically, one reason for curl’s high level of security was its bug bounty program. Recently, however, curl made global headlines for a more frustrating reason: a flood of mass-generated AI reports. These reports, the vast majority of which were completely baseless, overwhelmed the team to the point where they had to suspend the bounty program. While AI tools are successfully used to find and neutralize vulnerabilities, mass, unverified submissions (fitting the definition of so-called “AI slop”) can quickly paralyze a small development team.

Przystań Ocalenie (“Haven of Rescue”) Foundation

The sanctuary in Ćwiklice, run by the Przystań Ocalenie (“Haven of Rescue”) Foundation, is a far cry from the typical image of an animal shelter. The space has been meticulously adapted to the needs of nearly 500 residents, for whom this place is a true home. Here, the animals always come first.

The Haven provides shelter to a wide variety of species—from dogs and cats to chickens, donkeys, cows, and horses. The latter are particularly noteworthy; caring for large farm animals is a significantly greater challenge than looking after the smaller pets found in most shelters. The presence of large animals means the foundation must follow many of the same legal regulations as commercial farmers, requiring the space to meet strict administrative and sanitary requirements for each species.

“The Przystań Ocalenie Foundation was the very first recipient of our support, which shows they’ve been around even longer than our donation initiative,” Michał recalls. “At the time, my father recommended the organization to me as a trustworthy cause. He had met Mr. Dominik, one of the sanctuary’s founders, and was deeply impressed by his genuine care for forgotten and mistreated animals.”

“A poem titled ‘Prayer of a Horse in Transport,’ which I read on their website back then, moved me deeply. It still stays with me whenever I think of the sanctuary,” adds Michał.

Anyone who cares about animal welfare can also support Przystań Ocalenie. The foundation gratefully accepts many forms of help—from one-time donations and specific fundraisers to volunteering and social advocacy. The organization is also currently looking for land to expand its operations.

Since May 2012, we have made 166 contributions supporting the development of open‑source projects, as well as 170 donations to non‑profit organizations, including foundations, associations, hospices, and animal shelters. What makes these donations unique is that the beneficiaries are not chosen by an algorithm or the management board, but by members of our own team.

We open 2026 with the choices of Tadeusz Sośnierz, a software developer working on projects for Impel Business Solutions and other clients of our second brand, Centuran. The projects he selected—KDE and the Open Bicycle Workshop—may seem unrelated at first glance. What connects them is a shared philosophy: initiatives for people who dislike “black boxes” and prefer to understand, modify, and adapt their tools to their own needs—whether those tools are lines of code or a bicycle.

KDE

The open‑source ecosystem is driven by developer communities. Organized as non‑profit initiatives, they create software that is freely available to everyone. KDE is an international community behind one of the most widely recognized Linux desktop environments—Plasma—as well as more than 200 applications that serve as alternatives to commercial software.

Tools created by the KDE community are used by prestigious institutions such as NASA and CERN. From Mercedes electric vehicles, through the Steam Deck handheld console, to Chrome and Safari browsers and government agencies from Brazil to Ukraine, KDE software is trusted worldwide.

KDE recently celebrated its 25th anniversary, inviting its community to share experiences during a global event bridging the online and offline worlds. Over a quarter of a century, more than 7,000 developers have contributed to the organization. Projects powered by KDE tools include, among others, James Cameron’s Avatar film series and Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit trilogy.

“As a young Linux enthusiast, I was fascinated by minimalist desktop environments that I largely built myself from components I had written on my own. Over time, however, I came to appreciate a system and environment that allows me to work with my computer instead of constantly working on the computer itself. KDE is at the forefront here—its Plasma desktop is unmatched on Linux. It’s flexible enough that I was able to transfer my workflow from window managers like i3 almost unchanged, while also being so polished and user‑friendly that it allowed friends who were ‘escaping’ Windows 11 to switch to Linux smoothly, with virtually no learning curve,” explains Tadeusz.

Open Bicycle Workshop

Founded in 2018, the Open Bicycle Workshop (Otwarty Warsztat Rowerowy) is a well‑known and highly valued place among Warsaw’s cycling community. Anyone can use the publicly available tools free of charge, or opt for paid servicing provided by experienced mechanics.

The true strength of this place lies in its philosophy. Replacing parts with new ones is a last resort here. The 3R principle—Ride, Repair, Recycle!—means that almost every cog, hub, or spoke is given a second life. The organization running the workshop, Mierz Wysoko (“Aim High”) Association, collects bicycles and parts in various technical conditions. Some are repaired and refurbished, while others are dismantled for components that can be reused in servicing or building new bikes. Repaired bicycles are donated to people in need or sold with a warranty, and the funds raised support the workshop’s statutory goals and ongoing activities.

“Last season, I visited the Open Bicycle Workshop many times—repairing and modifying my own bike, as well as helping others with theirs. I’m already looking forward to spring, not only for cycling weather, but also for the reopening of the Workshop,” says Tadeusz enthusiastically.

Cycling enthusiasts can support the Open Bicycle Workshop through one‑off or recurring donations. Those based in Warsaw can also follow Tadeusz’s example and get involved personally as a volunteer.

December is a busy time for animal shelters and welfare organizations—and not just because the need for help increases in winter or because people are more inclined to give. Right after the holidays, shelters also face a wave of “mistaken gifts”—cats and dogs that have been returned to shelters.

That’s why, for this month’s #SidnetDonations, we’re supporting the Kundellos Volunteer Association. The choice was made by Gabriela Walczyk—an experienced developer with expertise in both frontend and backend technologies. Every day, she ensures high code quality using the open‑source tool PHPStan, which is the second project to receive our December donation, following her decision.

PHPStan

PHPStan is a powerful tool that helps developers catch errors in their code before the application even runs. It works by combining smart rules with type analysis, making it easy to spot issues that might otherwise go unnoticed during testing. PHPStan supports gradual adoption—from basic code checks all the way to a high level of strictness. Tools like PHPStan have become standard in the modern PHP ecosystem and are essential for ensuring code stability, clarity, and, most importantly, safety.

In 2024, PHPStan released version 2.0, which adds a new, even higher level of code verification called Level 10, along with improved support for analyzing mixed types. The update also significantly boosts performance, reducing memory usage by up to 70%.

PHPStan is particularly effective in large‑scale projects built on highly dynamic CMSs such as Drupal, where it can be used to analyze entities and data types. But Drupal is just the beginning—PHPStan also offers plugins and extensions for popular frameworks like Symfony, Laravel, and Doctrine, making integration into a wide range of PHP projects seamless.

“In our daily work on code, we often rely on tools that help us maintain the quality, security, and consistency of our projects. One of them is PHPStan—an open‑source project that analyzes code and can catch errors before they reach production. PHPStan was created by Ondřej Mirtes and is supported by an active open‑source community that contributes through testing, fixes, and documentation. Thanks to this tool, we can build more stable and predictable applications, which directly improves the quality of the software we deliver,” explains Gabriela.

Kundellos Volunteer Association

The association unites volunteers in a non‑profit initiative with a primary goal: helping homeless dogs and cats. Their work spans a wide range of activities—from daily tasks like cleaning, grooming, and socializing animals, to participating in social and educational campaigns on adoption, animal rights, and overall animal welfare. The name Kundellos combines the Polish words “kundel” (mutt, a mixed‑breed dog) and “los” (fate or destiny), reflecting the association’s mission of giving homeless and abandoned animals a better fate. Working with animals, while deeply rewarding, can also be demanding and sometimes risky, as volunteers often encounter sick or aggressive animals. The fact that all this is done entirely on a voluntary basis makes it even more admirable.

“The Kundellos Association helps homeless and abused animals—providing treatment, facilitating adoptions, and educating about responsible care. It’s an organization that truly changes the lives of those who cannot ask for help themselves. For me, supporting them is also very personal—five months ago, thanks to Kundellos, a wonderful dog named Perełka (“Little Pearl”) came into my home, and I can’t imagine life without her. I know how much effort the volunteers at Kundellos put in to give other animals the same chance,” says Gabriela.

You can also support the Kundellos Association—whether financially, by giving your time and attention to the animals, offering foster homes, or donating needed supplies.