Since the start of the Stratosphere Laboratory more than 11 years ago, we have always struggled to fund our free software development projects that were aimed at helping the privacy and security of the Internet.
Our research projects were a little easier to fund, but who can help us create software that is meant to help people at risk? Journalists, activists, human rights defenders? Being an applied research laboratory, it is hard to do something outside papers.
And this is where the NLnet foundation came to help us. Since the beginning, they have been incredibly supportive of us, and in a sense, the Stratosphere Laboratory exists because of their first funding. Thanks to their commitment to a better Internet, their hard work, and clear, honest advice, we were able to contribute to many projects for the community. From Intrusion detection systems using machine learning to VPNs to protect civil society and more.
NLnet Pioneering the Support of an Open Internet Since 1997
Since 1997, the NLnet has been supporting a wide variety of organisations that contribute to an open internet. Funded projects aim to solve Internet problems as open software, but also as open hardware, open standards, open science and open data. Among the projects supported by NLnet you can find CryptPad, Jitsi, Tor and Wireguard.
We will always be grateful for the support of the NLnet foundation, and we are happy to see that organisations like this one are still here helping the Internet be a better place.