The Change Mode Podcast

chmod 103: Community is built through happy accidents with Aisha Bello and Leona So

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Join DjangoGirls board members, Aisha Bello and Leona So, for this week’s episode of Change Mode as we celebrate 10 years of this incredible non-profit.

Created to inspire women from all backgrounds to get interested in technology and enter the world of programming, Aisha and Leona share their journeys into open source and their roles in DjangoGirls today. Dive into how they built their own Python communities, ran their own local events, and the importance of creating safe, welcoming spaces for women in tech. 

  • 00:30 — Share your open-source love story 
  • 01:05 — Celebrating 10 years of DjangoGirls 
  • 03:13 — Introducing our guests, Aisha Bello and Leona So 
  • 04:30 — Leona’s journey into open source: from maths teacher to DjangoGirls
  • 07:47 — Aisha’s open-source story: building a Python community in Nigeria 
  • 13:39 — The creation of DjangoGirls Manchester and Chester
  • 16:39 — Never underestimate the power of the open-source community 
  • 18:26 — Do we need in-person events to truly build a strong community?
  • 23:25 — The DjangoGirls podcast: a long-distance relationship 
  • 28:24 — How to balance work, life, and open source
  • 34:47 — What’s next for DjangoGirls? 
  • 37:44 — The importance of belonging for women in tech  
  • 42:00 — If you had permission to do anything for a day, what would you do? 
  • 46:22 — If you could invent a new permission, what would it be? 
  • 48:17 — What do you think is your greatest power? 

    • Thank you to our incredible guests, Aisha and Leona, for joining us for this episode to discuss their journeys as women in tech and development. Follow Aisha and Leona’s incredible work with DjangoGirls on X and GitHub. 

    Do you have an open-source story of your own that you want to share? Join us for an episode of Change Mode, apply now to be a guest.

    Shoutout to our incredible podcast host, Marine Gandy, our resident Drupal expert and DevRel Engineer at Platform.sh. There’ll be plenty more from Marine coming soon, stay tuned!


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    The Change Mode PodcastBy The Change Mode podcast