Drupal Announces New Track Leads for Starshot Project Advancement

In a significant development for the Drupal Starshot project, the introduction of "tracks" has been announced as the initiative's next phase. These tracks are designed to focus on specific areas within the project, allowing for more targeted development and contributions. The concept marks an evolution in the Starshot strategy, reflecting Drupal’s commitment to agile, community-driven progress.

The Drupal team recently issued a call for track leads, which received an impressive response from the community. Nearly 65 submissions were received, each offering diverse expertise and visionary ideas. This overwhelming interest posed a challenge to the selection process, underscoring the community’s enthusiasm and depth of talent.

Pamela Barone, in a recent blog post on Drupal.org, announced the final selection of track leads. These individuals bring a wealth of experience in both Drupal and their respective areas of focus:

• Laurens Van Damme from Dropsolid will lead the Blog recipe track.
• Jürgen Haas from LakeDrops will oversee the Privacy track.
• Christian López Espínola and Matthew Tift from Lullabot will co-lead the Dashboard track.
• Jim Birch from Kanopi and John Doyle from Digital Polygon will co-lead the Sitewide SEO recipe track.
• Jamie Abrahams from FreelyGive will spearhead the AI track.
• Tony Barker from Annertech will manage the Media management track.
• Baddy Sonja and the team at 1xINTERNET will guide the Advanced search track.
• Gareth Alexander from Zoocha will lead the Accessibility tools track.
• Dharizza Espinach and the Evolving Web team will handle the Analytics track.
• Pavlos Daniel from Acquia will take charge of the Multilingual content track.

One notable track, the concurrent editing feature, was announced but has been postponed. Its development is contingent on progress within the Experience Builder initiative.

Expanding Opportunities and Future Steps

Introducing these tracks is not the final step in the Starshot project. According to the Starshot strategy outlined by Drupal founder Dries Buytaert, several capabilities have yet to be assigned a track. As the project evolves, additional tracks will be created to align with emerging needs and the community’s capacity.

Three tracks—Starshot documentation, Contact form, and Content publishing workflows—currently remain without a lead. Interested community members are encouraged to review the relevant issues and consider applying for these leadership roles. Candidates are asked to submit a brief vision statement outlining their approach to these tracks.

Moving Forward

The initial task for most track leads will be to develop a detailed proposal. This may involve research to define key requirements for target users and to benchmark features against industry leaders. These proposals will be shared with the broader community for feedback and consultation.

Track leads are also expected to provide regular updates on their progress, though the specifics of these reports are still being determined.

Community members interested in contributing to these tracks or simply following the developments are encouraged to monitor the meta-issues in the Starshot queue or express their interest through comments.

This next phase of the Starshot project represents a collaborative effort to advance Drupal’s capabilities, with the community playing a central role in shaping its future.