Every website built on Joomla depends on a healthy ecosystem and that ecosystem is at risk if we only take and never give back. Without new contributors, Joomla is a forest without saplings, and the future of everything built on it is in danger.
Every Step Adds Value
Imagine a forest.
Someone plants trees. Years later, a logger cuts those trees down. A sawmill turns the logs into planks. A carpenter turns those planks into a table, a chair, or even a house.
At every single step, value is added.
The forest alone is not a house. The logs are not furniture. The planks are not yet a home. It is the entire chain, the people who plant, harvest, process and build, that transforms raw potential into something useful, something valuable, something people depend on.
That is exactly how the Joomla ecosystem works.
The Joomla Value Chain
In Joomla, some people plant the trees. They create and maintain the CMS itself. They fix bugs, review pull requests, refactor code, write tests, update documentation, handle security issues and make the architectural decisions that ensure Joomla survives long term.
Others are like the sawmill. They take the core and turn it into extensions, templates, integrations and tools that make it easier for others to build with. They shape the raw material into something structured and usable.
Then come the carpenters. Agencies, freelancers and developers who assemble those pieces into real websites and applications. They create solutions for clients. They generate revenue. They build businesses.
Finally, there are the people who live in the house, the site owners, organisations and end users who rely on Joomla every single day.
At each stage, value is added. No role is insignificant. No role exists in isolation.
The Problem With Only Harvesting
If everyone focuses only on harvesting and no one plants new trees, the forest eventually disappears.
If the logger cuts down every tree without renewal, there will be nothing left to cut. The sawmill will have nothing to process. The carpenter will have nothing to build with. The house will never be constructed.
An ecosystem that only extracts is not sustainable.
Joomla Has No Corporate Safety Net
With Joomla, there is an additional reality we must face. There is no corporate backer. There is no overlord company making money at every step of the chain and reinvesting it back into development. Joomla is one hundred percent community controlled and community driven.
That is one of its greatest strengths. It also means the responsibility is shared by all of us.
If businesses build profitable services on Joomla but never contribute back, not code, not documentation, not translations, not event support, not mentoring, not financial sponsorship, then they are harvesting without planting. It may work for a while. Over time, however, the forest thins.
And if the forest thins too much, Joomla weakens or even dies.
Everyone Shares Responsibility
Sustainability is not someone else’s job. It is not just for the Production Department or OSM. It is not just for volunteers with spare time. It is not just for community enthusiasts. In a community controlled project, everyone who benefits shares responsibility for keeping it healthy.
Contribution does not look the same for everyone. For some, it means writing code. For others, it means testing releases, reporting bugs, improving documentation, helping in the forums, speaking at events, sponsoring infrastructure, mentoring newcomers or giving employees time to contribute. For agencies, it might mean allocating a small percentage of project income back into the ecosystem that made that income possible.
What matters is not the specific form of the contribution. What matters is the recognition that contribution is necessary.
Plant Something
If we only harvest, eventually there will be nothing left to harvest.
Joomla is not just software. It is a living ecosystem. Like any forest, it requires renewal, care and long term thinking. New trees must be planted while others are being used. The forest must be tended, not just consumed.
If we fail to do that, Joomla will not be replaced by something stronger. It will simply fade as the trees run out.
If you benefit from the forest, you share responsibility for its future.
Plant something. Tend the forest.
