James
Seppi

I am a software developer in Austin, Texas, currently writing satellite ground control software at Umbra. I code primarily in Python and JavaScript/TypeScript, with many years of experience in both the front and back end sides of the stack.

Prior to Umbra, I was on the Map Design Team at Mapbox, working on both high availability APIs and large front end applications. Before Mapbox, I worked at 18F, where I was the technical lead on a number of projects that help transform the way the federal government delivers digital services.

I was the lead software developer at the Texas Natural Resources Information System (TNRIS), where I helped transition the group to using and creating open-source software, and to using cloud-based infrastructure.

In my free time, I'm a fiddle and mandolin player, an aspirational rock climber, an enthusiastic traveler, and a decent home cook and beer brewer.

Other interesting tidbits:

• I'm a board member for the Austin Friends of Traditional Music.
• I was the program chair for FOSS4G-NA 2018.
• My wife and I spent six months living at 10,000 feet in Huaraz, Peru, while working on an Engineers Without Borders project to help local communities adapt to climate change.
• I have a Master of Engineering degree in Environmental and Water Resources Engineering from the University of Texas.
• My wife and I swept the awards at the 24th Annual Lone Star Vegetarian Chili Cook-Off.
• As an undergraduate I studied abroad in Hangzhou, China, and I have a Bachelor of Arts degree in Chinese (but I'm extremely out of practice).