diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index c0398de..031f540 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -2,6 +2,8 @@ dev_build_version=$(shell git describe --tags --always --dirty)
 
 export PATH := $(shell pwd)/.tmp/protoc/bin:$(PATH)
 export PROTOC_VERSION := 22.0
+# Disable CGO for improved compatibility across distros
+export CGO_ENABLED=0
 
 # TODO: run golint and errcheck, but only to catch *new* violations and
 # decide whether to change code or not (e.g. we need to be able to whitelist
@@ -91,7 +93,8 @@ errcheck:
 
 .PHONY: test
 test:
-	go test -race ./...
+	# The race detector requires CGO: https://github.com/golang/go/issues/6508
+	CGO_ENABLED=1 go test -race ./...
 
 .tmp/protoc/bin/protoc: ./Makefile ./download_protoc.sh
 	./download_protoc.sh