Virtual Event Code of Conduct

Introduction

The purpose of this document is to outline what is and is not acceptable behavior during Community Data Science Collective (CDSC) virtual events.

Our goal is to have a professional, safe environment for people to meet one another, learn, and collaborate. We are committed to providing a welcoming, harassment-free environment for everyone. We will not tolerate harassment or discrimination including that of ability, body size, caste, education, ethnicity, gender, nationality, physical appearance, race, religion, sexual orientation, tribe, or work experience or position.

Harassment includes, but is not limited to:

• Comments welcome comments related to or reinforcing social structures of domination including those listed above
• Sexual language or imagery
• Deliberate intimidation, stalking, or following
• Taking screenshots and/or photos without permission
• Sustained disruption of talks or other event
• Unwelcome sexual attention
• Inappropriate or unwelcome private messages that use the event platform or other platforms during the event (i.e. no inappropriate Twitter DMs)
• Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior

Code of Conduct Enforcement

This Code of Conduct covers events, social events, and communications relating to the event.

People who are asked to stop inappropriate behavior are expected to comply immediately. These requests can come from CDSC members, including faculty, researchers, staff, students, and affiliates, or from event attendees either being harassed or witnessing harassment.

Possible reprecussions of violating the code of conduct include warnings, being removed from the event, and being banned from future events.

Reporting

To report a code of conduct violation, if someone makes you feel unsafe or unwelcome, or you witness harassing behavior, please contact a member of CDSC faculty or staff as soon as possible. We can be reached through direct message, email, or IRC. Reports can be made during or after the event. By default, we will consider reports "anonymous."

• Molly de Blanc - molly.deblanc@northwestern.edu - mollydb (irc)
• Aaron Shaw - aaronshaw@northwestern.edu - ashaw (irc)
• Benjamin Mako Hill - makohill@uw.edu - mako (irc)

Reports may be discussed with event organizers or CDSC leadership. People reporting violations will be consulted on this.

Privacy and Chatham House Rule

We want to create a space where people are comfortable sharing their experiences and opinions. Attendees of CDSC events are expected to respect the privacy of attendees who may or may not be representing themselves, their employers, or other organizations. Events will adopt Chatham House Rule: you can share what is said, but not who said it. Please be conscientious when sharing what people say because some things can be identifiable even without using the speaker's name. When in doubt, ask the person who said it.

Additional Guidelines

Do

• Respectfully share what method works best for you, while giving others space to think differently and contribute other ideas
• Speak your own narrative, from your own unique culture
• Model inclusionary expertise - if others in the group appear to be “lost”, slow down; stop and ask for input
• Create events that are all-ages appropriate
• Give everyone a chance to talk, only interrupting if absolutely necessary - for example, Code of Conduct violations
• Stop, listen and ask for clarification if someone perceives your behavior or presentation as violating the Code of Conduct
• Use words that accurately describe the situation - For example, “The wind was ridiculously strong!” instead
• Only discuss someone else’s lifestyle practices if they invite you to a conversation on the topic
• Ask someone before you hug them; keep your hands/body to yourself, even when joking, unless the other person has given verbal consent
• Disengage and find another activity if someone did not invite you and is not engaging with you
• Exercise the right to talk about your own identity if you want to, or not if you don’t want to
• Use the pronouns people have specified for themselves

Do Not

• Disparage entire groups/sets of people for their beliefs or methods
• Caricature the cultural expressions of groups you are not a member of
• Present information in a way / at a level that no one else in the room can understand, with no attempt to include others in the discussion
• Use language that excludes youth and their experiences as vital contributors
• Repeatedly disrupt a discussion
• Ignore others’ request to stop potentially harmful behavior, even if it was an accident
• Joke using words related to actual or insulting descriptions of people
• Use disability and mental/emotional health terminology to describe a situation metaphorically, especially if the phrasing is meant as an insult
• Make unwelcomed comments regarding a person’s lifestyle practices, including those related to food, health, parenting, relationships, and employment
• Initiate physical contact or simulate physical contact without consent
• Violate personal space by continuing your physical presence into private spaces without consent
• Deliberately “out” any aspect of a person’s identity without their consent
• Purposely misgender someone (i.e., refusing to use their correct gender pronouns) after they have told you their correct pronouns

(This section is licensed Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike (CC-BY-SA) Public Lab)

Acknowledgements

This Code of Conduct is inspired by the Code for Science and Society Code of Conduct, which was based on the eLife 2018 Sprint Code of Conduct, which in turn is based on the example anti-harassment policy from the Geek Feminism wiki, created by the Ada Initiative and other volunteers (CC0), and the OpenCon 2017 Code of Conduct (CC-BY OpenCon organisers, SPARC and Right to Research Coalition). This also drew on the Public Lab Code of Conduct.