Code of Conduct

This conference is a community event intended for discussion, networking, and collaboration. We value the participation of every member of the community and want all attendees to have an enjoyable and fulfilling experience. Accordingly, all attendees are expected to show respect and courtesy to other attendees throughout the event and in interactions online associated with the event.

The conference organizers are dedicated to providing a harassment-free experience for everyone, regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, age, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, ethnicity, religion (or lack thereof), technology choices, or other group status.

To make clear what is expected, everyone taking part in the conference and associated discussions—organizers and attendees—is required to conform to the following Code of Conduct.

All conference participants are expected to follow this code throughout the event, and you may also contact the anyone on Code of Conduct subcommittee (Nicole Labbe, Vi Rapp, and Kyle Niemeyer) directly by email; see contact information below. All communication will be treated as confidential.

To that end, we ask all attendees to adhere to the following guidance:

  • Communicate appropriately for a professional audience including people of many different backgrounds. Sexual language and imagery are not appropriate for any event.
  • Be kind to others. Do not insult or put down other attendees. Be mindful of jargon, which can sometimes exclude others from engaging in the discussion.
  • Behave professionally. Remember that harassment and sexist, racist, ageist, or exclusionary behavior are not appropriate.

Note that as a community event, we take a community approach to ensuring the safety and comfort of all attendees. Everyone is responsible for assisting in any circumstances where anyone appears to not following the Code of Conduct.

Conflict Resolution

If someone makes you or anyone else feel unsafe or unwelcome, please report it as soon as possible to a member of the Code of Conduct subcommittee if you are hesitant about addressing the person yourself. At any time, you can reach the subcommittee either in person or via email (see contact information below). The subcommittee is committed to address and resolve the issue in question to the best of their abilities.

Harassment and other code of conduct violations reduce the value of our event for everyone. We want you to be happy at our event. A harassment-free environment makes our event more conducive to research creativity and productivity.

You can make a report either personally or anonymously.

Sanctions

Participants asked to stop any behavior that makes others uncomfortable are expected to comply immediately. If a participant engages in harassing behavior, organizers will take any action they deem appropriate, including warning the person in question, removing the harasser from the WSSCI meeting, or banning the offender from a mailing list.

Specific actions may include but are not limited to:

  • warning the person to cease their behavior and that any further reports will result in other sanctions
  • requiring that the person avoid any interaction with, and physical proximity to, their victim for the remainder of the event
  • immediately ending any event, volunteer responsibilities, and privileges the harasser holds and requiring that the person to not volunteer for future events (either indefinitely or for a certain time period)
  • requiring that the person immediately leave the event and not return
  • banning the person from future events (either indefinitely or for a certain time period)
  • banning the person from participation in follow-on activities (e.g., report or paper writing)

Conference organizers can be identified by their name badges, and will help participants contact hotel/venue security or local law enforcement, provide escorts, or otherwise assist those experiencing harassment to feel safe for the duration of the event.

If an incident occurs, please use the following contact information:

Code of Conduct (CoC) subcommittee:

We expect participants to follow these rules at all conference venues, conference-related social events, community gatherings, and online communication channels.

Thank you for your participation in this community, and your efforts to keep our conference a safe and friendly space for all participants!

(Based on the WSSSPE4 Code of Conduct, which was based on the FORCE11 Code of Conduct, Code4Lib Code Of Conduct, inspired by the ADA Initiative.)

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