Access Conference Code of Conduct

While it does not wish to limit the serious discussion of difficult topics, the Access conference is dedicated to providing a harassment-free experience for everyone. Harassment will not be tolerated in any form.

Examples of harassment include:

• offensive comments or imagery related to gender, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, language spoken, race, or religion
• sexual images in public spaces
• deliberate intimidation, stalking, or following
• harassing photography or recording
• sustained disruption of talks or other events
• inappropriate physical contact
• unwelcome sexual attention

We expect conference participants to follow this code of conduct at all times during the conference, which includes the hackfest and workshops, and at conference-related social events, in online communication channels, and in the content of conference presentations. Participants who do not respect the code of conduct may be sanctioned by conference organizers, as described below.

Recognizing the value of academic freedom and the necessity of challenging power structures even when it is uncomfortable, we affirm that discussion or imagery related to sex, pornography, racism, discriminatory language, and similar topics is allowable as long as it is necessary to the topic of discussion and no alternative exists, and it is presented in a respectful manner, especially towards women, LGBTQIA people, and other marginalized communities.

We value everyone’s participation in the Access community. With your help, we will ensure that Access is a safe and friendly space for all participants.

Conflict Resolution

Adapted from the Code4Lib code of conduct

1. Initial Incident

If you are being harassed or notice that someone else is being harassed, and you feel comfortable speaking with the offending party, consider telling the person the effect their behaviour is having. Oftentimes, the offending behavior is unintentional, and the two parties can resolve the incident by having a brief discussion.

If you are informed by someone that they consider your behaviour to be harassment, we expect you to listen to their concern and stop the behaviour.

We recognize that you may not wish to speak directly to someone who is harassing you for any number of reasons, such as: unfamiliarity with the conference or its participants, lack of spoons, or concern for personal safety. If you don’t feel comfortable speaking directly with the offending party for any reason, please contact one of the organizing committee members. Remote attendees should use the Zoom chat to communicate with us (it will be faster than email). In-person attendees should talk to a member of the Organizing Committee, recognizable by our red Carleton lanyards and green Access buttons. If you don’t feel comfortable speaking directly with us, you can email us at accesslibcon@gmail.com, but it will take us longer to respond.

2. Escalation

If a discussion with the offending party does not resolve the issue, if you are being actively harassed, or if you do not wish to engage with the person directly for any reason, please contact one of the organizing committee members. Remote attendees should use the Zoom chat to communicate with us (it will be faster than email). In-person attendees should talk to a member of the Organizing Committee, recognizable by our red Carleton lanyards and green Access buttons. If you don’t feel comfortable speaking directly with us, you can email us at accesslibcon@gmail.com, but it will take us longer to respond.

When you approach an organizing committee member, you can expect the following: We will listen to you. We will respect your wishes about whether to proceed with sanctions. Decisions to apply stronger sanctions will be made by the member in conjunction with one or more members of the organizing committee.

Sanctions

Adapted from the Code4Lib code of conduct

Participants are expected to comply immediately when asked by a organizing committee member to stop harassing behavior. If a participant engages in harassing behavior, organizers reserve the right to apply sanctions and take whatever action they deem appropriate.

Specific sanctions may include, but are not limited to:

• warning the harasser to cease the harassing behavior
• requiring that the harasser avoid any interaction with or physical proximity to the complainant for the remainder of the conference
• requiring that the harasser immediately leave the event in progress
• requiring that the harasser not return to subsequent events during the conference
• revoking volunteer responsibilities and privileges, if the harasser is a volunteer
• declining to publish the video or slides of a talk that violates the code of conduct