Organizational Policy

The System Consortium endeavors to make the organization welcoming, safe, and equitable for all.

As a member of SysCon, all members of the crew are beholden to certain responsibilities and granted certain rights within the context of their membership beyond, though never supplanting, those guaranteed by the United Nations. These rights and responsibilities are laid out in this manual, which is made available in Netspace and aboard the stations themselves.

Encouraged Behaviors

While acknowledging differences in social norms, we all strive to meet our organization's expectations for positive behavior. We also understand that our words and actions may be interpreted differently than we intend based on culture, background, or native language.

With these considerations in mind, we agree to behave mindfully toward each other and act in ways that center our shared values, including:

1. Respecting the purpose of our community, our activities, and our ways of gathering.
2. Engaging kindly and honestly with others.
3. Respecting different viewpoints and experiences.
4. Taking responsibility for our actions and contributions.
5. Gracefully giving and accepting constructive feedback.
6. Committing to repairing harm when it occurs.
7. Behaving in other ways that promote and sustain the well-being of our community.

Restricted Behaviors

We agree to restrict the following behaviors in our community. Instances, threats, and promotion of these behaviors are violations of this Code of Conduct.

1. Harassment. Violating explicitly expressed boundaries or engaging in unnecessary personal attention after any clear request to stop.
2. Character attacks. Making insulting, demeaning, or pejorative comments directed at a member of the organization or group of people.
3. Stereotyping or discrimination. Characterizing anyone's personality or behavior on the basis of immutable identities or traits.
4. Sexualization. Behaving in a way that would generally be considered inappropriately intimate in the context or purpose of the organization.
5. Violating confidentiality. Sharing or acting on someone's personal or private information without their permission.
6. Endangerment. Causing, encouraging, or threatening violence or other harm toward any person or group.
7. Behaving in other ways that threaten the well-being of SysCon, the System, or Infolife as a whole.

Other restrictions

1. Misleading identity. Impersonating someone else for any reason, or pretending to be someone else to evade enforcement actions.
2. Promotional materials. Sharing marketing or other commercial content in a way that works counter to the goals of the organization.
3. Irresponsible communication. Failing to responsibly present content which includes, links, or describes any other restricted behaviors.

Reporting an Issue

Tensions can occur between community members even when they are trying their best to collaborate. Not every conflict represents a policy violation, and this organization policy reinforces encouraged behaviors and norms that can help avoid conflicts and minimize harm.

When an incident does occur, it is important to report it promptly. To report a possible violation, contact Central Administration via fax or Netspace. Be sure to include your station name and UN designation.

Station leadership and contracted UN Peacekeepers take reports of violations seriously and will make every effort to respond in a timely manner. They will investigate all reports of code of conduct violations, reviewing messages, logs, and recordings, or interviewing witnesses and other participants. These individuals will keep investigation and enforcement actions as transparent as possible while prioritizing safety and confidentiality. In order to honor these values, enforcement actions are carried out in private with the involved parties, but communicating to the whole organization may be part of a mutually agreed upon resolution.

Addressing and Repairing Harm

This information is expanded upon further in the security policy document, but a brief rundown is provided here for context.

If an investigation by the Community Moderators finds that this Code of Conduct has been violated, the following enforcement ladder may be used to determine how best to repair harm, based on the incident's impact on the individuals involved and the community as a whole. Depending on the severity of a violation, lower rungs on the ladder may be skipped.

1. Warning
   1. Event: A violation involving a single incident or series of incidents.
   2. Consequence: A private, written warning from Central Administration, the station leadership, or contracted Peacekeepers
   3. Repair: Examples of repair include a private written apology, acknowledgement of responsibility, and seeking clarification on expectations.
2. Temporarily Limited Participation
   1. Event: A repeated incidence of a violation that previously resulted in a warning, or the first incidence of a more serious violation.
   2. Consequence: A private, written warning with a time-limited cooldown period designed to underscore the seriousness of the situation and give the community members involved time to process the incident. The cooldown period may be limited to particular communication channels or interactions with particular crew members.
   3. Repair: Examples of repair may include making an apology, using the cooldown period to reflect on actions and impact, and being thoughtful about re-entering community spaces after the period is over.
3. Temporary Suspension
   1. Event: A pattern of repeated violation which the station leadership or Peacekeepers have tried to address with warnings, or a single serious violation.
   2. Consequence: A private written warning with conditions for return from suspension. In general, temporary suspensions give the person being suspended time to reflect upon their behavior and possible corrective actions.
   3. Repair: Examples of repair include respecting the spirit of the suspension, meeting the specified conditions for return, and being thoughtful about how to reintegrate with the community when the suspension is lifted.
4. Permanent Removal
   1. Event: A pattern of repeated code of conduct violations that other steps on the ladder have failed to resolve, or a violation so serious that the station leadership determine there is no way to keep the organization safe with this person as a member.
   2. Consequence: Access to all community spaces, tools, and communication channels is removed. In general, permanent removal should be rarely used, should have strong reasoning behind them, and should only be resorted to if working through other remedies has failed to change the behavior.
   3. Repair: There is no possible repair in cases of this severity.

This enforcement ladder is intended as a guideline. It does not limit the ability of Central Administration, station leadership, or Peacekeepers to use their discretion and judgment, in keeping with the best interests of our community.

Scope

This policy applies both within all SysCon spaces and when an individual is officially representing the organization in public or other spaces. Examples of representing our community include using official Netspace outlets; interacting with cladists living sys-side, other forms of Infolife, or other individuals in Wetspace in the process of station construction or management; or acting as an appointed representative in any venue.

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(Adapted from the Contributor Covenant, released under a CC-BY-SA 4.0 license)