Code of Conduct

To be supportive of each other, both proactively and responsively. Offer to help if you see someone struggling or otherwise in need of assistance (taking care not to be patronising or disrespectful). If someone approaches you looking for help or support, be generous with your time and knowledge. If you can’t assist, let them know when you will be able to help or direct them to someone else who may be of assistance.

To be inclusive. Avoid slang or idioms that might not translate across cultures or be deliberate in explaining them in order to share and represent the attendees’ diverse cultures and languages. Speak plainly and avoid acronyms and jargon that not everyone may understand. Be an ally to individuals when you see a need.

To be collaborative. Involve all individuals in any relevant activities including during talks, workshops and mixers/networking.

To be kind. Be polite and friendly in all forms of communication both in person and online.

Avoid demonstrating surprise if a fellow attendee or speaker isn’t familiar with something. Instead, believe in the value of all experiences and ideas whether an individual is new to the industry or conference or is a veteran. Remember all questions are great questions! So please don’t act surprised when people aren’t familiar with a tool, person, place or process. This applies to both technical (“What?! I can’t believe you don’t know what the stack is!”) and non-technical things (“You don’t know who XYZ is?!”).

Try to refrain from correcting people if it’s not necessary. For example, saying “well actually” -this tends to happen when someone says something that’s almost – but not entirely – correct, and you say, “well, actually…” and give a minor correction. This can sometimes happen as part of our effort to let others save face, but most “well-actually” aren’t crucial to the overall conversation. If it’s critical to add your correction, use language that leaves room for the idea that you might be wrong or missing some context, too.

Be aware of exclusionary language. Be careful in the words that you choose, even if it’s as small as choosing “hey, everyone or hey folks” over “hey, guys.” Sexist, racist, ableist, and other exclusionary jokes are not appropriate and will not be tolerated under any circumstance. Any language that is unwelcoming—whether or not it rises to the level of harassment—is also strongly discouraged.

Avoid subtle -isms. Much exclusionary behaviour takes the form of subtle -isms, or microaggressions – small things that make others feel unwelcome. For example, saying “It’s so easy my grandmother could do it” is a subtle -ism with tones of both sexism and ageism. Regardless of intent, these comments can have a significant demeaning impact. If you see a subtle -ism, you can point it out to the relevant person, either publicly or privately, or you can ask a conference committee team member to say something.

Please don’t say - “Comment X wasn’t sexist!” or “That’s not what they meant. You’re being too sensitive.” Similarly, please don’t pile on someone who made a mistake. It’s not a big deal to mess up – just apologise and move on. The same goes for tone policing or responding negatively to the emotion behind a person’s message while ignoring its content (telling someone who is discussing an issue that makes them upset to “calm down” instead of responding to their concerns is an example of tone policing).

Lastly, none of us are perfect. All of us will from time to time fail to live up to our very high standards. What matters isn’t having a perfect track record but owning up to our mistakes and committing to a clear and persistent effort to improve. If you are approached as having (consciously or otherwise) acted in a way that might make an individual or community feel unwelcome, listen with an open mind and avoid becoming defensive. Remember that if someone offers you feedback, it likely took a great deal of courage for them to do so. The best way to respect that courage is to acknowledge your mistake, apologise, and move on — with a renewed commitment to do better.