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Why We Have a Code of Conduct

Thoth Open Metadata is a community-led and community-focused non-profit. We value the involvement of everyone in our activities, and to enable this we are committed to creating a friendly and respectful place for sharing, exchange, and the development of projects and products. All participants in our activities are expected to show respect and courtesy to others.

Thoth is dedicated to providing a welcoming and supportive environment for all people, regardless of background or identity. We want our activities to take place in a positive, safe and healthy environment for anyone who joins (and wants to join) and we pledge to make participation a harassment-free experience for everyone. As such, we do not tolerate behaviour that is disrespectful or that excludes, intimidates, or causes discomfort to others. We do not tolerate discrimination or harassment based on characteristics that include, but are not limited to, gender identity, orientation, and expression, sexual orientation, visible or invisible disability, physical appearance, body size, citizenship, nationality, ethnic or social origin, pregnancy, familial status, veteran status, genetic information, religion or belief (or lack thereof), membership of a national minority, property, age, education, socio-economic status, technical choices, and experience level.

We are committed to ensuring that this remains so, including by embracing this Code of Conduct (short: CoC) and revisiting it for updates as needed.This Code of Conduct defines a minimum set of guidelines of expected and unacceptable behaviour.

To Whom Does This Code of Conduct Apply?

To make clear what is expected, everyone participating in Thoth’s activities is required to abide by the Code of Conduct. It applies equally to everyone who interacts and contributes to Thoth activities and spaces without any exceptions (e.g., we will make no exceptions based on standing, skills or accomplishments). This includes team members and collaborators, event organisers and participants, and board members of Thoth.

Participants in our activities accept to abide by Thoth’s Code of Conduct and accept the procedures by which any Code of Conduct incidents are resolved. It applies to all of Thoth’s technical spaces, in-person and virtual events, including workshops and conferences (workshop and conference hosts are expected to assist with the enforcement of the Code of Conduct), as well as the following instances:

  • private, public and semi-public interactions
  • disagreements and expressions of solidarity
  • issues of technical development
  • aspects of content contribution
  • cases of representing collaborators with external partners

This Code of Conduct applies to all spaces managed by Thoth, including, but not limited to, Thoth email lists and online fora such as GitHub, Nextcloud, Mattermost, Zoom, Jitsi, X (formerly Twitter), Mastodon, and any other fora created by Thoth members which the community uses for communication and exchange. In addition, violations of this code outside these spaces may affect a person's ability to participate within them. This Code of Conduct also applies when an individual is officially representing Thoth publicly. Examples of representing our community include using an official email address, posting via an official social media account, or acting as an appointed representative at an online or offline event.

By participating, Thoth team members and collaborators indicate their acceptance of the procedures by which Thoth resolves any Code of Conduct incidents, which may include storage and processing of their personal information. Actions that contradict the Code of Conduct can result in sanctions (see Enforcement Guidelines).

Our Values

Any form of behaviour to exclude, intimidate, or cause discomfort is a violation of the Code of Conduct. In order to foster a positive and professional environment we encourage examples of the following kinds of behaviours:

  • Use welcoming and inclusive language;
  • Be careful in the words that you choose;
  • Be friendly and patient;
  • Be respectful of different viewpoints, opinions, and experiences;
  • Show courtesy and respect towards others;
  • Demonstrate empathy and kindness towards other people;
  • Give and gracefully accept constructive criticism and feedback;
  • Accept responsibility and apologise to those affected by our mistakes, and learn from the experience;
  • Focus on what is best not just for us as individuals, but for the overall community

In all Thoth activities, spaces and events, behaviour will be founded in respect, civility, collegiality, solidarity, and good citizenship. This applies to all contributors and participants in their interaction with all contributors and participants.

Your work will be used by other people, and you in turn will depend on the work of others. Any decision you take will affect users and colleagues, and you should take those consequences into account when making decisions. Remember that we are an international group of people, so you might not be communicating in someone else's primary language.

Not all of us will agree all the time, but disagreement is no excuse for poor behaviour and poor manners. We might all experience some frustration now and then, but we cannot allow that frustration to turn into a personal attack. It is important to remember that an environment where people feel uncomfortable or threatened is not a productive one.

Mutual Respect

Thoth team members and collaborators should be respectful when dealing with others. In communicating with people, whether in online or offline Thoth environments, we will treat each other with mutual respect.

Mutual respect includes following these practices:

  • Practice empathy. Listen and try to understand what Thoth members and collaborators of different backgrounds want to tell you. Be ready to challenge and adapt your own understanding, expectations and behaviour.
  • Assume good faith and engage in constructive edits. Your contributions should improve the quality of the project or work. Provide and receive feedback kindly and in good faith. Criticism should be delivered in a sensitive and constructive manner. All Thoth members and collaborators should assume unless evidence otherwise exists that others are here to collaboratively improve the projects, but this should not be used to justify statements with a harmful impact.
  • Respect the way that contributors name and describe themselves. People may use specific terms to describe themselves. As a sign of respect, use these terms when communicating with or about these people, where linguistically or technically feasible. Examples include:
    • Ethnic groups may use a specific name to describe themselves, rather than the name historically used by others;
    • People may have names that use letters, sounds, or words from their language which may be unfamiliar to you;
    • People who identify with a certain sexual orientation or gender identity may use distinct names, or pronouns;
    • People having a particular physical or mental disability may use particular terms to describe themselves
  • Welcome everyone. During in-person meetings, we will be welcoming to everyone and we will be mindful and respectful of each others’ preferences, boundaries, sensibilities, traditions, and requirements.

Civility, Collegiality, Mutual Support and Good Citizenship

This includes but is not limited to:

  • Mentorship and coaching. Helping newcomers to find their way and acquire essential skills.
  • Looking out for fellow community members. Lending them a hand when they need support, and speaking up for them when they are treated in a way that falls short of expected behaviour as per the Code of Conduct.
  • Recognise and credit the work done by contributors. Thanking them for their help and work. Appreciating their efforts and giving credit where it is due.

Unacceptable Behaviour

We conduct ourselves professionally. Be kind and respectful to others. Do not insult or put down others. Public or private harassment and other types of exclusionary behaviour are not acceptable.

Examples of unacceptable behaviour include, but are not limited to:

  • Written or verbal comments which have the effect of excluding people on the basis of membership of any specific group;
  • Causing someone to fear for their safety, such as through stalking, following, or other forms of intimidation;
  • Non-consensual or unwelcome physical contact;
  • Sustained disruption of talks, events, or communications;
  • Excessive swearing;
  • Incitement to violence, suicide, or self-harm;
  • Insults or put downs;
  • Violent threats or language directed against another person;
  • Discriminatory jokes and language (e.g., sexist, racist, homophobic, transphobic, ableist, or exclusionary jokes);
  • Posting sexually explicit or violent material;
  • Trolling, insulting, or derogatory comments, and personal or political attacks;
  • Publishing (or threatening to publish) other people's personally identifying information, such as physical or digital information without reasonable project or work-specific relevancy ("doxing");
  • Continuing to initiate interaction (including photography or recording) with someone after being asked to stop;
  • Repeated public or private harassment (further details see below) of others. In general, if someone asks you to stop, then stop;
  • Publication of private communication without consent;
  • Personal insults, especially those using racist or sexist terms;
  • Unwelcome sexual attention;
  • The use of sexualised language or imagery, sexual attention, or sexual advances of any kind;
  • Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behaviour.

Disagreements, both social and technical, happen all the time. It is important that we resolve disagreements and differing views constructively. Different people have different perspectives on issues. Being unable to understand why someone holds a viewpoint does not mean that they are wrong. Don’t forget that it is human to err, and blaming each other does not get us anywhere. Instead, focus on collectively helping to resolve issues and learning from mistakes.

Harassment

This includes any behaviour intended primarily to intimidate, outrage, or upset a person, or any behaviour where this would reasonably be considered the most likely main outcome. Behaviour can be considered harassment if it is beyond what a person would be expected to tolerate in a global, intercultural environment. Harassment often takes the form of emotional abuse, especially towards people who are in a vulnerable position, and may include contacting workplaces or friends and family members in an effort to intimidate or embarrass someone. In some cases, behaviour that would not rise to the level of harassment in a single case can become harassment through repetition.

Harassment includes but is not limited to:

  • Insults. This includes name calling, using slurs or stereotypes, and any attacks based on personal characteristics. Insults may refer to perceived characteristics like intelligence, appearance, ethnicity, race, religion (or lack thereof), culture, caste, sexual orientation, gender, sex, disability, age, nationality, political affiliation, or other identity characteristics. In some cases, repeated mockery, sarcasm, or aggression constitute insults collectively, even if individual statements would not;
  • Sexual harassment. Sexual attention or advances of any kind towards others where the person knows or reasonably should know that the attention is unwelcome or in situations where consent cannot be communicated;
  • Threats. Explicitly or implicitly suggesting the possibility of physical violence, unfair embarrassment, unfair and unjustified reputational harm, or intimidation by suggesting gratuitous legal action to win an argument or force someone to behave the way you want;
  • Encouraging harm to others. This includes encouraging someone else to commit self-harm or suicide as well as encouraging someone to conduct violent attacks on a third party;
  • Disclosure of personal data (doxing). Sharing other contributors' private information, such as name, place of employment, physical or email address without their explicit consent either on Thoth projects or elsewhere, or sharing information concerning their Thoth activity outside the projects;
  • Hounding. Following a person across the project(s) and repeatedly critiquing their work mainly with the intent to upset or discourage them;
  • Trolling. Deliberately disrupting conversations or posting in bad-faith to intentionally provoke.

Abuse of Power, Privilege, or Influence

Abuse occurs when someone in a real or perceived position of power, privilege, or influence engages in disrespectful, cruel, and/or violent behaviour towards other people. In Thoth activities, it may take the form of verbal or psychological abuse and may overlap with harassment. This includes:

  • Abuse of office by functionaries, officials and staff. The use of authority, knowledge, or resources at the disposal of designated functionaries, to intimidate or threaten others;
  • Abuse of seniority and connections. Using one's position and reputation to intimidate others. We expect people with significant experience and connections in the movement to behave with special care because hostile comments from them may carry an unintended backlash. People with authority have a particular privilege to be viewed as reliable and should not abuse this privilege to attack others who disagree with them;
  • Psychological manipulation. Maliciously causing someone to doubt their own perceptions, senses, or understanding with the objective to win an argument, or force someone to behave the way you want;

Reporting Instructions

The Thoth Code of Conduct Committee is responsible for enforcing the Code of Conduct. It can be contacted by emailing conduct (@) thoth.pub.

All reports will be reviewed by the Code of Conduct Committee according to our Enforcement Guidelines (see underneath) and will be kept confidential. A report guarantees review, but not necessarily that an action will be taken.

Code of Conduct Incident Reporting Guidelines

If you are participating in a Thoth activity and believe someone is in physical danger, please ask your activity host, or another community member to contact the appropriate emergency responders (police, crisis hotline, etc.). Prior to a Thoth in-person activityt, event organisers should determine emergency contact numbers and local procedures.

If you believe someone violated the Code of Conduct during a Thoth activity, we ask that you report it. If you are not sure if the incident happened in a Thoth-governed space, we ask that you still report the incident. You are encouraged to submit your report by emailing conduct (@) thoth.pub.

You may report anonymously, or you can include your contact information. Your email to this address will be seen by all of the Thoth Code of Conduct Committee. If you are uncomfortable reporting to the Code of Conduct Committee, or if your report concerns a current member of the Code of Conduct Committee, incidents can also be reported to Toby Steiner, the current Chair of the Code of Conduct Committee, separately at toby (@) thoth.pub. The Chair will follow the usual enforcement process with the other Committee members, but will exclude the member(s) that the report concerns from any discussion or decision making. If your report concerns the current Chair of the Committee, please send your report to any of the other CoC Committee members, who will follow the usual enforcement process with the other Committee members, but will exclude the Chair.

You are welcome to report an incident anonymously. If you would like someone to follow-up with you about the progress of your incident report however, you would need to provide contact information.

All reports will be kept confidential with details shared only with the Code of Conduct Committee members. In the case that a CoC Committee member is involved in a report, the member will be asked to recuse themselves from ongoing conversations, and they will not have access to reports after the enforcement decision has been made. Resolution action may also include removal of that member from the CoC Committee.

Some incidents happen in one-on-one interactions, and though details are anonymised, the reported person may be able to guess who made the report. If you have concerns about retaliation or your personal safety, please note those concerns in your report. You are still encouraged to report the incident so that we can support you while keeping others safe. In some cases, we can compile several anonymised reports into a pattern of behaviour, and take action on that pattern.

The Code of Conduct Committee may determine that a public statement should be made about the incident and/or the action taken. If that is the case, the identities of all reporters and reportees will remain confidential unless those individuals instruct the CoC Committee otherwise.

In your report please include as much of the following as possible:

  • Your contact info (optional — so we can get in touch with you if we need to follow up);
  • Names (real, nicknames, or pseudonyms) of any individuals involved. If there were other witnesses besides you, please try to include them as well;
  • When and where the incident occurred. Please be as specific as possible;
  • Your account of what occurred. If there is a publicly available record (e.g. a mailing list archive) please include a link to that record;
  • Any extra context you believe existed for the incident;
  • If you believe this incident is ongoing;
  • Any other information you believe we should have.

What happens after you file a report?

Following Up with Reporter(s): Once a report is received at the email address provided above, the Code of Conduct Committee will handle the review and follow up according to the procedures in the Enforcement Guidelines. You will receive an email from the CoC Committee acknowledging receipt as soon as possible. We aim to acknowledge receipt within 24 business hours.

The Committee will immediately meet to review the incident and determine:

  • What happened;
  • Whether this event constitutes a Code of Conduct violation;
  • Who the bad actor was;
  • Whether this is an isolated incident, an ongoing situation, or if there is a threat to anyone's physical safety.

The Committee is empowered to act on Thoth's behalf in contacting any individuals involved to get a more complete account of events. If this is determined to be an ongoing incident or a threat to physical safety, the working groups' immediate priority will be to protect everyone involved. This means we may delay an "official" response until we believe that the situation has ended and that everyone is physically safe.

Once the Committee has a complete account of the events they will make a decision as to how to respond. The Committee should aim to have a resolution agreed upon within one week. In the event that a resolution can't be determined in that time, the Committee will respond to the reporter(s) with an update and projected timeline for resolution. Once the Committee has determined their final action, they will contact the original reporter to let them know what action (if any) they will be taking. They will take into account feedback from the reporter on the appropriateness of their response, but they don't guarantee they will act on it. Finally, the Committee will make a report on the situation to the Thoth Directors. The Thoth Directors may choose to make a public report of the incident.

This information will be collected in writing, and whenever possible or appropriate the committee's deliberations will be recorded and retained (i.e., email discussions, recorded voice conversations, etc.).

Immediate Response

Participants who are asked to stop any inappropriate behaviour are expected to comply immediately. This applies to any Thoth events and platforms, either online or in-person. If a participant engages in behaviour that violates this Code of Conduct, the organisers may warn the offender, ask them to leave the event or platform, or engage Thoth’s Code of Conduct Committee to investigate the Code of Conduct violation and impose appropriate sanctions.

Everybody participating in Thoth activities should feel empowered to enforce the Code of Conduct. Ideally, we would all be able to defuse an incident. In practice, we have varying comfort with situations depending on our current experience and the environment. Below are ways that you can be supportive and steps that you can take during or after an incident.

If you can, move from being a bystander to being a Code of Conduct first responder. If you see something inappropriate happening, speak up. If you don’t feel comfortable intervening, but feel someone should, please submit a report in person to a workshop host or instructor or via the email address provided above to the Code of Conduct Committee.

Depending on the severity or details of the incident, an immediate response may be required. If an incident involves physical danger or involves a threat to anyone’s safety (e.g., threats of violence), any member of the community may – and should – act immediately to protect the safety of others. This can include contacting emergency or crisis resources.

Immediate Response Checklist

  • Assess whether you need a first-responder (law enforcement, etc.) to immediately respond to the incident. If so, ask the reporter to stay with you and dial the appropriate emergency response number;
  • If there is any general threat to participants and/or the safety of anyone attending a Thoth event, contact the emergency response number established;
  • If individuals are physically safe, contact law enforcement or security only at the reporter’s request;
  • Follow any local guidelines for handling incidents, including if you have a legal reporting role;

Individuals reported often get upset, defensive, or deny the report. Allow them to give any additional details about the incident. However, remember:

  • It does not matter if they did not intend to hurt anyone; their behaviour still impacted participants negatively;
  • It is not your job to reassure or forgive them;
  • Do not allow the reported person to make an apology to the reporter or impacted person.
    Often an apology centres the reported person’s feelings and not the person who was impacted. You may accept their apology and offer to pass it on, but you are not required to if you think it would negatively impact the reporter.

Enforcement Guidelines

All responses to reports of conduct violations will be managed by the Thoth Code of Conduct Committee. This section outlines the Incident Response Procedure and Enforcement Guidelines followed by the Thoth Code of Conduct Committee once an incident report is received by emailing conduct@thoth.pub.

These guidelines are used when the Committee reviews and resolves incidents to ensure consistency, transparency and fairness.

The Thoth Directors will establish this committee, which is composed of the COO and one Thoth Director. One member will be designated Chair of the committee and will be responsible for all reports back to the Thoth Directors. The Directors will review membership on a regular basis.

Resolutions

The Committee must agree on a resolution by the majority of all members investigating the incident in question. If the Committee cannot reach a majority decision and the Committee finds itself in deadlock for more than one week, the Committee will turn the matter over to the Thoth Directors for resolution.

What follows are examples of possible resolutions to an incident report. This list is not comprehensive, and the Thoth Code of Conduct Committee reserves the right to take any action it deems necessary to resolve an incident. Possible resolutions to an incident include:

  • Taking no further action, if the Code of Conduct Committee determined there was no breach in the Code of Conduct;
  • A private verbal reprimand from the Committee/a Committee member to the individual(s) involved. This conversation may happen in person, over video conference call, or by phone. The Committee/a Committee member will write a short report of the conversation to be shared with the reportee for verification purposes and then shared with the Committee and maintained on record in a private CoC Committee folder on the Thoth NextCloud;
  • A private emailed reprimand from the Committee/a Committee member to the individual(s) involved providing clarity around the nature of the violation and an explanation of why the behaviour was inappropriate. The Committee/a Committee member will deliver a reprimand to the individual(s) over email, CC’ing the Code of Conduct Committee;
  • A public announcement of an incident. In this case, a Committee member will deliver that reprimand ideally in the same venue that the violation occurred (e.g., on Mattermost for a Mattermost violation). The Committee may choose to publish this message elsewhere for posterity;
  • An imposed suspension (i.e., asking someone to “take a week off” from Thoth meetings and communication channels). The Committee/a Committee member will communicate this suspension to the reportee. The suspension includes no interaction with the people involved, including unsolicited interaction with those enforcing the Code of Conduct, for a specified period of time. The reportee will be asked to take this suspension voluntarily, but if they do not agree, then a temporary ban may be imposed to enforce this suspension.
  • A permanent or temporary ban from some or all Thoth spaces (Mattermost, NextCloud, workshops and meetings, etc.). The CoC Committee will maintain records of all such bans so that they may be reviewed in the future, extended to new communication forums, or otherwise maintained.
  • A request for a public or private apology. A Committee member will deliver this request. The committee may, if it chooses, attach "strings" to this request: e.g., the committee may ask a violator to apologise in order to retain their membership on a mailing list.

During a workshop/conference or event

  • Requiring that the reportee avoid any interaction with, and physical proximity to, another person for the remainder of the Thoth activity;
  • Ending a talk that violates the Code of Conduct early;
  • Not publishing the video or slides of a talk that violated the Code of Conduct;
  • Not allowing a speaker who violated the Code of Conduct to give (further) talks at Thoth activities now or in the future;
  • Requiring that the reportee not volunteer for future Thoth activities either indefinitely or for a certain time period determined by the Committee;
  • Requiring that the reportee refund any travel grant funding they received;
  • Requiring that the reportee immediately leave an activity and not return;
  • Immediately ending any volunteer responsibilities and privileges the reportee holds.

Following up with the Reporter and Reportee

Once a resolution is agreed upon, but before it is enacted, the Committee will contact the original reporter and any other affected parties and explain the proposed resolution. The Committee will ask if this resolution is acceptable, and must note feedback for the record. However, the committee is not required to act on this feedback.

When following up with the reportee, the CoC Committee representatives will:

  • Explain that an incident was reported that involves the reportee; In this explanation, the focus will be on the impact of their behaviour, not their intent;
  • Reiterate the Code of Conduct and that their behaviour was deemed inappropriate;
  • Provide concrete examples of how they can improve their behaviour;
  • Give them the opportunity to state their view of the incident;
  • Remind them of the consequences of their behaviour, or future consequences if the behaviour is repeated;
  • Explain the possible resolutions that may be enforced should the Committee determine there is a breach.

Finally the Committee will make a report for the Thoth Project Group in the event of an ongoing resolution, such as a termed suspension or ban. In case the incident or report involves a current member of the Thoth Directors, the committee will provide the report only to the other Directors. The Committee will never publicly discuss the issue; all public statements will be made by the Thoth Directors.

Appeal Process

Any individual(s) involved in a Code of Conduct report handled by CoC committee has the right to appeal a decision made by the Committee. An appeal can be made directly to the Committee (email: conduct@thoth.ac.uk) or to the Chair by sending an email with the subject line Code of Conduct Incident Appeal. Appeals can be requested up to 30 days after a resolution has been determined.

The email should include documentation related to the incident to support the appeal. The said documentation may include, but does not have to be limited to:

  • Information from the reportee justifying the reasoning for the appeal;
  • Statements from third parties involved in the incident to support the appeal.

Accountability

The CoC Committee will submit a report to the Thoth Directors in the event of an ongoing resolution, such as a termed suspension or ban.

At the end of every year, the Thoth Directors will publish an aggregated count of the incidents the Code of Conduct Committee has reviewed, indicating how many reports it received, how many incidents it investigated independently, how many times it acted unilaterally, and, for each of these, under which part of the Code of Conduct the incident was classified.

Conflicts of Interest

In the event of any conflict of interest (a Committee member, their family member, or someone with whom the Committee member has a close academic or employment relationship is involved in a complaint), the Committee member must immediately notify the other members and recuse themselves if necessary.

In the case that a CoC Committee member is involved in a report, the member will be asked to recuse themselves from ongoing conversations, and they will not have access to reports after the enforcement decision has been made. Resolution action may also include removal of that member from the Code of Conduct committee.

Update Logs

This CoC was first published on Friday September 30th 2024.

Subsequent edits will be documented in this section.

About this Document

This document is adapted from guidelines written by

We further consulted:

Contributors to this adapted version include: Tobias Steiner, Vincent van Gerven Oei, Ross Higman, Rupert Gatti