Code of Conduct

Sphere.it is dedicated to providing a harassment-free experience for everyone, regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, age, religion or lack thereof. We do not tolerate harassment of Sphere.it community members in any form.

This code of conduct applies to all Sphere.it spaces, including Sphere.it Newsletter, YouTube Channel, as well as online and offline events. Anyone who violates this code of conduct may be sanctioned or expelled from these spaces at the discretion of the Organiser.

Some Sphere.it spaces may have additional rules in place, which will be made clearly available to participants. Participants are responsible for knowing and abiding by these rules.

Mentor/Mentee

At Sphere.it, we are committed to fostering a mentoring environment that is inclusive, respectful, and free from harassment. Whether you are a mentor or a mentee, we value the principles of equality and open communication. Harassment based on gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, age, religion, or any other characteristic will not be tolerated. Our aim is to create a space where everyone feels empowered to learn, share, and grow. Let’s build a supportive community together.

Trainer/Workshop Participant

In our workshops and training sessions, Sphere.it promotes an atmosphere of mutual respect and collaborative learning. As a participant, you contribute to this positive environment. Discrimination, harassment, or any form of disruptive behavior is not acceptable. We encourage open dialogue, questions, and engagement while maintaining courtesy and consideration for fellow participants and trainers. Let’s make our workshops spaces where diverse perspectives are welcomed, and everyone has the opportunity to benefit from the shared knowledge.


Harassment includes:

  • Abuse of power (including abuses related to position, wealth, race or gender).
  • Homophobia, racism or behavior that discriminates against a group or class of people.
  • Deliberate misgendering or use of ‘dead’ or rejected names.
  • Gratuitous or off-topic sexual images or behaviour where they’re not appropriate.
  • Threats of violence.
  • Incitement of violence towards any individual, including encouraging a person to commit suicide or to engage in self-harm.
  • Deliberate intimidation.
  • Harassing photography or recording, including logging online activity for harassment purposes.
  • Unwelcome sexual attention.
  • Pattern of inappropriate social contact, such as requesting/assuming inappropriate levels of intimacy with others
  • Continued one-on-one communication after requests to cease.
  • Deliberate “outing” of any aspect of a person’s identity without their consent except as necessary to protect vulnerable people from intentional abuse.
  • Publication of non-harassing private communication.

Contact us to report an incident

If, while at Sphere.it event, you have been involved or have witnessed an incident that violates the Code of Conduct, please use our name-optional reporting form to let the Organising Team know immediately. Share as much information as you can to help us make a thorough investigation of the onsite incident.

We will respect confidentiality requests for the purpose of protecting victims of abuse. At our discretion, we may publicly name a person we’ve received harassment complaints or privately warn third parties about them if we believe doing so will increase safety. We will not name harassment victims without their affirmative consent.

Consequences

Participants asked to stop any harassing behavior are expected to comply immediately.

If a participant engages in harassing behavior, the Organiser Team may take any action they deem appropriate, up to and including expulsion from all Sphere.it spaces and identification of the participant as a harasser to other members or the general public.

Attribution

This Code of Conduct was based on JSConf EU, ScalaDays, The Geek Feminism wiki, and the work of Valerie Aurora, “How to Respond to Code of Conduct Reports“.