Code of Conduct

PyCascades is a regional conference made up of a mixture of professionals and volunteers from all over the world, working on every aspect of the mission — including mentorship, teaching and connecting people.

Diversity is one of our huge strengths, but it can also lead to communication issues. To support a welcoming environment for all, regardless of individual differences, we have a few ground rules that we ask people to adhere to when they participate in this community activities. These rules apply equally to founders, organizers, moderators, sponsors, and affiliates — in short, to all participants.

This isn’t an exhaustive list of things that you must do, or can’t do. Rather, take it in the spirit in which it’s intended. It’s a guide to make it easier to enrich all of us and the technical communities in which we participate, and which we represent.

The principles

• Be friendly and welcoming. We strive to be a community that welcomes and supports people of all backgrounds and identities. This includes, but is not limited to, members of any race, ethnicity, culture, national origin, color, immigration status, social and economic class, educational level, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, age, size, family status, political belief, religion, and mental and physical ability.
• Be respectful. Not all of us will agree all the time, but disagreement is no excuse for poor behavior 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’s important to remember that a community where people feel uncomfortable or threatened is not a productive one. Members of the Python community should be respectful when dealing with other members as well as with people outside the community.
• Be careful in the words that you choose. We are a community of professionals, and we conduct ourselves professionally. Be kind to others. Do not insult or put down other participants, individually or as a group. Harassment and other exclusionary behavior aren’t acceptable. This includes, but is not limited to:
  • Violent threats or language directed against another person.
  • Discriminatory jokes and language.
  • Posting sexually explicit or violent material.
  • Posting (or threatening to post) other people’s personally identifying information ("doxing").
  • Personal insults, especially those using racist or sexist terms.
  • Unwelcome sexual attention.
  • Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior.
  • Repeated harassment of others. In general, if someone asks you to stop, then stop.

Where does the code of conduct apply

This code of conduct applies to all spaces managed by PyCascades. This includes:

• Conferences (including social events and peripheral activities)
• Unconferences and sprints
• Meetups
• Workshops
• Presentation materials used in talks or sessions
• Slack
• Mailing lists
• GitHub
• Twitter hashtag
• meetup.com discussion boards
• Any other forums created by the which the community uses for communication.

In addition, violations of this code outside these spaces may affect a person’s ability to participate within them.

Sponsors, affiliates, and exhibitors

When you sponsor a PyCascades event, we welcome you as a member of our community, and we expect you to be respectful to the community you operate within.

All exhibitors in the expo hall, sponsor or vendor booths, or similar activities are also subject to the code of conduct. In particular, exhibitors should not use sexualized images, activities, or other material. Booth staff (including volunteers) must not use sexualized clothing/uniforms/costumes, or otherwise create a sexualized environment.

In addition, sponsors and affiliates of conference, meetups, and online activities should not employ aggressive recruiting techniques, invasive marketing behavior, or similar actions towards community members. In case of violations, sponsors might be sanctioned and expelled from the event or activity with no return of the sponsorship contribution.

What to do in case of violations

If you believe that someone is violating the code of conduct during one of our events, please contact a member of the event staff immediately. Event staff can be identified by t-shirts/special badges.

If you believe someone is violating the code of conduct in one of our online platforms, we ask that you report it by emailing conduct@pycascades.com. To help us respond in the best way to the situation, please follow the Code of Conduct Reporting Guide. The code of conduct representatives employ the Code of Conduct Response Playbook. to handle reports.

All reports will be kept confidential. In some cases a public statement might be required (for example in a CoC transparency report following conferences), but these reports are anonymized and do not include any personally identifying information.

Thanks

This code of conduct is largely based on the Write The Docs Code of Conduct, which in turn is based on the Django Project Code of Conduct and the original text of the Speak Up! project, inspired in its turn by the Fedora Project, as well as the Python Mentorship Project and many others.