Code of Conduct

Code of conduct

Purpose

The Interledger Foundation is dedicated to providing a harassment-free conference 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 conference participants in any form. Sexual language and imagery are not appropriate for any conference venue, including talks. Summit participants violating these rules may be sanctioned or expelled from the conference at the discretion of the ILF staff.

Anti-harassment

Harassment includes, but is not limited to:

  • Verbal comments that reinforce social structures of domination related to gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, age, religion
  • Sexual images in public spaces
  • Deliberate intimidation, stalking, or following
  • Harassing photography or recording
  • Sustained disruption of talks or other events
  • Inappropriate physical contact
  • Invasion of personal space
  • Unwelcome sexual attention
  • Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior

Enforcement

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

If a participant engages in harassing behavior, event organizers retain the right to take any actions to keep the event a welcoming environment for all participants. This includes warning the offender or expulsion from the conference.

Event organizers may take action to address anything designed to, or with the clear impact of, disrupting the event or making the environment hostile for any participants. We expect participants to follow these rules at all event venues and event-related social activities. We think people should follow these rules outside event activities too!

Reporting

If someone makes you or anyone else feel unsafe or unwelcome, please report it as soon as possible. Harassment and other Code of Conduct violations reduce the value of our event for everyone. We want you to be happy at our event. You can make a report either personally or anonymously.

Anonymous report

You can make an anonymous report here. We, the organizers, can’t follow up an anonymous report with you directly, but we will fully investigate it and take whatever action is necessary to prevent a recurrence.

Personal report

In case of aggression or violence please call security immediately!

If you would like to report an incident, you can do so via email to coc@interledger.org (ILF Team). Emails sent to this address are read by the ILF CoC Team.

Below you will find the phone numbers which you can call during the main conference hours. The phone will be staffed by the ILF Team only. If you would like to report anonymously only to the Conduct Team please hide your phone number and reach out to one of the following phone numbers:

Organizers/Curators

You can make a personal report by:

When taking a personal report, our staff will ensure you are safe and cannot be overheard. They may involve other event staff to ensure your report is managed properly. Once safe, we’ll ask you to tell us about what happened. This can be upsetting, but we’ll handle it as respectfully as possible, and you can bring someone to support you. You won’t be asked to confront anyone and we won’t tell anyone who you are.

Our team will be happy to help you contact hotel/venue security, local law enforcement, local support services, provide escorts, or otherwise assist you to feel safe for the duration of the event. We value your attendance.

Important contact numbers

If you find yourself in a crisis situation, call 112 for emergency services. Alternatively, you can also call 021 480 7700 from a cellphone, or 107 from a landline or payphone.

Source: City of Capetown Emergency contact numbers

Inclusive language

In our commitment to a harassment-free and inclusive environment we strongly believe it’s important to pay attention to harmful language patterns and an intersectional view on discriminations that rarely happen only one-sided. We understand that our list of isms below is by far not complete and believe it is a basic start to raise awareness at our events.

Ableism

Words like “crazy”, “dumb”, “insane” or “lame” are examples of ableist language, devaluing people who have physical or mental disabilities. Its appearance often stems not from any intentional desire to offend, but from our innate sense of what it means to be normal. These words can be avoided by using more fitting, clearer descriptions of what we want to communicate.

To find out more about ableism and replacement terms please read this guide.

Sexism

Using gendered terms like “dude” or “guys” to address a mixed-gendered group of people contributes to furthering exclusion of underrepresented individuals. We strongly advise avoiding gendered pronouns as well as gendered terms. If unsure about people’s pronouns, we highly recommend to ask people directly for their pronouns first and to check if there are already any hints provided by themselves (e.g. on badges) instead of assuming their pronouns.

For more information please familiarize yourself with the Geek Feminism wiki guide and Wikipedia Third Person Pronoun.

Racism

Racism is deeply rooted in our society and globally, exists among all social classes and is connected to colonialism which has a long history of violence, oppression, and domination of one group or individual over another group or individual of a different race, ethnicity, culture, and their territories. Addressing individuals or a group of people in a diminutive, derogative, or questioning way based on their (assumed) race and ethnic background is therefore racist, disrespectful, and harmful. We do not tolerate any racist behavior, slurs, statements, or jokes and will take action if any reports on this matter reach us.

For more information please read Wikipedia Racism.

Attribution

This Code of Conduct was based on CSSConf / JSConf EU, The Geek Feminism wiki, the work of Valerie Aurora and Conference Code of Conduct.

Last updated: 19 August 2024