Code of Conduct

We want to foster productive, happy and agile project communities that welcome new ideas, continously improve processes, and collaborate between groups with very different needs, interests and skills.

We gain strength from diversity, and actively seek participation from those who enhance it. This code of conduct exists to ensure that diverse groups collaborate to mutual advantage and enjoyment.

The Code of Conduct governs how we behave in public or in private whenever the project will be judged by our actions. We expect it to be honoured by everyone who represents our projects, claims affiliation, or participates in our gatherings. Each of our affiliated projects may have their own, additional and/or more specific code of conduct separately from this document.

Together, we strive to:

Be respectful

We are conscious of the diverse cultural backgrounds each of us comes from in this global society, and are aware that an action that we may find repulsive may be a norm in others. We aim to learn about these often surprising differences to understand each other better.

We work together to resolve conflict, assume good intentions, and do our best to act in an empathic fashion.

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 a community where people feel uncomfortable or threatened loses its purpose. We ask everyone to be respectful when dealing with other contributors as well as with people outside of the projects.

We respect each other's personal space, both physical as well as mental. Not everyone wants to become intimate with everyone else, and we recognize that physical and psychological distances are perceived in different ways.

Take responsibility for our words and our actions

We all make mistakes; when we learn about them, we take responsibility for them. If someone has been harmed or offended, we listen carefully and respectfully, and work to right the wrong.

Be collaborative

What we work on is a complex whole made of many parts, inside and outside of our direct reach. Collaboration between teams that each have their own goal and vision is essential; for the whole to be more than the sum of its parts, each part should make an effort to understand the whole.

Collaboration improves the quality of our collective efforts. Internally and externally, we aim to practice good collaboration. Wherever possible, we work closely with upstream projects and others in the free software community and other communities to coordinate. We prefer to work transparently and involve interested parties as early as possible. We regard members of other projects in our fields not as competitors but as fellow travelers.

Collaboration is hard, and sometimes can be highly irritating. Breathe. Assume good faith, and ask yourself how to improve processes and documentation instead of reacting tense, especially with new community members and guests.

It is okay to disagree

Disagreements, both on a social and on a technical level, are normal. The important goal is not to avoid disagreements or differing views, but to deal with them constructively.

Ask for help when unsure

Nobody is expected to know everything. Asking questions early avoids many problems later, so questions are encouraged. Those who are asked should be responsive and helpful.

De-escalate

We make mistakes. Mistakes in our work, errors in our judgment, mistakes in our behavior. We ask participants of our communities to be humane, to allow others to be humane, and to work together if problems arise. Mistakes will be made, and feelings will get hurt! Do you know all about why that person is acting aggressive today? Take a step back, and ask yourself how you can help that human on the other end to become a better person.

People are complicated. We expect to be misunderstood and to misunderstand others; when this inevitably occurs, we resist the urge to be defensive or assign blame. We try not to take offense where no offense was intended. Give people the benefit of the doubt. Even if the intent was to provoke, do not rise to it. It is the responsibility of all parties to de-escalate conflict when it arises.

In case of problems

While this code of conduct should be adhered to by participants, we recognize that sometimes people may have a bad day, or be unaware of some of the guidelines in this code of conduct. When that happens, ask yourself: Was there bad intent behind this violation? You should reply to them and in a friendly fashion remind them of this code of conduct. Such messages may be in public or in private, whatever is most appropriate. However, regardless of whether the message is public or not, it should still adhere to this code of conduct; in particular, it should not be abusive or disrespectful. Really: Assume good faith; it is much more likely that participants are unaware of their bad behavior than that they intentionally trying to degrade the quality of the discussion.

Even better, whenever you can, give the person (and yourself) some time to cool down first.

When in doubt, or you feel threatened and hurt, please reach out to another team member to discuss. It is totally fine, and encouraged, to discuss social issues with others, even if you may feel awkward doing so. Each of us will try to help, and will work with you to address the matter.

Arbitration is available, and we have various tools,processes and mediators available to make you enjoy your participation and feel safe and appreciated. Every single one of us deserves to be taken seriously.

In some cases, it may be better to use an independent, external mediator before spreading details of social conflict within our communities.

This code of conduct is based on [https://ubuntu.com/community/code-of-conduct|the Ubuntu code of conduct] v1.0.1 and v2.0. It is is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 license.

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Pub: 08 Jun 2024 21:40 UTC
Views: 459