ILiADS Code of Conduct

At the Institute for Liberal Arts Digital Scholarship (ILiADS) we want everyone to feel welcome, included, and safe throughout the event. This Code of Conduct sets expectations for all participants, provides steps to report violations of the Code, and lists possible consequences for would-be-violators. ILiADS does not tolerate harassment and discrimination in any form.

ILiADS sets a tone of encouragement for mutual respect and growth. In this spirit, participation in our event is grounded in the following Community Agreements:

We encourage discussions that focus on the work, not the person.
We practice active listening and engagement.
We assume good intentions but own negative effects.
We give credit where credit is due.
We value transparency.
We support one another’s work and welcome support for our own.
We value fair and transparent labor relationships, and we work actively to counter exploitation.

These agreements build on our commitment to abiding by hosting institutions’ anti-discrimination policies.

Digital communication

When communicating face-to-face with someone, we are used to having facial expressions, gestures, and tone of voice to communicate with and convey meaning. However, when communicating online, all we have are words on the screen (which can be very easily misinterpreted). Please remember that you are talking to another human being when typing a message in a forum or other digital communication.

Behaviors not tolerated:

Discrimination and harassment includes, but is not limited to:

Comments or actions that minimize a person’s experiences, identity, or safety
Deliberate misgendering
Deliberate revealing of a person’s experiences or identity without their consent
Deliberate use of a person’s non-preferred name
Sustained disruption during sessions or other events or gatherings
Deliberate intimidation or stalking of any kind
Deliberately contacting a person after they have requested contact to stop
Unwelcome sexual attention
Distribution of harassing photography or recordings without explicit consent (including screen capture of Zoom meetings)
Threats or acts of violence
Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior

Discrimination/harassment is not:

Feeling singled out or persecuted for your social privilege
Reasonable communication of boundaries, such as “leave me alone,” “go away,” or “I’m not discussing this with you”
Refusal to explain or debate social justice issues when the person being asked is put in a defensive position based on their experience, personal identity, or safety
Communication in a tone you don’t find congenial
Discussion of sensitive topics
Criticism of racist, sexist, cissexist, or otherwise oppressive behavior or assumptions
“Reverse” -isms, including “reverse racism,” “reverse sexism,” and “cisphobia”

How to report a violation of the ILiADS Code of Conduct:

If you have been involved in or witnessed an incident during ILiADS that you believe violates this Code of Conduct, you can report it in three ways:

Email: Liz Miller, ILiADS’ Diversity and Inclusion Coordinator: elizabeth.miller@emory.edu
- You will receive a response within 24 hours
Slack: Direct Message Liz Miller, ILiADS’ Diversity and Inclusion Coordinator
- You will receive a response within 24 hours
Google form: for anonymous reporting

Additional contact information for reporting ILiADS Code of Conduct violations during the summer institute will be provided based on host institution.

The ILiADS Steering Committee will expeditiously and confidentially examine all incidents reported before, during, and after the event. We reserve the right to take actions we deem necessary at any time to remedy disruptive behavior that renders the conference experience unsafe for participants. Anyone found to be in violation of this Code of Conduct may be subject to sanctions, including without limitation:

Require immediate compliance with the Committee’s decision
Immediate cessation of harassing or disruptive behavior
Removal of or declining to post a presenter’s talk online (if violation occurred during a presentation)
Immediate removal from the ILiADS event
Temporary or permanent ban from any future ILiADS events including participation, attendance, reviewing, and/or planning

This Code of Conduct was inspired by and borrows language from the codes of conduct drafted by Global Digital Humanities Symposium which includes references by Museum Computer Network, The Digital Library Federation, Digital Frontiers, and the University of Kansas Institute for Digital Research in the Humanities.