Animating principles for how we treat each other
- We are focused on our full humanity.
- We have to earn each other’s trust. We must trust each other. We will work to continually build interpersonal and institutional trustworthiness.
- We care personally and confront directly. We can only grow together through constructive criticism.
- All interactions are personal. Should feel like a dinner party. To do this involves this community embracing a new protocol for engagement, sensitive to human beings and their connections and sensitivities. These include that people in SolvingFor have day jobs and not tons of time. Also that different people have different ways of absorbing information and different requirements to contemplate versus to act.
- We share with purpose and with care. To help create a trustworthy environment so that we can all understand and resolve complex problems, we use a modified version of The Chatham House Rule. The guiding spirit is: “share the information you receive, but do not reveal the identity of who said it.” We take this a step further and treat personal stories as a special category of information that is even more sensitive. Not all stories are ours to tell. We understand it’s a judgement call and we apply our best judgement to it.
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Meetings & Events Code of Conduct
How We Take Care of Each Other:
- The measure of success for the meeting is bringing in people who we have not yet heard
- Strive to be fully present
- Speak from an “I” perspective
- Share even if you don’t have the right words
- Challenge ideas with grace
- Ask questions with genuine curiosity
- Listen to learn instead of listening to respond
- Take space and make space (share air time)
- One mic (no interruption)
- Expect and accept non-closure
- Seek best intent, while addressing impact with care
- Own our impact with humility
Harassment Policy
Solving For Science is dedicated to providing a safe, hospitable, and productive environment for everyone present, regardless of ethnicity, religion, ability, physical appearance, or gender. A meeting or event where people feel uncomfortable or threatened is not a productive one. Accordingly, Solving For Science prohibits intimidating, threatening, or harassing conduct during any gathering. This policy applies to members, staff, speakers, and any other participants.
Harassment of participants will not be tolerated in any form. Harassment includes:
- Offensive verbal or written comments related to gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, age, religion, employment, politics, marital status, etc.
- Sexual images in public spaces
- Deliberate intimidation, stalking, or following
- Harassing photography or recording
- Sustained disruption of talks or other events
- Inappropriate physical contact
- Unwelcome sexual attention
- Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior
Participants asked to stop any harassing behavior are expected to comply immediately. If a participant engages in harassing behavior, the Solving For Science staff will take any action they deem appropriate, ranging from a verbal warning to expulsion.
Solving for Science staff may take action to address any actions or behavior disrupting the meeting or event, or making the environment hostile for any participants. We expect participants to follow these rules at all Solving For Science activities.
If you are being harassed, notice that someone else is being harassed, or have any other concerns, please contact a member of the Solving for Science staff: info@solvingfor.org
While we opened this document with the concept of ‘free discourse’ (Chatham House rules) and we absolutely emphasize the obvious bad-behaviors that will not be tolerated (above), we also recognize that ‘good intentions’ and especially in the context of open sharing can still yield conversations and behavior that can be hurtful and harms both individuals and the organization. It is our intention as an organization to work through these issues, provide restorative justice and broadly educate and maintain trust.
Above all, all of us as members welcome your full participation, and want to make your experience as formative and fun as possible.