Code of Conduct

ML4Cryo

ML4Cryo is a community forum, consisting of a slack space and an email list, for the global community working at the intersection of the cryosphere and machine learning. The community tools (slack space and email list) are used for announcements including high-impact and high-relevance journal postings, call-for-papers, conference notifications, job advertisements, obituaries, broad questions, and other such community-relevant communications. ML4Cryo welcomes a diverse set of members at all scientific career stages including non-scientists, technicians, practitioners, and commercial enterprises.

ML4Cryo champions equality, diversity, and inclusivity within the community. Harassment of members is not tolerated.

Code of Conduct

The ML4Cryo Code of Conduct outlines operational standards and expected behaviour throughout all ML4Cryo activities. ML4Cryo values the ideals of open exchange of ideas, the freedom of thought and expression, and respectful science based debate. This requires a community and an environment that recognizes and respects the inherent dignity and worth of every person.

As such, this Code of Conduct (CoC) applies to all ML4Cryo activities, including but not limited to:

  • All internal organizational activities.
  • All community-based communication, such as the slack space and the email list / newsletter.
  • External events organized by, hosted by, or run in collaboration with ML4Cryo.
  • All communications, media items, and other public outreach published by or through ML4Cryo channels, such as the ML4Cryo website or social media.

All ML4Cryo affiliates (volunteers, employees, contractors, etc.) as well as participants, speakers, mentors, mentees, panelists, area chairs, reviewers, sponsors, contractors, organizers, and participants at ML4Cryo-affiliated activities as suggested above, are expected to comply with this Code of Conduct.

The Code of Conduct and guidelines are not an exhaustive rulebook. It is intended to serve as a collaborative and shared set of goals to facilitate engagement within this community.

Expected Behavior and Responsibilties

Volunteers and community members alike, as outlined above, should help cultivate an environment for productive and creative exchange by following these guidelines. In particular, our community is built on the principles of intellectual diversity and humility, constructive discussion, and scientific integrity. This also includes a set of ground rules for interactions between community members interacting in ML4Cryo spaces (slack space and email list) or in the context of ML4Cryo organized or affiliated events:

  1. Be excellent to each other. All users are expected to treat all members of the community with the dignity, respect, and kindness that they themselves would expect. All members share responsibility in this.
  2. Be civil and considerate. Assume good faith. Science is complicated and communication via text or email can remove nuance and tone. Remember that others might not share your jargon, may be unfamiliar with what you think is common knowledge, and may not speak English (or another language being used for communication) as a first language.
  3. Be careful and considerate in your choice of language when posting. The language used should be the same as that in any other professional setting.
  4. Be honest and respectful regarding the ownership of ideas. Do not post materials that belong to someone else without their permission, do not publicly share private individuals’ information, and do not violate intellectual property laws. It is important that we are able to trust one another – do not misrepresent your or others’ work, and be sure to properly attribute ideas if sharing them elsewhere.
  5. ML4Cryo aims to be a welcoming place for the diverse set of people, opinions, and values that exist in machine learning and the cryospheric sciences.
  6. ML4Cryo is committed to ensuring equal access for all voices in the community.

Unacceptable Behavior

ML4Cryo is dedicated to fostering an environment free from harassment, bullying, discrimination, and retaliation. Personal attacks or any kind of harassment will not be tolerated and users will be removed from ML4Cryo spaces for violations of the Code of Conduct.

  1. Offensive comments will not be tolerated. This includes offensive comments related to sex, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, nationality, race, ethnicity, religion (or lack thereof), age, disability, physical appearance, body size, technology choices, education level, socioeconomic status, or any other personal characteristics.

  2. Inappropriate or unprofessional behavior will not be tolerated in either physical or virtual settings. This includes bullying, intimidation, personal attacks, harassment, sustained disruption of talks or other events, sexual harassment, stalking, following, harassing photography or recording, inappropriate physical contact, unwelcome sexual attention, public vulgar exchanges, derogatory name-calling, or diminutive characterizations, all of which are unwelcome in this community.

  3. No use of images, activities, or other materials that are of a sexual, racial, or otherwise offensive nature that may create an inappropriate or toxic environment is permitted.

  4. Disorderly, boisterous, or disruptive conduct including but not limited to fighting, coercion, theft, damage to property, or any mistreatment towards other individuals is not tolerated.

  5. Scientific misconduct—including but not limited to fabrication, falsification, or plagiarism of research or ideas in written or spoken form—is prohibited.

  6. Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior, is also considered harassment.

Reporting

Direct contact: It is always appropriate to email a ML4Cryo member, mention that you believe their behaviour was not appropriate, and if required direct them to this document. Inclusion of the moderation team ml4cryo@gmail.com in these communications is encouraged.

On-list: discussing conduct on-list, either as part of the offending message or as a separate thread, is acceptable as long as it aligns with the Code of Conduct and is not personal. Moderator led or personal direct-contact is typically a better starting point, is typically considered less hostile or aggressive, and gives a chance to clarify intent (see point above on assuming good faith).

If you have concerns related to your participation or interaction at a ML4Cryo activity or space (slack space and email list), observe someone else’s difficulties, or have any other concerns you wish to share, you can make a report:

Virtual Spaces:

  • Contact Moderators: It is always appropriate, at any time, to contact the moderation team at ml4cryo@gmail.com if there are concerns with postings or behaviors.
    • Process: The moderation team will assess the offending content in light of the Code of Conduct. If violation is found, a moderation flag will be applied to the offending party and they will be subsequently informed of the violation of the Code of Conduct. In case of pending communication/resolution of the grievance, the moderation flag may be removed at the discretion of the moderators. Further actions are evaluated by the moderation committee as outlined in the section “Enforcement”.
    • Anonymity: If you do not want a specific team member to access your report, please do not provide details in your initial email and instead request that we reach out directly to you (you may specify a subset of team members you are comfortable replying directly to you). For anonymous emails, you may use a temporary email service such as Dropmail.
  • Direct contact via email: It is always appropriate to email an ML4Cryo member, mention that you believe their behaviour was not appropriate, and if required, direct them to this document. Inclusion of the moderation team in these communications is encouraged.
  • Direct contact via slack: Discussing conduct on slack, either as part of the offending message or as a separate thread, is acceptable as long as it aligns with the Code of Conduct and is not personal. Moderator led or personal direct-contact is typically a better starting point, as it is typically considered less hostile or aggressive, and gives a chance to clarify intent (see point above on assuming good faith).

In-Person Spaces (e.g. events):

  • In-person to organizers: Organizers will then direct you to the designated responder(s) for that event (e.g. at AGU, they will help you to report it to the responsible responders at AGU). Even if the organizer is not the designated responder, they will provide you immediate relevant help and assist you to feel safe for the duration of the activity.

There is no deadline by which to make a report.

Moderation

  1. Moderation decisions are not that of an individual but that of the moderation committee.
  2. Moderation is subjective and a “best effort” is used to ensure as many posts reach the ML4Cryo community as possible, while filtering out obvious spam, or posts that contradict the Code of Conduct or guidelines.
  3. The ML4Cryo slack space and email list are virtual spaces and are thus not an appropriate place for long discussions with high-stake emotional involvement. However, discussions do happen from time to time during hot-topic events. This is generally allowed to ensure all voices have a chance to participate. Ending the discussion is at the moderation team’s discretion, generally by allowing the conversation to naturally die off. Please seriously think before replying to an already stopped discussion. Heated discussions or those causing a high volume of posts/emails may be terminated early.
  4. Users who breach the Code of Conduct or guidelines will be flagged by the moderation team (internally). Repeated abuse of the ML4Cryo spaces will result in a ban. A single misconduct can result in an immediate ban. Whether a warning will be given or an immediate ban is necessary, is at the moderation’s committee discretion.

Moderation Committee

The current moderation committee is:

  • Julia Kaltenborn, McGill University, Canada (she/her)
  • Kim Bente, University of Sydney, Australia (she/ her)
  • Andrew McDonald, Cambridge University, United Kingdom (he/him)

All admin and moderators are volunteer positions and proceed at a “best effort”. Moderation decisions are not that of an individual but that of the moderation committee.

Applications to join the moderation committee can be sent to ml4cryo@gmail.com and are evaluated on a case-by-case basis depending on current needs and representation within the moderation committee. We particularly encourage applicants from backgrounds historically under-represented in the cryospheric community, including but not limited to women, people of colour, and indigenous community members.

Enforcement

Any participant asked by any member of the community to stop unacceptable behavior is expected to comply immediately. A response of “just joking” will not be accepted; behavior can be harassing without an intent to offend.

Any reported incident that the moderation committee considers a violation of the Code of Conduct receives a moderation flag. The offending party will subsequently be informed about their violation. The flag may be removed at the moderation committee’s discreation upon resolution of the grievance. In addition to this action, the moderation committee decides for each case if further enforcement is necessary.

If a participant engages in behavior that violates this Code of Conduct, ML4Cryo retains the right to take any action deemed appropriate, including but not limited to:

  • Formal or informal private warnings
  • Formal public censure
  • Removal from the slack space and/or email list
  • Barring or limiting continued attendance and participation, including but not limited to expulsion from the relevant event
  • Barring from participating in or deriving benefits from future ML4Cryo activities
  • Dismissal from current ML4Cryo affiliated roles, e.g. leadership, organizing, moderating, volunteering, etc.
  • Exclusion from future ML4Cryo opportunities and affiliated roles, e.g. leadership, organizing, volunteering, speaking, reviewing, sponsoring, mentoring, etc.
  • Reporting the incident to the offender’s local institution or funding agencies
  • Reporting the incident to local law enforcement

The moderation committee is the entity evaluating which actions are appropriate, and ML4Cryo is the entity enforcing those actions. Interim measures may be taken, as appropriate, at the time a complaint is made.

ML4Cryo will not discipline, discriminate against or retaliate against, or tolerate any discrimination or retaliation by any other person against any person who in good faith reports a violation or suspected violation of this Code of Conduct. The same disciplinary actions may be taken toward any individual who engages in retaliation or who knowingly makes a false allegation of harassment. If action is taken, an appeal may be made.

Regular Review

We welcome feedback in any form on this Code of Conduct. If you would like to reach out, please send an email to ml4cryo@gmail.com.

Acknowledgements

This Code of Conduct was written by merging and adapting the wording and structure from the following codes of conduct and community guidelines: