Since 2015 the Galaxy Project Code of Conduct has resided here, and updates to it have been coordinated by the Committers Group for this repo.
This code of conduct has served us reasonably well over the years, but it is time for a refresh. Since 2015 the world has become much more aware of the need for codes of conduct, and best practices for creating and enforcing them have moved forward significantly.
As a result it is past time to update both our code of conduct and our process for maintaining it. The Galaxy Outreach and Training Working Group is currently working on a first draft of a new code and new processes. The final code and processes we adopt will be implemented only after it has been discussed, revised, and approved by the community.
Until that happens this will remain the Galaxy Project Code of Conduct.
This code of conduct outlines our expectations for participants within the Galaxy community, as well as steps to reporting unacceptable behavior. We are committed to providing a welcoming and inspiring community for all and expect our code of conduct to be honored. Anyone who violates this code of conduct may be banned from the community.
Our open source community strives to:
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Be friendly and patient.
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Be welcoming: We strive to be a community that welcomes and supports people of all backgrounds and identities. This includes, but is not limited to members of any race, ethnicity, culture, national origin, colour, immigration status, social and economic class, educational level, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, age, size, family status, political belief, religion, and mental and physical ability.
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Be considerate: Your work will be used by other people, and you in turn will depend on the work of others. Any decision you take will affect users and colleagues, and you should take those consequences into account when making decisions. Remember that we're a world-wide community, so you might not be communicating in someone else's primary language.
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Be respectful: Not all of us will agree all the time, but disagreement is no excuse for poor behavior and poor manners. We might all experience some frustration now and then, but we cannot allow that frustration to turn into a personal attack. It’s important to remember that a community where people feel uncomfortable or threatened is not a productive one.
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Be careful in the words that we choose: We are a community of professionals, and we conduct ourselves professionally. Be kind to others. Do not insult or put down other participants. Harassment and other exclusionary behavior aren't acceptable. This includes, but is not limited to: Violent threats or language directed against another person, Discriminatory jokes and language, Posting sexually explicit or violent material, Posting (or threatening to post) other people’s personally identifying information (“doxing”), Personal insults, especially those using racist or sexist terms, Unwelcome sexual attention, Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior, Repeated harassment of others. In general, if someone asks you to stop, then stop.
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Try to understand why we disagree: Disagreements, both social and technical, happen all the time. It is important that we resolve disagreements and differing views constructively. Remember that we’re different. Diversity contributes to the strength of our community, which is composed of people from a wide range of backgrounds. Different people have different perspectives on issues. Being unable to understand why someone holds a viewpoint doesn’t mean that they’re wrong. Don’t forget that it is human to err and blaming each other doesn’t get us anywhere. Instead, focus on helping to resolve issues and learning from mistakes.
We encourage everyone to participate and are committed to building a community for all. Although we will fail at times, we seek to treat everyone both as fairly and equally as possible. Whenever a participant has made a mistake, we expect them to take responsibility for it. If someone has been harmed or offended, it is our responsibility to listen carefully and respectfully, and do our best to right the wrong.
Although this list cannot be exhaustive, we explicitly honor diversity in age, gender, gender identity or expression, culture, ethnicity, language, national origin, political beliefs, profession, race, religion, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, and technical ability. We will not tolerate discrimination based on any of the protected characteristics above, including participants with disabilities.
If you experience or witness unacceptable behavior, or have any other concerns, please report it to any combination of the following people that makes you feel the most comfortable:
- Dave Clements (clementsgalaxy@gmail.com). Dave is the Galaxy Project community outreach manager and has experience handling Code of Conduct related issues.
- Dr. Mike Schatz (mschatz@cs.jhu.edu). Mike is Dave Clements' direct manager and issues related to Dave in some way should be reported to Mike.
- Helena Rasche (helena.rasche@gmail.com). Helena is a well-known, trusted community member, is LGBT+, and has completely separate funding and institutional affiliation from Dave and Mike.
All reports will be handled with discretion. In your report please include:
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Your contact information.
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Names (real, nicknames, or pseudonyms) of any individuals involved. If there are additional witnesses, please include them as well. Your account of what occurred, and if you believe the incident is ongoing. If there is a publicly available record (e.g. a mailing list archive or a public IRC logger), please include a link.
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Any additional information that may be helpful.
After filing a report, a representative will contact you personally, review the incident, follow up with any additional questions, and make a decision as to how to respond. If the person who is harassing you is part of the response team, they will recuse themselves from handling your incident. If the complaint originates from a member of the response team, it will be handled by a different member of the response team. We will respect confidentiality requests for the purpose of protecting victims of abuse.
This code of conduct is based on the Open Code of Conduct from the TODOGroup.