[ripe-list] Updated Draft RIPE Code of Conduct Published for Community Review

Dear Leo and RIPE Code of Conduct TF,

Thank you for writing the RIPE Code of Conduct draft.  We think it is 
concise and very clear.  We have some suggestions for textual changes 
for the TF's consideration.

We understand that "wordsmithing" can be a pitfall for progressing a 
document, so please consider our email as a sign of support for the 
document and the suggestions as improvements.  Two points we mention 
have already been addressed by Gergana and Sasha, see the comments below.


Section Introduction:

Suggestion: “diversity of views” --> “diversity in views and people”
to appreciate the diversity in attendees.


Section Rationale:

“To help everyone feel safe and included” --> “To make everyone feel 
safe and included”
This may look subtle, but “help” suggests that people have some issue or 
problem they need to be assisted with, and makes it sound to me like the 
problem is with them.  Changing this to “make” shifts the burden to the 
community rather than the individual.


“...a CoC sets clear expectations in terms of how people should behave.” 
--> could be more active, e.g.: “...a CoC makes clear how we expect 
people to conduct themselves.” or “...a CoC makes clear how we expect 
people to behave.”


Section Scope:

“Unofficial social events organised by RIPE Meeting attendees or their 
employers within the meeting venue” --> the “within the meeting venue” 
seems legalese to us in the sense that it could be said to be within the 
responsibility and bailiwick of RIPE.
Given that a CoC is not a legal document, we would say something that is 
wider, e.g. “Unofficial social events organised by RIPE Meeting 
attendees or their employers within the context and spirit of the 
meeting” -- many side events are not in the meeting venue, but they 
clearly would not have happened had there not been a RIPE meeting.

As already mentioned by Gergana in a previous email, why does the PC 
have the final say in whether the CoC is applied?  The CoC should be 
carried by the community and should always apply, not ifs, no buts.

“This CoC does not apply to events or interactions that are managed by 
other organisations or communities.” --> legalese, not needed, this is 
self evident, because the inclusive scope of the CoC is clearly defined 
at the start.  Legalese does not belong in a CoC, it is not a contract.


Section People and Organisations Bound and Protected by the Code:

Making a list of people the CoC applies to is risky, since such a list 
can never be complete.  Why have a list at all?  Make it simpler: “This 
CoC equally applies to participants in the RIPE community, officers of 
the RIPE community and RIPE NCC staff members.”


Section CoC and National Law:

“The CoC Team or RIPE NCC staff may relay the report or make their own 
if necessary.” --> the last part “or make their own if necessary”, no 
matter how well-intended, incurs the risk of a serious breach of trust.
This has also been argued by Sasha in an earlier email, and we fully 
endorse Sasha's wording in this regard.

We realise this is a point that may lead to a lot of discussion, we 
would strongly advocate that anyone who acts in a role of trust w.r.t. 
this CoC be properly and regularly trained to deal with this kind of 
situation.


Regards,

Roland van Rijswijk-Deij
Benno Overeinder


On 18/03/2021 18:21, Leo Vegoda wrote:
> Dear RIPE community,
> 
> There has been relatively little feedback on ths draft Code of Conduct
> so far. We would be grateful if you could share any comments on the
> RIPE Discussion
> List by Friday, 2 April 2021. We welcome suggested changes, but if you
> don’t see problems with the draft then statements of support are also
> helpful. The RIPE Chair Team will evaluate your comments and determine
> whether there is consensus on this draft or additional work is needed.
> 
> Many thanks,
> 
> Leo Vegoda
> On behalf of the RIPE Code of Conduct TF
> 
> On Thu, Mar 4, 2021 at 5:02 AM Leo Vegoda <leo at vegoda.org> wrote:
>>
>> Dear RIPE community,
>>
>> An updated draft RIPE Code of Conduct (CoC) is now published for your
>> review. As this is intended to cover all participation within RIPE, it
>> applies to interactions over the Internet, mailing lists, as well as
>> in-person at RIPE Meetings.
>>
>> You can find the document here:
>>
>> https://www.ripe.net/publications/docs/ripe-documents/other-documents/ripe-code-of-conduct/
>>
>> This draft keeps most of the text in v3.0[1], which was developed by
>> the RIPE Diversity TF. It also draws from CoCs that are in use in
>> other communities, including the Python CoC[2]. The biggest change is
>> that the updated draft covers scope and behaviour only. It doesn’t
>> touch on process or the CoC Team – these aspects will be addressed in
>> two separate documents that are still to come.
>>
>> Please review the draft and share any comments on the RIPE Discussion
>> List by Friday, 2 April 2021. We welcome suggested changes, but if you
>> don’t see problems with the draft then statements of support are also
>> helpful. The RIPE Chair Team will evaluate your comments and determine
>> whether there is consensus on this draft or additional work is needed.
>>
>> While we would prefer comments to be shared on the RIPE Discussion
>> List, we recognise that some people might have feedback that they
>> would like to share in private. If you want to provide feedback in
>> private you can contact members of the CoC TF or the RIPE Chair Team
>> directly.
>>
>> Some key changes in this version:
>>
>> - The goal of “a neutral, transparent and open framework for report
>> handling” has been removed and will be covered in the upcoming
>> document that describes process.
>> - The scope is defined as “all participation in RIPE.”
>> - Groups and events with separate governance from RIPE may adopt this
>> CoC but will need to manage their own implementation.
>> - A new section covers how the CoC relates to national law.
>> - A new section lists desired behaviours along with an updated list of
>> unacceptable behaviours. - Both lists are arranged alphabetically, to
>> avoid suggesting a hierarchy.
>>
>> We look forward to reading your thoughts on the current draft.
>>
>> Kind regards,
>>
>> Leo Vegoda
>> On behalf of the RIPE Code of Conduct TF
>>
>> [1] RIPE Meeting Code of Conduct 3.0 - Draft
>> https://www.ripe.net/participate/meetings/ripe-meetings/ripe-meeting-code-of-conduct-3-0-draft
>> [2] Python Community Code of Conduct https://www.python.org/psf/conduct/
> 

-- 
Benno J. Overeinder
NLnet Labs
https://www.nlnetlabs.nl/