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Code of Conduct

Source: CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md

1. Values

  • Inclusivity and Respect: Treat all contributors and users with dignity and fairness, regardless of background, experience, or identity.
  • Empowerment & Collaboration: Encourage skills development, sharing of ideas, and co-production of data products, embracing open science where appropriate and community-driven improvement.
  • Supportiveness: Strive to make the project a helpful, welcoming space, where questions and discussions are met with patience, curiosity, and encouragement—not derision or exclusion.
  • Honesty & Integrity: Communicate and collaborate in ways that are truthful, transparent, and constructive. Misrepresentation, plagiarism, or data manipulation is not acceptable.

2. Expected Behaviour

All contributors and users should: - Be welcoming, friendly, and patient with others. - Contribute positively; disagree respectfully and debate ideas, not people. - Avoid abusive, discriminatory, harassing, or anti-social behaviour (including in-person, online, or through images or data). - Respect privacy and personal boundaries of others, including data use and attribution. - Use language and imagery that is inclusive and appropriate for all community members. - Follow project policies, guidance, and decisions made by maintainers or facilitators.

3. Unacceptable Behaviour

  • Bullying, intimidation, harassment, derogatory comments, or personal attacks.
  • Discriminatory jokes or language related to gender, sexual orientation, disability, ethnicity, religion, or age.
  • Plagiarism, falsification, or misrepresentation of contributions or data.
  • Any conduct that disrupts the community, damages the DEBIAS project or debiasR community, or brings affiliated organisations into disrepute.
  • Use of threatening, violent, or improper language—offline, online, or within the codebase.

4. Reporting and Enforcement

  • Concerns regarding breaches of this code should be reported confidentially to the maintainers by emailing Francisco Rowe at . Please avoid opening a public GitHub issue for sensitive conduct reports.
  • Reports will be handled with respect, discretion, and good faith.
  • Breaches may result in corrective actions including warnings, temporary or permanent exclusion from the project or its channels (e.g., repositories, online forums).
  • Severe breaches may be escalated to host institutions.

5. Applicability

This code applies to all spaces where this project operates – including code repositories, communication channels, events, and related public communications, both online and offline.

6. Commitment to Improvement

The project team is committed to regularly reviewing and updating this code, seeking feedback from all participants, to ensure it remains effective, equitable, and aligned with open science best practice where relevant.

This code draws explicitly from the University of Liverpool’s Student Conduct Policy and the Newcastle University Students’ Union Code of Conduct, emphasising integrity, respect, inclusivity, and positive contribution.