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Inclusivity Policy

The Association for Research in Digital Interactive Narrative (ARDIN) is committed to supporting diversity and inclusivity within the annual International Conference on Interactive Digital Storytelling (ICIDS), and more broadly in the field of interactive digital narrative studies and beyond. In consequence, ICIDS 2019 has adopted the following safer space policy in the ongoing effort to improve the diversity and inclusivity of the conference.

ICIDS 2019 aims to be a gender inclusive space. As such, we encourage all attendees not to presume folk’s chosen pronouns, or that they use pronouns. We encourage all attendees – even those who do not worry about being misgendered – to add their preferred pronouns to their name-badge.

ICIDS 2019 is also adopting DiGRA Australia’s successful policy on social media usage. Panel chairs will identify each individual speaker’s preference regarding how they want the audience to share information about their talk, if at all (this includes the use of photos, directly tagging presenters in tweets, etc.). These preferences will be shared with the audience at the start of each panel session. Any violations of a presenter’s wishes must immediately be deleted when brought to the offenders attention. Attendees are also required not to use potentially harmful hashtags and terms on official event hashtags.

Code of Conduct

A code of conduct aims to foster an environment of respect which makes ALL participants, particularly those who are typically marginalized or excluded, feel welcome. Differing opinions and perspectives are crucial to effective discussion, but all attendees ultimately take responsibility for their own speech and behaviour – in person, and on social media – throughout the entire conference and associated social gatherings.

Attendees are encouraged to:

  • Ask respectful questions and avoid dominating a presenter’s question time to further any particular agenda. Question time after a talk is intended to give presenters the opportunity to expand on their talk in response to audience questions, and is not a platform for the audience to individually reply.
  • Be mindful of and understand that intersectionality shapes our lived experience.
  • Actively include all attendees in social gatherings (such as post-conference dinners and social events), particularly those for whom English is not a first-language and junior students.

Examples of unacceptable behaviour in person and online includes, but is not limited to:

  • Verbal communication (public or private) that demeans, devalues or is derogatory towards one’s gender, sexuality, physical appearance, body size, class, appearance, race, religion, language, age, ability, and/or socio-economic status.
  • Not using content warnings when discussing content that may be harmful or offensive, such as graphic discussions or depictions of hate speech or sexual violence.
  • Display of sexually demeaning imagery in public spaces. (Sexual imagery can be acceptable provided it is clearly contextualized as critical work and explicit forewarning is provided, but such imagery should not be offensive or demeaning to any of the identificatory attributes listed above).
  • Bullying, stalking, following and other such intimidating behaviour.
  • Photography or recording without consent.
  • Explicit mentioning of individuals on open social media using the official event hashtag without their consent.
  • Disrupting or hijacking conversations (during talks, in question times or in general discussion).
  • Inappropriate non-consensual physical contact.
  • Unwelcome attention of any kind.
  • Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behaviours.

We recognise that the above list is not all-encompassing, and it is thus crucial that all ICIDS participants should be considerate, mindful and respectful of other participant’s safety, and refer any concerns to the conference committee.

Enforcement

Participants asked to stop any harassing or harmful behaviour are expected to comply immediately or they will be required to leave the space.

In the case of repeated offending behaviour, ICIDS 2019 organizers will take any action deemed appropriate to resolve the situation and make the space welcoming. Examples of such actions include: verbal warnings, written warnings, temporary or permanent barring from ARDIN events and online spaces.

If you feel that someone is making you or the space feel uncomfortable, if you see that someone else is being made to feel unsafe, or if you have any other concerns, please contact the organizers. You may do this in person (staff will be identified at the opening sessions) or via email to: icids2019@gmail.com. Our representatives will be happy to assist you with action, the provision of security or appropriate next steps.

Exercise caution: if you feel your safety is at risk due to harassment or any other reason, please take appropriate steps to ensure personal safety, including but not limited to contacting local law enforcement.

Disclaimers

ARDIN and the ICIDS 2019 organizers cannot assume legal liability or responsibility for the actions of any individual member or other activity participant. ARDIN and the ICIDS 2019 organizers cannot assume responsibility for protecting the safety of members or participants at ICIDS 2019. Notwithstanding, we are committed to ensuring that the conference is as inclusive and welcoming as possible.

Acknowledgements

Much of this text, and the overall spirit and intent of the policy and code of conduct, is adapted from the DiGRA 2018 inclusivity policy: http://digra2018.com/inclusivity/ 

Inspiration was also taken from the ACM policy against harassment: https://www.acm.org/special-interest-groups/volunteer-resources/officers-manual/policy-against-discrimination-and-harassment.