Community Participation Guidelines

 

This is not a legal document, but meant to reflect our organization’s core principles, values and expectations for anyone wishing to participate within it. We are Scientists Inc, a 501(c)3 nonprofit that is 100% volunteer run.

We are a rapidly growing science outreach organization with one goal: make science more accessible to everyone. And we mean, E-V-E-R-Y-O-N-E. Inclusivity is the drumbeat of our little science-y hearts, so if you can’t proudly say "Black Lives Matter" or "Stop Asian Hate" or "I’m a feminist" or "Transwomen are women," this isn’t the organization for you.

Our Values

We at Scientists Inc appreciate the importance of science to society and recognize that everyone is a stakeholder in the scientific process. Science is not useful unless it is inclusive, accessible, open and democratic so we design our programs with these ideals in mind.

+ Scientific integrity

We adhere to the principles of science, so information presented in communications and events must be rigorous, evidence-based and according to the available scientific consensus. There is no space in our organization for promoting pseudoscience or conspiracy theories.

+ Community

We want to create an encouraging and supportive community that allows everyone to participate in doing science outreach. We are committed to making sure everyone has as safe, enjoyable and fulfilling an experience as possible, both professionally and personally. We love what we do and want others to feel the same. Volunteering is not just about what you can do for our organization, but what we can do to help you develop your skills and your potential.

+ Inclusion

We welcome everyone regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, nationality, age, physical or mental ability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, political affiliation, socioeconomic status or background, neuro(a)typicality, or physical appearance. Everyone deserves the opportunity to participate.

Code of Conduct

In recognition of our values, we believe that we need to create a work environment and series of programs that sets clear expectations of our volunteers and participants in our events that makes everybody feel welcome.

Participation

We try to ensure that everyone is able to perform the role that most interests them. We also want for everyone’s ideas to be heard. If there are dominant personalities in the group consider how to provide space so that everyone is able to contribute.

Anyone working or volunteering is expected to: 

  • communicate regularly with their line managers. In the case of our taste of science teams this means your city coordinator.

  • respond to requests in a timely manner.

  • commit to and complete tasks that they have agreed to do as well as those that correspond to their specific role.

  • cooperate with others on joint tasks and projects to the extent of their abilities and responsibilities.

If you are organizing any part of our national taste of science festival, you are expected to regularly engage in meetings and Slack conversations regarding event creation, and coordinating themes with all city chapters.

Contribution

We appreciate that sometimes life gets in the way; your workloads may change, family or health issues may make participation prohibitive. We completely understand if you can no longer work with us, or would like to put a hold on taking part. 

We ask that you let us know when these life events or changes in priority may arise so that both our organization and you can plan how to move forward with the relationship. This way, if you wish to return, a timeline can be put in place so that we can successfully manage roles and duties without interruption or setback to the mission.

Please be considerate of your fellow volunteers and their ability to fulfill our mission statement if you are unable, or no longer interested in being involved.

Conduct

Anyone working or volunteering for any one of our programs is expected to contribute positively to the organization, to collaborate, and to treat fellow members with kindness and respect. This extends to those outside of the organization. Whether you are communicating in person, via email or social media, remember you are representing us.

We can find strength in diversity and different perspectives on issues can be valuable for solving problems or generating new ideas. Being unable to understand why someone holds a viewpoint doesn’t mean that they’re wrong. 

We expect everyone to demonstrate patience and try and resolve conflict through thoughtful dialogue. Don’t forget that we all make mistakes, and blaming each other doesn’t get us anywhere.

We do recommend you reach out to other volunteers if you’re interested in what they do. We have a wealth of knowledge and experience to tap into if you need help with something.

Boost each other’s successes, thank each other for sharing time and resources and give credit where it is due.

Intellectual property

Scientists Inc, 2Scientists and taste of science are all registered trademarks of our organization. You are free to use them and our logos in connection with our work, as are any collaborators. However, please make sure to adhere to our branding guidelines.

We are happy to collaborate with other organizations and welcome partnerships. Part of that involves sharing information and while we are happy to exchange ideas, please do not give those outside the organization access to materials in shared drives or our manual. Please check with us if you are ever unsure.

Do not copy or use other people’s work without permission, or if available through creative commons, without attribution. Please respect others’ labor.

Privacy statement

We respect the privacy of anyone working with our organization or participating in our events. We expect anyone working with us to do the same. You may receive contact information from event attendees with a view to signing up to mailing lists or to volunteer with your team. You will also have attendee contact details to be able to communicate with ticket holders about event updates. These must under no circumstances be downloaded and kept on personal devices.

As volunteers we ask you to join our Slack workspace. You can find their privacy policy here. By default the channels we create for planning are open to all members. We do not have access to private channels or direct messages.

You can find the the privacy statement featured on our taste of science website here.

Unacceptable behavior

We do not allow disrespect, harassment, microaggressions or intolerance among or towards our members. This includes but is not limited to:

  • Threats of violence.

  • Insubordination.

  • Discriminatory jokes and language.

  • Sharing sexually explicit or violent material via electronic devices or other means.

  • Personal insults.

  • Unwelcome sexual attention.

  • Collection or sharing of private information.

  • Ghosting.

  • Advocating for, enabling, or encouraging, any of the above behavior.

We would consider these grounds for instant dismissal.

Protocols

Anybody behaving inappropriately or in disregard of these rules will be asked to stop. Anyone found to be ignoring these requests or committing severe breaches of this code of conduct will be expelled from the organization.


Resolution

We encourage anyone who may have issues that arise due to misunderstandings or miscommunications to talk to the team members involved and hash out their issues through respectful dialogue rather than gossiping or griping to others. 

If the issue cannot be resolved this way, we recommend you approach your city coordinator. If the matter continues to be a problem, please reach out to our founder and CEO Parmvir Bahia (parmvir.bahia[at]scientistsinc.org), or if you’d prefer to speak to someone else, you can contact one of our directors, Angela Rey (angela.rey[at]scientistsinc.org).


Reaching out

If you are ever worried, or feel uncomfortable about someone’s behavior, please know our central team is here to listen to you and deal with any concerns in complete confidence.


Responsiveness

Finally, we are completely volunteer run at every level of our organization. We value everyone’s time and input and respectfully request that you do the same. We have a protocol for anyone wishing to work with us (and we recommend our taste of science chapters do the same). We take into consideration whether you:

  • respond to communications from our/your central team

  • are able to perform tasks you agreed to or that fall within the realm of your role

  • are able to attend necessary meetings

Our responses are to:

  • get in touch to ensure we have realistic expectations of the work and if necessary, adjust accordingly.

  • follow up to ensure that you wish to continue to participate

  • offer the opportunity for an exit interview if you are unable to participate

Questions?

Our goal is to be transparent with anyone engaging with Scientists Inc, so if you ever have any questions, our central team will be happy to respond.

Thank you for your time and energy!