In this document, we present our Code of Ethics and Code of Conduct. In case of any concern, one may contact one or some or all committee members of the Ethics committee of QWorld as how he or she feels more comfortable.

The current members of the Ethics committee of QWorld:

  • János Asbóth (janos.asboth [at] gmail.com)
  • Jarosław Miszczak (jarek [at] miszczak.eu)
  • Özlem Salehi Köken (ozlemsalehi [at] gmail.com)
  • Agnieszka Wolska (agnieszka.k.wolska [at] gmail.com)

Our Code of Ethics and Code of Conduct is also available on our GitLab repository including the previous versions.

We have also domain-specific Code of Conducts that are accessible directly from our Gitlab repository:

In case of any concern related to these domain-specific Codes of Conducts, please contact responsible coordinators or people:

  • Adam Glos for Slack and Discord workspace (adam.glos [at] qworld.net)
  • Adam Glos for gitlab workspace (adam.glos [at] qworld.net)
  • the organizers of the events


Code of Ethics and Code of Conduct



Basics

Version: January 01, 2020

These documents are not an exhaustive list of things that we should follow or that we cannot do. Rather, take them in the spirit in which it’s intended – some guides to make it easier to enrich all of us and each event or project or communication or channel in which we participate.

Modifications

Any modification on Code of Ethics and Code of Conduct is prepared by the Ethics committee of QWorld and then presented to the board of QWorld. Any change is approved and published if at least 80% of the votes are positive among the board members. Otherwise, if at least half of the board are positive, then the board organizes a voting among the leading members, and then any change is approved and published if at least 66% of the votes are positive among the leading members.

For any suggestions, please contact the Ethics committee of QWorld, who should process the suggestion and then acknowledge the sender about their decisions.

Definitions

A person can become a member of QWorld as long as they share the values of QWorld and take an active role such as taking a role/title/responsibility in QWorld or in a QWorld channel or in a project or an event partially or fully belonging to some QWorld channels or groups. 

  • An indicator of a member is the appearance of the name of the person on the website of QWorld or QWorld channels or QWorld groups.
  • Some examples of roles/titles/responsibilities: coordinator, leader, project leader, project coordinator, event/workshop leader, educator/qeducator, mentor/qmentor, designer/qdesigner, (local or main) event organizer, project-specific titles like QDrivers.

A collaborator is a person 

  • who is not a member of QWorld, 

but

  • who takes part in an event or a project organized or co-organized or supported under the name of QWorld or by some QWorld channels.

A participant is a person 

  • who applies to an event or a project (by filling an application form or by using any kind of communication channels or by taking a similar action) organized or co-organized or supported under the name of QWorld or by some QWorld channels or QWorld groups;
  • who is a participant of an event or a project organized or co-organized or supported under the name of QWorld or by some QWorld channels or QWorld groups; 

or,

  • who contacts/approaches to some QWorld channels, groups, or members by using any kind of communication.

A minor is any person younger than 18 years old.

Harassment is any unwanted behavior including

  • any offensive comments about gender, gender identity, and expression, sexual orientation, disability, mental illness, neuro(a)typicality, physical appearance, body size, race, or religion;
  • any unwelcome comments about a person’s lifestyle choices and practices (personal and professional choices);
  • gratuitous or off-topic sexual images or behavior in any QWorld spaces of communication and activity;
  • any physical contact and simulated physical contact (e.g., textual descriptions in communications like “*hug*” or “*backrub*”) without consent or after a request to stop;
  • threats of violence or incitement of violence towards any participant in educational activities or a member of the community of QWorld;
  • any actions aimed at deliberate intimidation, stalking or following QWorld participants and members;
  • taking photos or recordings during events related to QWorld activities to harass or intimidate the participants;
  • logging online activity, saving conversations in Slack and other spaces of QWorld to harass or intimidate the participants;
  • unwelcome sexual attention and any requesting or assuming inappropriate levels of intimacy with others;
  • continued one-on-one communication after requests to cease;
  • any behavior that interferes with QWorld’s activity, e.g., sustained disruption of discussion;
  • publishing or sharing with third parties non-harassing private communication without the permission of the person concerned;
  • deliberate “outing” of any aspect of a person’s identity without their consent except as necessary to protect other QWorld members or other vulnerable people from intentional abuse.

Violation of the Code of Ethics or Code of Conduct

Violation of the code of ethics or code of conduct by any member may result in termination or dismissal from QWorld and its channels and groups.

Violation of the code of ethics or code of conduct by any collaborator (person or entity) may result in termination of the collaboration with QWorld and its channels and groups.

Violation of the code of ethics or code of conduct by any participant may result in being asked to leave the event/project.

For each event/project of QWorld, specific actions are defined and applied in the corresponding code of conduct.

Reporting

If experiencing 

  • any violation of code of ethics or code of conduct,
  • particularly any abuse or harassment,

any other concern, or any other ethics-related issues, 

Please contact immediately

  • QWorld members who are responsible for or in charge of the corresponding event/project.The contact persons should be clearly indicated on the website and application form of the event/project,  

or 

  • some member(s) of QWorld’s ethics committee (we will respect confidentiality requests for the purpose of protecting victims of abuse).

Code of Ethics

Version: January 01, 2020

Our “Code of Ethics” is publicly available, including the previous versions. 

QWorld is a global network of individuals, groups, and communities collaborating on education and implementation of quantum technologies and research activities.

QWorld aims to popularize quantum technologies and quantum software and to involve more people in the field by working publicly and/or academically and locally and/or internationally. 

Additional ethical values, principles or ideals: A QWorld channel or group may define more ethical values, principles or ideals as long as they do not contradict the existing ones. Similarly, if requested by the collaborations, more ethical values, principles or ideals may be defined as long as they do not contradict the existing ones. 

  • Any such addition must be publicly available on the website of QWorld channel or group or the website of the event or project. 
  • For any possible conflict, the opinion of the Ethics Committee of QWorld should be asked.

1. Be inclusive.

We welcome and support people of all backgrounds and identities. This includes, but is not limited to members of any sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, race, ethnicity, culture, national origin, social and economic class, educational level, color, immigration status, sex, age, size, family status, political belief, religion, and mental and physical ability.

2. Be considerate.

We all depend on each other to produce the best work we can as QWorld. Your decisions will affect participants, collaborators, supporters, and colleagues, and you should take those consequences into account when making decisions.

3. Be respectful.

We won’t all agree all the time, but disagreement is no excuse for disrespectful behavior. We will all experience frustration from time to time, but we cannot allow that frustration to turn into personal attacks. An environment where people feel uncomfortable or threatened is not a productive or creative one.

4. Choose your words carefully.

Always conduct yourself professionally. Be kind to others. Do not insult or put down others. Harassment (click for more details) and exclusionary behavior aren’t acceptable. 

5. Don’t harass.

In general, if someone asks you to stop something, then stop. When we disagree, try to understand why. Differences of opinion and disagreements are mostly unavoidable. What is important is that we resolve disagreements and differing views constructively.

6. Make differences into strengths.

We can find strength in diversity. Different people have different perspectives on issues, and that 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. Don’t forget that we all make mistakes, and blaming each other doesn’t get us anywhere.

Instead, focus on resolving issues and learning from mistakes.

Some parts of the texts were taken from the following link as they are or after some modifications: https://www.betterteam.com/code-of-ethics-and-professional-conduct


Code of Conduct

Version: January 01, 2020

Our “Code of Conduct” is publicly available including the previous versions.

Additional rules and regulations may be defined by each QWorld channel, QWorld group or for a specific event or project.

  • In case of a conflict with the code of conduct, with the approval of the Ethics Committee of QWorld, the proposed rule or regulation may be accepted by providing a public explanation. 
  • In any other case, some or all additional rules or regulations may not be publically available. 

The QWorld community is dedicated to providing a harassment-free experience to all participants of activities, events, and projects organized by QWorld, members of the QWorld community, and all the people associated with the conducted activities regardless of gender, gender identity, and expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, or religion.

This code of conduct applies to all activity spaces managed by QWorld, including our website, blog, Slack workspace, twitter page, Facebook page, events, projects, training, and conferences organized (co-organized or supported) by QWorld, and any communication in the QWorld community (online and offline).

Anyone who violates this Code of Conduct may be sanctioned or expelled from the community of QWorld at the discretion of The Ethics Committee of QWorld. Members of QWorld are responsible for knowing and abiding by code of conduct rules.

Communication among QWorld members, collaborators, and participants

Every member of QWorld should work to create a welcoming, friendly, harassment-free, and respectful environment during the events/projects. All members of QWorld should:

– maintain a safe, responsible, and calm behavior;

– be on time at the events and meetings, both online and offline;

– prepare all materials needed for events;

– respect our hosts and event participants;

– dress according to QWorld’s rules.

We recommend QWorld members to include all relevant people to any communication to make the communication more formal.

The default communication channel among QWorld members (besides face-to-face meetings) is email and QWorld’s Slack workspace. Remember that any message in our Slack workspace cannot be deleted and no modification can be made after 1 minute.

The default communication channel among QWorld members and collaborators (besides face-to-face meetings) is email and video conference.

The default communication channel between the participants and the members of QWorld and its collaborators (besides meeting during the event/project) is email. 

  • For any generic announcement, each participant’s email must be hidden by putting it in BCC and the emails of all relevant organizers should be put in CC.
  • For a communication specifically addressed to a group of participants, at least one relevant person from QWorld and at least one relevant person from the collaborator side (if any) must be added in CC.

If the communication by video conference is allowed and defined under a project/event, then each participant has the right to record the meeting but he or she must inform the other party and also share the recorded video with the other party after the conversation.

Any video recording of an online meeting by a member of QWorld or a collaborator related to a QWorld event/project should be defined under the event/project webpage and the other party should be informed and the record should be shared with the other party after the recording.

Contact info (e.g., phone number, home address, social media accounts) of any participant may not be asked by any member of QWorld for a purpose not related to QWorld’s aims or activities. On the other hand, any member of QWorld or a collaborator may share his or her contact info with a participant who is not a minor, upon request by the participant.

Any connection request through social media or similar channel from any minor participant may not be accepted by any member of QWorld or a collaborator,  excluding the cases when the minors are known in the personal network.


Minors (under 18 years of age)

QWorld members and collaborators must make every effort to protect the rights of minors participating QWorld events and projects. 

All private relationships, private communications (including social media channels), or sexual contacts with minor participants are prohibited for QWorld’s members and collaborators.

All rules of this Code of Conduct apply to communication with minors, and in addition, participation in the events/projects of minors should take place according to the following principles:

  • Communication with minors should take place only through general communication channels (excluding all private channels), and the only exceptions are defined below
  • for any minor participating in our activities, participation consent signed by a legal guardian is required
    • the form for consent should contain basic data about the event, time and place of the event, details of the institution conducting the event and contact details of the person/people responsible for organizing the event
    • the form should be both in English and official language of the place where the event/project is held
    • the form for consent to participate in workshops should be available for download on the website of the event/project and on the application form
    • the form for consent should include consent to use of photos and materials obtained during the workshop, e.g., photos from workshops used to promote the event on social media channels and the website of QWorld
    • the form for consent should include consent to use the name, surname and email of the minor by QWorld for contacting the minor by using email regarding QWorld related events, projects, news, and similar activities 
    • some example forms can be accessed from this link

In case of working with a minor or a group of minors individually for a scientific or pedagogical purpose:

  • the default communication channel is email;
  • for each minor, a legal guardian or an administrator from the minor’s school must be included in all email communications;
  • any online or offline meeting must be arranged through a communication described in the above item and each legal guardian must be informed about the meeting(s);
  • any meeting should be held in an educational institute, preferable in public space or in an office by keeping the door open.

Organizing an event or project

Any collaborator of the event or project is asked to accept the code of ethics and the code of conduct. Otherwise, the collaboration should not be established.

The collaborators (if any) should be explicitly and publicly written.

The following should be explicitly written on the project or event web page and on any related document:

  • a link to this document
  • a specific code of conduct for the event/project (some examples are given at the end of this document)
  • the communication channel(s)
  • each member of QWorld taking a role/title/responsibility in the event or project
  • the venue(s) and exact times/dates

The event/project-specific code of conduct should be placed at the top of the application form in a concise form.

The permission for taking photos or recording movies during the event and then using them in QWorld’s social media, news, newsletters, or similar places should be asked in the application form. The same permission can also be asked from QWorld’s organizer group or channel.

The permission for storing and processing personal data (name, surname, email, gender, school/university, faculty/department, grade/level, company, and opinions about QWorld’s activities) by QWorld and QWorld’s partners (with permission of QWorld)  should be asked in the application form. 

If minor applicants are not eligible to participate in the event, then it should be explicitly stated and each applicant should confirm that he or she is over 18 in the application form.

If minor applicants are eligible to participate in the event, each applicant should state whether he or she is younger than 18 years old or not and if the applicant is younger than 18 years old, then it should be explicitly stated that a consent for participation signed by a legal guardian is required. The participant should confirm that he or she will send the photo of the signed consent to the specified email address and then bring the original copy to the event if he or she is accepted to the event.


Personal information shared by a participant

Personal information shared by any participant cannot be used for any purpose not related to QWorld’s aim or activities.

More information will be given in the privacy policy of QWorld.


Code of Conduct in social media channels

Social media channels are one of the most popular ways of communicating with participants today. We created our social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, Slack) to disseminating knowledge about the activities of QWorld, supporting our marketing activities, and foster online communities of QWorld, where people can share ideas and get inspired. All rules of this Code of Conduct apply to communication via social media channels, and in addition, all members of QWorld and our collaborators should remember:

  • abuse of intellectual property rights, including copyright, is forbidden
  • publication of data containing sensitive personal information of QWorld members, participants, or anyone else is forbidden
  • the Ethics Committee of QWorld or moderators or coordinators can remove any content or comments that are offensive, have signs of harassment or are spam
  • Law-breaking attitudes and any behavior encouraging others to break the laws, regulations or rules (including those of any social media channel) are forbidden
  • show respect for all members of QWorld online community
  • photos and recordings taken during a QWorld event can be published only with the permission of the participants. When using photos from the internet, use photos with one of the two licenses:

a) CC BY – the photos can be used by indicating the author
b) CC0 – the photos can be freely used without having to acknowledge the authorship

  • without the knowledge about the status of the photos (licenses) – do not use it

QWorld reserves the rights to ban from our social media channels any person who violates our Code of Ethics or Code of Conduct. When you encounter a question/comment that is not appropriate to share on the public social media channel, please send us a direct message or email: marketing [at] qworld.net