FAIR

Federated and Independent Repositories

Code of Conduct

The FAIR Package Manager follows a Code of Conduct based on the Linux Foundation’s, which promotes a safe, inclusive, and professional community. All participants are expected to treat one another with respect, foster collaboration, and uphold the highest standards of open source contribution.

Any discrepancy between this Code of Conduct and the copy found in the FAIR Package Manager GitHub Repository is unintentional, and the version in the GitHub Repository will apply.

Effective: 2025-05-15

As part of LF Projects, LLC (“LF Projects”), The FAIR Package Manager takes on all activities and behaviors that are consistent with the LF Projects mission and purpose.

The Code of Conduct aims to support a community where all people should feel safe to participate, introduce new ideas and inspire others, regardless of regardless of age, background, body size, visible or invisible disability, ethnicity, sex characteristics, gender identity and expression, level of experience, education, socio-economic status, nationality, geographic location, personal appearance, race, caste, color, religion, sexual identity and orientation, or other dimension of diversity.

Introduction

The purposes of The FAIR Package Manager are to:

  • support the collaborative development, availability and adoption of open source web publishing software, as well as related hardware and networking and other technologies and the collaborative development, with availability and adoption of open protocols and standards (individually and collectively, “Open Technology”);
  • host various projects related to The FAIR Package Manager, in the pursuit of the development of Open Technology and other technical assets, materials and processes as sub projects (there may be any number of associated sub projects at any one point in time);
  • provide enablement and support to sub projects to assist their development activities; and
  • undertake such other lawful activity as permitted by law and as consistent with the mission, purpose and tax status of Joint Development Foundation, a Washington non-profit non-stock corporation and the sole member of LF Projects.

The FAIR Package Manager is a community where participants choose to work together, and in that process experience differences in language, location, nationality, and experience. In such a diverse environment, misunderstandings and disagreements happen, which in most cases can be resolved informally. In rare cases, however, behavior can intimidate, harass, or otherwise disrupt one or more people in the community, which The FAIR Package Manager will not tolerate.

A Code of Conduct (“Code” or “CoC”) is useful to define accepted and acceptable behaviors and to promote high standards of professional practice. It also provides a benchmark for self-evaluation and acts as a vehicle for better identity of the organization.

LF Projects is a Delaware series limited liability company. Projects of LF Projects are formed as separate series of LF Projects (each, a “Series”). References to “Projects” within this Policy include the applicable Series for each Project. Specifically, The FAIR Package Manager.

The CoC applies to any participant of The FAIR Package Manager – including without limitation developers, participants in meetings, teleconferences, mailing lists, conferences or functions, and contributors. Note that the CoC complements rather than replaces legal rights and obligations pertaining to any particular situation.

In addition, with the approval of LF Projects and leadership of The FAIR Package Manager, any sub projects or Working Groups are free to adopt their own Code of Conduct in place of or in addition to the Code.

Statement of Intent

The FAIR Package Manager is committed to maintaining a positive, professional work environment. This commitment calls for community spaces (aka workplaces) where participants at all levels behave according to the rules of the following Code. A foundational concept of the CoC is that we all share responsibility for our work environment.

Code

  • Make participation in The FAIR Package Manager community a harassment-free experience for everyone.
  • Act and interact with people in ways that contribute to an open, welcoming, diverse, inclusive, and healthy community.
  • Treat each other with respect, professionalism, fairness, and sensitivity to our many differences and strengths, including in situations of high pressure and urgency.
  • Never harass or bully anyone verbally, physically or sexually.
  • Never discriminate on the basis of personal characteristics or group membership.
  • Communicate constructively and avoid demeaning or insulting behavior or language.
  • Seek, accept, and offer objective work criticism, and acknowledge properly the contributions of others.
  • Be honest about your own qualifications, and about any circumstances that might lead to conflicts of interest.
  • Respect the privacy of others and the confidentiality of data you access.
  • With respect to cultural differences, be conservative in what you do and liberal in what you accept from others, but not to the point of accepting disrespectful, unprofessional or unfair or unwelcome behavior or advances.
  • Promote the rules of the CoC and take action (especially if you are in a leadership position) to bring the discussion back to a more civil level whenever inappropriate behaviors are observed.
  • Stay on topic: Make sure that you are posting to the correct channel and avoid off-topic discussions. Remember when you update an issue or respond to an email you are potentially sending to a large number of people.
  • Step down considerately: participants in every project come and go, and The FAIR Package Manager is no different. When you leave or disengage from the project, in whole or in part, we ask that you do so in a way that minimizes disruption to the project. This means you should tell people you are leaving and take the proper steps to ensure that others can pick up where you left off.

Scope

The CoC applies within all community spaces (aka workspaces), and also applies when an individual is officially representing the community in public spaces.

Community spaces are a set of all available means of collaboration, including, but not limited to, messages to mailing lists, private correspondence, web pages, chat channels, phone and video teleconferences, and any kind of face-to-face meetings or discussions.

Those who contribute code, comment code or specs, participate in discussions, attend conferences, represent corporate participants, or are otherwise involved in community spaces are considered participants of The FAIR Package Manager. Participants who are group chairs, staff members, board members, organizers, or project maintainers are considered to be in leadership positions.

Examples of representing our community include using an official email address, posting via an official social media account, or acting as an appointed representative at an online or offline event.

Glossary

Demeaning behavior

is acting in a way that reduces another person’s dignity, sense of self-worth or respect within the community.

Discrimination

is the prejudicial treatment of an individual based on criteria such as: physical appearance, race, ethnic origin, genetic differences, national or social origin, name, religion, gender, sexual orientation, family or health situation, pregnancy, disability, age, education, wealth, domicile, political view, morals, employment, or union activity.

Insulting behavior

is treating another person with scorn or disrespect.

Acknowledgement

is a record of the origin(s) and author(s) of a contribution.

Harassment

is any conduct, verbal or physical, that has the intent or effect of interfering with an individual, or that creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive environment.

Leadership position

includes group Chairs, project maintainers, staff members, and Board members.

Participant

includes the following persons:

  • Developers
  • Representatives of corporate participants
  • Anyone from the Public partaking in the LF Projects work environment (e.g. contribute code, comment on our code or specs, email us, attend our conferences, functions, etc)

Respect

is the genuine consideration you have for someone (if only because of their status as participant in LF Projects, like yourself), and that you show by treating them in a polite and kind way.

Sexual harassment

includes visual displays of degrading sexual images, sexually suggestive conduct, offensive remarks of a sexual nature, requests for sexual favors, unwelcome physical contact, and sexual assault.

Unwelcome behavior

Hard to define? Some questions to ask yourself are:

  • how would I feel if I were in the position of the recipient?
  • would my partner, parent, child, sibling or friend like to be treated this way?
  • would I like an account of my behavior published in the organization’s newsletter?
  • could my behavior offend or hurt other members of the work group?
  • could someone misinterpret my behavior as intentionally harmful or harassing?
  • would I treat my boss or a person I admire at work like that?

Summary: if you are unsure whether something might be welcome or unwelcome, don’t do it.

Unwelcome sexual advance

includes requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature, where:

  • submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual’s employment,
  • submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as a basis for employment decisions affecting the individual,
  • such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work performance or creating an intimidating hostile or offensive working environment.

Workspace Bullying

is a tendency of individuals or groups to use persistent aggressive or unreasonable behavior (e.g. verbal or written abuse, offensive conduct or any interference which undermines or impedes work) against a co-worker or any professional relations.

Work Environment

is the set of all available means of collaboration, including, but not limited to messages to mailing lists, private correspondence, Web pages, chat channels, phone and video teleconferences, and any kind of face-to-face meetings or discussions.

Incident Procedure

Every attempt will be made to address an incident in-house, following the procedures laid out in the CoC. The overall goal is to correct behavior and continue forward.

While an incident is being reviewed, contribution privileges to The FAIR Package Manager may be restricted or limited, depending on the nature of the incident. This is in order to protect the project as a whole but also those involved in the incident, so they cannot be blamed unjustly for actions that occur during this investigation.

All participants are expected to promote the expectations of the CoC and take action to bring the discussion back to a more civil level whenever inappropriate behaviors are observed.

Those in leadership positions are responsible for clarifying and enforcing our standards of acceptable behavior and taking appropriate and fair corrective action in response to any behavior that they deem inappropriate, threatening, offensive, or harmful. They also have the right and responsibility to remove, edit, or reject any contributions not aligned to the CoC. If such action is taken, they also have the responsibility to communicate reasons for their decisions when appropriate.

Reporting Incidents

Instances of abusive, harassing, or otherwise unacceptable behavior may be reported to the community leaders responsible for enforcement at

[CONTACT METHOD]

All incidents will be reported via email to the Manager of LF Projects, Mike Dolan (manager@lfprojects.org). They will include any available relevant information, including links to any publicly accessible material relating to the matter. Every effort will be taken to ensure a safe and collegial environment in which to collaborate on matters relating to the Project.

In order to protect the community, the Project reserves the right to take appropriate action, potentially including the removal of an individual from any and all participation in the project. The Project will work towards an equitable resolution in the event of a misunderstanding.

Appealing

To appeal reports of incidents, send email to the Manager of LF Projects, Mike Dolan (manager@lfprojects.org) with all relevant information.

Enforcement Guidelines

Community leaders will follow these Community Impact Guidelines in determining the consequences for any action they deem in violation of the Code of Conduct:

1. Correction

Community Impact: Use of inappropriate language or other behavior deemed unprofessional or unwelcome in the community.

Consequence: A private, written warning from community leaders, providing clarity around the nature of the violation and an explanation of why the behavior was inappropriate. A public apology may be requested but cannot be required.

Violating these terms will lead to a Warning.

2. Warning

Community Impact: A violation through a single incident or series of actions.

Consequence: A warning with consequences for continued behavior. No interaction with the people involved, including unsolicited interaction with those enforcing the Code of Conduct, for a specified period of time. This includes avoiding interactions in community spaces as well as external channels like social media.

Violating these terms may lead to a temporary or permanent ban.

3. Temporary Ban

Community Impact: A serious violation of community standards, including sustained inappropriate behavior.

Consequence: A temporary ban from any sort of interaction or public communication with the community for a specified period of time. No public or private interaction with the people involved, including unsolicited interaction with those enforcing the Code of Conduct, is allowed during this period.

Violating these terms may lead to a permanent ban.

4. Permanent Ban

Community Impact: Demonstrating a pattern of violation of community standards, including sustained inappropriate behavior, harassment of an individual, or aggression toward or disparagement of classes of individuals.

Consequence: A permanent ban from any sort of public interaction within the community.

Behavioral Examples

The FAIR Package Manager is committed to maintaining a positive, community space. This commitment calls for community spaces where participants at all levels behave according to the expectations of the Code of Conduct. A foundational concept of the CoC is that all members share responsibility for the community and everyone’s safety.

The following examples are not meant to be a comprehensive list. Instead, they capture the shared understanding of how to work together. They should be followed in both spirit and practice.

Examples of behavior that contributes to a positive environment for the community include:

  • demonstrating empathy and kindness toward other people;
  • being respectful of differing opinions, viewpoints, and experiences;
  • giving and gracefully accepting constructive feedback;
  • accepting responsibility and apologizing to those affected by one’s mistakes, and learning from the experience;
  • focusing on what is best not just for individuals, but for the overall community;

Examples of unacceptable behavior include:

  • the use of sexualized language or imagery, and sexual attention or advances of any kind;
  • trolling, insulting or derogatory comments, and personal or political attacks;
  • public or private harassment;
  • publishing others’ private information, such as a physical or email address, or even their legal name, without their explicit permission;
  • other actions which could reasonably be considered inappropriate in a professional setting;

Credits

The CoC is based on the W3C’s Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct with some additions from the Cloud Foundry’s Code of Conduct and the Hyperledger Project Code of Conduct.

Aspects of the CoC are adapted from the Contributor Covenant, version 2.1, available at https://www.contributor-covenant.org/version/2/1/code_of_conduct.html. For answers to common questions about the Code of conduct, see the FAQ at https://www.contributor-covenant.org/faq. Translations are available at https://www.contributor-covenant.org/translations.

Community Impact Guidelines were inspired by Mozilla’s code of conduct enforcement ladder.

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