Code of Conduct

EXPECTATIONS FOR CONDUCT AT SPINS-UK 2025

The SPINS-UK 2025 meeting is a community conference intended for networking and collaboration in the field of neutron star astronomy and astrophysics. The meeting is attended primarily by the UK research community, and specifically ECRs, but international researchers with relevant experience are also welcome. We value the participation of each member of the neutron star community and want all attendees to have an enjoyable and fulfilling experience. Accordingly, all attendees are expected to show respect and courtesy to other attendees throughout the conference and at all meeting events. All attendees, speakers, organisers, and volunteers at any SPINS-UK 2025 event are further required to conform to the below Code of Conduct. The organisers are committed to enforcing this code throughout the event, and any decisions taken by the organisers in respect of it are final.

CODE OF CONDUCT

The organisers of SPINS-UK 2025 are dedicated to providing a harassment-free meeting experience for everyone, regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, age, religion or nationality. We will not tolerate harassment of conference participants in any form. 

All communication should be appropriate for a professional audience including people of many different backgrounds. In particular, sexual language and imagery is not appropriate during any conference activity, including during any informal social gatherings outside the official programme.

Conference participants violating these rules may be sanctioned or expelled from the conference without a refund at the discretion of the conference organisers.

Cases of harassment include, but are not limited to:

• Written or verbal comments which have the effect of excluding people on the basis of membership of any specific group, such as (but not limited to) gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, age, religion or nationality. This includes sexist, racist, homophobic, transphobic, ableist, or exclusionary jokes.

• Comments made, either through speech or chat on any meeting-related online platform (including social media), that are exclusionary, derogatory, or threatening toward another participant or community.

• Sexual language and imagery.

• Violent threats or language directed against another person, including incitement to violence, suicide, or self-harm.

• Deliberate intimidation, stalking, or following.

• Harassing photography or recording.

• Continuing to initiate interaction (including photography or recording) with someone after being asked to stop.

• Sustained disruption of talks or other events.

• Unwelcome sexual attention.

• Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behaviour.

ENFORCEMENT

All SPINS-UK 2025 participants, including guests, are subject to the above Code of Conduct. If an individual is made aware that they are contravening these guidelines or making participants uncomfortable, they are expected to desist immediately. The SPINS-UK 2025 organisers further retain the right to take any actions to maintain a welcoming environment for all participants. This includes warning the offender, at the sole discretion of the organisers, or expulsion from the conference with no refund. The organisers may also take action to redress anything designed to, or with the clear impact of, disrupting the event or making the environment hostile for any participants.

We expect participants to follow these rules at all event venues and social activities, whether organised by the conference or informally by other participants.

REPORTING CODE OF CONDUCT VIOLATIONS

To report a violation of the SPINS-UK Code of Conduct you can:

• Speak to one of the following members of the LOC, who are identifiable from their badges:

  1. Vanessa Graber

  2. Gregory Ashton

  3. Adriana Dias

• Email the LOC at  spins2025@rhul.ac.uk and ensure your email subject line contains the phrase 'CoC violation' to help expedite a response.