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Code Of Conduct for the

International Marine Conservation Congress

The Society for Conservation Biology and the SCB Marine Section work to promote a welcoming environment at conferences that is safe, collaborative, supportive, and productive for all attendees, including delegates, volunteers, exhibitors, invited speakers/stakeholders, members of the media and service providers. SCB Marine and IMCC value the diversity of views, expertise, opinions, backgrounds, and experiences reflected among all attendees.

All IMCC4 delegates and guests are expected to adhere to the Code of Conduct. If you'd like to report an incident or counsel with the Safety Officer, please contact:

Tracey Woodbury
IMCC4 Safety Officer
IMCC.Safety.Officer@gmail.com
+1 (902) 418-9822
(Canadian number)

IMCC4 Code of Conduct

IMCC4’s mission is making marine science matter. With a conservation focus, these topics arouse debate, and strong disagreements may occur. We see this as an asset – it is our explicit mission to set up a space so that these discussions can happen. However, there is a line between debate and disrespect – and if that line is crossed, the space is no longer productive. We also value providing a safe, equable, inspiring space for delegates from around the world.  Our respectful dialogue policy asks that participants make every effort to maintain constructive discourse with other conference attendees at all times.

To that end, we expect everyone to abide by the following Code of Conduct:

Expected Behavior

  • Treat everyone with respect and consideration.
  • Communicate openly and thoughtfully with others and be considerate of the multitude of views and opinions that are different than your own.
  • Be respectful and mindful in your critique of ideas.
  • Be mindful of your surroundings and of your fellow participants. Alert SCB staff if you notice a dangerous situation or someone in distress.
  • Respect the rules and policies of the conference centre and all venues associated with IMCC4.

Unacceptable Behavior

  • Harassment and intimidation, including any verbal, written, or physical conduct designed to threaten, intimidate, or coerce another delegate, conference organizers, or staff;
  • Discrimination based on gender or gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, religion, national origin, or culture;
  • Physical or verbal abuse of any attendee, speaker, volunteer, exhibitor, SCB staff member, service provider or other meeting guest;
  • Examples of unacceptable behavior also include, but are not limited to: inappropriate use of nudity and/or sexual images in public spaces or in presentations; threatening or stalking any IMCC4 participant; sexually harassing any IMCC4 participant;
  • Disrespectful disruption of presentations.

Consequences

  • Anyone requested to stop unacceptable behavior is expected to comply immediately.
  • IMCC4 staff (or their designee) or security may take any action deemed necessary and appropriate, including immediate removal from the meeting without warning and potentially without refund.
  • SCB and the SCB Marine Section reserve the right to prohibit attendance at any future meeting.

Reporting Unacceptable Behavior

  • If you are the subject of unacceptable behavior or have witnessed any such behavior, please immediately notify the IMCC4 Safety Officer, an IMCC4 staff member, or SCB Marine Section volunteer in a leadership position. For delegates who wish to lodge a complaint of harassment, the trained IMCC4 Safety Officer will be available and readily identifiable. Notification should be done by contacting IMCC4 Safety Officer Tracey Jordan Woodbury on-site or e-mail your concern.  
  • You may also notify Samantha Oester, Brett Favaro, Edward Hind, John Cigliano and/or Lori Strong if the Safety Officer is unavailable. (Please be sure the subject line reflects the urgency of the situation.)
  • For matters of immediate physical safety, you may also approach the onsite IMCC4 security guard.
  • Reporting should never be done via social media.

Editorial/Opinion Article

Favaro, B., Oester, S., Cigliano, J.A., Cornick, L.A., Hind, E.J., Parsons, E.C.M., Woddbury, T.J. 2016. Your science conference should have a code of conduct.  Frontiers in Marine Science.

The IMCC4 Safety Officer Tracey Jordan Woodbury has a background in corporate and university human resources, with degrees psychology and human resources management.