ALP Nature Learner Server Code of Conduct

Last Updated: April 16th, 2024

Our Discord server was created during the COVID-19 pandemic, and is now a happy part of Addyse Lane Palagyi Nature Center and Preserve. It is devoted to the values of community, connection, and stewardship of the environment. We are a positive, accepting space designed to foster friendships, fun, and a variety of shared interests.

Welcome!

All policies provided in the Addyse Lane Palagyi Nature Center and Preserve Family Handbook apply to our Discord server as well. Discord Users must also abide by Discord's Community Guidelines and Terms of Service. In addition:

Act legally and ethically

Acting or attempting to act in violation of state, federal, or local law, ordinance, or regulation, or Addyse Lane Palagyi Nature Center and Preserve policy, is prohibited.

Do not engage in activities that endanger other users or the server.

Each member must have their own Discord account and may not access another user’s account or misrepresent their own identity.

Please note that users under 13 years of age may only join Discord via an account administered by their parent/guardian.

Use spaces and resources as they are intended

Sharing of publicly published and/or commonly available photos, gifs, memes, posts, videos, etc. is extremely restricted on our server. In places where sharing is allowed, we encourage users to only share their own original content rather than copyrighted or potentially copyrightable content. We want to celebrate your work!

Posting links to other servers or to web pages is not allowed in our server channels.

We reserve the right to remove any post or message that we feel is not appropriate for any reason, violates our code of conduct, or that we believe violates copyright laws. We ask that you attribute the creator(s)/originator(s) of all derived/tribute/fanart content whenever possible.

Be aware that certain violations of this Code of Conduct may result in messages from our Discord bot, Cameron, with warnings (and sometimes your message may be deleted by Cameron). Please feel free to contact the Council with any questions. (Every now and then, Cameron sends a warning when it’s not deserved; rest assured that a human will always be involved in deciding if a violation occurred.)

This virtual space is intended for:

• Addyse Lane Palagyi Nature Center and Preserve families and community.
• Participants in Addyse Lane Palagyi Nature Center and Preserve activities, classes, programming, and events.
• Homeschooled students in western Oregon between the ages of 9 and 19. Homeschooled applicants who do not fulfill these criteria will be rejected.

Joining the server under false pretenses will result in a permanent ban. Members will be asked to complete a short age/identity verification process before being admitted to the server.

Be aware that Discord also has a private messaging function as well as choices for limiting who is able to send you a private message. We encourage all users to explore the settings for this function as soon as possible, and ensure that the settings match your needs. Please limit public discussions on our server of private messages sent or received. Please feel free to reach out to the Council if you need assistance in adjusting your private messaging settings, or if you have any concerns about messages between you and another member of our server.

Communicate with respect

Our server strives to be a welcoming, positive space, and especially to embrace those who may experience marginalization in their lives.

We respect pronouns and names.

Our bot, Cameron, has a pronoun feature. The given name used during registration is what will appear in our server list, not your Discord username; should you need to change the name displayed in our server at any time, please simply contact the Council.

Obscene, harassing, actively harmful, or abusive language or gestures are considered dangerous and are not tolerated. This includes, but is not limited to, racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, ableist, and violent language.

Be aware that all public information on a user’s profile is also viewable within our server, and therefore needs to be kept appropriate for our server and its audience. Users who belong to other Discord servers which may have different acceptability standards especially need to keep this in mind.

For identification and safety purposes, we may collect and securely store publicly accessible information about user accounts.

Share the space

This server acts both as a synchronous gathering place and as an asynchronous communication hub. Be mindful of the multiple uses for this space and keep conversations within the appropriate channels. In addition, while no users are required to maintain private message capabilities, consider that some conversations are better held in private than in a relatively public space such as the server channels. Also, please do not join an event being held in a voice call if you are not going to participate in the event.

Specific events or connected servers (such as Minecraft) may have their own rules; expectations; waivers, codes of conduct, or nominal fees separate from and in addition to this Discord Code of Conduct.

Be considerate of others

For your own safety, we ask that you not post potentially sensitive information in Discord channels, such as phone numbers, emails, home addresses, etc. of yourself or others.

If you suspect that a post, including art, may cause a strong reaction in others (because of visual content, revealing plot details of media, etc.), we encourage you to use Discord’s “spoiler” function, to conceal the post unless it is actively “un-spoilered” by the individual viewer. It is helpful to include a reason for the spoiler in your post. Please also feel free to reach out to the Council for advice if you are unsure whether to “spoiler” an item or not.

Consequences

Single, non-severe violations of the code of conduct may result in a warning, or a temporary suspension from one or more channels or the entire server (see “Processes for Behavior Issues,” below)

Severe or repeated violations may result in a permanent ban from the server (see below).

Such consequences will be determined by adult facilitators and/or the Executive Director of Addyse Lane Palagyi Nature Center and Preserve.

Processes for Behavior Issues

Participation in ALPNCP’s Discord server is designed around fun and positive interactions. Appropriate language, positive comments and helpful attitudes are all key to successful participation.

Reminders, Warnings, and Immediate Loss of Access

Reminders to keep comments, communication, and language positive and appropriate are our first step in keeping the server a safe space for everyone. Generally, reminders come from the Council or adult facilitators, but they can also come from fellow participants. Reminders may be directed to an individual or to the group.

The appropriate response to a reminder is thanks, an apology where warranted, and changed behavior going forward. Arguing/debating is not an appropriate response to a reminder or to any other consequence. Legitimate questions to clarify the details of any issue mentioned in a reminder are welcome, and can occur via private message or in a scheduled meeting with an adult facilitator.

Warnings occur when reminders prove ineffective. Warnings are directed to individual(s) by the Council and/or adult facilitators, and include a direct statement about what behavior needs to stop and what behavior needs to start. A warning will also include notice that further action will be taken if the unwanted behavior continues (see below).

Temporary Loss of Access may include being “server muted” for a short time while in a voice channel or being prevented from posting in one or more text channels for a time. More severe violations could also result in being “kicked” from the entire server, with specific restorative and/or reparative further actions required for re-entry (see below).

Permanent Loss of Access occurs when a participant has created a dangerous situation for themselves, others, or property; has severely violated this code of conduct; or has had ongoing or repeated reminders, warnings, and/or temporary losses of access for multiple less-severe violations. The decision to implement a Permanent Loss of Access (a “Ban”) is made by the appropriate adult facilitator in consultation with the Executive Director, and will also cause further action (see below).

Further action is needed when:

• Reminders and/or warnings become frequent or are not heeded
• A user is “kicked” from the server and must take steps to return
• A “ban” has been put in place

Further Action Procedures

Adult facilitators will protect the privacy of all users. The Council, depending on the situation, may know (or have witnessed) the details of problematic behavior and/or the corrective action(s) taken, but details of any conversation with a user’s parents will be kept confidential.

The parent is contacted by the relevant adult facilitator and/or ALPNCP staff member as soon as possible. A discussion about the behavior is initiated.

In the case of a Permanent Loss of Access, the process is complete once the parent is notified.

Except in the case of a permanent loss of access, a meeting with a user, the user’s parent/guardian, and the adult facilitator takes place. The focus is on restoring participation with a clear understanding of behavior expectations, and clear consequences if behaviors are not followed. Tools that can be used include a Behavior Agreement (formal or informal), restoring relationship(s) through an appropriate apology (written or verbal), and/or a defined period of time before returning.

Following the meeting, the adult facilitator will provide a summary of the plan to the parent to include the actions agreed to, consequences if the agreements are not kept, and a timeline (when they can ask to come back to the server, etc.) as needed.

Members of the Council as well as our Discord bot, Cameron, and our adult facilitators are here to maintain this server for you and keep it welcoming to everyone. Please reach out to us if you are feeling uncomfortable, or if you have any questions! We can be reached at discord.server@alpnature.org, or you can type "@The Council" to tag us in a post on the server.