Code of Conduct

The Galileo Luxury Standard community brings together competitors who share a commitment to establishing neutral, interoperable standards. This Code of Conduct applies to all project spaces, including repositories, mailing lists, meetings, and events.

Our Pledge

We as members, contributors, and leaders pledge to make participation in the Galileo Luxury Standard community a harassment-free experience for everyone, regardless of age, body size, visible or invisible disability, ethnicity, sex characteristics, gender identity and expression, level of experience, education, socio-economic status, nationality, personal appearance, race, caste, color, religion, or sexual identity and orientation.

We pledge to act and interact in ways that contribute to an open, welcoming, diverse, inclusive, and healthy community. We recognize that our community brings together competitors and pledge to maintain the professional conduct necessary for this collaboration to succeed.

Our Standards

Positive Behavior

Demonstrating empathy and kindness toward other community members
Being respectful of differing opinions, viewpoints, and experiences
Giving and gracefully accepting constructive feedback
Accepting responsibility and apologizing to those affected by our mistakes
Focusing on what is best for the overall community and Standard
Using welcoming and inclusive language
Maintaining confidentiality of private discussions as required by the Transparency Policy
Separating technical debate from personal conflict, focusing criticism on ideas rather than individuals
Honoring commitments made to working groups, deadlines, and review processes

Unacceptable Behavior

Harassment— 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— Intimidation, stalking, or following
Privacy violations— Publishing others' private information without explicit permission
Disruption— Sustained disruption of community events, including talks and presentations
Professional misconduct— Other conduct which could reasonably be considered inappropriate in a professional setting
Antitrust violations— Discussion of pricing, market allocation, or other topics prohibited by the Charter's Antitrust Compliance section
Confidentiality breaches— Sharing private deliberations outside appropriate channels
Bad faith participation— Deliberately obstructing consensus, abusing process, or acting contrary to the Standard's mission

Scope

This Code of Conduct applies within all community spaces and when an individual is officially representing the community in public spaces.

Community Spaces

Project repositories (GitHub, GitLab, or other hosting platforms)
Mailing lists and email communications
Chat systems (Slack, Discord, Matrix, or similar)
Forums and discussion boards
Issue trackers and pull request discussions
Virtual and in-person meetings
Working group sessions
RFC review processes

Public Representation

Using an official project email address
Posting via an official social media account
Acting as an appointed representative at events
Speaking on behalf of the project at conferences or in media

Reporting

Instances of abusive, harassing, or otherwise unacceptable behavior may be reported to: conduct@galileoprotocol.io

All complaints will be reviewed and investigated promptly and fairly.

Reporter protections: Privacy and security of the reporter are respected. Retaliation against reporters is itself a Code of Conduct violation.
Accused party rights: Individuals accused of violations have the right to be informed of the specific behavior at issue and to respond before sanctions are imposed.

Investigation Process

Receipt— Report acknowledged within 48 hours
Assessment— Initial assessment of severity and required action within 7 days
Investigation— Fact-finding, including opportunity for accused to respond
Decision— Determination of violation and appropriate sanction
Communication— Parties informed of outcome
Appeal— Opportunity to appeal to Governing Board

Enforcement Guidelines

The TSC follows these Community Impact Guidelines in determining consequences. Sanctions are graduated to match the severity and pattern of violations.

Level 1: Correction

Impact: Use of inappropriate language or other behavior deemed unprofessional.

Consequence: Private, written warning from enforcement team. Clarity provided on the nature of the violation and why the behavior was inappropriate. One-time warning; no ongoing restrictions.

Level 2: Warning

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

Consequence:Formal warning with consequences for continued behavior. No interaction with the people involved for a specified period (typically 30–90 days). Violating these terms may lead to a temporary or permanent ban.

Level 3: Temporary Ban

Impact: A serious violation, including sustained inappropriate behavior or repeated Level 2 violations.

Consequence:Temporary ban from all community interaction for a specified period (typically 3–12 months). Suspension of voting rights and TSC/Board eligibility during ban period. Contributions during the ban period will not be accepted.

Level 4: Permanent Ban

Impact: Demonstrating a pattern of violation, including sustained inappropriate behavior, harassment, or aggression toward classes of individuals.

Consequence: Permanent ban from all public interaction within the community. Removal from all community spaces and platforms. Permanent loss of membership rights. May petition for reinstatement review after 3 years.

Appeals

Individuals who have received sanctions may appeal to the Governing Board within thirty (30) days of notification.

Appeals must be submitted in writing, including the specific sanction being appealed and grounds for appeal (procedural error, disproportionate sanction, new information).
The Governing Board (or designated Appeals Committee) reviews the appeal within 30 days and issues a final, binding decision.

Special Provisions

Interactions Between Competitors

The luxury goods industry includes competing brands. All participants must maintain professional conduct regardless of competitive relationships. Participants must not use Code of Conduct processes for competitive advantage. False or malicious reports are themselves Code of Conduct violations.

TSC and Board Member Conduct

TSC and Board members are held to higher standards. Violations by leaders are treated as more serious due to their position. Leaders must recuse themselves from enforcement decisions involving their organizations.

Attribution

This Code of Conduct is adapted from the Contributor Covenant, version 2.1. Modifications have been made to address the specific context of an industrial specification standard where competing organizations collaborate, including provisions for antitrust compliance and confidential deliberations.