Last week I spoke with the students at Ada Developers Academy, a programming school for women. As much of my regular audience consists of people in positions of power and influence in tech - generally men - I was at a loss for what to speak about when I was asked. I found myself nervous about speaking to them, which surprised me. After all, I've been in their position before; I should be able to relate more to them than the people I usually teach.
Over the past couple years, a larger discussion has been taking place about technical conferences and related events adopting code of conduct/anti-harassment policies. Below are some of the more common questions about and arguments against these policies.
Is there something missing from this list? Email me.
Nearly a year and a half ago, an incident in the Ruby community inspired me to more vocally support and advocate for inclusive, safe, welcoming events in tech. Myself and others started by speaking to community and conference organizers about what they were doing to make their events an accurate reflection of not only what the community currently looked like, but where we wanted to see it go.
95% of funding for my over 1500hrs community work per year - including this and other free online resources, AlterConf, and Fund Club - comes from donations.
Available for consulting to increase diversity and inclusion within businesses, communities, conferences, and other organizations. Find out more about consulting.
