Somatic Mosaicism across Human Tissues (SMaHT) Network Code of Conduct

Version 1.0 – Dated November 2023

SMaHT Website: https://smaht.org/

SMaHT Data Portal: https://data.smaht.org/

I. Members of the SMaHT Policy Working Group

First NameAffiliationGroupEmail Address
Jimmy Bennett, Co-ChairSCRI-UWGCCjtbenn{at}u.washington.edu
Lucinda Fulton, Co-ChairWashington UniversityOClfulton{at}wustl.edu
Heather Lawson, Co-ChairWUSMOClawson{at}wustl.edu
Alexej AbyzovMayo ClinicTTD

abyzov.alexej{at}mayo.edu

alexej.abyzov{at}yale.edu

Tom BellNDRITPCtbell{at}ndriresource.org
Elizabeth ChunHarvard Medical SchoolDACelizabeth_chun{at}hms.harvard.edu
Richard ConroyOSC/NIHNIHrichard.conroy{at}nih.gov
Melissa FaithTPC/Johns HopkinsELSI Co-PImfaith1{at}jhmi.edu
Chen FeiBroad InstituteTTDchenf{at}broadinstitute.org
Amy LossieNIDA/NIHNIHlossieac{at}nih.gov
Stephen MontgomeryStanford (Broad GCC)GCCsmontgom{at}stanford.edu
Jill MorrisNINDSNIHjill.morris{at}nih.gov
Peter ParkHarvard Medical SchoolDACpeter_park{at}hms.harvard.edu
Dena ProcacciniNIHdena.procaccini{at}nih.gov
Raquel HernandezTPC/Johns HopkinsELSI Co-PIraquel.hernandez{at}jhmi.edu
Alexi RunnelsNew York Genome CenterGCCarunnels{at}nygenome.org
Geetha SenthilNCATS/NIHNIHsenthilgs{at}mail.nih.gov
Alex UrbanStanford UniversityTTDaeurban{at}stanford.edu
Jeffrey OuUW/SCRIGCCJeffrey.Ou{at}seattlechildrens.org
Kristin ArdlieBroad Institutekardlie{at}broadinstitute.org

II. Code of Conduct

A diverse and inclusive community is essential to achieving our shared scientific goals. Our community members bring with them a wide variety of professional, personal, and social perspectives; whatever these may be, we strive to treat colleagues with dignity and respect.

The SMaHT Network is committed to providing a harassment-free experience for everyone regardless of physical appearance, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, (dis)ability, age, race, religion, or national origin.

This Code of Conduct (CoC) is our governing policy that reflects SMaHT’s culture and ethical principles of integrity, care, transparency, and accountability. We expect all participants in the SMaHTNetwork to abide by the following Code of Conduct when interacting in physical spaces, digital spaces, and SMaHT-related social media channels.

III. How to Support the Code

Expected Behavior

We expect all members and contributors to maintain a professional environment and treat colleagues courteously and respectfully.

The following kinds of behaviors in all SMaHT platforms and events are encouraged:

  • Showing courtesy and empathy towards every member of the community

  • Respecting viewpoints, ideas, and experiences of others

  • Being transparent about conflicts of interest

  • Gracefully accepting constructive criticism

  • Using welcoming and inclusive language

  • Being direct but professional

  • Respecting people’s boundaries

  • Being sensitive to language differences

  • Being aware of the dynamics of power and privilege, especially of how much time and space you are taking up

  • Respecting confidentiality, especially during closed meeting settings

  • Accommodating needs for physical distance and other precautions

Unacceptable Behavior

The following will not be tolerated:

  • Bullying

  • Discrimination

  • Disrespectful behavior

  • Harassment

  • Intimidation

  • Marginalization of individuals, their ideas, or their contributions

  • Plagiarism

  • Sexual harassment which is defined as unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical harassment of a sexual nature.

  • Violence

Reporting

Remember that, in many cases, issues are best resolved at the source. Raising an issue with a relevant group member or senior colleague, who has the most context, is the best and first place to work towards a resolution.

If you are in immediate danger, please call 911 and contact your local law enforcement agency.

If someone violates this code of conduct, you are urged to make a report as soon as possible by contacting SMaHT Policy Working Group members. The working group takes the safety and desired anonymity of reporters seriously. If you believe a SMaHT Policy Working Group member has a conflict of interest with a report, mention this in your report.

When a report is made, the SMaHT Policy Working Group will review it as soon as it is received.

This SMaHT CoC will be shared on the SMaHT Wiki and provided to new contributors who join groups and are mentioned at SMaHT events.

Note that this policy does not supersede individuals’ reporting responsibilities within their institutions and local laws and regulations.

Other Reporting Options

We understand you may want someone unrelated to SMaHT to oversee your conflict resolution.

Aside from the SMaHT Policy Working Group, these links provide alternative reporting options from the NIH for those who want to report incidents of harassment:

While not technically a reporting option, an ombudsperson can help someone determine the right office to contact about an incident.

You may contact the NIH Office of the Ombudsman via phone or email (see below).

NIH Office of the Ombudsman (301-594-7231, ombudsman{at}od.nih.gov, or visit ombudsman.nih.gov)

In particular, note the “When to Contact Us” document, which lists examples of incidents:

https://ombudsman.nih.gov/when_to_contact_us

IV. Consequences of unacceptable behavior

Anyone who is asked to stop inappropriate behavior is expected to comply immediately. This applies to any SMaHT events and platforms, either online or in-person. If a participant engages in behavior that violates this code of conduct, the organizers may warn the offender and ask them to leave the event or platform. The SMaHT Policy Working Group will investigate all Code of Conduct violations and impose appropriate sanctions

V. References

This CoC adapts language and principles from the following CoC of other projects.

VI. Resource list