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rfc:bcp:bcp54

Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) S. Moonesamy, Ed. Request for Comments: 7154 March 2014 BCP: 54 Obsoletes: 3184 Category: Best Current Practice ISSN: 2070-1721

                    IETF Guidelines for Conduct

Abstract

 This document provides a set of guidelines for personal interaction
 in the Internet Engineering Task Force.  The guidelines recognize the
 diversity of IETF participants, emphasize the value of mutual
 respect, and stress the broad applicability of our work.
 This document is an updated version of the guidelines for conduct
 originally published in RFC 3184.

Status of This Memo

 This memo documents an Internet Best Current Practice.
 This document is a product of the Internet Engineering Task Force
 (IETF).  It represents the consensus of the IETF community.  It has
 received public review and has been approved for publication by the
 Internet Engineering Steering Group (IESG).  Further information on
 BCPs is available in Section 2 of RFC 5741.
 Information about the current status of this document, any errata,
 and how to provide feedback on it may be obtained at
 http://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc7154.

Moonesamy Best Current Practice [Page 1] RFC 7154 IETF Guidelines for Conduct March 2014

Copyright Notice

 Copyright (c) 2014 IETF Trust and the persons identified as the
 document authors.  All rights reserved.
 This document is subject to BCP 78 and the IETF Trust's Legal
 Provisions Relating to IETF Documents
 (http://trustee.ietf.org/license-info) in effect on the date of
 publication of this document.  Please review these documents
 carefully, as they describe your rights and restrictions with respect
 to this document.  Code Components extracted from this document must
 include Simplified BSD License text as described in Section 4.e of
 the Trust Legal Provisions and are provided without warranty as
 described in the Simplified BSD License.
 This document may contain material from IETF Documents or IETF
 Contributions published or made publicly available before November
 10, 2008.  The person(s) controlling the copyright in some of this
 material may not have granted the IETF Trust the right to allow
 modifications of such material outside the IETF Standards Process.
 Without obtaining an adequate license from the person(s) controlling
 the copyright in such materials, this document may not be modified
 outside the IETF Standards Process, and derivative works of it may
 not be created outside the IETF Standards Process, except to format
 it for publication as an RFC or to translate it into languages other
 than English.

1. Introduction

 The work of the IETF relies on cooperation among a diverse range of
 people with different ideas and communication styles.  The IETF
 strives, through these guidelines for conduct, to create and maintain
 an environment in which every person is treated with dignity,
 decency, and respect.  People who participate in the IETF are
 expected to behave in a professional manner as we work together to
 develop interoperable technologies for the Internet.  We aim to abide
 by these guidelines as we build consensus in person and through email
 discussions.  If conflicts arise, they are resolved according to the
 procedures outlined in RFC 2026 [RFC2026].
 This document obsoletes RFC 3184 [RFC3184], as it is an updated
 version of the guidelines for conduct.

Moonesamy Best Current Practice [Page 2] RFC 7154 IETF Guidelines for Conduct March 2014

2. Guidelines for Conduct

 1. IETF participants extend respect and courtesy to their colleagues
    at all times.
    IETF participants come from diverse origins and backgrounds; there
    can be different expectations or assumptions.  Regardless of these
    individual differences, participants treat their colleagues with
    respect as persons especially when it is difficult to agree with
    them: treat other participants as you would like to be treated.
    English is the de facto language of the IETF.  However, it is not
    the native language of many IETF participants.  All participants,
    particularly those with English as a first language, attempt to
    accommodate the needs of other participants by communicating
    clearly, including speaking slowly and limiting the use of slang.
    When faced with English that is difficult to understand, IETF
    participants make a sincere effort to understand each other and
    engage in conversation to clarify what was meant.
 2. IETF participants have impersonal discussions.
    We dispute ideas by using reasoned argument rather than through
    intimidation or personal attack.  Try to provide data and facts
    for your standpoints so the rest of the participants who are
    sitting on the sidelines watching the discussion can form an
    opinion.  The discussion is easier when the response to a simple
    question is a polite answer [SQPA].
 3. IETF participants devise solutions for the global Internet that
    meet the needs of diverse technical and operational environments.
    The mission of the IETF is to produce high-quality, relevant
    technical and engineering documents that influence the way people
    design, use, and manage the Internet in such a way as to make the
    Internet work better.  The IETF puts its emphasis on technical
    competence, rough consensus, and individual participation, and it
    needs to be open to competent input from any source.  We
    understand that "scaling is the ultimate problem" and that many
    ideas that are quite workable on a small scale fail this crucial
    test.
    IETF participants use their best engineering judgment to find the
    best solution for the whole Internet, not just the best solution
    for any particular network, technology, vendor, or user.  While we
    all have ideas that may stand improvement from time to time, no
    one shall ever knowingly contribute advice or text that would make
    a standard technically inferior.

Moonesamy Best Current Practice [Page 3] RFC 7154 IETF Guidelines for Conduct March 2014

 4. Individuals are prepared to contribute to the ongoing work of the
    group.
    We follow the intellectual property guidelines outlined in BCP 79
    [RFC3979].  IETF participants read the relevant Internet-Drafts,
    RFCs, and email archives in order to familiarize themselves with
    the technology under discussion.  Working Group sessions run on a
    very limited time schedule, and sometimes participants have to
    limit their questions.  The work of the group will continue on the
    mailing list, and questions can be asked and answered on the
    mailing list.  It can be a challenge to participate in a Working
    Group without knowing the history of longstanding Working Group
    debates.  Information about a Working Group including its charter
    and milestones is available on the IETF datatracker site [TRACK]
    or from the Working Group Chair.

3. Security Considerations

 The IETF guidelines for conduct do not directly affect the security
 of the Internet.  However, it is to be noted that there is an
 expectation that no one shall ever knowingly contribute advice or
 text that may adversely affect the security of the Internet without
 describing all known or foreseen risks and threats to potential
 implementers and users that they are aware of.

4. Acknowledgements

 Most of the text in this document is based on RFC 3184, which was
 written by Susan Harris.  The editor would like to acknowledge that
 this document would not exist without her contribution.  Mike O'Dell
 wrote the first draft of the Guidelines for Conduct, and many of his
 thoughts, statements, and observations are included in this version.
 Many useful editorial comments were supplied by Dave Crocker.
 Members of the POISSON Working Group provided many significant
 additions to the text.
 The editor would like to thank Jari Arkko, Brian Carpenter, Dave
 Cridland, Dave Crocker, Spencer Dawkins, Alan DeKok, Lars Eggert,
 David Farmer, Adrian Farrel, Stephen Farrell, Russ Housley, Eliot
 Lear, Barry Leiba, Ines Robles, Eduardo A. Suarez, Brian Trammell,
 and Sean Turner for contributing towards the improvement of the
 document.

Moonesamy Best Current Practice [Page 4] RFC 7154 IETF Guidelines for Conduct March 2014

5. References

5.1. Informative References

 [RFC2026]  Bradner, S., "The Internet Standards Process -- Revision
            3", BCP 9, RFC 2026, October 1996.
 [RFC2418]  Bradner, S., "IETF Working Group Guidelines and
            Procedures", BCP 25, RFC 2418, September 1998.
 [RFC3184]  Harris, S., "IETF Guidelines for Conduct", BCP 54, RFC
            3184, October 2001.
 [RFC3683]  Rose, M., "A Practice for Revoking Posting Rights to IETF
            Mailing Lists", BCP 83, RFC 3683, March 2004.
 [RFC3934]  Wasserman, M., "Updates to RFC 2418 Regarding the
            Management of IETF Mailing Lists", BCP 25, RFC 3934,
            October 2004.
 [RFC3979]  Bradner, S., Ed., "Intellectual Property Rights in IETF
            Technology", BCP 79, RFC 3979, March 2005.
 [SQPA]     Perlman, R., "Miss Manners meets the IETF", March 2002,
            <http://www.ietf.org/proceedings/53/slides/plenary-3/
            index.html>
 [TRACK]    "The IETF Datatracker Tool", Web Application:
            <https://datatracker.ietf.org/wg>, Version 5.0.2.

Moonesamy Best Current Practice [Page 5] RFC 7154 IETF Guidelines for Conduct March 2014

Appendix A. Reporting Transgressions of the Guidelines

 An individual can report transgressions of the guidelines for conduct
 to the IETF Chair or the IESG.

Appendix B. Consequences of Transgressing the Guidelines

 This document does not discuss measures that can be taken against a
 participant transgressing the guidelines for conduct.
 RFC 2418 [RFC2418] describes a measure where a Working Group Chair
 has the authority to refuse to grant the floor to any individual who
 is unprepared or otherwise covering inappropriate material, or who,
 in the opinion of the Chair, is disrupting the Working Group process.
 RFC 3683 [RFC3683] describes "posting rights" action to remove the
 posting rights of an individual.  RFC 3934 [RFC3934] describes a
 measure through which a Working Group Chair can suspend posting
 privileges of a disruptive individual for a short period of time.

Appendix C. Changes from RFC 3184

 o  Added text about the IETF striving to create an environment in
    which every person is treated with dignity, decency, and respect.
 o  Added text about contributing advice or text that may affect the
    security of the Internet.
 o  The recommendation that newcomers should not interfere with the
    ongoing process in Section 2 was removed as it can be read as
    discouraging newcomers from participating in discussions.
 o  The text about the goal of the IETF was replaced with text about
    the mission statement and what the IETF puts its emphasis on.
 o  The text about "think globally" was removed as the meaning was not
    clear.
 o  The text about English as a first language was clarified.
 o  The guideline about impersonal discussions was reworded as a
    positive statement.

Moonesamy Best Current Practice [Page 6] RFC 7154 IETF Guidelines for Conduct March 2014

Author's Address

 S. Moonesamy (editor)
 76, Ylang Ylang Avenue
 Quatres Bornes
 Mauritius
 EMail: sm+ietf@elandsys.com

Moonesamy Best Current Practice [Page 7]

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