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Code of Conduct

Participants of the Design Systems Awards are expected to abide by our Code of Conduct online and during in-person events that are hosted and/or associated with the Design System Awards.

Our commitment to you

In the interest of fostering an open and welcoming environment, we pledge to make participation in our project and our community a harassment-free experience for everyone, regardless of age, body size, disability, ethnicity, gender identity and expression, level of experience, nationality, personal appearance, race, religion, or sexual identity and orientation.

The Standards

Examples of behavior that contributes to creating a positive environment include:

  • Using welcoming and inclusive language
  • Being respectful of differing viewpoints and experiences
  • Gracefully accepting constructive criticism
  • Referring to people by their preferred pronouns and using gender-neutral pronouns when uncertain

Examples of unacceptable behaviour by participants include:

  • Trolling, insulting/derogatory comments, public or private harassment
  • Publishing other’s private information, such as a physical or electronic address, without explicit permission
  • Not being respectful to reasonable communication boundaries, such as ‘leave me alone,’ ‘go away,’ or ‘I’m not discussing this with you.’
  • The usage of sexualized language or imagery and unwelcome sexual attention or advances
  • Assuming or promoting any kind of inequality including but not limited to: age, body size, disability, ethnicity, gender identity and expression, nationality and race, personal appearance, religion, or sexual identity and orientation
  • Attacking personal tastes
  • Other conduct which you know could reasonably be considered inappropriate in a professional setting

The organizers of Design System Awards are dedicated to providing harassment-free virtual and in-person experiences for everyone, regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, age, or religion. We do not tolerate harassment of conference participants in any form. Sexual language and imagery are not appropriate for any professional venue, including talks. Event participants violating these rules may be sanctioned or expelled from the event without a refund at the discretion of the event organizers.

Harassment includes, but is not limited to:

  • Trolling, insulting/derogatory comments that reinforce social structures of domination related to gender, gender identity, and expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, age, and religion.
  • Deliberate intimidation, stalking or following
  • Harassing photography or recording
  • Sustained disruption of talks or other events
  • Inappropriate physical contact
  • Publishing other’s private information, such as a physical or electronic address, without explicit permission
  • Not being respectful to reasonable communication boundaries, such as ‘leave me alone,’ ‘go away,’ or ‘I’m not discussing this with you.’
  • The usage of sexualized language or imagery and unwelcome sexual attention or advances
  • Assuming or promoting any kind of inequality including but not limited to: age, body size, disability, ethnicity, gender identity and expression, nationality and race, personal appearance, religion, or sexual identity and orientation
  • Attacking personal tastes
  • Other conduct which you know could reasonably be considered inappropriate in a professional setting
  • Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior

Enforcement

Participants asked to stop any harassing behavior are expected to comply immediately. If a participant engages in harassing behavior, event organizers retain the right to take any actions to keep the event a welcoming environment for all participants. This includes warning the offender or expulsion from the conference with no refund.

Event organizers may take action to redress anything designed to, or with the clear impact of, disrupting the event, or making the environment hostile for any participants.

We expect participants to follow these rules at all event venues and event-related social activities. We think people should follow these rules outside event activities, too!

"Should I report it?"

If you answer “yes” to any of the following, please let us know.

  • Do you feel unsafe or fear that someone else does?
  • Do you have prior conduct-violating experience with members of our community that deters your participation in an event?
  • Are you concerned about the appropriateness of language being used, views being expressed, or the materials being shared at any of our events or via our social media channels?
  • Did you witness something that you are not sure is appropriate based on our code of conduct?

You can make a report either personally or anonymously.

Anonymous report

We can’t follow up on an anonymous report with you directly, but we will fully investigate it and take whatever action is necessary to prevent a recurrence.

Personal report

You can make a personal report by:

Calling or messaging via WhatsApp this phone number: +447512336722. This phone number will be continuously monitored for the duration of the event.

Contacting a staff member. Staff members will identify themselves throughout the event. If you don't know who the staff members are, any of the venue staff will be able to point you to one of the staff members.

For side events, staff will identify themselves at the beginning of each event.

When taking a personal report, our staff will ensure you are safe and cannot be overheard. They may involve other event staff to ensure your report is managed properly. Once safe, we’ll ask you to tell us about what happened. This can be upsetting, but we’ll handle it as respectfully as possible, and you can bring someone to support you. You won’t be asked to confront anyone and we won’t tell anyone who you are.

Our team will be happy to help you contact hotel/venue security, local law enforcement, local support services, provide escorts, or otherwise assist you to feel safe for the duration of the event. We value your attendance.

Additional contact information

If you are unable to reach out to staff, you can also email community@zeroheight.com, which will be monitored for the duration of the event.

Attribution

This Code of Conduct was remixed from: https://miloslav.website/code-of-conduct/ and https://geekfeminism.fandom.com/wiki/Conference_anti-harassment/Policy.

Timeline

  1. Nominations will be open from Tuesday 13 May. If you have any questions about the nomination process, then check out the FAQs, or if your question isn't answered, please get in touch at community@zeroheight.com

    13 May, 2025

  2. Once the nominations are closed, we'll be collating the longlist and working through it to determine a shortlist. The shortlist will be determined by the team at zeroheight, and will be based on uniform judging criteria (which we will share in a month or two). With the shortlist creation, we aim to remove as much bias as possible and give everyone a fair chance across the board.

    22 August, 2025

  3. In September, the shortlist will be announced, including public voting! We'll notify all folks as to whether they made the shortlist. The judges will then individually judge each shortlisted entry. We'll also have public voting on each category live on the site!

    15 September, 2025

  4. Once all the judges and public votes are counted, we'll then be able to determine the winner for each category, based off a weighted compilation of votes.

    3 November, 2025

  5. In December, we'll gather the community together at an event in London to announce the winners live. We'll also be live-streaming the ceremony for those who can't make it. The live event will be invite only, but we'll offer the community a chance to apply for a ticket later in the year! We'll also post the results to the zeroheight site the day after the event.

    December 2025 (TBA)

Past Winners