



Internet Research Task Force (IRTF)                        C. S. Perkins
Request for Comments: 9775                         University of Glasgow
Category: Informational                                       March 2025
ISSN: 2070-1721


                          IRTF Code of Conduct

Abstract

   This document describes the code of conduct for participants in the
   Internet Research Task Force (IRTF).

   The IRTF believes that research is most effective when done in an
   open and inclusive forum that encourages diversity of ideas and
   participation.  Through this code of conduct, the IRTF continues to
   strive to create and maintain an environment that encourages broad
   participation, and one in which people are treated with dignity,
   decency, and respect.

   This document is a product of the Internet Research Steering Group
   (IRSG).

Status of This Memo

   This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is
   published for informational purposes.

   This document is a product of the Internet Research Task Force
   (IRTF).  The IRTF publishes the results of Internet-related research
   and development activities.  These results might not be suitable for
   deployment.  Documents approved for publication by the IRSG are not
   candidates for any level of Internet Standard; see Section 2 of RFC
   7841.

   Information about the current status of this document, any errata,
   and how to provide feedback on it may be obtained at
   https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc9775.

Copyright Notice

   Copyright (c) 2025 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
   (https://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.

Table of Contents

   1.  Introduction
   2.  Rationale
   3.  Conduct
   4.  Research Integrity
   5.  Research Ethics
   6.  Inclusive Language and Imagery
   7.  Participation and Accessibility
   8.  Security Considerations
   9.  IANA Considerations
   10. References
     10.1.  Normative References
     10.2.  Informative References
   Acknowledgments
   Author's Address

1.  Introduction

   The Internet Research Task Force (IRTF) promotes research of
   importance to the evolution and deployment of the Internet protocols,
   applications, architecture and technology, and to understand the
   development of the Internet in all its diversity and for all its
   users, considering the technical, economic, and societal challenges
   of such development.  The IRTF focuses on longer-term research issues
   related to the Internet while the parallel organisation, the Internet
   Engineering Task Force (IETF), focuses on the shorter-term issues of
   engineering and standards-making.

   The IRTF believes that research is most effective when done in an
   open and inclusive forum that encourages diversity of ideas and
   participation.  Through this code of conduct, the IRTF will continue
   to strive to create and maintain an environment that encourages broad
   participation, and one in which people are treated with dignity,
   decency, and respect.

   This document was developed by the Internet Research Steering Group
   (IRSG) with broad consultation and review from the IRTF community.
   It represents the consensus of the Internet Research Steering Group
   (IRSG).  It is not an IETF product and is not a standard.

2.  Rationale

   The IRTF is not the IETF.  While the two organisations work closely
   together, and often co-locate meetings and other activities, they
   have different goals and work in different ways.

   The IETF is a consensus-driven standards-developing organisation,
   where participants use their best engineering judgment to find the
   best solution for the whole Internet as it stands today, and to
   develop the best technical standards to make the Internet work
   better.  IRTF research can be more speculative, and takes a longer-
   term view of the development of the Internet without the requirements
   for consensus or near-term applicability and deployability that come
   from standards development.  A further discussion of the differences
   between IRTF and IETF can be found in [RFC7418].

   Compared to the IETF equivalent [RFC7154], this IRTF code of conduct
   reflects those differences in emphasis between the two organisations.

3.  Conduct

   The IRTF is committed to providing a safe and equitable experience
   for all participants.  Those participating in the IRTF must extend
   respect and courtesy to others at all times.

   Harassment is behaviour that is unwelcome, hostile, or intimidating.
   Harassment includes, in particular, speech or behaviour that is
   sexually aggressive or that intimidates based on attributes such as
   education, race, gender, religion, age, colour, national origin,
   ancestry, disability, medical condition, sexual orientation, or
   gender identity [RFC7776].

   Examples of harassment include, but are not limited to, the use of
   offensive language or sexual imagery, degrading verbal comments,
   deliberate intimidation, stalking, harassing photography or
   recording, inappropriate physical contact, and unwelcome sexual
   attention.

   Harassment will not be tolerated in IRTF research group meetings,
   open meetings, conferences, workshops, other events, mailing lists,
   virtual meetings, or other online forums.  Participants must follow
   the IETF anti-harassment policy, which also applies to the IRTF
   [ANTI-HARASSMENT].

   Participants who believe they have been harassed, notice that someone
   else is being harassed, or have any other concerns relating to
   potential harassment or conduct, are encouraged to raise their
   concern with the relevant research group chair or the IRTF Chair, or
   with the Ombudsteam [OMBUDSTEAM] who work on an independent and
   confidential basis.  All such concerns will be seriously considered
   and action will be taken as appropriate, up to and including the
   exclusion of the offending party from IRTF activities.

   The IRTF sometimes organises meetings or activities that co-locate
   with events organised by others.  These meetings or activities may
   need to follow the anti-harassment policy of the hosting event, which
   may differ from that of the IRTF.  In such cases, the organisers of
   the IRTF meeting or activity should check with the IRTF Chair to
   confirm that the policy is acceptable and it should be made clear to
   participants what policy applies.

   The IRTF operates and makes use of a number of mailing lists and
   other online discussion forums.  At the time of this writing,
   research group chairs act as moderators for such forums used by their
   research groups, and the IRTF Chair moderates IRTF-wide lists and
   discussion forums.  Other moderators may be appointed in the future.
   Harassment or disruption on these lists and discussion forums due to
   posting messages that are inflammatory, abusive, or otherwise
   inappropriate, or due to the repeated posting of off-topic material,
   will not be tolerated.  Moderators will respond to harassing or
   disruptive behaviour with either a warning, by temporarily suspending
   posting rights, or after approval from the IRTF Chair by permanently
   suspending posting rights for an individual, based on the seriousness
   and history of the behaviour.

   Participants who have concerns about, or wish to appeal against, a
   moderation decision should raise their concerns with the IRTF Chair.
   If the concern relates to moderation decisions taken by the IRTF
   Chair, then it should be raised with the Internet Architecture Board.
   These parties will review the situation and may reverse the
   moderation decision or take other action as appropriate.

4.  Research Integrity

   Participants must act with respect, honesty, transparency, and
   fairness.  They should be trustworthy, aspire to objectivity, and aim
   to provide factual evidence in support of their claims and
   justification for their reasoning.  They should be generous, give
   credit to others where it is due, and recognise that understanding
   advances through collaborative research efforts of many, rather than
   for the glory of a few.

   Plagiarism, misrepresentation of authorship, and content
   falsification constitute dishonesty and fraud.  Such actions are
   prohibited and the IRTF may take action against authors who commit
   them, including retraction of the published work or exclusion of the
   offending party from IRTF activities.

   Generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools and systems must not be
   listed as authors of IRTF documents, presentations, or other
   materials.  The use of generative AI to create text or other content
   is permitted but must be disclosed if significant amounts of such
   content are included, for example through an acknowledgement
   describing which AI system was used and how it contributed.  The use
   of AI to perform spelling or grammar checks and corrections, to
   translate between languages, or to otherwise improve the presentation
   of content need not be disclosed.

   The IRTF publishes informational and experimental documents in the
   RFC series.  The nature of these documents, and their preceding
   Internet-Drafts, is that they often extend or elaborate upon
   previously published research results, to support ongoing development
   and experimentation by the IRTF community.  These documents are
   encouraged as an important part of the process of disseminating
   research ideas and ensuring that they work in the Internet at large.
   Authors must ensure that prior work, including their own prior work,
   is appropriately cited and acknowledged, and that new documents
   respect the copyright of prior work and are written with the
   permission of any coauthors.

   IRTF documents may represent the views of their authors or they may
   be consensus documents representing the views of a research group.
   It is a misrepresentation for authors to falsely claim that a
   document represents the consensus view of a research group.
   Similarly, the editors of a research group consensus document must
   not misrepresent their role as that of authors.

5.  Research Ethics

   Participants must ensure that their research, in particular research
   that involves human subjects or personal data, is conducted ethically
   and with respect for persons, in careful consideration of the risks
   and benefits of the work, taking care to ensure that those who bear
   the risk also gain some benefit, and with respect for the law and
   public interest.

   Participants should consult with their organisation's Institutional
   Review Board, Research Ethics Committee, or similar, prior to
   conducting research that might raise ethical concerns.

   Participants are referred to the guidance in the Menlo Report
   [MENLO], the Belmont Report [BELMONT], and the ACM Policy on Research
   Involving Human Participants and Subjects [ACM] for further
   discussion of issues around ethical conduct of research.

6.  Inclusive Language and Imagery

   Participants should ensure that language and imagery used in IRTF
   documents, presentations, mailing lists, research group meetings,
   open meetings, conferences, workshops, and other events, are
   respectful and inclusive.  Effective research uses terminology that
   is clear, precise, and widely accessible to readers from varying
   backgrounds and cultures.  Participants are encouraged to follow the
   guidance on inclusive language in [NISTIR8366] when making
   contributions to the IRTF [INCLUSIVE].

   Participants should avoid the use of slang and unnecessary jargon in
   both spoken and written communication.  When communication
   difficulties arise, IRTF participants should make a sincere effort to
   understand each other and to engage in conversation to clarify when
   necessary.

7.  Participation and Accessibility

   To encourage broad participation and support the goal of providing an
   open and inclusive forum that promotes diversity of ideas and
   participation, IRTF participants should consider accessibility and
   access-related concerns when organising research group meetings, open
   meetings, conferences, workshops, and other events to ensure such
   events are broadly accessible to all who wish to participate.

   English is the de facto language in which the IRTF works, but it is
   not the native language of many IRTF participants.  All participants,
   particularly those with English as a first language, should attempt
   to accommodate the needs of others by communicating clearly.
   Reading, writing, and conversing in a language where one is not a
   native speaker may be difficult, and IRTF participants should treat
   those doing so with grace and understanding.

   Participants should aim to speak slowly and clearly in presentations
   and discussions, and they should strive to make presentations and
   other materials accessible to those with impaired vision or
   disabilities.

   Participants should work to enable remote participation in IRTF
   events to support those who cannot attend in person, and they should
   aim to make materials available online in a timely and broadly
   accessible manner.

   The IRTF will work to provide travel grants, fee waivers, childcare,
   and other support to help participation by students, early career
   researchers, members of under-represented groups, those with
   disabilities, and others who might otherwise be unable to
   participate.  Participants are encouraged to make use of these
   opportunities.

   IRTF research groups may have open or limited membership [RFC2014].
   Limited membership may be advantageous to the formation of the long-
   term working relationships that are critical to successful
   collaborative research.  However, limited membership must be used
   with care and sensitivity to avoid unnecessary fragmentation of the
   work of the research community.  The charter of each research group
   defines its membership policy (whether open or limited) and the
   procedure to apply for membership in the group.  While limited
   membership is permitted, it is in no way encouraged or required.
   Research group chairs must enforce the membership policy of their
   group in a fair and transparent manner, providing a clear rationale
   for their decisions.  Participants with concerns about the
   administration of the membership policy for a research group, or who
   wish to appeal a membership decision, should raise their concern with
   the IRTF Chair.

   In exceptional cases, advice from legal counsel may be to restrict an
   individual from using IRTF IT systems and/or from participating in
   IRTF research group meetings, open meetings, conferences, workshops,
   and other events.  In such cases, the IRTF Chair will act following
   the principles outlined in the Statement on Restricting Access
   [RESTRICTING].  Due to the potential impact on the standards process,
   arising from the use of shared infrastructure and joint meetings
   between the IRTF and IETF, any such action by the IRTF Chair will
   only be taken in consultation with the IESG.

8.  Security Considerations

   This IRTF code of conduct does not directly affect the security of
   the Internet.

   Research results, when translated into practice, have the potential
   to significantly impact the security and privacy of users of the
   Internet.  Researchers should consider the potential security
   benefits, risks, and implications of their work and, where possible,
   should aim to improve security and protect the privacy of Internet
   users through their research [RFC8890].

9.  IANA Considerations

   This document has no IANA actions.

10.  References

10.1.  Normative References

   [ANTI-HARASSMENT]
              IETF, "IETF Anti-Harassment Policy", November 2013,
              <https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/statement-iesg-ietf-
              anti-harassment-policy-20131103/>.

   [INCLUSIVE]
              "Inclusive Language in Contributions to the IRTF", May
              2021, <https://irtf.org/policies/inclusive-language.html>.

   [NISTIR8366]
              National Institute of Standards and Technology, "Guidance
              for NIST Staff on Using Inclusive Language in Documentary
              Standards", Interagency or Internal Report 8366 (NISTIR
              8366), DOI 10.6028/NIST.IR.8366, April 2021, <https://web.
              archive.org/web/20250203031433/https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/
              nistpubs/ir/2021/NIST.IR.8366.pdf>.

   [OMBUDSTEAM]
              IETF, "Ombudsteam",
              <https://www.ietf.org/contact/ombudsteam/>.

   [RESTRICTING]
              "Statement on Restricting Access to IETF IT Systems",
              October 2022, <https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/statement-
              iesg-statement-on-restricting-access-to-ietf-it-systems-
              20221031/>.

   [RFC2014]  Weinrib, A. and J. Postel, "IRTF Research Group Guidelines
              and Procedures", BCP 8, RFC 2014, DOI 10.17487/RFC2014,
              October 1996, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc2014>.

   [RFC7154]  Moonesamy, S., Ed., "IETF Guidelines for Conduct", BCP 54,
              RFC 7154, DOI 10.17487/RFC7154, March 2014,
              <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc7154>.

   [RFC7418]  Dawkins, S., Ed., "An IRTF Primer for IETF Participants",
              RFC 7418, DOI 10.17487/RFC7418, December 2014,
              <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc7418>.

   [RFC7776]  Resnick, P. and A. Farrel, "IETF Anti-Harassment
              Procedures", BCP 25, RFC 7776, DOI 10.17487/RFC7776, March
              2016, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc7776>.

   [RFC8890]  Nottingham, M., "The Internet is for End Users", RFC 8890,
              DOI 10.17487/RFC8890, August 2020,
              <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8890>.

10.2.  Informative References

   [ACM]      ACM Publications Board, "ACM Publications Policy on
              Research Involving Human Participants and Subjects",
              August 2021, <https://www.acm.org/publications/policies/
              research-involving-human-participants-and-subjects>.

   [BELMONT]  National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects
              of Biomedical and Behavioral Research, "The Belmont Report
              - Ethical Principles and Guidelines for the Protection of
              Human Subjects of Research", <https://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/
              regulations-and-policy/belmont-report/>.

   [MENLO]    US Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology
              Directorate, "The Menlo Report - Ethical Principles
              Guiding Information and Communication Technology
              Research", August 2012,
              <https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/CSD-
              MenloPrinciplesCORE-20120803_1.pdf>.

Acknowledgments

   This work is supported in part by the UK Engineering and Physical
   Sciences Research Council under grant EP/S036075/1.

   This document is based, in part, on the IETF guidelines for conduct
   [RFC7154].  The influence of the code of conduct and other policies
   of ICANN, the USENIX Association, and the Association for Computing
   Machinery is also gratefully acknowledged.

   Thanks to Carsten Bormann, Vigdis Bronder, Laurent Ciavaglia, Ignacio
   Castro, Jane Coffin, Jay Daley, Dhruv Dhody, Toerless Eckert, Lars
   Eggert, Reese Enghardt, Stephen Farrell, Simone Ferlin, Wes Hardaker,
   Jana Iyengar, Mallory Knodel, Dirk Kutscher, Mirja Kühlewind, Allison
   Mankin, Alexey Melnikov, Marie-Jose Montpetit, Dave Oran, Pete
   Resnick, Shivan Kaul Sahib, Eve Schooler, Melinda Shore, Niels ten
   Oever, Brian Trammell, Rich Salz, Paul Wouters, Rod Van Meter, and
   other members of the Internet Research Steering Group (IRSG) for
   their feedback on this code of conduct.

Author's Address

   Colin Perkins
   University of Glasgow
   Email: csp@csperkins.org
