Creator Convention Toronto Code of Conduct
Please read our Code of Conduct. You agree to abide by its terms when agreeing to work, attend, or otherwise enjoy events led by Creator Convention Toronto. If you hold a badge to our events, it denotes that you understand and agree to abide by this Creator Convention Toronto Code of Conduct.
Creator Convention Toronto was created to be a safe and welcoming space for the entire community to come together. We promote sharing ideas between creative groups, cultures, and individuals. To this end, we support kindness and consideration towards others. While our immediate focus is on the Greater Toronto Area Community, we want our actions, and those of our attendees, to reflect our care for the world and its inhabitants around us.
Our expectations and requirements for participation in events hosted by Creator Convention Toronto are detailed here. This document may change from time to time to adapt to the needs of the community. We also outline here some of the steps and methods that may be used to respond to unacceptable behaviours. Comments, concerns, questions, and suggestions for this document can be sent to board@cctoronto.org.
1. Be kind to each other.
Our community includes all types of Makers, Artists, Hackers, Costumers, Tailors, Performers, DIYers, Enthusiasts, Fans, Furries, Burners, and Nerds. While this is not an exclusive list, we want to emphasize that our community is diverse. Creator Convention Toronto is committed to providing a curiosity-driven, kindness-based sanctuary for creative and curious persons of all types. We maintain this environment for all our attendees, staff, volunteers, observers, and others, regardless of gender identification and expression, sexual orientation, ability, ethnicity, socio-economic status, age, or religious beliefs and affiliations.
No harassment, abuse, bullying, or other harmful or malicious behaviours towards any group or individual will be tolerated. Reports of any of these behaviours will be reviewed and may result in the following consequences, including forfeiture of your badge, removal of your person from the event venue, or refusal to allow your attendance at any future Creator Convention Toronto events. These incidents will also be reported to the local authorities as appropriate. Examples of behaviours that are considered harmful or malicious include the following non exhaustive list.
Violence, threats of violence, or violent language directed against another person Sexist, racist, homophobic, transphobic, ableist, or otherwise discriminatory jokes and language
Posting or displaying sexually explicit or violent material
Personal insults, particularly those related to gender, sexual orientation, race, religion, or disability
Inappropriate physical contact
You should have the person's consent before touching them.
COSTUMING IS NOT CONSENT.
Unwelcome sexual attention
This includes sexualized comments or jokes, inappropriate touching, groping, and unwelcomed sexual advances.
Deliberate intimidation, stalking, or following (online or in person)
Sustained disruption of talks and presentations, or otherwise significantly interfering with a participant's enjoyment of the event
Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior
We invite all those who wish to be involved with our organization in any way to support us in maintaining a friendly and welcoming space for our community. We encourage participants to recognize and strengthen the relationships between our actions and their effects on our community. Positive action is essential to counteract the many forms of inequality and abuses of power that exist in society. If you see someone making an extra effort to ensure our community is welcoming, friendly, and encourages all participants to contribute to the fullest extent, please recognize their efforts.
Creator Convention Toronto recognizes artists of any age. We aim to create a family-friendly environment in many ways. We strongly recommend that our participants work together to encourage the next generation of creators at our events.
Minors are allowed to attend our events with the following conditions for their safety. Minors under 16 years of age as of the date of the event must have an adult accompany them onsite at all times.
Minors 16 or 17 years of age as of the date of the event may attend alone granted that other conditions below are met.
Valid emergency contact information must be kept up to date. This must include an adult, local, decision-making contact in case of medical emergencies.
Some content during the event may be marked as adult only. Minors will not be allowed to enter those areas at those times. Willful violation of this will result in badge revocation for the event at a minimum.
Our programming will include events that appeal to a wide variety of ages, and will also include programs that are age-restricted. Please follow the presenter's guidance on who is allowed, and
be aware that photo identification with a date of birth may be required for entry to some panels, workshops, discussions, etc.
At some events, a general "after dark" policy may be put into place to better accommodate the restriction of adult-themed programs to certain times or places to better keep minors from accessing material that is not age-appropriate. This policy will be documented with the restrictions and allowances, and put into publication by various means to the participants in advance of those events.
3. Express your best self.
Your best self begins with good self-care. Please keep in mind the 6-2-1 minimum rule, which is six (6) hours of sleep, two (2) meals, and one (1) shower every day of the convention. Getting adequate sleep and food helps keep your brain in its best state, and regular showers, or the bathing of your choice, keep the environment more pleasant for everyone. Please also keep in mind that many people have aversions and allergies to strong scents, so please avoid wearing strong scents out of courtesy to others.
Participants are required to keep their dress and behaviour family-friendly in and during the event. Self-expression through clothing, language, etc., should reflect the restrictions of the applicable laws and take into account the community present. The following guidelines are a non-exhaustive list of things to keep in mind when attending our event. Questions about whether a piece of costume or clothing is acceptable are ALWAYS welcome, and are ultimately determined by the Board of Directors of Creator Convention Toronto.
Clothing and costumes should follow Canadian and local laws regarding what must be covered in public venues.
Clothing and costumes should not damage or pose a threat to others or property. This includes no weapons and no replica-weapons, no over-sized items which block accessibility right-of-way, and no material which disintegrates onto nearby surfaces, like unsealed glitter or paint.
Other clothing or costume that, by reputation, tradition, or otherwise, is representative of hate groups or other groups used to intimidate or harm others is also not allowed. Official uniforms should be reserved only for those on duty or otherwise required to wear them in the event space.
Cultural appropriation is strongly discouraged.
Badges are issued to all attendees. Badge names are one of the many way our participants express their identity at our events. While we encourage creativity, we require that badge names remain family-friendly. We will monitor and reserve the right to reject any badge name that violates our policies, including but not limited to the following.
No sexually explicit or violent language or symbols
No hate group or discriminatory language or symbols
No slurs, uncensored swear words, or other inflammatory language
The Registration team has the right to refuse to print a badge that violates our policies. Complaints about a badge name that is rejected can be made to the Registration team lead, and will be escalated as necessary. Show us your creativity and keep it appropriate!
4. Keep our event strong.
While we understand the need for privacy and boundaries, we also need a way to identify our participants. We require all participants to have an event-given badge on their person and visible while in the convention space. Each badge is only for the use of the participant to which it is assigned, and cannot be transferred to another participant for use without the
explicit permission of the Registration team. Using someone else's badge or identification to obtain a badge for the event is prohibited and will result in removal from the event at a minimum. Badges remain the property of Creator Convention Toronto and must be presented on demand by a staff member.
If you are found to be attending our event without a badge, we will remove you from our event and venue. We can only grow if we all pitch in, and "ghosting" is in direct opposition to that goal. If you have a desire to attend our event, but cannot afford a ticket, please reach out to us and we can work on a solution together instead.
Any media representatives that wish to document our events must obtain advance permission for that purpose and will be subject to a further policy document outlining the rights and responsibilities of those wishing to cover our event for their media outlet. Media representatives which attend without informing the convention staff and receiving approval may be removed at the convention staff's discretion.
We do use internal media sources for advertising and promotion. When at an event hosted by Creator Convention Toronto, you may end up in photos, videos, or other media used for that purpose. We will generally try to obtain permission from any participants identifiable in the media before it is published and assume that participants in the media implicitly consent to its publishing otherwise. Please notify us as soon as possible if you wish to revoke that permission.
5. Protect yourself and others.
Creator Convention Toronto recognizes that some people will choose to enjoy alcohol or other substances while attending. Please follow all applicable laws and regulations when choosing to consume these substances. We prohibit alcohol use, drug use, smoking, vaping, and other substance use in the event space, and the venue may have further rules about where specific substances can be used safely. We also reserve the right to remove a
participant from the event space if they are altered beyond a point considered safe for participation, as judged by the event or venue staff.
As also addressed in the clothing and costuming restrictions, weapons and replica-weapons are prohibited. The venue may also have restrictions on weapons and replica-weapons on the property. If you wish to request an exception for a prop necessary for a performance, or otherwise, please reach out to us before the event to request approval.
While service animals are always welcome to accompany their owner in our event space, no other pets are allowed without explicit, written, advance permission from both Creator Convention Toronto and the venue management.
Participants may not sleep in the common areas of the venue for events that span overnight hours. You are either required to use the sleeping accommodations at the venue, if available, or find an offsite place to sleep.
Accommodations for sleeping at the venue, if made available, are solely the responsibility of the renter of that room. You are responsible for damages and violations of rules in that room, even if caused by your guests. A party policy will be published separately and made available when a venue allows parties to be officially held by participants.
We are grateful for the hospitality of our venue, and so we work hard to leave the space as nice as or better than we found it. Please do not place stickers, food, or any other things on property belonging to others or the venue without explicit permission. If you cause damage to anything in
the venue, please notify the venue staff as soon as possible. If we find unreported venue damage, intentional damage or vandalism, or other harm to the property of the venue or others, we will report the matter to the venue staff, and also to local authorities as necessary.
Any advertisements, posters, or other items intended to be in the public event space must first be cleared by event staff, and the venue as applicable. Posting or displaying items in the common space without permission or without following explicit instructions from the venue staff is not allowed.
Violating the rules of the event or venue can result in consequences including revocation of your badge, removal from the event, removal from the venue, a revocation of permission to attend the venue in the future from the venue at the venue's discretion, and refusal to allow your attendance at any future Creator Convention Toronto events.
6. Common sense and courtesy are the guiding principles.
This Code of Conduct is a general guideline, and does not exhaustively list every prohibited behaviour. The best rule to follow is to enjoy yourself without spoiling the enjoyment of others. We all come to the event to have fun and share time together, whether as attendee, staff, vendor, fan, observer, or any other role. Silliness, curiosity, and generosity are
We want to keep having events, and we want you to keep participating. We can only accomplish this by respecting each other and our space.
We do our best to follow the laws in Canada and Ontario, and to be guided by the Ontario Human Rights Code. Any of our policies or rules which conflict with those laws and rules and become invalid are severable from this Code of Conduct and do not invalidate the remaining rules and policies.
While we try our best to keep the space safe and our participants healthy, there are certain risks that made be posed by participating in events, workshops, panels, etc. that are inherent in the nature of attending Creator Convention Toronto events. By purchasing a badge to our events, you agree that Creator Convention Toronto and its representatives are released from liability and claims arising from loss, damage, or injury, including death, that may be sustained by you or by your property arising from attendance at our events. This agreement is binding upon you, as well as your heirs, next of kin, executors, and administrators.