Code of Conduct for Online Community Engagement

This document is a code of conduct for engaging members of the Apogaea community through Internet based tools. As leaders in the community, the Apogaea Board of Directors and Ignition members set an impressionable example for the entire Apgoaea community. This is at least equally true when engaging the community in online spaces such as social media platforms, email correspondence, and our own website. Because of the widespread exposure and longevity of data, online engagement of community members carries special considerations. This document provides a code of conduct for managing the special considerations of online community engagement.


Purpose of Engaging The Online Community

Apogaea, like Burning Man, is a radically inclusive community. As such, Apogaea attempts to connect with the larger online community on every reasonable platform. Apogaea uses these platforms to engage, educate, and influence the community. We engage our community, most of all, to listen to the community. We educate the community by providing clear and coherent information and updates as effectively as possible. We influence the community by setting an example that we each feel best represents the 10 principles as well as the extended ethos of burner culture.


Three Realms: Tabernacle, Garden, Boondocks

When addressing the online community, there are three realms where engagement will occur. We can use the analogy of a Tabernacle, a Garden, and the Boondocks to help understand these three realms.

The Tabernacle is our sacred home. This is where we maintain the most restrictive behavior. Our Tabernacle should always serve as a clean and coherent platform to educate the community. This space includes, but is not limited to, our own website. It might also include a stricter section on a public forum. Behavior is restricted to maintain the most useful signal to noise ratio possible. This is not the space for radical self expression nor any actions based on personal motivation.

The Garden is our greater community. This is where the Apogaea Board of Directors and Ignition members engage and interact with the open community on topics related to Apogaea and Burning Man. In alignment with the ethos of Burning Man, we impose as few rules as possible to still ensure a stable and viable environment. Keep in mind, a lack of rules should not imply a lack of responsibility. Every action a board or ignition member takes online will be seen as an example. Help maintain a healthy garden by setting a healthy example to follow.

The Boondocks are beyond the scope of Apogaea’s concern. This may be a completely unrelated forum on an unrelated topic in some far corner of the Internet. This may be the blog of a board member that is completely unrelated to the board member’s role as a board member. Even in the lawless expansion of the boondocks, board and ignition members should always bear in mind a sense of respect for their roles in and representation of the Apogaea and Burning Man organization.


Codes of Conduct

Codes of conduct for the following zones are inherited as you move closer to the Tabernacle.. That is to say, any codes for the Boondocks apply to both the Garden and the Tabernacle and codes for the Garden also apply to the Tabernacle.


The Boondocks


The Garden


The Tabernacle