Introduction

Topia strives to keep the number of rules to a minimum, however certain types of online behavior serve only to harm other participants or events inside Topia. Important community themes like radical inclusion mean that strangers are welcome to participate in our community; it does not mean tolerance of harmful behaviors.  

Our goal is to help you foster a connection with others, but virtual landscapes present their own set of challenges. This Code of Conduct identifies behaviors and actions that will not be tolerated in any virtual spaces sponsored by Topia. In addition to the conduct detailed below, participants of any Topia events are expected to comply with all federal, state, and local laws.

Prohibited Online Behaviors

The following types of behavior are unacceptable in any Topia:

Consent violations.  In a virtual world, consent violations include, but are not limited to, unwanted sexual, violent, graphic, or racist expression, depiction, video, image, audio, chat, conduct, gesture, symbol, chat, and/or discussion (“content”) without the express consent of the involved participants. Includes any depictions, incitement, or conduct involving non-consensual sexual acts, as well as doxxing, blackmail, and re-sharing of Topia content without the consent of all parties involved (see Media Policy, below).

Bullying.  Any content  that intimidates, abuses, menaces, or threatens participants and has the intention to exclude, silence, shame, or degrade a participant (or group) or incites others to do so.  Includes all manner of stalking and harassment.

Stalking/Harassment. If someone asks you to leave them alone or stop communicating with them, continued engagement with them or following them from virtual room to room is considered stalking/harassment. Any content consisting of verbal assaults, threats of violence or harm, degrading or shaming speech, humiliation, and repeated unwanted contact are considered harassment.

Hate Speech. Any content, speech, conduct, or expression that consists of attacks or incitement of attacks against an individual or group of people and is defined in terms of race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, gender expression, religion, sexual orientation, immigration status, disability, health status, or any identifying characteristic. Hate Speech includes slurs and the incitement of hatred or violence against these groups. Also includes praise and glorification of terrorism, organized crime, hate groups, and/or dangerous indivudals or groups.  

Hate Speech that is shared in an educational, historical, satirical, or artistic manner with the spirit of challenging it or raising awareness must clearly declare their intention surrounding that content, speech or expression.

Deliberate Derailment of an Online Event or Conversation. Any content that is unwelcome and intentionally controversial, contrary, repetitively off-topic, deliberately instigates anger or unwanted arguments, and/or any other content or conduct with the purpose of derailment or interruption of any online event, stream, or conversation.

Endangering Self or Others. Includes inciting, glorifying, instructing, or teaching self-harm or harm to others in any way.

Topia Media Policy

While our technology is peer to peer and end to end encrypted to usure the most privacy possible, due to the nature of the internet and the platforms involved, privacy can not be guaranteed for participants or for any content within or through Topia.  However, as Topia is a consent oriented community, participants are required to get consent of all the involved parties before re-sharing of any content taken during the event.

Topia Age Policy

The Topia team has worked hard to come up with a balance that allows freedom of expression while protecting the organization, and has come up with a series of policies to manage this conflict which all participants will be required to uphold. All participants agree to:

Self Identify:  

• You must at least 13 to use Topia.
• Each world may set its own age limit. By entering a world, you confirm that you meet the age requirements for the world.

Self Monitor:

• Minors in your Home. Just like at any physical event, minors are the responsibility of their guardians at all times. All participants with minors in their household are expected to monitor their minors to ensure that they are not accessing adult content.
• Alternate Platforms.  18+ content may occur in participant linked platforms where minors are not systemically blocked, such as Zoom, Facebook Live, or Twitch.  All participants are required to uphold the Terms of Service for those platforms as well as monitor their homes and streams to ensure minors do not access 18+ content

Repercussions

Participants in violation of these specific or the ethos of what is outlined above can be removed from Topia and any events at any time for any reason with no repercussion.

Thanks for being awesome.
See you in Topia!
❤️