Checklist for making safe space

Digital: easy to walk away online. Or to push your own agenda.

there are established patterns already: spaces that use conflict resolution, guidelines, codes

what would be more useful for us now?

after making many many postit notes about safe spaces, we organized and found three main themes:

1. Making safe space
2. acting/being in safe space
3. when things go wrong

talking through these, we began making a list of questions for organizers and participants to ask, framing as questions for consideration (awareness) rather than a checklist

Making Safe Space

1. Who is this space for?
2. How long does it last?
3. What are the expectations of this space?
4. what is "safety" in the context of this space?
5. Who is or is not represented in your group? (Is this intentional or not?)
6. What aspects of this space are negotiable or not?
7. Has everyone that is included chosen to be included?
8. How does someone enter/exit this safe space?
9. How does the creation of this space impact the safety of those outside it?

Acting/Being In

1. What kinds of work do I need to do with myself to participate?
2. By what channels does communication happen?
3. How do you communicate experiences within this spaces?
4. How do you raise qeustions about the process?
5. What behaviors are useful within this space?
6. What kinds of disagreement/debate are constructive within this space?
7. How do you signal what kind of communication you want?
8. What kinds of failure modes are the channels of this space likely to fall into (both intentional and unintentional)?

Questions to ask during breakdowns?

1. what is the response if a member feels unsafe?
2. what are the options/opportunities for support?
3. what are the options/opportunities for existing the space?
4. are there specific threats to the safety of this space?

(From the other room, discussion of breakdowns and specific what/how... Toxic individuals, for example.) individuals harming the community... fold into the above, especially in "during breakdowns" section: Physical Spaces influcenced by Internets