Anti-Harassment

In 2017, AGU was among the first scientific societies to define harassment, discrimination and bullying as scientific misconduct. Issues like harassment and bullying affect the global scientific community by creating unsafe and unhealthy environments for people to conduct research and work. Such environments are known to drive people from participating in science careers.

The AGU Ethics and Equity Center provides access to policies, reports, tools, surveys and learning resources to address gender and sexual harassment in the sciences. For student and early career scientists who have been affected by harassment, bullying, discrimination or other misconduct, free legal consultation is available via the AGU Ethics and Equity Center.

The materials below outline practices researchers, students, scientific societies, academic departments and institutions can use to implement and encourage safe, welcoming environments for everyone.

Policies & Reports

Policies

This collection of policies from organizations and scientific departments reflects many promising practices for addressing ethical conduct.

AGU's Scientific Integrity and Professional Ethics Policy takes a strong stance against harassment, discrimination and bullying by including them in the definition of scientific misconduct.
AGU's Diversity and Inclusion Strategic Plan (PDF) incorporates D&I across all the organization's strategic goals to enact change in the Earth and space science culture and community.
AGU’s position statement, The Responsibilities and Rights of Scientists, provides supporting ethical principles for the responsible practice of science.
The American Association for the Advancement of Science’s Annual Meeting Code of Conduct is an example of a stand-alone meeting code of conduct.
For another example of an anti-harassment policy from another scientific society, please see the American Astronomical Society's Anti-Harassment Policy.
The Baylor University Department of Geosciences' Standards of Geoscience Ethics shows how a code of conduct can be adapted and applied to an academic geoscience department.
The University of Texas at Austin, Jackson School of Geosciences' Guidelines provide an example of policy language applied for use by faculty, research scientists, staff, teaching and research assistants.

For a wide selection of ethics codes and policies for reference as you develop your own, please visit the Illinois Institute of Technology's collection of ethics codes and policies

Reports

This collection of reports provides data and recommendations for addressing harassment in academia and the sciences.

University of Washington's Respect and Equality in Fieldwork Committee report, Preventing Harassment in Fieldwork Situations, is an example of recommendations to prevent harassment and assault in fieldwork situations. (PDF)
The National Academy of Sciences report, Sexual Harassment of Women, provides highlights and recommendations for addressing and preventing sexual harassment in academic sciences, engineering and medicine. (PDF)
Center for Women and Business at Bentley University report, Men as Allies: Engaging Men to Advance Women in the Workplace, includes advice on establishing successful initiatives to encourage more male allies. (PDF)

Education, Tools & Surveys

Education

This collection of educational resources provides background information on bullying, harassment and ways to address these issues.

AGU and AGI's Addressing harassment and workplace climate in science video provides tools and information to help organizations and institutions drive change for more positive work environments.
AGU and AGI's Preventing bullying and harassment in the field video outlines both bullying and harassment in the geosciences, as well as how to address these issues in fieldwork.
ADVANCEGeo Partnership's resource, “What is harassment, bullying and discrimination?,” defines these issues and provides information on the impacts these issues have in educational and professional settings.
Ten principles for addressing sexual harassment, published by the Stanford Law Review, outlines proposals for reform to move toward more equitable and inclusive workplaces.
The S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) resource on protections for LGBT workers provides information about enforcement of Title VII sex discrimination prohibitions for LGBTQ people.
The National Academy of Engineering's Online Ethics Center for Engineering and Science website advances the understanding of responsible research and practice in both engineering and science through ethics literature.
Stop Asian Hate Resources – a comprehensive list of how you can help address anti-Asian hate, and stand with the Asian American and Pacific Islander science community. Shared with AGU from the Georgia Institute of Technology’s Earth and Atmospheric Sciences Department.

Tools

This collection provides tools to take action and establish anti-harassment and bullying practices in your workplace or institution.

The Safe AGU program and access to legal consultation webpage describes how individuals with ethics concerns can request assistance and how volunteers and AGU staff members create safe spaces at meetings.
The National Science Foundation’s anti-harassment portal shares information and promising practices to develop harassment prevention trainings.
To empower undergraduate students to prevent or respond to harassment and discrimination, the IRIS Internship Program's anti-harassment/discrimination training materials provide a curriculum, sample slides and training webinars.
The University of Michigan ADVANCE Program has provided this resource guide for developing anti-harassment programs in academic societies and meetings. (PDF)
Published by Chief Learning Officer, Jennifer Farthing's article, “To Tackle Gray Areas, Train Employees to Do the Right Thing,” explains the ways in which training can encourage ethical behavior.
The American Bar Association Commission on Women in the Profession lists reports and online toolkits that help address sexual harassment and discrimination.

Surveys

These surveys can help you implement a study of the environment at the departmental level or the institutional level in order to inform best practices in your workplace.

The Administrator-Researcher Campus Climate Collaborative (ARC3) campus climate survey provides guidance for requesting and conducting a campus survey.
The National Center for Professional & Research Ethics' Survey of Organizational Research Climate (SOURCE) outlines how to implement a departmental survey for academic leadership development.

Workshops & Trainings

Click here to visit anti-harassment workshops & trainings.

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