# **Terms and Conditions for the Mensa Hub** **PURPOSES** **The purposes of the Mensa Hub are:** - **To support member, group, and community-related Mensa activities;** - **To provide a forum for, and be supportive of, the exchange of opinions and ideas among Mensa members;** - **To facilitate communications for members, SIGs, national Mensas, committees, officers, and staff;** - **To serve as a repository for official documents that all members should have access to;** - **To promote the overall health and growth of Mensa International;** - **To aid members in pursuing the ideals of Mensa as expressed in the Mensa Constitution.** All current members of Mensa are invited to join the Mensa Hub. Members are automatically approved to register an account by using an e-mail address with the domain [mensa.org](http://mensa.org) or mensa.international. All users are expected to use the name by which they are known in their national Mensa, and not an online pseudonym, nor that of a different person. Impersonating others is a violation of the terms of service and may result in removal from the platform. Deactivation of users whose membership has expired will take place at least once a year. Inactive accounts may be deleted 12 months after the last login, with a notification sent by email 30 days in advance_._ Access to and participation in the Mensa Hub is subject to adhering to the rules and guidelines in this policy. The Mensa Hub is provided as a service to members, but access and usage shall be at the sole discretion of Mensa International as expressed by the Hub Team Chair (appointed by the ExComm). All decisions by Mensa International are final. **ORGANIZATION** **Spaces**— Subforums with standard features: Discussion areas, complete with polls and Q&A; file repositories, including image galleries; knowledge aggregators (WIKI); and any combination of the above. Each Space has one Owner, which is the user account who can appoint administrators and moderators. Ownership can be transferred to any Admin of a Space, and only the owner can delete the Space. - **Public Space**— Space is visible to all. Anyone can see that the Space exists. Anyone can join a Space without having to await approval by the Space owner. Posting, commenting, and reaction rights may be limited according to the policy set by the Admin of that Space. - **Private Space**— Space is invisible to all and interested members must request or be invited to join. These are mostly committee work Spaces. - **Public Content**— All users can see the content, even if they are not members of that particular Space. - **Private Content**— Content is only visible to members of the Space. **Categories**—Broad categories of Spaces, each with their own Public / Private status. The purpose of corralling spaces into categories is to allow for easy navigation and access. The exact categories and sub-categories may evolve as the community grows. In principle, however, there should be categories for at least the following purposes: - **Mensa International**— Mensa-related content for all members, emanating from the official aspects of Mensa. Examples: IBD Open Session, Mensa News, SIGHT, Mensa World Journal, MI Gifted Youth Forum. - **Main Spaces** and **More Spaces**— Topics of general interest. Note that **Mensa Open Forum** is a Public space that is meant to share the most general ideas to discuss among members that may not have a particular fit within other spaces. If your post could fit better in an existing space, it might be moved by the Hub team there. It is requested that members **refrain particularly from posting political related ideas in the Mensa Open Forum** space. - **I-SIGs**— Spaces for International Special Interest Groups recognized by Mensa International and managed by members. All members may request to join these Spaces, but are not automatically added by default. Examples: Africa SIG, Problem-solvers SIG, UFO SIG. - **National Mensas**— For and about members of national Mensas. These can be in their own language, with a file repository for their national magazine, reports and minutes etc. Examples: Mensa Sverige, Mensa Norge, Mensa Switzerland. - **Volunteers**— (All set to Private by default) Mostly private Spaces for various Mensa committees and working groups. Examples: Name & Logo Committee, Gifted Youth Committee, MI ExComm, Hub Admins, Underwater Balloon Race Planning Task Force. **Group**— A set of users with the same access permissions, such as: - **Users:** All members, without exception. - **Main Spaces:** All members are included and have automatic access to the basic selection of discussion spaces on the Hub. From there, you can turn off or leave any spaces you are not interested in. - **More Spaces:** A joinable group for those who would like to join More Spaces. - **Volunteers:** Members who perform some role for Mensa International as officers or volunteers. - **Admins:** A very small number of people who keep the platform running. - **IBD:** The members of the International Board of Directors. **MANAGEMENT** Volunteers can be identified by their user title, which describes their role and is visible in the private profile next to their nickname. **ExComm Liaison to the Mensa Hub**— IBD Executive Committee member assigned to oversee the Mensa Hub. Acts as "Super Administrator" with final decision-making authority and more importantly, full technical access to all Spaces. **Hub Team Chair**— Leads the Hub Team. Appointed by the ExComm/IBD. **Hub Team**— Set of volunteers who handle infrastructure and technical issues; appointed by the Hub Team Chair in consultation with ExComm Liaison. **Hub Managers**— Responsible for day-to-day oversight. Enforces the policies of Spaces. Manages Space membership and post location as necessary. Merges or deletes inactive Spaces. **Hub Welcomers**— Set of volunteers who welcome new members and help out with the first steps of using the Mensa Hub. **Hub Technical Supporters**— Set of volunteers who help out with technical issues, groups, and accounts. **Space Administrator (Admin)**— "Owner" of a Space. Responsible for setting Space-specific policy covering visibility, posting, commenting, and reaction rights, membership requirements, behavioral expectations, and moderation for the Space. **Space Moderator**— Possible position decided by the Space Administrator to support the Space from a moderation perspective. **International SIGs Coordinator**— The officer appointed by the ExComm to oversee the I-SIG program. **I-SIG Organiser**— The designated leader(s) of an officially recognized International Special Interest Group. **STARTING AND MAINTAINING SPACES** Any member may request to start a Space for the purpose of engaging with other members. Requests for new Spaces are to be sent to the Hub Team Chair, who will then set up the Space, if approved. Each Space must have a unique topic, purpose, name and a description. National or local Mensa groups have the exclusive right to use names of the form "Mensa <geographic area>". I-SIGs' Spaces should use the name of the officially recognized I-SIG with the syntax “<name> I-SIG”. New Spaces in the Main Spaces or More Spaces category will be administered on behalf of Mensa for all members. The Hub Team will decide, and the member requesting the Space may be asked to assume responsibility for it. Members who request Spaces for more specific topics for a smaller subset of members and wish to run the space their own way (within the limits listed in the next section) should follow the procedures for establishing an I-SIG. If a Space (other than official and committee spaces) is inactive for three months, it may be deleted after consultation with the Hub Team. When this happens, the content of the Space may be moved to another, similar space, or an archive space. The inactive Space is deleted; the content can be saved. The Hub Team reserves the right to add members to spaces in the Main Spaces category (not I-SIG spaces) as long as everyone is able to opt-out, unfollow or mute the spaces as they prefer. **LIMITS** Mensa has a long tradition of embracing free and open discussions on all topics. Mensans often disagree, and rightly so. Some basic rules of engagement are necessary to protect the integrity and function of the community so it can serve its purpose for the greatest number of members to the greatest possible extent. This is an international, multicultural, and diverse community; while discussion and debate are encouraged, there are some limits as to how the discussion may be conducted. Violating these rules may result in removal from the Mensa Hub and may, in severe cases, be considered acts inimical to Mensa. Content deemed inappropriate for the Mensa Hub, based on Space Administrators' and Space Moderators' reasoned opinions, includes (either publicly in a specific Space or via private messages): 1\. Activity which would be illegal in most jurisdictions by violating or infringing the rights of others including harassment, threat, slander, libel, use or abuse of another member's account, or trademark, trade secret, copyright, publicity, or other proprietary rights. 2\. Messages that are pornographic or that contain nudity or graphic or gratuitous violence. 3\. Long messages which contain more than 200 lines or 10,000 characters, except for FAQs that have been posted by the moderator; 4\. Messages or attachments cross-posted to several threads (except official FAQs and Workplace announcements) and flooding (multiple or repeated posting of the same content). 5\. Messages or attachments which are chain letters, known hoaxes, or commercial advertisements. 6\. Messages or attachments which undermine the spirit of camaraderie in the Mensa Hub, such as (but not limited to): • Personal attacks or inflammatory or antagonistic comments (includes ad hominem, trolling, flame-baiting, or picking fights, etc.) • Making fun of or belittling others and/or their beliefs, age, intelligence, race, gender identity, sexual orientation, career choices, or credentials, etc., including posting outside information that's likely to be humiliating (i.e. “the ex-husband of a member told me they got divorced because said person puts ketchup on hotdogs”). • Publishing personal information about others without permission. • Ongoing, offensive private messaging. • Bullying— Repeated, hostile behavior that is intended to harm, or intimidate others. • Ignoring requests to return to the topic of a given thread. 7\. Messages or attachments which contain personal attacks or threats against another Mensa member, whether or not they are a member of the given space. 8\. Messages or attachments which do not contribute to the purpose of the Mensa Hub or which tend to disrupt the purpose of the thread in which they are posted. These are minimal standards for all Spaces on the Mensa Hub. Space Administrators may set additional expectations and limits for the Spaces they manage and are required to make those expectations and limits known to members of those specific spaces. **MODERATION** Each Space Administrator decides the expectations to set in addition to the above listed limits and how they will implement enforcement of those expectations. Moderators may choose to intervene upon observation, upon complaint, publicly or privately, etc. They may gently suggest edits or quickly delete posts and comments that are against the standards of that space. If a member violates the intent and guidelines, they may be subject to any or all of the following actions: **• Informal Intervention**— An Administrator or Moderator may participate in the discussion thread, asking participants to tone down and self-edit their posts. **• Take it to Private Messages**— An Admin/Moderator may request that participants move the conversation to private messages. **• Ignore User**— Members are under no obligation to read posts they consider negative or abusive. Additionally, members don't have to like everyone or agree with anyone. Members do have to get along at least within the extent of these guidelines. Sometimes this may entail ignoring and distancing oneself from other participants or discussions. An Admin/Moderator may request that participants disengage from unpleasant and hostile situations by simply ignoring each other or by requiring them to not reference or engage each other in the space. - Users can also be blocked, which means that their contributions will not be seen by the person who has blocked them. **• Moderator Intervention**— An Admin/Moderator may warn one or more participants that certain posts are not acceptable. The Administrator or Moderator should note the offensive behavior, and after receiving such a warning, participants should conduct themselves more appropriately. An Admin/Moderator may also edit, move, and delete posts or "lock" topics and should provide notice of such actions_._ It is recommended that posts or comments that require intervention in a Public Space be deleted to avoid giving a bad impression to new members. **• Interim Suspension**— If a poster's online behavior is alarmingly out of line, the Admin/Moderator of a given Space may suspend that member from the Space until advice can be sought from other Admins and Moderators to determine the wisest long-term course of action. **• Formal Warning**— If a participant continues to violate these guidelines, despite Admin/Moderator intervention, a formal warning will be given. Following a formal warning, participants will be closely monitored for compliance with these guidelines. **• 30-day Suspension**— If a participant continues to disrupt the social atmosphere of the Space, the Admin/Moderator will review the situation and may recommend to the Hub Team Chair that the participant be suspended for 30 days. A formal message explaining the specific rationale for the suspension will be sent. • **90-day Suspension**— If, after a 30-day suspension, a participant resumes inappropriate posting, the Admin/Moderator of a Space will review the situation and may recommend to the Hub Team Chair that the participant be suspended for 90 days. A formal message explaining the specific rationale for the suspension will be sent. • **Long-term Suspension**— If, after a 90-day suspension, a participant resumes previously identified inappropriate activity, the Admin/Moderator of a Space will review the situation and may recommend to the Hub Team Chair that the participant be suspended from the Mensa Hub as a whole. **• Other actions deemed appropriate**— While these actions cover most instances of intervention, it may not cover all situations. Consequently, other actions may be taken to ensure the Mensa Hub is not disrupted or abused. **When someone is banned from a Space**, they will lose access to all Main Spaces and More Spaces. They will keep their account however, and can still access the other categories. **COMPLAINTS AND REDRESS** Space Administrators have the right and responsibility to set the rules and expectations for the Space they lead. Space Admins and Moderators are expected to respond in a timely fashion to complaints from members. If an Admin of a Private Space becomes obviously unresponsive and the Hub Team is notified that the Space is devolving into chaos, the Hub Team will deactivate the Space unless a new Admin can be appointed within a reasonable timeframe. If there is a conflict between a member and the Administrator of an I-SIG, complaints should be escalated to the International SIGs Coordinator. If an I-SIG is not moderated to conform to the limits listed above, The International SIGs Coordinator may dismiss the I-SIG Organiser and either disband the I-SIG or facilitate assignment of a new I-SIG Organiser. Issues that violate the Mensa Hub's Limits, or issues that involve complaints against Space Admins can be escalated to the Hub Team Chair or ExComm Liaison to the Mensa Hub. Issues between members and the Hub Team Chair or ExComm Liaison to the Mensa Hub can be escalated to the International Ombudsman or through other means of redress as established by the Mensa Constitution and Bylaws. **AGE RESTRICTIONS** The Mensa Hub is an adult community. Members under 13 are not allowed. By registering for the Mensa Hub, you are declaring that you are at least 13 years old. Anyone found to be under 13 will be removed from the Mensa Hub. Spaces designed for age groups, such as a GenY Discussion Space, may limit membership according to age and must make that clear in the description. Members joining such Spaces are declaring that they are within the prescribed age range. Anyone found to be misrepresenting their age will be removed from the pertinent Spaces, and may be removed from the Mensa Hub altogether. **DATA PRIVACY** The Mensa Hub, like everything within the [mensa.org](http://mensa.org) domain, adheres to Mensa International's data protection policies. To read Mensa International’s Privacy Policy for the Mensa Hub, visit [https://workplace.mensa.org/legal/page/view?pageKey=privacy](https://workplace.mensa.org/legal/page/view?pageKey=privacy) **DISCLAIMER** Content posted on Mensa International’s Mensa Hub represents the views of the posters and does not represent the views of Mensa International, which has no opinions. The exception to this are Bylaws and other motions approved by the International Board of Directors.