Gathering Policies

By registering to attend, you acknowledge and agree to all policies, practices, and disclaimers for the Appalachia Funders Network’s 2023 Gathering, including:

• COVID Policies

• Site Visit Requirements

• Registration Cancelation

• Code of Conduct

• Accessibility

• No Solicitation Policy

• Media Release

COVID Policies

In keeping with low COVID risk level in Henderson and Buncombe Counties, masks are optional and up to personal discretion for this meeting. Should COVID levels rise in the days leading up to the convening, we will reach out via email with any updated guidelines. If masks become a requirement for our meeting, based on state or county recommendations, non-masked participants will not be able to participate in mask-required meeting activities. We also reserve the right to ask for proof of current COVID vaccination status or medical exemptions from such vaccinations. Refunds are available for those who do not wish to attend a mask-required meeting, should health authorities recommend such precautions.

Site Visit Requirements

Touring the site visit locations requires that all participants adhere to health and other guidelines used by these entities. Closed-toed shoes are required and photographs or videos can only be taken onsite if permission is granted by the host organization. All participants must arrive on buses chartered by the Network.

Registration Cancellation

Tickets are non-refundable, but transferrable until March 31, 2023.

In the event of a site visit cancellation, we will email you at the email address you provided as part of registration to notify you of a cancellation and give you the choice of being refunded (minus Eventbrite fees) or added to the other site visit option (if available).

Code of Conduct

The Appalachia Funders Network is committed to providing a safe, productive, and welcoming environment for all conference participants and Council staff. All participants, including, but not limited to, attendees, speakers, session organizers, sponsors, vendors, philanthropy-serving organizations (PSOs), Council staff members, service providers, and all others are expected to abide by this 2023 Gathering Conference Code of Conduct. This Code of Conduct applies to the 2023 Gathering and all virtual and in-person Gathering meeting-related events, including those sponsored by organizations other than the Network but held in conjunction with Network events, on public or private platforms.

Do:

• Engage and interact with attendees, speakers, session organizers, sponsors, PSOs, Network staff, venue staff, and service providers throughout the conference

• Participate during sessions with comments and questions and engage in respectful and civil communications

• Respect confidentiality requests by speakers and other attendees

Don't:

• Record, post, or transmit content from any keynote presentation, concurrent session, site visit, break, video, or other 2023 Gathering activity without prior approval concerning credit, terms, and/or a fee

• Promote your own services, products, or causes unless requested by Network staff

• Disrupt sessions or other activities; attendees must comply with the instructions of the session moderator, speaker, and Network staff

• Harass, intimidate, stalk, or threaten anyone participating in the 2023 Gathering

• Make abusive verbal comments that include, but are not limited to: comments related to gender, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, religion, national origin, inappropriate use of nudity, and/or sexual images in public spaces or in presentations

Reporting Code of Conduct Violations:

If, while participating in 2023 Gathering, you have been involved in or have witnessed an incident that violates the Network’s Code of Conduct, Contact Us so that we can take the appropriate action

Consequences:

The Network reserves the right to take any action deemed necessary and appropriate, including immediate removal from 2023 Gathering without warning or refund, in response to any incident of unacceptable behavior, and the Network reserves the right to prohibit attendance at any future Network meeting, event, or program, presented virtually or in person.

Accessibility

We will make every effort to ensure that the conference experience is accessible to all who want to participate. This includes ensuring that those with disabilities have full access to the conference. We will take the following specific actions:

• Ensure that real-time interpretation or close captioning is available for those who request this accommodation by March 26, 2023

• Ensure that all event spaces are ADA compliant

• Provide attendees with the opportunity to identify the need for accommodation requirements during registration

• Reserve wheelchair spaces during general and breakout sessions

• Ensure ample aisle space (36-60”) for attendees who use mobility supports.

• Remind presenters and designers to use large, simple, and San serif fonts for displayed presentations

• Advise designers and presenters on appropriate color palettes

• Ensure that the website is accessible to those with reading limitations

We will work to ensure further compliance with best practice in these areas. If you have any questions about accommodations or need additional assistance, please Contact Us.

No Solicitation Policy

The Appalachia Funders Network maintains a no-solicitation policy covering all of its conferences, meetings, webinars, and other events. In order to provide a distraction-free environment for our members and other attendees, we do not allow solicitation of any kind during any event, including asking for business, soliciting fund management services, distributing grant proposals, or requesting grant funding. Additionally, Network  members expect that participation in Network events will not result in future solicitations unless the member specifically invites future contact. Accordingly, we ask that all participants at Network events refrain from using attendee lists or similar information for solicitation purposes without the express permission of the Network. 

Examples of prohibited solicitation activity include:

• Unauthorized receptions & parties (including off-site events)

• Unauthorized exhibits, mobile exhibits, & hospitality suites

• Unauthorized membership recruitment activities

• Unauthorized promotion of non-Network events

• Unauthorized on-site distribution of printed or electronic materials including literature, signs, flyers, invitations, tickets, forms, etc. (except business cards)

Any person and/or organization found to be violating this policy may be expelled from the event without refund of registration fees. Egregious and/or multiple violations of this policy may result in disqualification from future events at the discretion of the Appalachia Funders Network.

Media Release

By registering for the 2023 Gathering (the meeting), I hereby authorize the Appalachia Funders Network to use photos and video related to my experiences with and at the meeting. 

I understand this information may be used on social media platforms and websites as well as in publications, including blogs, electronic publications, audiovisual presentations, promotional literature, public relations, community presentations, letters to customers and media, and/or other similar ways.

By not refuting this document in writing, my consent is freely given without expecting payment. I release the Appalachia Funders Network and their respective employees, officers, and agents from any and all liability which may arise from the use of such content in news media stories, promotional materials and written articles in video and/or photograph form conveyed via digital or print means.
I understand that I can revoke this release in writing at any time, by Contacting AFN, and that the use of any of my photos or other information authorized by this release will cease from that day forward.

Contact Us

If you have any questions about these Policies, please use this contact form.