American Foundry Society Code of Conduct
The American Foundry Society invites attendees to participate in AFS conferences, courses, and other events in a spirit of collegiality, collaboration, professionalism, and respect, as we endeavor to advance AFS’s mission—to provide members of the metalcasting supply chain with advocacy support, technical and management education, and access to innovative shared research and technology.
When you attend an AFS event, you agree to:
- Treat all attendees—including registrants, guests, speakers, volunteers, exhibitors, staff, service providers, and others in attendance—with respect and consideration.
- Respect the boundaries of others.
- Give permission that AFS can use pictures, video and audio recordings taken during AFS-related events for AFS promotional purposes. AFS can use your likeness without remuneration.
- Be collegial and collaborative in your discussions, communicating openly and with civil attitudes.
- Respect confidentiality requests from speakers and other attendees. AFS Committee meetings allow for the open exchange of information and are confidential to those in attendance.
- Obey all applicable laws, rules and policies. These include rules and policies of the meeting venue, hotels, or any other site where your AFS affiliation is likely to be displayed.
- Look out for one another. Immediately alert emergency services, meeting or property security personnel, AFS staff, or AFS leadership if you notice someone in distress or see a dangerous or potentially dangerous situation.
Unacceptable behavior at an AFS event includes:
- Physical or verbal abuse of any attendee.
- Being disruptive, stalking, following, threatening, or intimidating anyone.
- Drinking excessively or becoming intoxicated.
- Harassment of any kind, including unwelcome sexual attention and inappropriate physical conduct.
- Making comments or engaging in conduct that is racist, sexist, ageist, or otherwise discriminates against or is offensive to a group or class of people.
- Audio or video recording, or taking images of another’s presentation, posters, or materials without permission.
- Distribution of written materials or digital postings, whether as an exhibitor or attendee, that are offensive or include inappropriate references, metaphors or images.
- Meetings may be recorded by AFS staff for business purposes. Any recordings or transcription by the participants or through artificial intelligence, present or not, is prohibited.
Contact us to report an incident
If, while at an AFS event, you are personally involved in an incident, or you witness an incident involving others, that violates this Code of Conduct, please let AFS staff know about it immediately. You can speak directly with a member of the AFS staff leadership concerning an incident, or you can use a name-optional reporting form that will soon be a part of the AFS website. You can also email your information on the Code of Conduct form found below to AFSCodeofConduct@afsinc.org.
If you experience or witness behavior that is an imminent or serious threat to public safety or is a criminal act, you should take action to maintain your own personal safety and contact 911 emergency services immediately.
AFS's Commitment to Quality Member/Attendee Experiences
AFS is committed to providing our members and event attendees with a quality experience. We take any violation of the above standards extremely seriously. AFS reserves the right to bar any person who violates this Code of Conduct from further participation in the event without refund. AFS may also suspend or expel any person who violates this Code of Conduct from AFS membership or from attending or participating in future AFS events.