Participant safeguarding
Dialogues, councils and exercises bring together people with very different power: ministers and students, operators and community representatives, senior experts and volunteers. The Global Risks Forum (GRF) designs its programmes so that everyone can take part safely. Participation is conditional on accepting conduct expectations, concerns can be raised through a restricted route, whistleblowers are protected from retaliation, and decisions can be appealed. GRF is not an emergency service. In immediate danger, contact your local emergency services.
- 01InstitutionThe Global Risks Forum (GRF)
- 02Service levelR0: information and enquiries
- 03In briefThe short answer
- 04ConductExpectations for everyone who takes part
- 05StandardsSafeguarding standards GRF draws on
- 06PowerSafeguarding where power is unequal
- 07Raising a concernRoutes that protect the person raising it
GRF · Institution · service level R0
The short answer.
Participant safeguarding at GRF is how dialogues, councils and exercises keep people with very different power, from ministers to students and volunteers, safe: conduct expectations as a condition of taking part, a restricted route for concerns, protection for whistleblowers and a defined process after a concern is raised.
Report to outcome.
Fig.How a reported error is reviewed and corrected. Design, not a record.
People and services in the Levant and Jordan Valley.
Where people live and how far each division sits from a large city's services, shown for the Levant and Jordan Valley as an example geography for this subject.
Expectations for everyone who takes part.
- Treat every participant with respect, regardless of role, seniority, origin, gender, disability or belief.
- No harassment, intimidation, discrimination or abuse of power, in person or online.
- No unqualified contributor takes a safety-critical task, and no student or volunteer receives an unsupervised high-consequence assignment.
- Community and Indigenous knowledge is used only under an agreed schedule and never enters public examples without consent.
- Restricted information stays restricted, and personal information is shared only as agreed.
Safeguarding standards GRF draws on.
- The Core Humanitarian Standard commitments on complaints and protection from sexual exploitation and abuse.
- The IASC six core principles on sexual exploitation and abuse.
- National safeguarding law where an activity takes place, especially for minors and adults at risk.
Safeguarding where power is unequal.
Risk dialogues often place officials and operators beside affected residents, students or volunteers. Safeguarding includes making it possible to speak without fear of consequence: anonymous contribution routes, a named safeguarding contact independent of the session lead and the option to leave without explanation.
Routes that protect the person raising it.
Restricted route
Safeguarding concerns go to safeguarding@globalriskforum.com, never to a public forum or a chatbot. They are handled only by those who need to know.
Concerns about wrongdoing
Concerns about misconduct, capture or misuse of resources go to integrity@globalriskforum.com. The procedure is designed to protect the reporter from retaliation.
Other complaints
Complaints about a programme decision or conduct go to integrity@globalriskforum.com and are reviewed by someone not responsible for the contested decision.
What happens after a concern is raised.
- 01
Acknowledgement
The acknowledgement gives a reference and names the next step. Do not include more personal detail than needed in a first message; a safe way to share more is explained.
- 02
Immediate safety
Where someone may be at risk, steps to protect them come first, including pausing their participation or an activity.
- 03
Review
A reviewer without a conflict examines the concern and hears the people involved.
- 04
Outcome
The outcome is recorded with reasons and communicated to those entitled to know it, respecting confidentiality.
- 05
Appeal
An outcome can be appealed to someone not involved in the first decision.
These procedures are the design for GRF programmes and are reviewed by counsel before they are adopted. Where national law requires a matter to be reported to the authorities, that law applies.
Terms used on this page.
Each term as this page uses it. Where a standard-setting body defines the term, the wording follows that body.
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Safeguarding | The reasonable steps an organization takes to protect people who come into contact with it, its staff or its programmes from harm, abuse and exploitation, and to respond well when concerns arise. |
| Code of conduct | A written set of standards for how members, staff or participants behave, with a route for complaints and a stated process for handling them. |
| Grievance mechanism | A project-level process for receiving and resolving complaints. |
Where this page's references lead.
The bodies and documents this page is read against. Status and editions change; each link goes to the issuing body.
Questions and answers.
Who sees a safeguarding report?
Will I be protected if I report wrongdoing?
Can I appeal a safeguarding decision?
Does safeguarding apply online?
Around GRF.
Start with an enquiry.
The current service level is R0: information and enquiries. An enquiry receives a reference and names the next step; applications, payments, compute allocations and registrations open only when their team, terms and review capacity exist.