Django Shares Mechanics of Code of Conduct Governance and Contributor Covenant 3.0 Adoption
Django's Code of Conduct Working Group details the technical and organizational mechanics behind its adoption of Contributor Covenant 3.0 in early 2026. The post explains the governance model for Code of Conduct changes, covering decision-making, board involvement, and the roles of related working groups. It highlights the process for community proposals, a mandatory 30-day public comment period, and how GitHub's CODEOWNERS file enforces policy. The article also describes the structured project plan for the rewrite and an automated changelog that documents decisions for enhanced transparency and accountability.
- →Code of Conduct Working Group Structure and Governance
- →Community-Driven Process for Code of Conduct Updates
- →Mandatory 30-Day Public Comment Period for Changes
- →Project Management for Contributor Covenant 3.0 Adoption
- →Automated Changelog for Decision Transparency
Notes (6) ›
- Code of Conduct Working Group Structure and Governance
The Django Code of Conduct Working Group, established by the DSF board, operates with a small, diverse, and term-limited membership. Decisions require consensus or a two-thirds majority, with board approval for major actions or text changes. It coordinates with the Online Community Working Group for escalated moderation issues.
- Community-Driven Process for Code of Conduct Updates
The working group established a transparent process for CoC changes, allowing any community member to propose updates via a structured issue template. Minor edits can bypass the full process, but significant changes are discussed at monthly meetings with wider community input. Changes to the CoC text itself require DSF board sign-off, enforced by GitHub's CODEOWNERS.
- Mandatory 30-Day Public Comment Period for Changes
All non-administrative pull requests affecting the Code of Conduct require a 30-day public comment period before merging. This mechanism ensures transparency and requires the working group to address community feedback, with a GitHub workflow enforcing the waiting period.
- Project Management for Contributor Covenant 3.0 Adoption
The adoption of Contributor Covenant 3.0 was managed as a project, broken down into fifteen discrete sub-issues covering documentation rewrites, synchronization, and announcements. This structured approach, spanning three months, allowed for community review and phased implementation.
- Automated Changelog for Decision Transparency
A GitHub Action automatically regenerates a `CHANGELOG.md` file on every merge, documenting decisions and their rationale in plain language. This system provides a public, auditable record of changes, replacing reliance on manual updates.
- Handling Code of Conduct Violation Reports
Reports of Code of Conduct violations are handled by the working group through a dedicated inbox, aiming for acknowledgement within a day and an initial response within a week. Decisions on next steps require agreement from at least two members, following an established enforcement ladder.
https://www.djangoproject.com/weblog/2026/aug/24/coc-block-tackle/
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