Terms of Service

By registering for REX Virtual Café, you are committing to following the terms of service for this online community. While we do have moderators (Animators), our goal is to collectively create a safe, welcoming, and engaging space for learning and discussion. 

REX Virtual Café is an online community, bringing together stakeholders from across Ontario’s youth sector, and has been designed to build connections and facilitate dialogue. Members should be committed to collaboratively learning, sharing, and building the capacity of others. 

When you register as a member, you are asked to agree to the terms of service outlined here. If you do not accept these terms of service, please do not register to access or use this forum. 

Have questions? Please visit our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) or contact community@youthrex.com. 

01. Community Guidelines

This is an open online community, so all members and posts can be seen by the public. Remember that published content will remain public for a long time. The following are tips and guidelines for being a member of this online community:

a) Participate.

• Contribute thoughtfully to discussions.
• Ask questions pertaining to your work or of other members. 
• Create new discussions.
• Share your opinions, insights, and your lived and/or practice experience, as appropriate.
• Share resources and opportunities.
• Consider your audience, as members will reflect diverse identities, experiences, perspectives, and communities.
• Whenever possible, use plain language and avoid acronyms.

b) Consider your tone and language.

• Do not use hateful or discriminatory language. 
• Do not post objectionable or inflammatory topics and statements.
• Avoid using profanity and inappropriate language.
• Do not engage in personal attacks or threats; harassment of any kind will not be tolerated (privately between members and/or publicly).

c) Be respectful and considerate.

• Avoid conflict in disagreements. Members will have varying opinions, perspectives, experiences, and practice strategies; all are welcome, provided that posts adhere to these terms.
• Do not disparage others. Be a credible source by ensuring the validity of the content you share. When you do point out misrepresentations, always do so with respect, adhere to the facts, and identify yourself appropriately. Be the first to respond to your own mistakes, and remember that there are always consequences to what you post. 

d) Contribute honestly and relevantly.

• Do not misrepresent yourself or appropriate another person’s identity.
• Avoid promoting an individual religion, religious service or political affiliation.
• Do not promote for-profit products and services.
• Do not knowingly share illegal content or content that contains viruses.
• Be sure to always cite information and resources shared appropriately. 

e) Respect privacy and confidentiality. 

• Adhere to the privacy and confidentiality guidelines of your organization, program, team, clients, and/or community. 
• Avoid including any identifying information when sharing practice or lived experience; consider whose stories you are sharing and how.
• Do not share any private information that is not your own, and avoid sharing personal details or contact information; members can connect privately through direct messages. 

Do not share resources or links to sites that violate any of these guidelines.

02. Moderation of the Virtual Café 

Animators will support this community throughout the week, Monday to Friday, between 9AM and 5PM EST (not including holidays and office closures).

Posts are not approved before they are shared, but Animators reserve the right to remove posts (including text, images, and/or links) that do not adhere to the community guidelines outlined above, including, but not limited to: 

• hate or discrimination of any kind
• obscene or abusive language
• promotion of an individual religion, religious service or political affiliation
• promotion of for-profit products and services
• personal details of another member (or any person) without their consent
• comments unrelated to the discussion topic
• illegal and/or fraudulent content
• libelous comments

You can notify us at any time of posts that may violate our community guidelines by contacting community@youthrex.com. We will respond by reviewing and possibly removing the post(s), and explaining the violation to the appropriate member(s). If a member’s behaviour is seen to be in violation of the community guidelines, YouthREX reserves the right to revoke access to the Virtual Café at any time. This includes members who have misrepresented themselves and their affiliations, and those who appropriate another person’s identity.

If you feel that an Animator has acted unfairly, whether in response to a violation or in revoking access to the platform, please feel free to connect with us at community@youthrex.com to discuss further.

YouthREX reserves the right to modify our terms of service at any time. If there are changes to the terms of service for use of the Virtual Café, all registered members will be notified of the change(s); their continued use of the platform will imply their acceptance of the revised terms of service. Members can delete their user accounts at any time.

03. Privacy, Copyright & Liability

Member information is secured and maintained safely and is never shared with any funder or third party. Members can delete their user accounts at any time. 

When you register to become a member of REX Virtual Café, you give YouthREX the right to add the email address associated with your user profile to our list server. You may opt out of receiving our newsletter at any time by clicking on the Unsubscribe link. 

YouthREX staff may also use your contact information to communicate specifically about REX Virtual Café. 

Members retain the rights to any copyrighted content or information that is shared across the platform. By sharing content to the platform, you give YouthREX the perpetual and unrestricted right to reproduce and/or re/distribute that content for any purpose. 

Content shared by members should not violate proprietary rights, and any external content should be accurately cited. YouthREX does not take responsibility for, does not endorse, and does not assume liability for any content shared by members on the Virtual Café.