Guidelines for Participating in the American Herbalists Guild Community, Events, and Membership
AHG Community Participation Guidelines
The American Herbalists Guild brings together herbalists from many traditions, backgrounds, areas of practice, and stages of professional development. Our community is strongest when members can exchange knowledge, ask questions, share resources, develop professional relationships, and learn from perspectives that may differ from their own.
These guidelines establish the basic standards of conduct we ask everyone to follow when participating in AHG spaces. Our goal is not to require agreement. It is to maintain a professional, respectful, and constructive community where meaningful discussion and connection can take place.
These expectations apply when participating in AHG spaces and activities, including the Online Member Community, educational programs, webinars, committees, meetings, conferences and events, AHG-hosted discussions, and correspondence conducted through the Guild.
Expected Community Standards
Be Respectful
Treat other members, staff, volunteers, presenters, and community participants with respect. Differences of opinion are expected within a diverse professional community, but disagreement should remain focused on the topic rather than becoming personal, demeaning, or hostile.
Consider the impact of your words and actions as well as your intent. When misunderstandings occur, we encourage members to listen, clarify, and make a good-faith effort to move the conversation forward constructively.
Be Direct and Professional
Healthy professional communities need room for honest questions, disagreement, critique, and difficult conversations. Members should feel able to speak directly about ideas, practices, organizational decisions, and issues affecting the field of herbalism.
Criticism and disagreement are welcome when expressed professionally and constructively. Personal attacks, insults, intimidation, or repeated antagonistic behavior are not.
Make Room for Different Perspectives
Herbalism encompasses many traditions, lineages, philosophies, educational pathways, and approaches to practice. AHG does not expect members to agree on every subject.
Approach conversations with curiosity and recognize that your own experience is one among many represented within the community. Allow others an opportunity to contribute, particularly in group discussions, and make a good-faith effort to understand perspectives different from your own.
Be Welcoming and Inclusive
AHG welcomes participation from people of different backgrounds, identities, abilities, cultures, geographic regions, economic circumstances, and levels of experience.
Discrimination, harassment, or derogatory treatment based on a person’s identity, background, or other personal characteristics is not appropriate within AHG spaces.
Respect Privacy
Respect the privacy and confidentiality of other community members. Do not share another person’s private information, correspondence, photographs, or personal circumstances without appropriate permission.
This is particularly important when conversations involve clients, clinical experiences, mentorship, professional disputes, or other sensitive information. Members are responsible for sharing information in ways that respect applicable privacy and professional obligations.
Contribute, Don’t Spam
Members are encouraged to share educational resources, professional opportunities, events, publications, programs, and other information that may be useful to the herbal community.
AHG community spaces should not, however, be used primarily for repetitive advertising, unsolicited promotion, or spam. Promotional content should be relevant to the community and shared in the appropriate spaces.
Behavior That Is Not Acceptable
Personal Attacks and Abusive Conduct
Disagreement should not become an attack on another person. Insulting, demeaning, belittling, threatening, intimidating, or repeatedly antagonizing another participant is not acceptable.
Members may challenge ideas, claims, practices, or decisions. Keep those conversations focused on the subject at hand rather than the character or worth of the person expressing them.
Harassment and Discrimination
Harassment, discriminatory conduct, and derogatory language directed toward another person or group are not acceptable in AHG spaces.
This includes repeated unwanted contact, deliberate intimidation, sustained targeting of another participant, or discriminatory treatment based on personal identity or background.
If someone asks you to stop contacting them or to stop a particular behavior directed toward them, respect that request.
Threats and Safety
Threats of violence, encouragement of violence, doxxing, stalking, or other conduct that raises legitimate concerns for another person’s safety is not permitted.
Immediate threats to personal safety or suspected criminal activity should be directed to the appropriate local authorities. AHG may also address conduct occurring within AHG spaces or activities in accordance with our applicable policies.
Respect Personal Boundaries
AHG community spaces should remain professional and respectful of personal boundaries. Unwelcome sexual attention or physical contact is not appropriate in AHG spaces or activities.
We ask members to be mindful of the comfort and boundaries of others and to conduct themselves with the same respect and professionalism expected throughout the AHG community.
Disruptive Conduct
Members should not intentionally or repeatedly interfere with other people’s ability to participate in AHG programs or community spaces.
This may include sustained disruption of discussions, classes, presentations, meetings, forums, or events after being asked to stop. Robust discussion and disagreement are not themselves disruptive conduct.
When Concerns Arise
AHG recognizes that disagreements, misunderstandings, and interpersonal conflicts can occur in any community. Not every difficult interaction constitutes a violation of these guidelines or requires a formal complaint.
For concerns involving everyday participation in AHG spaces, members may flag content within the Online Member Community or contact us at office@americanherbalistsguild.com. AHG staff or community moderators may take reasonable steps to maintain the integrity of the space, including contacting a participant privately, moderating or removing content, or asking that inappropriate behavior stop.
When a concern involves a potential violation of the AHG Code of Ethics, it may instead fall under AHG’s formal Complaint Resolution Process.
Formal Complaints
AHG maintains a separate, Board-approved process for formal complaints involving the conduct of AHG members, Registered Herbalists, Board members, presenters, teachers, and contributors.
The Complaint Resolution Process explains who and what falls within AHG’s jurisdiction, how to submit a complaint, what information is required, confidentiality protections, possible outcomes, and the review and appeal process.
Review the AHG Complaint Resolution Process
Before submitting a formal complaint, please review the process carefully to determine whether the concern falls within AHG’s scope.
Formal complaints are handled through the process outlined in that policy rather than through ordinary community moderation.
Reporting Community Concerns
If you experience or observe content or behavior within an AHG community space that appears inconsistent with these participation guidelines, please flag the content when that option is available or contact us at office@americanherbalistsguild.com.
Please include enough information for our team to understand the concern and locate the relevant content or interaction when possible.
Our team will determine whether the matter can be addressed through ordinary community moderation or should be directed to another AHG process, including the formal Complaint Resolution Process when applicable.
Questions About These Guidelines
Questions about these guidelines or how they apply within an AHG space are welcome. Contact office@americanherbalistsguild.com and our team can help clarify the appropriate process or point of contact.
These guidelines may be updated as AHG’s programs, community, and needs evolve. The current version will be maintained through AHG’s official community resources.