Community Guidelines
At DIY.org (DIY), we believe that every kid is inherently creative. That is why our mission is to give kids all over the world a safe space to build, create and grow together! DIY’s mission helps kids from anywhere, to have a safe place to Hangout, Create, Share and Connect with their friends. The community on DIY is made up of kids from over 150 countries! We’ve got a huge library of hands-on projects and how-to videos, combined with an amazing community of kids. We need your help to make DIY a place where all kids between ages 4 and 17 can feel safe, welcome, and inspired to be awesome!
When you sign up for DIY, you agree to honor the following Guidelines:
BE CREATIVE: FOCUS ON BUILDING YOUR SKILLS AND DON’T BE AFRAID TO EXPERIMENT OR TRY SOMETHING NEW
Share what you make. Your posts should be relevant to what you are learning and doing yourself!
Seek achievement and focus on your projects. It is great to ask for feedback from other DIYers and if your work is awesome, likes and follows will happen.BE ORIGINAL: SHARE YOUR OWN WORK
Be yourself. Your DIY Profile should be all about you and the unique things you’re making and creating.
Usernames cannot be shared by multiple people.
No copying. DIY is a place to show off the things you’ve made yourself. Don’t post or take credit for images you found online or in another DIYer’s profile. Screenshots are not allowed either. Always ask for permission before borrowing or referencing something that another DIYer made, and be sure to give them credit in the comments. However, tracing or using reference images from copyright-free websites and making them better is okay. It is even okay to reference another DIYers art as long as you give credit for the Original Art. Posting coloring of images from coloring apps is okay. Posting original characters made in role-play apps is also allowed. Editing (copyright-free) images into memes or animations and applying your creativity is alright! Try to use copyright-free music. If you need to use copyrighted music, keep it under 30 seconds and make sure to credit the original artist.
DIY is for kids only. Don’t share work by adults in your family, although you can share anything you worked on with the help of an adult. Accounts that are maintained by adults are not allowed.
BE SAFE: KEEP YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION PRIVATE AND NEVER ASK OTHER DIYERS FOR THEIRS
Keep personal information private. Never post your full name, home address, phone number, email address, where you go to school, links to your other social media accounts, or any other identifying personal info online. Outside links are not allowed on DIY, and you won’t be able to post them. Sharing usernames of other online accounts is allowed. Also, remember that your parents have access to everything you share on DIY!Respect others’ privacy. Everybody has unique preferences about their online safety. Avoid asking other DIYers for their personal info. Don't post pictures or screenshots featuring other kids, even if they are from a DIY LIVE challenge or your virtual/real-life classroom.
Choose a unique nickname. Be sure to choose a nickname that doesn’t disclose any personal info. If you need to change your nickname to protect your privacy, let the mods know!
Avoid money transactions. DIY is not a place to buy or sell things. To avoid scams and safety concerns, never ask for or give out info related to money exchanges (like credit card numbers).
When in doubt, report. If someone on DIY asks you for your personal info, always say NO. If they persist, or if you ever feel unsafe on DIY, report the user to DIY moderators and tell your parents or a trusted adult.BE FRIENDLY: SHOW KINDNESS TO ALL DIYERS
Embrace others’ differences. DIY welcomes kids of all backgrounds, races, ethnicities, religions, abilities, body types, gender identities, sexual orientations, and education types. Unfriendly language, discrimination, or threats based on these or any other identities are never ok.
Include everyone. DIY is a great place to meet other kids whose lives are different from your own. Be kind and inclusive when sharing your beliefs or responding to others sharing theirs. Posts that aim to criticize, convert, or otherwise devalue others’ beliefs or identities are not allowed.
Don’t discipline each other. If you find something that should not be on DIY, report the post, comment, or even user and the mods will look into it immediately. Calling out another DIYer on their post or getting into arguments is not ok on DIY.
BE HELPFUL: SHARE TIPS AND ENCOURAGEMENT WITH OTHER DIYERS (AND BE PATIENT WITH THEM WHILE THEY LEARN)
Support others’ growth. DIY is a place to learn and grow. Constructive criticism is allowed and encouraged, but straight-up negativity is not. When commenting on others' projects, say something you like about it and offer suggestions! If you don’t have anything helpful to contribute to a project, you probably don’t need to comment on it.Help others learn. Whenever possible, include details about how you did something! This makes it easier for other DIYers to learn from you. Remember: other DIYers may be younger, have less experience posting online, learn differently, or speak a different language than you. Be polite and patient when helping others, even if they annoy you or ask questions that may seem obvious.
Be patient during LIVE workshops. LIVE workshops involve following a live tutorial with a DIYer hosting their LIVE on DIY. Remember that different kids may have different paces at which they do something. If you are done with a step, please wait for others to catch up patiently. Drawing attention to yourself, asking others to hurry up, interrupting, or acting bored is not cool. Respect the other DIYer hosting their LIVE workshops.
Make DIY better. Report bugs, recommend new skills or challenges, and show new DIYers around to help make the community even better. When in doubt, or excited about a new idea, reach out to the moderators!
BE RESPECTFUL: SHARE PROJECTS AND COMMENTS THAT ARE APPROPRIATE FOR EVERYONE, INCLUDING YOUNGER DIYERS
Keep the language clean. Profanity (AKA “swear” or “bad” or “cuss” words) is not allowed. Videos, photos, or comments that include profanity will be removed.
Stay age-appropriate. To keep DIY suitable for kids of ages between 4 and 17, posts that include, refer to, or link to mature content (including written descriptions, images, audio, or videos) are not allowed. This includes but is not limited to:
Use of drugs, alcohol, or other age-restricted/illegal substances
Suggestive or explicit sexual content
Sensitive personal topics like self-harm or tragedies
Excessive gore, violent imagery, or violent weapons
Shocking events like natural/manmade disasters or tragedies
Anything else that is commonly seen as inappropriate for kids between 4 and 17
Dress Appropriately. Wear appropriate clothing when documenting your projects (no shirtless photos, please!). Photos or videos that show you or other people partially clothed are not allowed.
Look for friends, not crushes. DIY is a safe place to learn and make creative projects, not a place to look for romantic partners ("flirt"). Avoid commenting on others’ appearances or asking for relationships on/through DIY. If some type of comments made by you are making someone uncomfortable, just stop making them and apologize.
BE A ROLE MODEL: SHOW GOOD JUDGEMENT, STAY POSITIVE AND BE AN AWESOME DIGITAL CITIZEN
Keep it positive. DIY is a great place to express yourself. However, some types of expression aren’t suitable for all ages and should be avoided on DIY. Please don’t put yourself down (e.g. “I hate this,” “I’m no good at this”) or encourage mean or non-constructive criticism from other DIYers.Take the high road. Don’t respond to negativity with more negativity. If you see something on DIY that goes against our community guidelines, report it so the mods can handle it. Don’t jump in, yourself. Don’t tag friends to take your side or participate in this discussion.
Most violations of the guidelines are judged on a case-by-case basis, and we do our best to enforce them consistently and fairly. Violations may result in:
Written warnings: Minor violations of the DIY Guidelines commonly result in a written warning to DIYers via a comment from a mod, or an email to parents.
Post removal: If a post contains content that's not in alignment with the DIY Guidelines, mods may hide or permanently remove it.
Temporary suspension: Repeated or serious violations may result in account suspensions, which remove all of a DIYer's posting and commenting privileges. Suspensions are often temporary until the mod team, the DIYer, and their parents can resolve the issue privately via email or phone.
Permanent suspension: Mods may permanently and immediately suspend accounts that repeatedly violate the DIY Guidelines or put the safety of the community at risk. In these cases, the DIYer's posting and commenting privileges will be revoked, but they will retain access to their existing portfolio of projects.
Banning: Mods reserve the right to permanently and immediately ban accounts that put the safety of the community at risk. Banning removes the DIYer's account completely from the platform.
Additionally, mods can, at their discretion, suspend or ban accounts that are negative or destructive to the spirit of the DIY Community.
We appreciate DIYers who are active in following the guidelines and who inspire each other to learn and take risks. You are the ones building this awesome community! We 👀 you and ❤️ you!
GUIDELINES FOR DIY CLUBS
Bringing interest-based communities together. Hangout, Chat & Share with DIYers - both Old and New, from the same interest-based clubs covering interests for kids to explore like art, gaming, music, anime, drawing, science, fandoms, food, etc, Time to enable DIYers to operate the platform independently and achieve their creative potential without the fear of bullying, negativity, or icky content.
When you sign up for DIY Clubs, you agree to honour the following Guidelines:
Respect Each Other
English should be the only form of communication on DIY Clubs. Abusive and offensive language in ANY form is not allowed on DIY Clubs.
Keep DIY Clubs Positive.
Do not bully others or organise, promote, or participate in bullying. Everyone has a right to their own opinion and disagreements can happen and are normal, but making repetitive, severe negative comments, personal remarks or instigating others against a person or a group/club/hangout is not okay.
Do not organize, promote, or participate in hate speech or hateful conduct. It’s unacceptable to attack a person or a community based on attributes such as race, ethnicity, caste, national origin, sex, gender identity, gender presentation, sexual orientation, religious affiliation, age, serious illness, disabilities, or other protected classifications.
Do not share content that glorifies or promotes suicide or self-harm, including any body shaming or eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia.
Taking screenshots of DIYer profiles and instigating other DIYers to take actionable decisions towards them like blocking them or reporting them, due to personal issues is not allowed on DIY Clubs and will also be considered bullying.
Sharing from the internet. It is okay to share Internet Images for references on DIY Clubs but when sharing Internet Images or another DIYer's art, please ensure that you tag and give that DIYer/Creator their rightful credits and not claim it as your own.
Do not distribute or provide access to content involving the hacking, cracking, or distribution of stolen goods, pirated content, or accounts. This includes sharing or selling game cheats or hacks.
Be Honest
Do not share false or misleading information as sometimes it can lead to severe physical or societal harm.
Do not coordinate or participate in malicious impersonation of anyone. Memes or Parodies are okay.
Solicit login information or access an account belonging to anyone other than themselves.
Respect DIY. Do not use DIY Clubs to spam or disrupt other DIYers experiences.
DIY is not a marketplace, no kind of physical buying/selling is allowed on DIY Clubs. In case of any concerns about DIY please write to help@diy.org
Keeping DIY Safe
Do not share real media depicting gore, excessive violence, or animal harm, especially with the intention to harass or shock others.
Do not make threats of violence or threaten to harm others or use DIY for the organization, promotion, or support of violent extremism. This also includes glorifying violent events, the perpetrators of violent acts, or similar behaviours.
Sharing personal information like email IDs, addresses, phone numbers and school details on DIY Clubs is not allowed as it can lead to privacy invasion.
If Mods ban a DIYer from DIY Hangouts, then creating another DIY account to access DIY Clubs is not allowed and will lead to permanent banning from DIY.
Mods can, at any time, remove or restrict your access to DIY Clubs if your content breaches the DIY Clubs Guidelines.
If you block a DIYer on DIY Clubs and wish to block them on DIY as well, you will need to do that separately on DIY
Code of Conduct for Junior Mods.
Junior Mods are DIYers who represent the community and help keep it safe for everyone. They also welcome new kids and show them around. Junior mods are picked every few months through an open selection process and promise to:
Create a positive impact on the DIY Community.
Encourage & motivate other DIYers.
Welcome new DIYers and help them get comfortable on DIY.
Follow community guidelines, and report any inappropriate content & behavior to keep DIY safe without disciplining any DIYers myself.
Collaborate with the mods to promote new initiatives and challenges on DIY.
Stay in regular touch with the mods to communicate ideas, requests, and concerns of DIYers.
Promote original content, friendship, and collaboration in the DIY community.
Not participate in any arguments, name-calling, or unpleasant exchanges on DIY.