community agreements

We strive to make this app a welcoming and affirming space for young people and their identities. We can’t create a safe and affirming space without young people like you, and this is why we’ve created these agreements. This is an agreement between you and PHE and will guide you on how you should and should not use the communities platform.  

Privacy  

We respect your privacy! In keeping with our commitment to the safety of all young people who will use the app, we will not collect or share any personal identifying information of our users, outside of that which is necessary to create an account. PHE will collect your email or telephone number for account authentication purposes only.  Our Privacy Policy will be a part of our agreement with you.

Personal Identifiable Information

You will not share any personal identifiable information such as legal or nickname, phone numbers, home addresses, email addresses, legal name, or any other personal information of yours or someone else’s on the public areas of our site or app. All usernames, posts, and comments containing any personal information will not be approved.

Age Restrictions

Although we welcome users from all walks of life, selfsea, the mobile app, is not intended for or directed to individuals under the age of 13 years of age or over the age of 19.  We do not knowingly collect information from children under the age of 13 or adults over 19. If we become aware that you are under 13 or over the age of 19 and using our app, we will terminate your user account and issue bans to your device.  

Support

selfsea is not intended to replace care provided by professional support. We firmly believe in the power of peer support and acknowledge that there are many situations in which peer support is not appropriate. Peer support via selfsea should never be used or seen as a replacement for professional support or guidance from a mental health professional, general practitioner, or any other medical professional.

If you are in need of immediate support, the following resources are available 24/7:

  • Text HEALTH to 741741 to be connected to a trained counselor at Crisis Text Line
  • 988 to be connected to the National Suicide Hotline or local crisis center in your area
  • Call the TrevorLifeline, a suicide prevention & crisis intervention hotline for LGBTQ+ young people at 1-866-488-7386
  • Text START to 678678 to be connected with a trained counselor at TrevorText, a suicide prevention & crisis intervention text line for LGBTQ+ young people

Community Agreements  

The purpose of selfsea is to allow a safe space for young people from different lived experiences and backgrounds to gather the knowledge and skills they need to make healthy choices and support one another.

Selfsea's community agreements were made with our participants in mind to make sure we’re all doing our part to keep this a welcoming community for all young people.  

When engaging on selfsea, you agree to the following community agreements:

  • I will be present
  • I will be respectful and nonjudgmental
  • I will be kind to myself and others
  • I will commit to upholding a safe and brave space for myself and others
  • I will enter this space to learn and support others
  • I will not give out my personal info, nor will I share the personal information of others  
  • I will not use inappropriate language that is intentionally harmful or offensive
  • I will not create a fake profile as somebody else on selfsea
  • I will not use another person’s account to gain access to selfsea
  • I will not distribute, post spam, or any other unauthorized commercial communication on or through selfsea

If you notice any mentee or mentor acting in violation of these rules, please report it immediately to our system administrators at by flagging the post within the app.  

The aftereffects of breaking Community Agreements or Terms of Service

We know that most times intent and impact can have two very different effects on both the person with the intent and the person who experiences the impact. Should we find that a post goes against selfsea’s Community Agreements or Terms of Service, we’ve created a policy that is centered on teachable moments and the ability to correct an action that resulted in an undesirable impact to members of the communities. If you post a comment gets reported for being in violation of these agreements, the comment will immediately be marked for review.  

Comments or posts that may be removed will fall under these categories:  

  • Triggering and/or offensive language
  • Content that harasses, bullies, teases, or promotes hate based on identity
  • Content that glorifies suicide, assault, mental illness, eating disorders, non-suicidal self-injury, or any other serious behavior or condition in a negative or unhelpful manner 
  • Biased or discriminatory statements rooted in gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, age, race, ability, etc.
  • Comments or posts that are unhelpful, inappropriate and/or rooted in hurtful sarcasm such as “that’s dumb”, “that’s stupid”, etc.
  • Content that suggests serious harm to a person, place, or thing
  • Sexually explicit or graphic content related to a post or comment or deemed as inappropriate, unhelpful, or not suitable for selfsea communities

Additionally, while we try to provide as much support as we can, there are certain experiences that fall outside what we can best support. Any posts or comments that we believe requires immediate and personal attention, such as suicide, assault, mental illness, eating disorders, and non-suicidal self-injury, will be followed up with resources but will not always be approved on to communities. 

Moderating Posts that Go Against the Agreements

When a post is deemed against our agreements, content moderators will act in the following manner and implement the appropriate action, depending on the number of warnings previously given. Moderators will:

Consider one key question before taking any action:

  • “What is the context of this post?”

Review the post from a place of education

  • “How can I support this person in conveying their thoughts/questions within our Community Agreements?”

Suggest an alternative approach, if applicable

Follow up with a referral to a resource or service, if applicable

What are the actions?

  • Explanation of why post/comment was not approved and the suggestion to re-submit using different language.
  • Reminder of terms of service and community agreements
  • Referral to crisis supports or other relevant resources, if applicable

In addition to an explanation of why a post/comment has been denied, reminder of the agreed upon terms of services and community agreements, and possible referrals, the following actions are possible if the selfsea team notices a pattern of behavior with submitted posts & comments:

  • The ability to post for 24-72 hours, 
  • Removal from a community(ies)
  • A specified or permanent removal from selfsea communities 
  • Before an account is banned, moderators will complete a two-step evaluation process before the removal:
  • Moderator evaluation & written recommendation
  • Administrative staff evaluation and decision

All mentees will receive communication before any of the above actions are taken and have the ability to appeal any of the above decisions by reaching out to mods@selfsea.org.

We reserve the right to remove anyone from a community(ies) based on the severity of their post against our Community Agreements. At any number of notices, a user will always be offered a referral to crisis supports or other relevant resources, if applicable .