Accountability process: steps & commitments
11/20/2025
Hello all,
As part of our ongoing commitment to transparency and community accountability, we want to share an overview of the concrete steps Temple has taken, as well as the work still underway. These efforts are taking place across several areas: responding to direct harm, strengthening internal policies, deepening community engagement, improving communication, and ensuring the long-term sustainability of the space.
1. Accountability & Harm Response
Our first priority was to address the direct harm caused by Bear, and to support the individuals who were directly affected:
We have contacted all individuals we are aware of who were directly harmed, offering support and amends. We continue to welcome these conversations, if there are individuals interested in having them with us.
We are working with neutral observers to review our actions step by step and help identify where we could have done better.
We will send a direct Statement of Accountability within the next two weeks.
We are explicitly disclosing in all class descriptions and in-class announcements that an accountability process is underway.
We will continue bi-weekly community updates until all the steps listed here are completed.
2. Safety Protocols & Organizational Policies
We recognize the need for stronger structures that reduce harm, support community members, and ensure accountability beyond individual organizers. These changes aim to create a clearer, safer, and more consistent foundation for Temple moving forward.
Our incident reporting process has been restructured so Temple organizers do not read initial reports and are not involved as mediators.
We continue to provide mandatory consent education for all new participants taking our core curriculum classes.
We are updating our core policies: boundaries as an organization, consent and vetting guidelines, attendee agreements, procedures in case of harm, and code of conduct and etiquette in the space. These are available on our website and will be shared via email.
We will be expanding our consent and conflict-resolution educational offerings, including by bringing in guest educators from the broader community.
3. Community Engagement & Shared Leadership
We heard clearly the request for greater community involvement and decentralized leadership as essential to building a healthier culture at Temple. We want Temple to reflect the diversity, skills, and values of the community that sustains it.
We have hosted two community circles, offering space for direct dialogue, reflection, and requests.
We are committed to expanding our roster of instructors and facilitators to include more people from both our immediate and wider community. This shift is designed to decentralize power, share responsibility, and uplift a broader range of talents and identities.
If you are interested in teaching classes, hosting The Hang, or facilitating any other events, please let us know!
We continue to welcome suggestions for our growth and development, and have updated the website to include a feedback form.
4. Transparency & Communication Practices
Many people expressed the need for clearer, more accessible communication. We agree! We hope these efforts make Temple’s decision-making and commitments easier to keep track of.
The newsletter sign-up process has been updated to be more immediate and straightforward.
Acknowledgement of our Attendee Agreements is now required of all ticket purchases. These agreements will serve to clarify expectations and capacity before people enter the space.
All communications related to this process are published on a permanent Community Threads page on our website.
5. Sustainability & Capacity Management
We want to be transparent about the reality of what is needed to keep Temple open and functioning.
Temple is currently in significant financial need.
Many of you kindly offered direct financial support; thank you. At this time, we feel the most sustainable path forward is to continue providing educational programs and community-building opportunities.
We also need time and space for the structural and cultural work outlined above to take root. Until the end of the year, The Hang will be hosted by community members. Of our curriculum classes, we are only offering Tier 1/beginners classes until the steps above are completed.
We will continue to assess Temple's capacity and needs in the coming year, informed by the progress on these commitments and on community involvement.
We are deeply grateful for your trust, your honesty, and your willingness to stay in conversation with us. This work is ongoing, and we remain committed to approaching it with humility, clarity, and care. Thank you for being part of shaping what Temple is—and what it can become.
Temple organizing team