The rules we enforce.

§1Who and where

It applies to everyone, everywhere the city happens.

Everyone: residents, summit attendees, volunteers, the Mirai team, speakers, mentors, investors, sponsors, partners, venue staff and guests. A title or a badge changes nothing.

Everywhere: the summit venues, the cowork space, the Portopia Hotel, the community houses, and every dinner, party and outing, official or not. It also covers the online spaces connected to the event: the group chat, Luma, and direct messages between participants. Before, during and after October.

We are an international group and most of us are guests in Japan. People bring different norms about distance, eye contact, hugging and directness. That is why we spell the rules out instead of assuming everyone shares the same instincts. When your instincts and these rules disagree, follow the rules.

§2Consent

Ten rules, followed literally.

They are the same for everyone, whatever your gender, role or how well you think you know someone.

1. §2.1

   Ask before any touch.

   Hugs, a hand on the shoulder, high-fives, moving someone out of the way, touching hair, clothing or accessories. Ask out loud and wait for the answer. "Can I hug you?" is normal here.

2. §2.2

   Only a clear yes is a yes.

   Silence, hesitation, a laugh, a shrug, "maybe", "I don't know", stepping back or looking away all mean no. If you are not sure, it is a no.

3. §2.3

   One no is final.

   Do not ask the same person again later, in a different way, after a drink, through a friend or by message. "Not right now" counts as no.

4. §2.4

   Consent is for one thing, one time.

   A yes to a drink is not a yes to a hug. A yes yesterday is not a yes today. Anyone can change their mind at any point, and when they do you stop immediately.

5. §2.5

   Do not pursue.

   Do not follow someone between venues, houses or events, wait for them, position yourself near them repeatedly, or approach them again after they have moved away from you or ended a conversation.

6. §2.6

   Keep contact professional.

   Offering your own card or handle is fine. Do not press for someone's number, social media or room number, and do not message anyone who has not given you their contact themselves. An introduction at a talk is not an opening for personal attention.

7. §2.7

   No comments on bodies.

   No remarks about someone's body, attractiveness or sexuality, however complimentary you mean them. No sexual jokes, innuendo or propositions.

8. §2.8

   Ask before you photograph or film.

   Stage sessions are photographed and recorded by the event. Off stage, ask first. No photos of anyone who has said no, and delete any they ask you to delete.

9. §2.9

   Alcohol changes nothing.

   The rules are the same for you and for the other person after a drink. Someone who is drunk cannot give consent.

10. §2.10

    If the team says stop, you stop.

    Immediately, without explaining or arguing. You can talk to the organisers afterwards.

If you find social cues hard to read, these rules help. They replace guesswork with a fixed procedure: ask, wait, accept the answer. When in doubt, don't.

§3Not allowed

What counts as harassment.

Any of the following is harassment, whether or not you intended it that way, and whether or not it happened only once.

§3.1Sexual harassment

• Unwelcome sexual attention of any kind: propositions, requests for sex or dates after a no, sexual comments, questions about someone's sex life or body.
• Touching, groping, pressing against, or kissing anyone without their clear yes.
• Sexual gestures, exposing yourself, or showing sexual images to someone who did not ask to see them.
• Sending sexual messages, images or links to a participant.
• Repeated unwanted romantic attention after being turned down, including "friendly" contact that keeps returning to the same request.
• Entering, or trying to enter, someone's hotel room, house room or sleeping space uninvited.

§3.2Intimidation and pursuit

• Following someone, waiting for them, showing up where they are after they have moved away from you.
• Blocking someone's path, cornering them, or standing so close they cannot easily leave.
• Deliberate intimidation, threats, or raising your voice at a participant.
• Using your role, title, money, or a job or investment offer as pressure.
• Continuing a conversation someone has tried to end.

§3.3Discrimination and abuse

• Insults, slurs, jokes or "questions" about someone's gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, neurodivergence, body, age, race, ethnicity, nationality, religion or language ability.
• Deliberately using the wrong name for someone.
• Revealing private information about a participant (their identity, location, health, sexuality) without their permission.

§3.4Other

• Photographing or recording people without consent, or publishing images of someone who asked you not to.
• Encouraging anyone else to do any of the above.
• Retaliating against someone for reporting a concern, or for supporting someone who did.

This list gives examples. Anything that would make a reasonable person feel unsafe, pressured or targeted is covered, whether it appears here or not.

§4Help

How to get help.

You do not need to be sure it "counts" as harassment. If something made you uncomfortable, tell us. We would much rather hear about ten small things than miss one serious one.

• Right now, in person: any member of the Mirai Tech City team or a volunteer. They will stay with you and get a safety lead.
• Safety lead: Nelson Milla, chief safety lead. Email nelson@miraitech.city or message @NelsonMilla on Telegram, answered at any hour for the whole month.
• By email: team@miraitech.city, read by the organisers only.
• Anonymous: the report form. No name, no email needed. We read it several times a day.
• Emergency: police 110, ambulance and fire 119. Both work from any phone in Japan. A team member will help you call and will stay with you.

§4.1What happens when you report

• We listen first. You decide how much to tell us and whether you want us to act.
• We will not put you in a room with the other person or ask you to "sort it out" with them.
• We will tell you what we decide to do, and we will not share your name with the other person unless you agree.
• We will not punish you for reporting, even if we decide no rule was broken.
• If you ask, we can move your seat, desk or room, walk you to the Port Liner or to your room, or keep the other person out of the sessions, venues or houses you use.

You can also report on behalf of someone else, or report something you saw happen to a stranger.

§5Consequences

What happens if you break these rules.

The organisers decide, and their decision is final. Depending on what happened, we may:

• Tell you to stop and explain the rule. You are expected to comply immediately.
• Keep you away from a specific person, or from specific sessions, parties, venues or houses.
• Remove you from the event, the cowork, the community houses and the event online spaces, with no refund of your ticket. Accommodation and travel costs are yours.
• Ban you from future events Frontier Humans runs, and tell other organisers in our network why.
• Involve venue security or the police where the behaviour may be a crime.

We do not require a pattern. A single serious incident is enough for removal. Being drunk, misreading a situation, "being from a different culture", or not meaning any harm are not defences. The rules are written out so that nobody has to guess.

If you believe you were treated unfairly, write to team@miraitech.city after the event. We will read it and reply, but we will not reverse a removal during the event.