Acquiring, innovating and disseminating knowledge
Reykjavik University is a knowledge community where students, teachers and other employees work together on the acquisition, innovation and dissemination of knowledge. Such a community requires all its members to take moral responsibility for their actions. In order to facilitate this, the University wishes to create a work environment where communication and activities are characterised by respect (virðing), integrity (heilindi), fairness (sanngirni) and equality (jafnrétti).
The objective of this code of ethics is to ensure that the conduct of all those who work within the University meets the strictest moral requirements that can be made within an establishment of its kind. The code consists of 10 numbered items which are intended to serve as a reminder to everyone within the University of their obligations concerning communication and work methods. It should, however, not be regarded as a complete description of what constitutes desirable behaviour.
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We respect those who study and work within the University as individuals, treat them with consideration and respect their confidence.
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We prevent the occurrence of any form of injustice, be it bullying, sexual harassment or discrimination on the grounds of irrelevant factors such as gender, age, faith, nationality, race, disability or sexual orientation.
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We defend the honour of the University and take no action that might cast shadow on the University's reputation in the community.
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We complete all our duties at RU with honesty and sincerity and through our actions encourage others to do the same.
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We seek knowledge with openness and objectivity and emphasise professional work methods, critical thinking and factual reasoning.
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We respect personal privacy and protect the interests of those who participate in our research.
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We respect scholarly autonomy, always work according to our own convictions and avoid having conflicting interests affect the outcome of our work.
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We respect intellectual property rights, do not take honour for the work of others and always cite the sources we use in accordance with accepted scientific practices.
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We make every effort to be objective and fair in our comments, feedback and reference to others within the University.
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We are active participants in the operations and development of the University and consider it our duty to communicate information that might be conducive to improving the University.
Action in the Event of a Breach of the Code of Conduct
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Acting upon recommendations made by the staff and students of Reykjavik University, the Rector appoints three individuals to serve on an ethics committee. The function of this committee is to take a stance and comment to the administration of RU on issues that have been referred to the committee concerning alleged breaches of the Code of Conduct.
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Substantiated observations concerning breaches of the Code of Conduct shall be referred to the ethics committee. The ethics committee deals with such observations in accordance with its rules of procedure, which have been approved by the University Council. The rules of procedure shall contain provisions on the right of representation, proportionality and other factors that ensure the objective handling of cases before the committee.
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The ethics committee shall take a substantiated stance as to whether the material content of the observation made constitutes a breach of the Code of Ethics and, if so, also on the seriousness of the infringement. The ruling of the committee shall also state whether the breach is recurrent. The ethics committee notifies the parties concerned, the Rector and the Dean of the School in question of its findings and has the authority to recommend appropriate sanctions. The rulings of the ethics committee are final and cannot be appealed.
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Sanctions for breaches of the Code of Conduct are determined as applicable by the Dean, the Managing Director or the Rector.
Approved by the Rector and the Executive Board in April 2006.