Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) are concepts centered on developing attitudes that provide equal opportunity for individuals (equity), recognize personal, social, and cultural differences (diversity), and welcome everyone to engage, feel part of, and participate in spaces and debates (inclusion).
ICSE 2026 aims to recruit a diverse set of speakers and committee members considering various social, cultural, and economic statuses and skills (e.g., gender, geolocation, seniority, research expertise, affiliation, and academia/industry). Additionally, we encourage reviewers to accept high-quality research while providing clear, consistent, empathetic, and kind feedback.
We expect every person participating in ICSE 2026 to contribute to establishing an environment where everyone feels welcome, included, respected, and safe, regardless of their social, cultural, or economic status (e.g., national origin, gender, sexual orientation, neurodivergence, race, or any other individual characteristics). In order to support participation, we are planning the following strategies:
- On-site, licensed childcare (ages 2–12) will be available inside the venue, with fun and educational activities provided by a professional childcare service. Childcare is free of charge, but advance signup was required during registration. It will be available on all conference days (12–18), during conference hours (09:00–12:30; 14:00–17:30).
- Quiet rooms will be available during the conference and social events for anyone who needs a break from noise and crowds. A prayer room will also be available.
- Meals will include clear labeling for common dietary restrictions (e.g., meat, lactose, gluten, nuts), and each meal will include inclusive options that accommodate health-related needs and cultural considerations.
- Travel support
- Students Mentoring Workshop (SMeW) led by Victoria Jackson and Daniel Russo.
- Please also see the Social and Individual Sustainability page for more details.
Events
In line with previous ICSE editions, our strategy is to foster inclusive spaces at the conference that facilitate connections and interactions among individuals from underrepresented groups. As part of this initiative, we intend to have a series of events.
All the events aim to create a safe space for networking and idea exchange. The events being organized are listed on the ‘Networking Events’ page in the ‘Program Menu’.
IEEE Computer Society Open Conference Statement
Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion are central to the goals of the IEEE Computer Society and all of its conferences. Equity, at its heart, is about removing barriers, biases, and obstacles that impede equal access to and opportunity to succeed. Diversity is fundamentally about valuing human differences and recognizing diverse talents. Inclusion is the active engagement of Diversity and Equity.
A goal of the IEEE Computer Society is to foster an environment in which all individuals are entitled to participate in any IEEE Computer Society activity free of discrimination. For this reason, the IEEE Computer Society is firmly committed to team composition in all sponsored activities, including, but not limited to, technical committees, steering committees, conference organizations, standards committees, and ad hoc committees that demonstrate Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.
IEEE Computer Society meetings, conferences, and workshops must provide a welcoming, open, and safe environment that embraces the value of every person, regardless of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, marital status, religion, national origin, ancestry, or disability. All individuals are entitled to participate in any IEEE Computer Society activity free of discrimination, including harassment based on any of the above factors.
SIGSOFT Cares
CARES is a subcommittee of ACM SIGSOFT. All ACM SIG events and communications abide by ACM’s policy against discrimination and harassment. The role of CARES is to serve as a resource comprising of well-known and respected people in the software engineering community who are approachable and willing to listen to and help people who experience or witness discrimination, harassment, or other ethical policy violation, either at our events or related to ACM publications; the committee members can be a sounding board for these people and can provide advice on the steps necessary to have the matter further investigated by ACM.
The motivation for providing a standing CARES committee is: (1) people are more likely to report harassment, discrimination, or other ethical policy violations if familiar and respected members of the community are available for support, (2) unlike conference chairs, the members of the CARES committee will be chosen largely for their commitment and record on the targeted issues, (3) longer membership terms and an (eventually) established committee enable building experience and a record that inspires more trust for those considering coming forward about an incident, (4) committee members are expected to be physically present at our main events and work with event leaders to publicize their role, and (5) the presence of such a committee with respected and trusted members from the community assigned to watch for these issues should serve as a deterrent for such behavior as well as encourage us all to be aware of and speak up if we observe such behavior.
What CARES does. CARES is dedicated to providing completely confidential support to members of the software engineering community. We listen to members who come to us for advice or who just want to talk. If they would like advice on what actions they can take, we do our best to provide it.
Please contact the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Co-Chairs, Karina Kohl and Nathalia Nascimento.