CED Partner Alignment & Conclusion Policy

At CED (Capacity Exchange DAO), we believe successful partnerships are built on shared expectations, open communication, and mutual trust. This policy explains how we maintain healthy collaborations, address challenges when they arise, and, when necessary, conclude partnerships respectfully and transparently.

Our goal is always to support alignment and improvement first. Ending a partnership is considered a last resort when collaboration is no longer mutually beneficial.

1. Purpose

CED's partners — Community Partners and Theme Sponsors — are publicly recognized through the CED Collaboration Network. Being listed indicates an active, values-aligned collaboration with CED.

This policy helps ensure that our Collaboration Network remains accurate, transparent, and meaningful for partners, community members, and future collaborators. It is intended to support healthy partnerships — not to serve as a disciplinary process.

How this policy works with sponsorship terms. For Theme Sponsors, this policy works alongside the Terms & Conditions for Theme Sponsors, which govern contributions, use of funds, unused funds, and recognition. Where the two differ on those matters, the Terms & Conditions apply.

Completion is not conclusion. A partnership that ends because its agreed activities are complete — for example, a themed program that has finished and reported — is not concluded under this policy. The organization stays recognized for what it contributed.

2. Partnership Expectations

We expect all partners to:

• Fulfill the activities and commitments mutually agreed upon during onboarding.
• Communicate with the CED team if circumstances change or agreed activities need to be adjusted.
• Represent CED accurately as a collaborative partnership, rather than implying ownership or endorsement beyond what has been agreed.
• Treat CED participants, partners, and team members with professionalism, respect, and inclusivity.
• Support a learning environment that reflects CED's values of openness, collaboration, and community.

In addition, Theme Sponsors are expected to:

• Make the agreed contribution on the agreed schedule, or tell us early if that changes.
• Respect that the core curriculum stays neutral and tool-agnostic, and that any elective a sponsor proposes teaches a practical skill rather than promoting a product.
• Not use sponsored sessions to promote products or services to learners.

People from a sponsor's organization who serve as Guides follow the same standards as every CED Guide.

We understand that organizations evolve, priorities shift, and unforeseen circumstances happen. Open communication is always encouraged, and adjustments can often be made together.

3. Grounds for Review

A partnership may be reviewed if one or more of the following situations occur:

4. Review Process

Whenever concerns arise, CED follows a collaborative review process. During the pilot, Kambria may join the review for partnerships it supports.

Initial Check-in — The CED team contacts the partner to understand the situation, clarify concerns, and discuss possible solutions. Many issues can be resolved through communication and mutual understanding.

Improvement Period — Where appropriate, partners are normally given up to two weeks to address identified concerns, with support from the CED team where needed.

Partnership Review — If significant concerns remain unresolved, CED may:

• Adjust the agreed partnership activities.
• Place the partnership on hold.
• Conclude the partnership.

Partners will always be informed of the reason for any review or decision before changes are made.

5. If a Partnership Concludes

If a partnership is concluded:

• The organization's name and logo will be removed from the CED Collaboration Network and from future promotional materials.
• Access to partner-specific communication channels, meetings, and resources will end.
• Ongoing collaborative activities will be completed, transitioned, or formally concluded wherever possible.
• Individual community members who joined CED through the partnership — including people from a sponsor's organization who serve as Guides — will retain their CED accounts, completed sessions, Guide status (where applicable), and any earnings already received. Their participation in CED remains independent of the partnership.

If a Theme Sponsorship is concluded, in addition:

• Learners already in the program continue to the end of their sessions.
• Contributions already received stay in the CED Learning Fund for the program's learners, as set out in the Terms & Conditions for Theme Sponsors.
• Sponsor benefits end: the sponsor's name on the program, the elective proposal, and the priority place in the next program.
• The sponsor receives a final account of how its contribution was used.

6. Reinstatement

Organizations are welcome to express interest in partnering with CED again after the circumstances leading to the partnership conclusion have been addressed.

Applications for future partnership opportunities will be considered based on the organization's updated circumstances, previous collaboration experience, and the needs of the program at that time.

7. Respect & Professionalism

CED is committed to conducting every stage of the partnership process with professionalism, transparency, and respect.

Whenever challenges arise, our first priority is to listen, communicate openly, and work together toward a constructive solution. Partnership reviews are intended to strengthen collaboration whenever possible, and ending a partnership is only considered when alignment can no longer be achieved.

We believe that respectful relationships and honest communication are the foundation of a healthy, community-driven learning ecosystem.