Workshop Information & Consent
Thank you for your interest in participating in a TØS Journal writing workshop!
TØS Journal is a collaborative publication make for sex workers by sex workers. It is also part of a PhD research project by TØS Journal editor and sex worker, Ruby Summers (pseudonym).
No research data is being collected in the workshop you are signing up for however, following this workshop you may be asked to contribute an article to TØS Journal so we have provided you with all the information about the research project in case you chose to submit to TØS Journal after the workshop.
Please read this information carefully. Ask questions about anything that you don’t understand or want to know more about. Before deciding whether or not to take part, you might want to talk about it with a relative or friend.
Signing up for this workshop is and any submission to TØS Journal and participation in this research is voluntary. If you don’t wish to take part, you don’t have to.
Vetting Process
TØS Journal workshops are for sex workers only. Before participating in a TØS Journal workshop, you will need to be vetted by the researcher, Ruby Summers, using your choice of the following methods:
If you are currently "out" will need to provide an established work social media account or website. The researcher will send a verification code to the nominated account which you will be asked to email back to the researcher to verify the account as yours.
If you are not "out", you will be vetted through any current membership to peer-only spaces (Facebook groups or sex worker only memberships). Please provide the name of any vetted sex worker only spaces you are involved in.
If you do not have either of the above options please contact us at ruby@tosjournal.com and we can discuss other vetting options.
Why is TØS Journal also a research project? What does this mean for members of the sex industry?
TØS Journal is a part of a PhD research project that will investigate how independent publishing can provide creative platforms for specific communities, in this case, sex workers.
In order to achieve the objectives of the project, we want to produce an independent lifestyle publication for sex workers by sex workers.
Limited research has been done in the field of sex worker peer-publishing and independent magazine publishing in Australia. This research seeks to address this.
This project aims to provide a platform for sex workers to tell their stories in their own words.
Other relevant information about the research project
This project will involve Ruby Summers publishing TØS Journal online and in print as part of a PhD through creative practice. Results will be published and presented as part of Ruby’s PhD. Research data will not be published in TØS Journal, but articles submitted for publication will be.
Do I have to take part in this research project?
Participation in any research project is voluntary. If you do not wish to take part, you do not have to.
However, by submitting to TØS Journal you are agreeing to participate in the research project. If you decide to take part and later change your mind, you are free to withdraw from the project at any stage.
Your decision whether to take part or not to take part, or to take part and then withdraw, will not affect your relationship with the researchers or with RMIT University.
Submitting an article for publication is an indication of your consent to participate in the study. You can withdraw your article at any time if you change your mind about having them included in the study, before we have published the magazine.
What if I withdraw from this research project?
If you do consent to participate, you may withdraw at any time prior to the publication of findings. If you decide to withdraw from the project, please notify a member of the research team. Please keep in mind that if you withdraw after your submission is already published, that it may not be possible to remove it from third-party sources, e.g., search engine caches or citation or quotations in other publications or digital channels
You have the right to have any unprocessed data withdrawn and destroyed, providing it can be reliably identified.
What happens when the research project ends?
We will send you an email, on completion of the project and publication or presentation of the results, to let you know these are now available. Where possible, we will send you a copy of published articles or Ruby’s PhD thesis, or invite you to any presentation that this research has contributed to.
What will happen to information about me?
The information you provide will be used by Ruby Summers to meet the requirements of her PhD. It may also be published or presented in other mediums, but only when it is an extension of this project. This will only include publications or presentations which focus on the same general area of research of sex worker communities and/or publishing. This may include peer-reviewed journals, conference presentations, book chapters or reports, which draw from the findings of this project. This will not include adding your information to a databank.
In accordance with relevant Australian and/or Victorian privacy and other relevant laws, you have the right to request access to the information about you that is collected and stored by the research team. You also have the right to request that any information with which you disagree be corrected. Please contact Ruby if you would like to access your information.
We will treat all the information you provide in the strictest confidence. The only persons who will have access to the raw data you provide are the research team associated with the project. The research team includes supervisors Dr Brad Haylock, Dr Larissa Sandy and Dr Lukas Parker. Any personal information that you provide can be only be disclosed to a third party if (1) it is to protect you or others from harm, (2) a court order is produced, or (3) you provide the researchers with written permission.
By submitting your creative work to TØS Journal you consent to the research team collecting and using information from you for the research project.
Who is organising the research?
This research project is being conducted Ruby Summers (PhD student in RMIT School of Design) in conjunction with Dr Brad Haylock, Dr Larissa Sandy and Dr Lukas Parker.
Funding
This project will be self-funded by the researcher. Any revenue arising from the production and sale of TØS Journal products or workshops will be distributed back into the publication and will be used for production costs such as printing, paying contributors and other costs associated with the publication and management of TØS Journal.
Who has reviewed the research project?
All research in Australia involving humans is reviewed by an independent group of people called a Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC). This research project has been approved by the RMIT University HREC.
This project will be carried out according to the National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research (2007). This statement has been developed to protect the interests of people who agree to participate in human research studies.
Complaints
Should you have any concerns or questions about this research project, which you do not wish to discuss with the researchers listed in this document, then you may contact:
HREC Secretary - Peter Burke
03 9925 2251
Email - human.ethics@rmit.edu.au
Mailing address- Research Ethics Co-ordinator, Research Integrity Governance and Systems, RMIT University, GPO Box 2476, MELBOURNE VIC 3001.
Further Support
Throughout this project, if you need mental health support or crisis support, here are some hotlines and organisations that may be able to assist you. If you would like sex work specific community support, please contact Ruby, who will put you in contact with an appropriate sex worker support group in your area.
Australia
Lifeline: 13 11 14
Lifeline can offer 24/7 crisis support via their hotline. Please note this is not a sex worker specific hotline.
United Kingdom
Lifeline: 0800-808-8000
Lifeline can offer 24/7 crisis support via their hotline. Please note this is not a sex worker specific hotline.
America
Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255
Lifeline can offer 24/7 crisis support via their hotline. Please note this is not a sex worker specific hotline.