Chapter 6 · Network and denomination edition
Policy: what people may and may not do
A policy is the part of the charter people will actually consult. It answers a practical question for someone at a desk on an ordinary Tuesday: may I do this with AI, here, with this information?
Write it from what your people resolved and what the Reality Assessment found. A policy that ignores how people already work will be ignored in return.
Most good policies do three things. They name what is allowed, so people stop guessing. They name what is never allowed, with the reason, so the line holds under pressure. And they say who to ask when something falls in between.
Start with what is never allowed
Begin with the refusals, because they are the hardest to agree on and the easiest to lose. A refusal is a commitment, and you will cite it when a vendor or a deadline argues for an exception.
Member organizations keep their own charters. This policy covers only what the network itself does with member information.
Then say what is allowed
Name the tools people may use and the kinds of work they may help with. Be specific enough that someone new could follow it on their first day.
Say who decides the rest
Something will always fall between the lines. Name the person or small group who answers those questions, and how quickly they will answer. Their decisions go into the Rules at the next review.