14 July 2021

The IESG issued a Statement on Inclusive Language on 11 May, 2021. [IESG]

The IAB concurs with that statement. Clear, precise, and widely accessible language is equally valuable in contributions to the IAB stream. Therefore, the IAB will follow the guidance in [NISTIR8366] for all IAB stream documents and RFCs, and encourages all contributors to do the same.

The IAB further notes that the RFC style guide [RFC-STYLE], which IAB-stream RFCs should follow, makes a similar recommendation.

[IESG] https://www.ietf.org/about/groups/iesg/statements/on-inclusive-language/

[NISTIR8366] Guidance for NIST Staff on Using Inclusive Language in Documentary Standards, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Interagency or Internal Report 8366 (NISTIR 8366), April 2021, https://doi.org/10.6028/NIST.IR.8366.

[RFC-STYLE] https://www.rfc-editor.org/styleguide/part2/#inclusive_language