community guidelines

Coventina
is for all women

Cis women, trans women, non-binary people looking to explore the feminine, AFAB, AMAB, queer women, Black, Brown, white, and Indigenous women, childless women, mothers, women who menstruate and women who don’t, peri- and post-menopausal women, girls and teens, partnered and single women, chronically ill women, women living with mental health challenges, neurodivergent and neurotypical women, and both disabled and able-bodied women.

At Coventina we believe in the power of women’s spaces, and we know they must be built on compassion, not gatekeeping. If you identify as a woman or resonate with women’s spaces and experiences, you are welcome here.

A word on differences of views

(here and in Circle)

Not everyone will share the same definition of “woman,” or agree on who should be included in women’s spaces — and that’s okay. This is not a space for persuading others to change their beliefs.

We welcome diverse viewpoints and encourage conversations grounded in curiosity, mutual respect, and a willingness to listen. We ask that everyone who uses this platform has an understanding of Coventina’s Community Guidelines and the values they express. We invite both hosts and participants to engage in a way that honours each other’s lived experiences, seeks understanding across difference, and reflects on privilege with humility and accountability so that it’s not unknowingly used in ways that cause harm.

We don’t expect everyone to share the same views as Coventina or each other, because part of the richness of Circle lies in being with those who are both like us and unlike us. Differences in experience, perspective, and belief can be uncomfortable, but they can also be powerful catalysts for growth, connection, and deeper understanding. Disagreements are natural and can be deeply enriching when approached with openness, compassion and a desire to understand rather than convince.

We do not require all hosts or facilitators to share Coventina’s definition of womanhood, nor do we expect them to make every space inclusive to every identity at all times. In some cases, creating identity-specific spaces is necessary for safety, healing, or shared understanding:

  • Women of colour may need space away from white women

  • Menstruators may not be appropriate in a circle marking the transition to menopause

  • Queer women may seek a space separate from straight women

  • A 10-mile hike may not be accessible to wheelchair users

  • A circle for childless women (not by choice) may not be open to mothers

This is not about gatekeeping or exclusion — it’s about acknowledging that context, intention, and specificity matter when creating spaces of support and healing. These are just a few examples; the list is by no means exhaustive. Each space is unique, and the needs of its participants will differ.

Coventina’s values are rooted in feminist, trans-inclusive, and anti-racist principles, and we encourage hosts and facilitators who use our platform to be aware and mindful of these foundations when they choose to share their events and Circles on Coventina. That said, we do not require every host to share the same beliefs or frameworks. Each host is free to define the scope and inclusion criteria of their events, and it is up to participants to choose the spaces that feel safest and most aligned for them. We never pressure anyone to enter or facilitate a space that does not feel right for them.

We are committed to being an anti-racist and inclusive organisation

A Note from Kate Weybret, Founder of Coventina

Coventina exists within the broader wellness and women’s (spiritual) event space — a space that can offer deep healing and connection, but one that has also been shaped by colonialism, capitalism, cultural appropriation, and emotional and spiritual bypassing, despite well-meaning intentions. As the founder of Coventina, I believe it’s essential that we name these dynamics rather than ignore them. I want this platform to play a part in helping shift the wellness space toward something more accountable, inclusive, and genuinely nourishing for more of us, not just those already centred by race, class, or access.

This commitment starts with me. I am a straight, white, cis-woman. Over the past few years, I’ve engaged in learning that has reshaped my views on feminism, inclusion, and responsibility. I’ve taken Breaking the Addiction to Privilege with Myisha T. Hill and Interrupting White Womanhood with Nikki Blak — both of which challenged me to look more closely at how whiteness and white womanhood operate in personal and systemic ways. I recommend both, along with Myisha’s book Heal Your Way Forward, Nikki’s podcast Interrupting Everything, the work of Regina Jackson and Saira Rao of Race2Dinner and “White Women”, and Dinah Akua’s writing on Instagram. I do not mention my participation in these courses to suggest that I have somehow “arrived” but to demonstrate my ongoing commitment to anti-racist work and to make suggestions to others looking to do this work too.

I’ve also completed Dr. Lara Owen’s master’s-level course in Contemporary Menstrual Studies. Through that work, I’ve come to see how neoliberal, individualistic, capitalist, and patriarchal forms of feminism often reproduce the very harms they claim to resist. I no longer align with these frameworks, but I still catch myself slipping into them. One of the patterns I find hardest to shake — and most persistent in the wellness industry — is the belief that healing is solely an individual responsibility. It often ignores the role of systemic harm and the power of collective care. With Coventina, I intend to help shift this narrative — to invite women into spaces of shared meaning and mutual support, where we can do less, not more.

I have a background in User Experience and Service design, and accessibility has always been a core value in my work, not as an afterthought or technical standard, but as a way of practising care, equity, and attentiveness to the real lives of those we are designing for. That foundation continues to inform how I build and shape Coventina as a digital platform.

This is ongoing work. I have not arrived. I still have blind spots. I am still learning, still unlearning. I expect to get it wrong sometimes, and I am committed to listening, apologising, making repairs, and doing better.

Coventina’s Approach

Coventina is a platform that exists within a wellness industry that is, in many ways, shaped by whiteness — from the voices it centres to the assumptions it makes about who healing is for. These dynamics are often left unspoken, but they deeply affect who feels welcome, who has access, and who is harmed.

We recognise that many people using this platform — including event organisers and attendees — are like our Founder and may be engaging from a place of relative racial, social, or economic privilege. That’s why we include resources and reflections here: to invite deeper self-inquiry around the ways privilege, bias, and systemic power show up in ourselves and in the spaces we engage with.

We encourage everyone interacting with this platform to consider how they might participate in making the wellness space more inclusive, more honest, and less shaped by extractive or exclusionary patterns. This includes doing the inner work — the kind that involves humility, discomfort, and accountability — as well as staying curious and open to perspectives different from your own.

This platform is grounded in the belief that meaningful change in wellness culture is both necessary and possible — and that it begins with a willingness to see more clearly, to act more thoughtfully, and to stay in the work.

A word on safe spaces

At Coventina, we recognise the longing for safe, supportive environments — and we want to be honest with you: safety can never be universally guaranteed. While we deeply honour the sacredness of women’s circles and spaces, we also acknowledge that what feels safe to one person might feel uncomfortable or activating to another. Safety is personal, complex, and nuanced.

We’d like to extend our gratitude and respectful acknowledgement to the voices who have resonated with our values, inspired this portion of the community guidelines, and helped shape our understanding of this topic:

The insights they offer around safety in women’s spaces and appropriate acknowledgement of non-Western and Indigenous practices reflect values we share and aspire to uphold.

Women’s circles can be powerful, healing, transformative spaces — but they are not inherently safe simply by existing. A truly supportive environment depends on:

  • Skilled facilitation: Facilitators who are trauma-informed, trained, and able to hold complex emotional landscapes with care.

  • Clear agreements and boundaries: Ground rules like confidentiality, consent, non-judgment, and active listening create a shared container of respect.

  • Emotional and energetic integrity: Participants should never be pressured to share or perform. Facilitators should attend to the energetic dynamics and emotional aftermath of a circle.

  • Inclusivity and cultural sensitivity: What’s safe for one woman may not be for another, especially across race, class, gender identity, disability, and trauma history.

We believe that healing and growth happen through relationships, community, and connection, not in isolation. Most of the wounds we carry are relational, and so too must the healing be. But with that truth comes responsibility.

We take responsibility for:

Inner work and integrity. Our founder is committed to doing her own inner work: to understanding her own shadows, course-correcting her blind spots, breaking the addiction to her own privilege, acknowledging her colonial past and cultural context and serving from a place of clarity and humility.

Clear, accessible communication. To provide clear and accessible communication about events, including who they are for, what to expect, any potential triggers, the credentials of the host and how the space will be held.

Upholding our values. We take any claims seriously of any event found to be promoting violence, racist, sexist, homophobic, anti-trans or extremist behaviours and views. We also take on board any feedback where we have not been in integrity with our values.

We ask participants to take responsibility for:

Choosing resonant spaces. Using discernment when choosing which spaces to enter. Trust your inner knowing and attunement, but also ask the host questions if you are uncertain about anything before attending.

Honouring your needs and boundaries. Tune into your body, speak up when needed, and honour when it's time to lean in, step back, or ask for support.

Showing up with intention. Bring your presence, energy, and self-awareness with care for the collective experience.

Meeting discomfort with curiosity. If something feels "off," reflect with compassion, not self-blame or outward projection. What is this teaching you about your shadows, your boundaries, your needs, and how you advocate for yourself?

We ask hosts and facilitators to take responsibility for:

Doing the inner work. Commit to self-awareness, addressing personal shadows, being aware of their privilege, and showing up with clarity and humility.

Respecting cultural roots. Engage thoughtfully with cultural practices, acknowledging their origins and not appropriating them for status or appeal.

Transparency about training. Be honest about your education, lineage, and influences. Let participants know who your teachers are and have been.

Striving for accessibility. Aim to make events inclusive and accessible wherever possible and appropriate.

We do not require events listed on Coventina — or those who attend them — to fully align with our Community Guidelines or values, and we cannot guarantee that every gathering or participant will reflect them. As the platform grows, it will not be possible to vet every host or event. While we are committed to fostering a respectful and inclusive environment, the responsibility for creating that experience lies with individual hosts and participants. We encourage participants to make informed decisions about which spaces feel right for them, knowing that comfort and safety mean different things to different people. If you attend an event that does not feel supportive or aligned with what you expected, we recommend raising that directly with the host. That said, Coventina will not tolerate — and will take seriously — any reports of events or individuals that promote violence, racism, sexism, homophobia, anti-trans ideologies, or extremist views.