Terms & Conditions

Updated September 9th, 2020

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

MIT Climate by the MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative

TERMS OF USE

Welcome to the MIT Climate website (the “website”). By accessing this website, users agree to accept these Terms of Use, which MIT and the MIT Climate (collectively, “us” or “we”) may revise at any time. Users are encouraged to visit this page periodically to review the current Terms of Use. If you do not understand or agree to the following Terms of Use, please exit this website immediately.

SUMMARY

Your contributions to the website are yours. Those who post information or materials on this website retain ownership rights to their own work while giving us the right to use and distribute their work.

Others’ work is not yours. You agree not to upload content to this website that you do not own or are not specifically authorized to use.

License to MIT. By uploading or otherwise providing materials to this website, you grant us a non-exclusive right to use and distribute the materials.

Creative Commons. All materials on the website, including those you provide, will be made available to third parties under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 United States License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0.

More specifically, by accessing this website, you understand and agree to the following:

Your use of this website is entirely voluntary. By using the website, you understand and acknowledge that the website may include proposals and unmoderated forums containing the personal opinions and statements of individuals unaffiliated with MIT who post entries on a wide range of topics and issues.  MIT has the right, but not the responsibility, to monitor the website, including, without limitation, comments, chat rooms, message boards, and forums. MIT reserves the right to refuse to post, or to remove, any information or materials, in whole or in part, that is in violation of the Terms or use or that it otherwise deems inappropriate in its sole discretion. MIT does not control user-generated content on the website, nor any content that may be available through it, and, with regard to such content, is acting solely as an interactive computer service and shall not be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by any user of the website (47 U.S.C. § 230(c)(1)). Neither MIT nor any MIT-affiliated entity screens, approves, reviews, or endorses any such content.  If you feel you might be offended by the consent of the Site, you should not continue on the website.

1. USER OBLIGATION. If you are seeking to upload material to this website or to engage in activities within this website, you must register and become a member. You agree to provide us accurate and current information as prompted during the account registration process and to update such information to keep it accurate and current at all times. You will be responsible for all activity related to your account and will not share your password with any other person or post it on this or any other website.

2. GRANT OF LICENSE. For good and valuable consideration, including your right to access and use this website, you (the "Author(s)") grant to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology ("MIT") an irrevocable, worldwide, perpetual, royalty-free, non-exclusive license to use, reproduce, publicly display or perform, distribute, translate, create derivatives of, and modify any materials (the "User Materials") you upload or otherwise provide to the MIT Climate website, including the right to display, perform, or distribute the User Materials via the MIT Climate website and in any other media now known or hereafter developed.

3. STATUS OF COPYRIGHT. MIT acknowledges that nothing in these Terms of Use will constitute a transfer or assignment of your copyright in the User Materials to MIT. MIT further acknowledges that you will continue to own any copyright that you currently hold in any of the User Materials.

4. MIT CLIMATE USE. You understand and agree that through the MIT Climate website the User Materials may be made available to third parties under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 United States License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0.

5. ACCURACY OF MATERIALS. You acknowledge that you are solely responsible for the correctness of your User Materials.

6. DISCLAIMER. ALL MATERIALS ON THE WEBSITE, INCLUDING USER MATERIALS PROVIDED BY YOU OR OTHER THIRD PARTIES, ARE PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL MIT OR MIT CLIMATE (INCLUDING THEIR AFFILIATES, DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, TRUSTEES, REPRESENTATIVES, CORPORATION MEMBERS, OR AGENTS) BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES, OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT, OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF, OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OF THE WEBSITE AND/OR ANY OF THE MATERIALS ON THE WEBSITE. MIT does not warrant that the website will operate in an uninterrupted or error-free manner or that the website is free of viruses or other harmful components. Use of materials or information obtained from or through the website, including User Materials, is at your own risk and at your own discretion. You assume sole responsibility for any damage to your property (including your computer system) or loss of data that results from the download or use of such materials or information.

7. TRADEMARK. “MIT,” “Massachusetts Institute of Technology,” “MIT Climate,” and any related logos or seals are trademarks of MIT (collectively, the “Marks”). Except for purposes of attribution, you may not use the Marks, or any variations thereof, including for promotional purposes, or in any way that claims, suggests, or in MIT’s sole judgment gives the appearance or impression of a relationship, affiliation, or endorsement, without prior written permission of MIT's Technology Licensing Office.

8. ATTRIBUTION. MIT agrees to incorporate appropriate copyright and attribution notices that you request for uses or distributions of your User Materials. Such notices will be reasonable and proportionate in size and prominence to the specific use of the User Materials, as determined in MIT’s sole discretion.

9. AUTHORITY AND THIRD-PARTY PERMISSIONS. You acknowledge, understand, and agree that you are entirely responsible for the User Materials you upload to the website. By uploading any User Materials, you represent and warrant that you are the owner of the copyright or other property right in the User Materials and that you have authority to grant the license under these Terms of Use. You further represent and warrant that you have identified and/or labeled all parts, items, and materials incorporated into the User Materials that may be subject to a copyright or other proprietary right held by a third party, and that you have permission to use or incorporate such materials into the User Materials. If any of the User Materials is based upon work that you completed from a grant or agreement sponsored by a third party, other than MIT, you represent and warrant that you have fulfilled any right of review or other obligations required by such contract or agreement. Your agreements and representations that you make by agreeing to these Terms of Use are consistent with your obligations to your employer or institution and will not violate any agreement to which you are a party, or any of your employer's or institution's policies, including its policy regarding ownership of intellectual property. By uploading pictures or audio visual recordings, including those through which individuals can be identified, you agree that you hold all applicable copyrights and have previously obtained a valid release or permission from each person included in your User Materials to use their name or likeness. This includes cases in which a parent, a guardian, or another authorized person is required to read, agree to, and sign the appropriate release.

Important: Unauthorized use of third-party copyrighted work is illegal.

10. REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES. By uploading any User Materials, you represent and warrant that nothing in the User Materials is libelous, defamatory, obscene, fraudulent, harmful, threatening, abusive or hateful, contains nudity or pornography, violates the property rights of others (including without limitation infringing use of a patent, copyright, or trademark), or is otherwise in violation of applicable laws.

11. INAPPROPRIATE USES OF WEBSITE. You agree not to engage in any of the following actions with respect to your use of the website: (a) introducing viruses, trojan horses, worms, time bombs, corrupted files, malware, spyware, or any similar software that may damage the operation of the website or another’s computer or property; (b) using the website in any manner intended to damage, disable, overburden, or impair any MIT server or the network(s) connected to any MIT server or to interfere with another’s use and enjoyment of this website; (c) attempting to gain unauthorized access to any portion of this website or any computer systems or networks connected to any MIT server through hacking, password mining, or any other means; or (d) obtaining or attempting to obtain any materials or information stored on this website, its servers, or associated computers, including without limitation any User Materials, through any means not intentionally made available by MIT through this website.

In addition, MIT and MIT Climate are committed to maintaining a safe and respectful community where users of the webite can share their thoughts, opinions, and ideas openly. When using this website, you agree to use respectful language, be courteous to fellow users, and respect the opinions of others.  Please see our Community Guidelines or how we define this community. MIT and MIT Climate reserve the right to remove content and terminate the accounts of users who do not comply with the Community Philosophy & Policies.

12. DMCA. It is MIT’s policy to respond to notices of alleged copyright infringement that comply with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Copyright owners who believe their material has been infringed on the website should contact MIT's designated copyright agent at dcma-agent@mit.edu, or at 77 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 02139-4307 Attention: MIT DMCA Agent, Building W92. Notification must include: (a) identification of the copyrighted work, or, in the case of multiple works at the same location, a representative list of such works at that site; (b) identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity; (c) information for us to be able to contact the complaining party (e.g., email address, phone number); (d) a statement that the complaining party believes that the use of the material has not been authorized by the copyright owner or an authorized agent; and (e) a statement that the information in the notification is accurate and that the complaining party is authorized to act on behalf of the copyright owner.

13. INDEMNITY. You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless MIT, MIT Climate, and their affiliates, directors, officers, employees, trustees, representatives, corporation members, and agents from and against any demand, liability, loss, claim, damages, and expenses (including attorneys' fees) arising out of or related to your use of the website, your uploading or providing any User Materials, or any other violation of these Terms of Use.

14. GOVERNING LAW. You agree that these Terms of Use shall be construed, governed, interpreted, and applied in accordance with the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, without regard to conflict of law principles. You further consent to the personal jurisdiction of and exclusive venue in the federal and state courts located in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as the legal forum for any dispute arising out of these Terms of Use and your use of the website.

SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS. The rights and obligations of these Terms of Use shall be binding upon your heirs and successors in interest.

EFFECTIVE DATE. These Terms of Use are effective as of April 2018.