Biomimicry Institute Privacy Policy

Last updated – 11.24.21

PLEASE READ THIS BIOMIMICRY PRIVACY POLICY (“PRIVACY POLICY”) CAREFULLY. THIS PRIVACY POLICY PERTAINS TO YOUR ACCESSING AND USING THE BIOMIMICRY.ORG, ASKNATURE.ORG, D4D.BIOMIMICRY.ORG, YOUTHCHALLENGE.BIOMIMICRY.ORG, AND TOOLBOX.BIOMIMICRY.ORG WEBSITES (THE “WEBSITE”).

The Website is operated by Biomimicry Institute, PO Box 9216, Missoula, Montana 59807 (“We” or “BIOMIMICRY”). This Privacy Policy describes the information collected through your use of the Website, how We use it, how We share it, how We protect it, and the choices you (“You”) can make about Your information.

More...
ATTENTION: PLEASE READ OUR PRIVACY POLICY CAREFULLY BEFORE USING THE WEBSITE. ACCESSING, DOWNLOADING CONTENT FROM, OR USING THE WEBSITE INDICATES THAT YOU ACCEPT AND AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THIS PRIVACY POLICY IN FULL. IF YOU DO NOT ACCEPT THIS PRIVACY POLICY, DO NOT ACCESS, DOWNLOAD FROM, OR USE THE WEBSITE. You acknowledge (a) that You have read and understood this Privacy Policy; and (b) for users outside the European Union, this Privacy Policy shall have the same force and effect as a signed agreement.

Unless explicitly stated otherwise, any new features that augment or enhance the current Website shall be subject to this Privacy Policy.

Please review the Privacy Policy each time You use the Website. BY USING THE WEBSITE, YOU AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THE MOST RECENT VERSION OF THE PRIVACY POLICY. If We materially change this Privacy Policy, We will update this page to reflect any changes to this Privacy Policy and will let You know by sending an email to the email address We have on record for You.

1. Information We Collect

We collect information from You when You create a profile, use the Website, register for challenges or our incubator program, contact or interact with us, fill out a form, and voluntarily provide us with Your comments and other content in connection with using the Website.

A. Information You Provide to Us

When You create a profile, We may collect Your name, telephone number(s), email address, company name, mailing address, user ID, and password.

When You contact us, We may collect: Your name, email address, and any other information that You provide to us voluntarily.

When You sign up for our newsletter, We may collect Your first name, last name, and email address.

When You make a donation or make any other payment through the Website, We may collect: Your first name, last name, telephone number, email address, company name, mailing address, credit card number, card expiration date, and other information sufficient for our payment processors to process the transaction and provide fraud screening, information security, and compliance, other account information, and any other information that You provide while registering or making a payment. If You are making a donation, We may also collect any information that You voluntarily provide related to the gift. If You select to provide recurring donations, We will maintain your information for the duration of your membership, including your payment information, with our payment processor.

When You submit an entry to our Design Challenge or the Youth Design Challenge, We may collect Your name, email address, location, school, and advisor information. We may also collect any information that You voluntarily provide related to the submission, including any textual content in the submission, photos, and video content. Your Design Challenge or Youth Design Challenge submission will be shared with judges and portions of the submission will be posted on the gallery.

When You submit an application for our Launchpad program, We may collect Your name, email address, and any other information that You voluntarily provide related to your application, including any textual content in the application. Your Launchpad application will be shared with judges and mentors and portions of the submission will be posted on the gallery.

B. Information We May Collect Automatically When You Use the Website

When You access and use the Website, We automatically collect information regarding You and Your device, including Your user name, roles/permissions for the Website, Your device’s Internet Protocol address, the domain name of Your Internet service provider, Your location, the Website features You use and the time of Your use, Your mobile device information (e.g. device model and operating system version), and aggregated information that cannot be used to specifically identify You. Additional information collected is described in the Analytics and Cookies and Other Tracking Technologies sections below.

C. Information We May Collect From Other Sources

We may collect information about You from third party sources such as Your design team coach, social media companies, analytics providers, and advertising networks.

We may combine all of the information We collect from or about You and use it in the manner described in this Privacy Policy.

2. How We Use Your Information

We may use the information that We collect for several purposes, including:

  • The purposes for which You provided it;
  • To provide information and services to You;
  • To connect with Your social media accounts and share information with You, should You choose to connect with BIOMIMICRY’s social media accounts;
  • To process and respond to Your inquiries and comments;
  • To send You information about Your relationship or transactions with us;
  • To facilitate payment transactions (Your information will be used to submit Your payment information to our payment processor);
  • To process Your donations;
  • To administer, operate, and improve the Website or develop new services;
  • To personalize and enhance Your experience using the Website;
  • To send periodic emails. If You choose, the email address You provide may be used to send You occasional news, updates, etc. Note: If You would like to unsubscribe from receiving future emails at any time, We include detailed unsubscribe instructions at the bottom of each email;
  • To generate and review reports and data about our user base and Website usage patterns;
  • To analyze the accuracy, effectiveness, usability or popularity of the Website;
  • To compile aggregate data for internal and external business purposes;
  • To prevent fraud and abuse of the Website and to otherwise protect users and visitors and our organization;
  • To assist law enforcement and respond to subpoenas; and
  • To perform other business activities as needed, or as described elsewhere in this Privacy Policy.
  • As explained elsewhere in this Privacy Policy, personal information We collect may be processed by our partners in providing services related to the Website (such as administration services, technical services relating to the maintenance, servicing, and upgrading of software, hosting services, customer service, data migration services, and analytical services, among others).

Please note that You may choose not to allow us to use Your personal information for certain purposes as described in the Your Choices Regarding Your Information section below.

3. Legal Bases for Processing Your Information (For Users in European Union)

A. Performance of a Contract

The use of Your personal information may be necessary to perform the agreement You have with us to provide products and services. For example, to complete Your purchase, to register and maintain Your membership and account, to facilitate and process donations, to correspond with other users, to join AskNature for deeper access to the Website, to sign up to receive newsletters, to submit for challenges, and to respond to Your requests.

B. Legitimate Interests

We may use Your personal information for our legitimate interests. We rely on our legitimate interest to deliver our services to our users, to administer, analyze and improve our services and the content on the Website, to operate our business including through the use of service providers and subcontractors (who may have access to Your data – see further under the section How Your Information is Disclosed), to send You notifications about our services, for archiving, records keeping, statistical and analytical purposes, or to use Your personal information for administrative, fraud detection, audit, training, security, or legal purposes.

C. Consent

Prior to accessing this site and providing Your personal data, You may have provided Your informed consent to the collection and use of certain personal data. Insofar as other legal bases referred to in this section 3 for the processing of your personal information do not apply, We may rely on your consent as the legal basis for processing. You are free to withdraw Your consent at any time. See also the Your Choices Regarding Your Information section below.

D. Compliance with Legal Obligations

We may use Your personal information to comply with legal obligations to which We are subject, including to comply with legal process.

E. Performance of a Task Carried Out in the Public Interest

We may use Your personal information to perform a task in the public interest.

4. How Your Information is Disclosed

Information may be disclosed to third parties in accordance with our Privacy Policy. Please note that a user may choose not to share certain information as described in Your Choices Regarding Your Information below.

A. Third Party Service Providers and Business Partners.

We may use third party service providers and business partners to perform functions in connection with the Website and our other services, such as delivering announcements by email, website searching, analyzing and improving the Website usefulness, reliability, user experience, and operation, storing data, securing data, hosting data, migrating data, advertising, social sharing, providing users with services, and providing other services as described in this Privacy Policy. We may share Your personal information with these providers and partners for their marketing and promotional purposes and so they can provide services to You (where legally required, subject to Your express consent).

  • AddThis. AddThis allows users to share content across different Internet platforms. We use AddThis to enable users to share via social channels and to help us understand how many people share content on our site and what content is more likely to be shared. AddThis may use the personal data it collects for behavioural (interest based) advertising. For more information on the information that AddThis will collect, please visit the AddThis privacy policy: http://www.addthis.com/privacy.
  • Adobe Typekit. We use Adobe Typekit to serve fonts on our website and to enhance the performance of our website. Adobe Typekit may collect information relating to Your JavaScript version, the amount of time it takes for You to download and apply fonts, and whether You are using an ad blocker and the effects of Your ad blocker on website rendering. For more information on Adobe Typekit, please visit Adobe Typekit’s privacy policy: https://www.adobe.com/privacy/policies/typekit.html.
  • Algolia. We use Algolia to provide and optimize search functions on the Website. Algolia may collect personal information relating to Your use of the search function on the Website. For more information, please visit Algolia’s privacy policy: https://www.algolia.com/policies/privacy.
  • DoubleClick/Google Ad Manager. We use Google Ad Manager to improve advertising. Google Ad Manager is a Google/Alphabet service which uses cookies to collect information about the user and uses user data to serve targeted advertising. For more information on the information Google Ad Manager will collect, please visit: https://support.google.com/dfp_premium/answer/2839090?hl=en&ref_topic=7395141. If You wish to opt out of Google Ad Manager’s use of cookies, please visit: https://support.google.com/ads/answer/2662922?hl=en&ref_topic=7048998 or http://optout.networkadvertising.org/#!/.
  • Facebook. By clicking on the Facebook button on the Website, You will be automatically transported to the official Facebook Page for BIOMIMICRY, https://www.facebook.com/biomimicryinstitute. By Your posting to BIOMIMICRY’s Facebook page, BIOMIMICRY may be able to collect personal information about You related to Your Facebook account. For more details on the information that Facebook collects or makes available, please visit Facebook’s privacy policy: https://www.facebook.com/privacy/explanation.
  • Facebook Connect. We use Facebook Connect to facilitate single sign on for our users. By using Facebook Connect, We may be able to retrieve Your full name, pictures, wall posts, friend information, and other available Facebook content. For more information on what information may be available from or collected by Facebook, please visit the Facebook privacy policy: https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy.
  • Facebook Custom Audience. We use Facebook Custom Audience for behavioral targeting. We upload user contact information to Facebook, and Facebook Custom Audience allows us to advertise to Website users or others with similar characteristics through the Facebook advertising network. Please visit the Facebook privacy policy for more information: https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy/.
  • Instagram. By clicking on the Instagram button on the Website, You will be automatically transported to the official Instagram Page for BIOMIMICRY, https://www.instagram.com/biomimicryinstitute/.
  • LinkedIn. By clicking on the Linkedin button on the Website, You will be automatically transported to the official Linkedin page for BIOMIMICRY, https://www.linkedin.com/company/biomimicryinstitute.
  • Mailchimp. We use MailChimp to disseminate newsletters and other communications. MailChimp may collect information from users subscribing to BIOMIMICRY newsletters, including name, physical address, email address, IP address, phone number, details including gender, occupation, and other demographic information. For more information, please visit MailChimp’s privacy policy: https://mailchimp.com/legal/privacy/.
  • Neon CRM. We use Neon CRM to manage relationships with our donors and members and to coordinate other fundraising activities. We may submit Your personal information into the Neon CRM tool for these purposes. https://www.neoncrm.com/privacy/
  • Skipso. We use Skipso to manage our youthchallenge.biomimicry.org website. By submitting a project to any of our challenges, you will be submitting that information to Skipso and thus Skipso will have access to all data contained in your project submission. For more information on Skipso, please visit its privacy policy at: https://www.skipsolabs.com/en/page/privacy-en
  • Twitter. By Your posting to BIOMIMICRY’s official Twitter feed of BIOMIMICRY, @BIOMIMICRYINST, https://twitter.com/BIOMIMICRYINST. BIOMIMICRY may be able to collect personal information about You related to Your Twitter account. For more details on the information that Twitter collects or makes available, please visit Twitter’s privacy policy: https://twitter.com/en/privacy.
  • YouTube. By clicking on the YouTube button on the Website, You will be automatically transported to the official YouTube page for BIOMIMICRY, https://www.youtube.com/c/biomimicryorg.
  • Medium. By clicking on the Medium button on the Website, You will be automatically transported to the official Medium page for BIOMIMICRY, https://biomimicry.medium.com/.

B. Judges, Mentors, Advisors, the Public.

If you enter a design challenge or apply to participate in our incubator program(s), your personal information may be shared with mentors and advisors, with judges, and in certain cases, with the public. For example, proposals or entries may be featured on Our Website or shared in other venues. Please refer to your program materials for a particular program for more information on how your information may be shared.

C. Payment Processing.

Any payment information You provide through the Website may be shared with and may be stored by our credit card processor, Stripe, and is subject to its privacy policy, including in the case of data breach. You may review Stripe’s privacy policy at https://stripe.com/us/privacy.

D. Business Changes.

If We become involved in a merger, acquisition, sale of assets, joint venture, securities offering, bankruptcy, reorganization, liquidation, dissolution, or other transaction or if the ownership of all or substantially all of our organization otherwise changes, We may transfer Your information to a third party or parties in connection therewith.

E. Affiliates.

We may also share Your information with our affiliates for purposes consistent with this Privacy Policy. Our affiliates will be required to maintain that information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

F. Investigations and Law.

We may disclose information about You to third parties if We believe that such disclosure is necessary to:

  • Comply with the law or guidance and cooperate with government or law enforcement officials or private parties;
  • Investigate, prevent or take action regarding suspected illegal activities, suspected fraud, the rights, reputation, safety, and property of us, users or others, or violations of our policies or other agreements with us;
  • Respond to claims and legal process (for example, subpoenas); and/or
  • Protect against legal liability.

G. Aggregated Information.

We may share aggregated information relating to users of the Website with affiliated or unaffiliated third parties. This aggregated information does not contain personal information about any user.

H. Analytics.

We use third party analytics tools to better understand who is using the Website and how people are using it. These tools may use cookies and other technologies to collect information about Your use of the Website and Your preferences and activities. These tools collect information sent by Your device or the Website and other information that assists us in improving the Website. This information may be used to, among other things, analyze and track data, determine the popularity of certain content, and better understand Your online activity.

We use Google Analytics to conduct user ID tracking for logged-in users and to better understand who is using the Website and how people are using it. Google Analytics uses cookies, pixel tags, and other technologies to collect and store information such as Website pages visited, places where users click, time spent on each Website page, Internet Protocol address, type of operating system used, location-based data, device ID, search history, gender, age, and phone number. We use this information to improve the Website and as otherwise described in this Privacy Policy. Please see http://www.google.com/policies/privacy/partners/ for information about how Google Analytics uses this information, and visit https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout for information about the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on. Google may track Your activity over time and across websites. We also participate in certain Google Advertiser features including Demographics and Interest Reporting, Remarketing, and Google Display Network Impression Reporting. These features use third-party cookies and other tracking mechanisms and allow us to market our products to You through advertisements on other websites. You can opt out of these Google features by downloading and installing Google’s opt-out browser add-on.

We use Heap analytics to better understand how the Website is being used. Heap conducts user ID tracking for logged-in users and uses cookies, pixel tags, and other technologies to collect information regarding users and their actions on the Website including clicks, taps, swipes, form submissions, and page views. Heap may collect information regarding such cookie and interaction data, IP address, and other information the user may interact with on the Website. We use this information to improve the Website and as otherwise described in this Privacy Policy. For more information about the information that Heap may collect, please visit https://heapanalytics.com/terms.

I. Cookies and Other Tracking Technologies

We, along with third parties, use cookies, local storage objects, web beacons and other technologies. These technologies are used for analyzing, personalizing, and optimizing the Website.

Cookies are small files that are transferred to and stored on Your device through Your web browser (if You allow it) that enable the website’s or service provider’s system to recognize Your browser and capture and remember certain information. You can instruct Your browser to stop accepting cookies. But if You do not accept cookies, You may not be able to use all portions of all functionality of the Website.

  • Persistent cookies remain on the visitor’s computer after the browser has been closed.
  • Session cookies exist only during a visitor’s online session and disappear from the visitor’s computer when they close the browser software.

Flash cookies (also known as local shared objects) are data files that can be created on Your computer by the websites You visit and are a way for websites to store information for later use. Flash cookies are stored in different parts of Your computer from ordinary browser cookies. You can disable the storage of flash cookies. For additional information about managing and disabling flash cookies, please visit http://helpx.adobe.com/flash-player/kb/disable-local-shared-objects-flash.html.

Web beacons are small strings of code that provide a method for delivering a graphic image on a web page or in an email message for the purpose of transferring data. You can disable the ability of web beacons to capture information by blocking cookies.

We use cookies and other tracking technologies on the website to help us understand and save Your preferences and interests so We can personalize Your future visits and compile aggregate data about website traffic and website interaction so that We can offer better website experiences and tools in the future.

Some of our business partners, such as our analytics provider, also use cookies and other tracking technologies on the Website, some of which may track users across websites and over time.

5. Security

We implement a variety of security measures to protect the safety of Your personal information when You enter, submit, or access Your personal information.

While We take reasonable measures to protect the information You submit via the Website against loss, theft and unauthorized use, disclosure, or modification, We cannot guarantee its absolute security. No Internet, email, or mobile application transmission is ever fully secure or error free. Email or other messages sent through the Website may not be secure. You should use caution whenever submitting information through the Website and take special care in deciding with which information You provide us.

We cannot guarantee that transmissions of Your personal information will be fully secure and that third parties will never be able to defeat our security measures or the security measures of our partners. WE ASSUME NO LIABILITY FOR DISCLOSURE OF YOUR INFORMATION DUE TO TRANSMISSION ERRORS, THIRD-PARTY ACCESS OR CAUSES BEYOND OUR CONTROL.
Any information collected through the Website is stored and processed in the United States. If You use our Website outside of the United States, You consent to have Your data transferred to the United States.

6. Data Retention Policy, Managing Your Information

We will retain Your information for as long as You use the Website and for a reasonable time thereafter. We may maintain anonymized or aggregated data, including usage data, for analytics purposes. We may retain and use Your information as necessary to comply with our legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements, and/or the period required by laws in applicable jurisdictions. Please note that some or all of the information We have collected may be required for the Website to function properly.

7. Links to Other Websites or Applications

This Privacy Policy applies only to the Website. The Website may contain links to other websites or apps or may forward users to other websites or apps that We may not own or operate and to which this Privacy Policy does not apply. The links from the Website do not imply that We endorse or have reviewed these websites or apps. The policies and procedures We describe here do not apply to these websites or apps. We neither can control nor are responsible for the privacy practices or content of these websites or apps. We suggest contacting these websites or app providers directly for information on their privacy policies. Nonetheless, We seek to protect the integrity of our Website, and welcome any feedback about these linked websites and mobile applications.

8. Your Choices Regarding Your Information

You have choices regarding the use of information by the Website.

  • Changing Your Information – You may request to review, update, or have deleted any personal information collected from You through the Website. Just send us an email asking to review or update Your personal information, or to have us delete Your personal information. However, We reserve the right to retain personal information as necessary for our business purposes and to comply with federal and state laws. To change Your information, please login to Your account and edit Your profile or contact us at info(at)biomimcry.org.
  • Closing Your Account – If the email account associated with Your email address is not active, We may remove it from our system without notice.
  • Withdrawing Consent – If You are an individual residing in the EU, and You provided Your consent for any particular processing of Your personal information, You have the right to withdraw Your consent to our processing of Your information any time. You may also request that Your personal information be deleted. See further under the section EU Privacy Rights below. This deletion is permanent and Your information cannot be reinstated. To proceed with this request, please email info(at)biomimcry.org
  • Opt-Outs Available from Our Partners – Some of our partners allow users to opt-out of their collection of information. Some of our partners provide information on controlling cookies. For more information You may visit the Network Advertising Initiative’s Consumer Opt-Out Link and/or the Digital Advertising Alliance’s Consumer Opt-Out Link to opt-out of receiving tailored advertising from companies that participate in those programs. To opt out of Google Analytics for Display Advertising or customize Google Display Network ads, You can visit the Google Ads Settings page. Please note that to the extent advertising technology is integrated into the Website, You may still receive advertisements even if You opt-out of tailored advertising. In that case, the ads will just not be tailored to Your interests. Also, We do not control any of the opt-out links above and are not responsible for any choices You make using these mechanisms or the continued availability or accuracy of these mechanisms.

9. EU Privacy Rights

Users based in the European Union have the following legal rights in respect of their information:

  • The right to require BIOMIMICRY to confirm whether or not their information is being processed, the purpose of any such processing, the recipients of any information that has been disclosed, the period for which their information is to be stored and whether any automated decision-making processes are used in relation to their information;
  • The right to require BIOMIMICRY to rectify inaccurate information without undue delay;
  • The right to request the erasure of their information. Subject to certain conditions, BIOMIMICRY may be required to erase the information in response to such request where:
    • the information is no longer necessary in relation to the purpose for which it was collected, such as where a user chooses to terminate his or her use of the Website;
    • where the processing of the information is based on the user’s consent (and the other circumstances described in the Legal Bases for Processing Your Information and How Your information is Disclosed sections above no longer apply), if the user withdraws his or her consent; or
    • the user objects to the processing of his or her information and there are no overriding legitimate grounds for the processing.
  • Where BIOMIMICRY has disclosed the information of a European Union user to a third party and the user requests the erasure or rectification of the data, BIOMIMICRY will take all reasonable steps to inform the third party of such request.
  • The right to restrict BIOMIMICRY from processing their information in certain circumstances, such as where the accuracy of that information is disputed or an objection has been raised (see below). In such circumstances, BIOMIMICRY will only process that information with the express consent of the user, or for the establishment, exercise or defense of legal claims or for the protection of the rights of another natural or legal person or for reasons of important public interest;
  • The right to receive their information from BIOMIMICRY in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format;
  • The right to object to the processing of their information by BIOMIMICRY where:
  • BIOMIMICRY has relied on the ‘legitimate interest’ basis for processing that information, in which case We will immediately stop processing the user’s information unless We have compelling legitimate grounds which override the interests, rights and freedoms of the user; or
    • the information is used for direct marketing purposes, in which case We will immediately stop processing the user’s information for such purposes.
  • The right to lodge a complaint with the data protection supervisory authority of the EU member state where the user resides.
  • The above legal rights are subject to various conditions and exceptions including where the data is used for statistical or scientific research purposes and the exercise of the right would prevent such purposes from being attained or would seriously impair their attainment.

10. Information Collected From Other Websites and Mobile Applications and Do Not Track Policy

Your browser or device may offer You a “Do Not Track” option, which allows You to signal to operators of websites, web applications, mobile applications and services (including behavioral advertising services) that You do not wish such operators to track certain of Your online activities over time and/or across different websites or applications. Our Website does not support Do Not Track requests at this time, which means that We or our analytics providers or other third parties with which We are working may collect information about Your online activity both during and after Your use of the Website.

11. Children

Our Website is not intended for children under 16 years of age. We do not knowingly collect personal information from an individual under age 16. If You are under the age of 16, please do not submit any personal information through the Website. If You have reason to believe that We may have accidentally received personal information from an individual under age 16, please contact us immediately at info(at)biomimcry.org.

12. Changes to Privacy Policy

We reserve the right to update or modify this Privacy Policy at any time and from time to time without prior notice. Please review this Privacy Policy periodically, and especially before You provide any information. This Privacy Policy was made effective on the date indicated above.

13. How to Contact Us

For any enquiries or complaints relating to the use of Your personal information or this Privacy Policy, please feel free to contact us by emailing us at info(at)biomimcry.org or by writing us at Biomimicry Institute, PO Box 9216, Missoula, Montana 59807.

14. Your California Privacy Rights

Section 1798.83 of the California Civil Code permits California residents to request from a business, with whom the California resident has an established business relationship, certain information about the types of personal information the business has shared with third parties for those third parties’ direct marketing purposes and the names and addresses of the third parties with whom the business has shared such information during the immediately preceding calendar year. California residents may make one request each year by emailing us at info(at)biomimcry.org or writing us at Biomimicry Institute, PO Box 9216, Missoula, Montana 59807.

Biomimicry Institute Website Terms of Use

Last updated – 11.24.21

Welcome to the Biomimicry Institute website! The Biomimicry Institute is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to nurture and grow a global biomimicry community of people who are learning from, emulating, and conserving life’s genius to create a healthier, more sustainable planet (the “Purpose“). But before you use this site, please look carefully at this Terms of Use agreement (“Agreement”). It is important that you read and understand the terms and conditions of this Agreement.

By using the site, you agree to the use limitations in this agreement and you agree to be bound by this agreement. If you do not agree to these terms and conditions, you may not use the site.

By completing the recurring donation form, you authorize the Biomimicry Institute to automatically charge the submitted credit card monthly. Your contribution will renew automatically and you may cancel at any time.

More...

1. Acceptance of Terms.

(a) The Biomimicry Institute (“we” or “us“) provides these websites (biomimicry.org, asknature.org, youthchallenge.biomimicry.org, d4d.biomimicry.org, and toolbox.biomimicry.org) and all site-related materials and services (collectively, the “Site“) subject to your compliance with the terms and conditions of this Agreement. This Agreement governs our relationship with you, the Site visitor (as well as your employer and affiliates, and its or their employees, contractors and agents) (“you“) with respect to your use of the Site.

(b) From time to time, we may update or make changes to this Agreement. If we do, we may notify you of such updates or changes by any reasonable means (for example, by posting a revised draft on the Site). To determine when this Agreement was last revised, look at the “LAST UPDATED” legend at the top of this Agreement. Your continued use of the Site after such changes will indicate your acceptance of such changes.

(c) We reserve the right, at any time and from time to time, temporarily or permanently, in whole or in part, to: (i) modify or discontinue the Site, with or without notice; (ii) charge or change fees in connection with the use of the Site; (iii) modify and/or waive any fees charged in connection with the Site; and/or (iv) offer opportunities to some or all users of the Site. For example, we expect to charge a fee for access to premium products and services on the Site (like access to white papers, compiled market intelligence, or services offered by our partners) and to modify and/or waive fees for certain groups of users (like academics or small businesses). You agree that neither we nor any of our sponsors or affiliated companies shall be liable to you or to any third party for any modification, suspension or discontinuance of the Site, in whole or in part, or of any service, content, feature or product offered on or through the Site.

(d) Some of the materials and services available on the Site may be provided under additional posted guidelines, rules, or terms and conditions, which are hereby incorporated by reference into this Agreement. Your use of the Site is subject to such additional posted guidelines, rules, or terms and conditions.

2. Registration.

(a) In order to access certain services, content, features or products offered on or through the Site, you may have to become a member. For example, we expect that member registration will be required to access and use the Site’s collaborative tools (like creating a user profile, browsing other user profiles, contacting other users, and posting comments). When and if you register to become a member, you (i) represent that you are over the age of thirteen (13); (ii) agree to provide accurate, current and complete information about yourself as prompted by our registration form; and (iii) agree to maintain and update your information to keep it accurate, current and complete. Examples of information that we may ask you to provide include: your name, email address, location, occupation, and affiliation with the biomimicry community, and which languages you speak. You acknowledge that if any representation or information provided by you is untrue, inaccurate, not current or incomplete, we reserve the right to terminate this Agreement and your use of the Site.

(b) As part of the registration process on youthchallenge.biomimicry.org, you will be asked to select a username and password. We may refuse to grant you a username that impersonates someone else, is or may be illegal, is or may be protected by trademark or other proprietary rights law, is vulgar or otherwise offensive, or may cause confusion, as determined by us in our sole discretion. You will be responsible for the confidentiality and use of your username and password and agree not to transfer or resell your use of or access to the Site to any third party. If you have reason to believe that your account with us is no longer secure, you must immediately notify us of the problem by emailing us at info[at]biomimicry.org. YOU ARE ENTIRELY RESPONSIBLE FOR MAINTAINING THE CONFIDENTIALITY OF YOUR USERNAME AND PASSWORD AND FOR ANY AND ALL ACTIVITIES THAT ARE CONDUCTED THROUGH YOUR ACCOUNT.

3. Code of Conduct.

We envision the Site as an online source of information for and about the biomimicry community. To maintain that habitat, we require our users to comply with the rules of conduct set forth in this Agreement. Accordingly, your use of the Site and/or Materials is conditioned on your compliance with such rules. While using the Site and/or Materials, you agree not to:

  • Restrict or inhibit any other visitor or member from using the Site (for example, by means of “hacking” or defacing any portion of the Site);
  • Use the Site or Materials for any unlawful or fraudulent purposes;
  • Express or imply that any statements you make or products you provide are endorsed by us, without our prior written consent;
  • Upload to, transmit through, or display on the Site (a) any content or information that is unlawful, fraudulent, threatening, abusive, libelous, defamatory, obscene or otherwise objectionable, or infringes our or any third party’s intellectual property or other rights; (b) any confidential, proprietary information or trade secret of any third party; or (c) any advertisements, solicitations, chain letters, pyramid schemes, investment opportunities or other unsolicited commercial communication (except as otherwise expressly permitted by us),
  • Engage in spamming or flooding;
  • Transmit any software or other materials that contain any viruses, worms, trojan horses, defects, date bombs, time bombs or other items of a destructive nature;
  • Modify, adapt, sublicense, translate, sell, reverse engineer, decompile or disassemble any portion of the Site or Materials;
  • Remove any copyright, trademark or other proprietary rights notices contained in the Site or Materials;
  • “Frame” or “mirror” all or any part of the Site without our prior written authorization;
  • Use any robot, spider, site search/retrieval application or other manual or automatic device or process to retrieve, index, “data mine” or in any way reproduce or circumvent the navigational structure, taxonomy, or presentation of the Site, its contents, or the Materials;
  • Harvest or collect information about Site visitors or members without their express consent; or
  • Violate any applicable laws or regulations.

We may terminate your access to and use of the Site immediately if you fail to comply with the above rules of conduct.

4. Materials.  

(a) You understand that all information and materials (such as data, text, descriptions, comments, feedback, suggestions, graphics, images, audio and video clips, logos, and links) provided through the Site (collectively, the “Materials“) are the sole responsibility of the person from whom such Materials originated, which may be us, you, a Site user, or other third party. You may not copy, reproduce, republish, download, upload, post, transmit, distribute, modify, or otherwise use any of the Materials except as expressly authorized by the owner of such Materials, whether in this Agreement or in a separate written agreement. Unless otherwise specified on the Site or in a separate written agreement, you may download Materials displayed on the Site, and may use the downloaded Materials, solely for the Purpose. If you download Materials, such downloads or copies are subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement, and you must retain all copyright and other proprietary notices on downloaded and copied Materials unless otherwise specified on the Site or in a separate written agreement. Use or downloading of the Materials is conditioned on your acceptance of the terms and conditions of any license agreements relating to such Materials, including agreements of third parties. By downloading or using the Materials, you agree to such terms and conditions.

(b) We do not claim ownership of Materials you submit or make available for inclusion on the Site. However, in order to allow us to foster the biomimicry community and information-sharing, we retain the right to use any and all submission materials for educational and promotional purposes.

5. Forums.  

(a) We (and our designees) may host user profiles, message boards for your comments, and similar forums found on the Site, (collectively, “Forums“), but we have no obligation to monitor the Site or the Forums, or any Materials that you or other third parties transmit or post on the Site or the Forums. You acknowledge and agree that we have the right (but not the obligation) to monitor the Site, the Forums, and the Materials you transmit or post; to alter or remove any such Materials; to disclose such Materials and the circumstances surrounding their transmission to any third party in order to operate the Site properly; to protect ourselves, our sponsors and our members and visitors; and to comply with legal obligations or governmental requests.

(b) You acknowledge that a large volume of information is available in our Forums and that people participating in such Forums occasionally post messages or make statements, whether intentionally or unintentionally, that are inaccurate, misleading or deceptive. We neither endorse nor are responsible for such messages or statements, or for any opinion, advice, information or other utterance made or displayed on the Site or Forums that is not properly attributable to us. The opinions expressed in the Forums reflect solely the opinion(s) of the participants and may not reflect our opinion(s).

(c) We are not responsible for any errors or omissions in articles or postings, for hyperlinks embedded in messages or for any results obtained from the use of such information. Under no circumstances will we or our affiliates, sponsors, suppliers or agents be liable for any loss or damage caused by your reliance on such information obtained through the Site.

6. Making Donations.

Also, if you wish to give back to the biomimicry community by providing us with a donation via the donation services available on the Site, we or a third party provider will ask you to supply certain information applicable to your purchase, such as credit card and other information. You understand that any such information will be treated by us in the manner described in our Privacy Policy. You agree that all information that you provide to us or such third party provider will be accurate, current and complete. You agree to pay all charges incurred by you or any users of your account and credit card (or other applicable payment mechanism) at the amount specified when such charges are incurred. You will also be responsible for paying any applicable taxes, if any.

7. Third-Party Products, Websites and Links.

The Site may reference certain third party products or services that we believe further the Purpose of the Site; however, descriptions or images of, or references to, products or services on the Site do not imply our endorsement of such products or services. In addition, the Site may contain links to other Internet websites, including affiliated websites which may or may not be owned or operated by us. We have not reviewed all of the websites that are linked to the Site, and we may have no control over such sites. Unless otherwise explicitly stated, we are not responsible for the content of such websites, any updates or changes to such sites, or the privacy or other practices of such sites, and the fact that we offer such links does not indicate any approval or endorsement of any material contained on any linked site. We are providing these links to you only as a convenience. Accordingly, we strongly suggest that you become familiar with the terms of use and practices of any linked site. It is up to you to take precautions to ensure that whatever links you select or software you download (whether from the Site or other sites) is free of such items as viruses, worms, trojan horses, defects, date bombs, time bombs and other items of a destructive nature.

8. Claims of Copyright Infringement.

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (the “DMCA“) provides recourse for copyright owners who believe that material appearing on the Internet infringes their rights under U.S. copyright law. If you believe in good faith that materials hosted by us infringe your copyright (for example, materials posted by us on one of our Forums), you (or your agent) may send us a notice requesting that the material be removed, or access to it blocked. The notice must include the following information: (a) a physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed; (b) identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed (or if multiple copyrighted works located on the Site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works); (c) identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or the subject of infringing activity, and information reasonably sufficient to allow us to locate the material on the Site; (d) the name, address, telephone number and email address (if available) of the complaining party; (e) a statement that the complaining party has a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent or the law; and (f) a statement that the information in the notification is accurate and, under penalty of perjury, that the complaining party is authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed. If you believe in good faith that we have wrongly filed a notice of copyright infringement against you, the DMCA permits you to send us a counter-notice. Notices and counter-notices must meet the then-current statutory requirements imposed by the DMCA; see http://www.loc.gov/copyright/ for details. Notices and counter-notices with respect to the Site should be sent to Beth Rattner, Executive Director, PO Box 9216, Missoula, MT, USA 59807. Telephone 415-800-1401 or email beth.rattner[at]biomimicry.org. We suggest that you consult your legal advisor before filing a notice or counter-notice.  Also, be aware that there can be penalties for false claims under the DMCA.

9. Ownership of the Site and Trademarks.  

(a) The Site is owned and operated by us in conjunction with others pursuant to contractual arrangements, and the Materials and their selection, compilation, collection, arrangement and assembly are protected by U.S. and international copyright, trademark and other laws. You acknowledge that these rights are valid and enforceable. You acknowledge that you do not acquire any further ownership rights by using the Site or the Materials.

(b) The trademarks, logos, and service marks (including without limitation “AskNature” and “The Biomimicry Institute”, and any associated logos) displayed on the Site (collectively the “Trademarks“) are the registered and unregistered trademarks of The Biomimicry Institute and its affiliates, licensors, sponsors, suppliers, and others. The Trademarks, whether registered or unregistered, may not be used in connection with any product or service that is not ours, in any manner that is likely to cause confusion with customers, or in any manner that disparages us. Nothing contained on the Site should be construed as granting, by implication, estoppel or otherwise, any license or right to use any Trademark without the express written permission of us, our licensors or sponsors, or the third party owner of any such Trademark. Misuse of any Trademarks is prohibited, and we will aggressively enforce our intellectual property rights in such Trademarks, including via civil and criminal proceedings.

10. Access By Minors.

Pursuant to 47 U.S.C. Section 230(d), as amended, we hereby notify you that parental control protections (such as computer hardware, software or filtering services) are commercially available that may assist you in limiting access to material that is harmful to minors. Information identifying current providers of such protections is available on the Internet by searching “parental control protection,” including on the website of GetNetWise (https://www.getnetwise.org).

11. Jurisdictional Issues.

The Site is directed to individuals residing in the United States.  We make no representation that Materials available on or through the Site are appropriate or available for use in other locations. Those who choose to access the Site from other locations do so on their own initiative and at their own risk, and are responsible for compliance with applicable local laws. The Materials are further subject to United States export controls. No Materials may be downloaded or otherwise exported or re-exported (a) into (or to a national or resident of) Iran, North Korea, Sudan, and Syria, or any other country to which the U.S. has embargoed goods or designated as supporting terrorist activities; or (b) to anyone on the U.S. Treasury Department’s list of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons, the U.S. Commerce Department’s Table of Deny Orders, or other list of individuals and organizations prohibited from receiving U.S. exports. By downloading or using any Materials, you represent and warrant that you are not located in, under the control of, or a national or resident of any such country or on any such list. We reserve the right to limit the availability of the Site and/or the provision of any service or other product described thereon to any person, geographic area or jurisdiction, at any time and in our sole discretion, and to limit the quantities of any such service or other product that we provide.

12.Termination.

This Agreement shall remain effective until terminated in accordance with its terms. Either party may terminate this Agreement immediately upon notice to the other party. In addition, we reserve the right to immediately terminate this Agreement, and/or your access to and use of the Site or any portion thereof, at any time and for any reason, with or without cause. Upon termination of this Agreement by either party, your right to use the Site shall immediately cease, and you shall destroy all Materials obtained from the Site and all copies thereof, whether made under the terms of this Agreement or otherwise.

13. Disclaimers.

THE SITE, THE MATERIALS ON THE SITE, AND ANY PRODUCT OR SERVICE OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITE ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” AND WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE PURSUANT TO APPLICABLE LAW, WE AND OUR AFFILIATES, LICENSORS, SUPPLIERS, ADVERTISERS, SPONSORS AND AGENTS DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF TITLE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, ACCURACY, MERCHANTABILITY, AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND ANY WARRANTIES THAT MAY ARISE FROM COURSE OF DEALING, COURSE OF PERFORMANCE OR USAGE OF TRADE. Applicable law may not allow the exclusion of implied warranties, so the above exclusions may not apply to you. WE AND OUR AFFILIATES, LICENSORS, SUPPLIERS, ADVERTISERS, SPONSORS AND AGENTS DO NOT WARRANT THAT YOUR USE OF THE SITE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, ERROR-FREE OR SECURE, THAT DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED, OR THAT THE SITE OR THE SERVER(S) ON WHICH THE SITE IS HOSTED ARE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS. YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR OBTAINING AND MAINTAINING ALL CONNECTIVITY, COMPUTER HARDWARE AND OTHER EQUIPMENT NEEDED TO ACCESS AND USE THE SITE, AND ALL CHARGES RELATED THERETO. YOU ASSUME ALL RESPONSIBILITY AND RISK FOR YOUR USE OF THE SITE AND YOUR RELIANCE THEREON. NO OPINION, ADVICE OR STATEMENT OF US OR OUR AFFILIATES, LICENSORS, SUPPLIERS, ADVERTISERS, SPONSORS, AGENTS, MEMBERS OR VISITORS, WHETHER MADE ON THE SITE OR OTHERWISE, SHALL CREATE ANY WARRANTY. YOUR USE OF THE SITE AND ANY MATERIALS PROVIDED THROUGH THE SITE ARE ENTIRELY AT YOUR OWN RISK.

A possibility exists that the Site, Materials or Forums could include inaccuracies or errors, or information or materials that violate these Terms of Use (specifically, the Code of Conduct above). Additionally, a possibility exists that unauthorized alterations could be made by third parties to the Site, Materials or Forums. Although we attempt to ensure the integrity of the Site, we make no guarantees as to the Site’s completeness or correctness. In the event that a situation arises in which the Site’s completeness or correctness is in question, please contact us at info[at]biomimicry.org with, if possible, a description of the material to be checked and the location (URL) where such material can be found on the Site, as well as information sufficient to enable us to contact you. We will try to address your concerns as soon as reasonably practicable. For copyright infringement claims, see the section on “Claims of Copyright Infringement,” above.

14. Limitation of Liability.

NEITHER WE NOR ANY OF OUR AFFILIATES, LICENSORS, SUPPLIERS, ADVERTISERS. DONORS, OR SPONSORS, NOR OUR OR THEIR DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, CONSULTANTS, AGENTS OR OTHER REPRESENTATIVES, ARE RESPONSIBLE OR LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, PUNITIVE OR OTHER DAMAGES (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF BUSINESS, LOSS OF DATA OR LOST PROFITS), UNDER ANY CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY OR OTHER THEORY ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING IN ANY WAY TO THE SITE AND/OR MATERIALS CONTAINED ON THE SITE, ANY LINKED SITE OR ANY PRODUCT OR SERVICE ACCESSED THROUGH THE SITE. YOUR SOLE REMEDY FOR DISSATISFACTION WITH THE SITE, MATERIALS OR ANY LINKED SITE IS TO STOP USING THE SITE, MATERIALS OR LINKED SITE, AS APPLICABLE. OUR SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE MAXIMUM LIABILITY FOR ALL DAMAGES, LOSSES AND CAUSES OF ACTION, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION NEGLIGENCE) OR OTHERWISE, SHALL BE THE TOTAL AMOUNT PAID BY YOU, IF ANY, TO ACCESS THE SITE. Some states do not allow the exclusion or limitation of incidental or consequential damages, so the above limitation or exclusion may not apply to you.

15. Indemnification.

You agree to indemnify, defend and hold us, our affiliates, licensors, suppliers, advertisers and sponsors, and our and their directors, officers, employees, consultants, agents and other representatives, harmless from and against any and all claims, damages, losses, costs (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) and other expenses that arise directly or indirectly out of or from (a) your breach of this Agreement, including any violation of the Code of Conduct above; (b) any allegation that any Materials you submit to us or transmit to the Site infringe or otherwise violate the copyright, trademark, trade secret or other intellectual property or other rights of any third party; and/or (c) your activities in connection with the Site.

16. Questions.

The Site is provided by The Biomimicry Institute. If you have any questions, comments or complaints regarding this Agreement or the Site, feel free to contact us at: The Biomimicry Institute, PO Box 9216, Missoula, MT, USA 59807, or info[at]biomimicry.org.

17. Miscellaneous.

This Agreement is governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of California, United States of America, without regards to its principles of conflicts of law. You agree to submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of any State or Federal court located in California, United States of America, and waive any jurisdictional, venue or inconvenient forum objections to such courts. If any provision of this Agreement is found to be unlawful, void or for any reason unenforceable, then that provision shall be deemed severable from this Agreement and shall not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining provisions. This is the entire Agreement between us relating to the subject matter herein and supersedes any and all prior or contemporaneous written or oral Agreements between us with respect to such subject matter. This Agreement is not assignable, transferable or sublicensable by you except with our prior written consent.  No waiver by either party of any breach or default hereunder shall be deemed to be a waiver of any preceding or subsequent breach or default.  Any heading, caption or section title contained in this Agreement is inserted only as a matter of convenience and in no way defines or explains any section or provision hereof.

We will use the information to be in touch with you via email. You can change your mind at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link in the footer of any message you receive from us. Learn more about our privacy practices here.

Support the Next Generation
of Nature-Inspired Innovators

Imagine a world where everything we make is inspired by the natural world. By supporting the Biomimicry Institute you:

  • Help bring biomimicry education to more students and educators
  • Accelerate the growth of more nature-inspired startups and entrepreneurs
  • Increase the number of biological strategies and resources on AskNature.org and across our entire organization.

Tap into nature: