Terms of Use

1. Your agreement to these Terms of Use

Terms of use: These terms and conditions of use (“Terms of Use”) apply to all users of the UNESCO WORLD ATLAS OF LANGUAGES (“WAL”) which is managed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (“UNESCO”, “we”, “us” or “our”) and is accessible at www.en.wal.unesco.org (“Website”). These Terms of Use also apply to all content, information, materials and services provided in connection with WAL, including contributions by you and by other WAL users (collectively, together with the Website, the “Services”). Terms shall have the meanings specified herein and as indicated in the Glossary annexed hereto and comprising and integral part of these Terms of Use (Annex 1).

Acceptance: BY ACCESSING OR USING ANY OF THE SERVICES, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU HAVE READ, UNDERSTOOD, AND AGREED TO BE BOUND BY THE TERMS OF USE. If you do not agree to the Terms of Use, you are not authorized to use the Services. If you are an individual who is entering into these Terms of Use on behalf of an entity, you represent and warrant that you have the authority to bind that entity, and you hereby agree on that entity’s behalf to be bound by these Terms of Use, with the terms “you,” and “your” applying to you, that entity, and other users accessing the Services on behalf of that entity.

User Guide: A user guide for WAL, available, at www.en.wal.unesco.org as may be amended from time to time (“WAL User Guide”) forms an integral part of these Terms of Use and is incorporated by reference herein. It contains technical specifications of WAL including the functions and permissions for WAL users as indicated in the summary annex hereto and comprising and integral part of these Terms of Use (Annex 2).

Revisions: The Terms of Use as currently stated were published on www.en.wal.unesco.org . UNESCO may change, remove, or add to these Terms of Use at its discretion. In that case, we will post updated Terms of Use and indicate the date of revision if the changes are material. All new and/or revised Terms of Use take effect immediately and apply to your use of the Services from that date on. Your continued use of any Services after new and/or revised Terms of Use are effective indicates that you have read, understood, and agreed to the Terms of Use.

Additional terms and conditions: Certain WAL users may, depending on their user profile and criteria for registration, be subject to additional terms and conditions and/or benefit from additional privileges as indicated in the Summary of WAL Users & Functions (Annex 2).

 

2. Disclaimer

WAL content: WAL is managed by UNESCO and maintained by a community of registered Focal Points. Although every reasonable effort is made to present current and accurate information, UNESCO makes no guarantees of any kind concerning the content available through the Website or comprising the Services, whether developed or contributed by or on behalf of UNESCO or by WAL users, including without limitation data files, text, computer software, code, music, photographs, videos, images or audio files which you may have access to as part of, or through your use of, the Services. UNESCO does not warrant that WAL content is complete, accurate or unencumbered by undisclosed third-party intellectual property rights and it shall not be liable whatsoever for any damages incurred as a result of its use. Information in WAL is subject to change at UNESCO’s sole discretion and without prior notice.

Links: Hyperlinks to external websites in WAL are provided as a courtesy. They should not be construed as an endorsement by UNESCO of any content or views accessible through the links.

No agency: Users of WAL shall not be considered in any respect as being agents of UNESCO or otherwise associated or affiliated with UNESCO, including any joint venture, partnership, employment, or agency relationship as a result of your use of any of the Services.

 

3. WAL user profiles and functions

WAL users shall be designated one of following profiles and the functions, permissions and criteria associated with each profile shall be as indicated in the Annex 2 Summary of WAL Users and Functions.

• Administrator (registered Individual user)
• Focal Point Editor (registered institutional user)
• Members of the Ad Hoc International Scientific Committee (registered individual user)
• Secondary Focal points appointed by the Government (registered institutional user)
• Anonymous (unregistered user)]

Anonymous users. Any person may anonymously browse public content available through WAL. Additional functionality requires a user to register either in their individual capacity or on behalf of an institution.

Registered users: Any individual or institution invited by UNESCO to register as a WAL User. All user applications are determined by UNESCO at its sole discretion. It is important that users provide all the information required when completing the relevant application form.

Revocation of registration: UNESCO reserves the right to temporarily suspend or revoke the registration of any user deemed at its sole discretion to be in violation of these Terms of Use. This designation may end should the user is recalled by the country to serve as the Focal Point or discontinues as a member of the ad hoc International Scientific Committee. The latter may be by resignation or termination.

 

4. Account authentication, integrity and community safety and standards

Account authentication: Anonymous users may browse public content available through WAL, however, additional functionality requires a user to register either in their individual capacity or on behalf of an institution. Registered users are authenticated as part of their application to register a WAL account. Each registered User’s name and institutional affiliation, if any, is visible, however, if UNESCO deems appropriate, for example due to a credible risk of harm, it may at its sole discretion withhold, obfuscate or otherwise modify a user’s name and/or institutional affiliation.

Account integrity: We don't allow users to misrepresent themselves on WAL, use fake accounts or engage in behavior that violates these Terms of Use.

Community safety and standards: In order to maintain a safe environment and empower free expression, UNESCO removes accounts that it deems harmful to the WAL user community, including those that compromise the safety or security of other accounts and our Services. UNESCO values the safety of Users and retains the right at its absolute discretion to suspend or terminate, immediately or subject to prior warning, any user for any conduct it considers a violation of these Terms, including the following “Community and Safety Standards”:

• Indigenous peoples rights over heritage materials: We expect all WAL users to respect the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities to determine access provisions for heritage materials which reflect their history, culture, language and perspectives.
• Fair and acceptable use of WAL: We expect WAL users to respect the intellectual property rights of UNESCO and of third parties and not to free-ride on the significant efforts and expense incurred by UNESCO in maintaining WAL. Unless agreed otherwise through a separate agreement with UNESCO, you may not use WAL in a manner that exceeds reasonable request volume, or attempts to substantially replicate the Website or Service, or charge for content accessed through WAL, or which otherwise undermines UNESCO’s ability to maintain WAL as a free and open platform.
• Handling of personal information: We expect WAL users to respect the privacy and image rights of individuals. Personal information provided by a WAL user, which is accessible to other users, will be handled by UNESCO subject to appropriate data protection measures, such as encryption, pseudonymization, minimization of data collection and data loss prevention, as required to protect the privacy of the user.
• Bullying, harassment and insensitive behavior: We expect WAL users to respect the dignity of others and not harass or degrade others. Expression that threatens or that has the potential to intimidate, exclude or silence others is not permitted.
• Spam and misleading information: We expect WAL users not to use WAL for the transmission of advertising or promotional materials except as may permitted for promoting certain content and materials as indicated in the WAL User Guide. This includes junk mail, spam, chain letters, or any other form of unsolicited or unwelcome solicitation.
• Violation of laws and rights: You may not use the Service for any illegal purpose or in violation of any local, state, national, or international laws, or violate or encourage others to violate any right of or obligation to a third party, including by infringing, misappropriating, or violating intellectual property, confidentiality, or privacy rights.

[Third party materials: Users uploading materials to WAL will be required to address Community and Safety Standards in the declaration annexed hereto and comprising and integral part of these Terms of Use (Annex 3).]

 

5. WAL content

WAL content and user contributions. Registered Focal Points are permitted to contribute content and materials to WAL as indicated in the Summary of WAL Users and Functions (Annex 2). UNESCO owns all content in WAL excluding third party materials uploaded to WAL unless the materials have been commissioned by UNESCO.

Third party materials: When uploading materials to MEL, users are provided an option to select a Creative Commons license or public domain designation in order to provide legal certainty to WAL users regarding their access and use of the materials. It is your responsibility to ensure you have the necessary rights to share materials on the basis selected.  By uploading or linking to materials in WAL you warrant that you are the owner or authorized user of the materials, that the materials are free from encumbrances and that sharing the materials in WAL does not infringe the intellectual property rights or other rights of third parties. This includes, without limitation and whether registered or unregistered: copyright; patent rights; trademark rights; traditional knowledge; traditional cultural expression; sovereign rights associated with genetic resources or other intellectual property right. [Users uploading materials to WAL will be required to address infringement and related issues in the declaration  annexed hereto (Annex 3).]

UNESCO’s right of reproduction and distribution: Except to the extent inconsistent with any license granted in respect of third party materials uploaded to WAL, UNESCO retains the right to reproduce, adapt and distribute all WAL content including without limitation, user contributions to Language Profiles, Stories, Events, Educational Tools at its discretion for any purpose. This includes for any educational or commercial purpose, derivative or translation, and whether for use by WAL users or across UNESCO’s distribution channels or those of its publishing partners.

 

6. License to WAL users to use WAL content

All material in WAL is presumed to be subject to appropriate copyright and licensing arrangements. WAL content shall be consistent with  UNESCO’s Open Access Policy concerning UNESCO Publications, effective since July 2013. Unless explicitly indicated otherwise in WAL (for example concerning third party materials) or agreed otherwise by UNESCO, WAL content is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution, Non-Commercial, No-Derivatives IGO license version 3.0 (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 IGO). This is subject to:

• the fair and acceptable use provisions under the WAL Community and Safety Standards (Article 4); and
• UNESCO’s right of reproduction and distribution (Article 5).

[Derivatives and/or commercial use. Please contact wal.data@unesco.org if interested in using WAL materials for any other purpose, including:

• to create and distribute derivatives including translations of WAL materials;
• for commercial use of WAL materials or derivatives of WAL materials, including in connection with a for-profit education purposes]

[Open Educational Resource: Users that commit to the following will be approved for derivatives and/or commercial use using a fast-track procedure]:

• to license any derivatives under a standard open license that is compatible with Open Educational Resource (e.g.: CC-BY, CC-BY-SA; CC-BY-NC; CC-BY-NC-SA); and
• to deposit/upload the derivatives in WAL.

 

7. Third-party materials and mitigating risk of harm

Third-party materials, privacy and risk of harm: By uploading or linking to materials in WAL you warrant that the materials do not create risk of individual or community harm, including violation of privacy. You also warrant that you have undertaken appropriate screening and if necessary implemented measures, to mitigate such risk. [Users uploading materials to WAL will be required to address privacy and risk of harm issues in the declaration annexed hereto (Annex 3).]

 

8. Takedown requests

In making content available online, UNESCO acts in good faith, however, we recognise that despite our best efforts there may be occasions when material made available online is considered to breach of the WAL Community and Safety Standards, copyright or other relevant right or law or contains information that is culturally sensitive. If you are concerned that you have found material on WAL which you have not given permission for, or which is protected by intellectual property or other rights, or contains content that may be regarded as obscene or defamatory, or otherwise contravenes these Terms of Use, please contact us in writing at wal.data@unesco.org with the following details:

• Your contact details (email and phone number)
• Description of the content or material
• The exact and full URL at which the material was found
• The reason for your request, including but not limited to copyright law, obscenity, defamation, Indigenous protocols
• If the request relates to copyright, proof that you are the rights holder or an authorised representative

 

9. Use of UNESCO name and logo

The use of the name and logo of UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, is subject to rules laid down by the governing bodies of the Organization as indicated on https://en.unesco.org/about-us/name_logo. WAL Users will use the name and logo of UNESCO strictly in accordance with UNESCO’s requirements.

 

10. Liability

Under no circumstances will UNESCO be liable in any way for your use of the Services accessed through the Website, including without limitation any infringing content, any errors or omissions, or for any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of the use of any content posted contributed, linked from, or otherwise accessible or made available through the Website. You agree that you are solely responsible for your use of any content or materials accessed through the Website or otherwise related to the Services. You are encouraged to contact the contributor of any third-party materials directly if you have any questions concerning your use of those materials.

 

11. Termination

UNESCO may modify, suspend, or terminate the operation of, or access to, all or any portion of the Services at any time for violation of these Terms, including the Community Standards. Additionally, your individual access to, and use of, the Services may be terminated by UNESCO at any time and for any reason. If you wish to terminate this agreement, you may immediately stop accessing or using the Services at any time. You may also request your account to be disactivated by submitting a request in WAL or contacting wal.data@unesco.org.

The disclaimer of warranties, the limitation of liability, and the jurisdiction and applicable law provisions will survive any termination. The license grants applicable to content you have contributed or accessed are not impacted by the termination of the Terms and shall continue in effect subject to the terms of the applicable license.

 

12. Indemnification

You agree to defend, indemnify and hold UNESCO harmless at your own expense from and against all claims, demands, and liability of any nature or kind, arising from or related to your use of the Website or Services in related to WAL. These obligations to indemnify UNESCO extend to its officials, agents and employees and do not lapse on the termination of your status as a registered user.

 

13. Miscellaneous

No waiver: Either party’s failure to insist on or enforce strict performance of any of the Terms will not be construed as a waiver of any provision or right.

Dispute resolution through arbitration:  If a dispute is incapable of amicable settlement within 60 days of the receipt by one party of the other parties request for amicable settlement, such dispute may be referred by a party to arbitration in accordance with the UNICITRAL Arbitration rules, including its provisions on applicable law. The parties shall be bound by any arbitration award resulting from such arbitration as the final adjudication of the dispute.

Severability: If any part of the Terms is held to be invalid or unenforceable by any law or regulation or final determination of a competent court or tribunal, that provision will be deemed severable and will not affect the validity and enforceability of the remaining provisions.