Terms of Service

Terms of Service

Discovery Institute is on a mission to advance a culture of purpose, creativity and innovation. These Terms of Service (“Terms”) describe our commitments to you, and your rights and responsibilities when using our services. Please read them carefully and reach out to us if you have any questions.

These Terms govern your access to and use of discovery.org, evolutionnews.org, and mindmatters.ai, as well as all content and Discovery Institute products and services available at or through these and other Discovery Institute websites (collectively, “Services”).

Our Services are offered subject to your acceptance, without modification, of all of the terms and conditions contained herein and all other operating rules, policies (including, without limitation, Discovery Institute’s Privacy Policy), and procedures that may be published from time to time by Discovery Institute (collectively, the “Agreement”).

Please read the Agreement carefully before accessing or using our Services. By accessing or using any part of our Services, you agree to become bound by the Agreement. If you do not agree to all the terms of the Agreement, then you may not access or use our Services.

Who’s Who

Throughout these Terms, “you” applies to both individuals and entities that access or use our Services. If you are an individual using our Services on behalf of an entity, you represent and warrant that you have the authority to bind that entity to the Agreement and that by using our Service(s), you are accepting the Agreement on behalf of that entity.

We refer to Discovery Institute and its affiliated programs collectively as “Discovery Institute” or “we” throughout these Terms.

Your Accounts and Subscriptions

Where use of our Services requires an account or subscription, you agree to provide us with complete and accurate information when you register and keep the information current. This is important because sometimes we may need to send you notable updates (for example, about changes to our Terms of Service or Privacy Policy), or we may want to let you know about and make informed choices in response to legal inquiries or complaints.

When you sign-up for an event or service, we consider that to be an inquiry about our Services, which means that we may contact you to share more details about what we have to offer. Don’t worry — if you aren’t interested in learning more, you can opt out at any time, whether it’s an email, phone call, or text message.

Minimum Age Requirements

Our Services are not primarily directed to children. Access to and use of our Services is generally for those over the age of 13 (or 16 in the European Union). If you are younger than this, you may not register for or use our Services unless we have a specific option for your age group (for example, for event or course registrations). Any person who registers as a user or provides their personal information to our Services represents that they are 13 years of age or older (or 16 years or older in the European Union) or that they have the permission of their parent(s) and/or guardian(s) to provide their personal information to us.

Responsibility of Visitors and Users

We have not reviewed, and cannot review, all of the content (such as, but not limited to, text, photo, video, audio, code, computer software, items for sale, or other materials) posted to our Services by users or anyone else (“Content”) and are not responsible for any use or effects of such Content. So, for example:

  • If you post Content, comment on a website, or otherwise make (or allow any third party to make) Content available on our Services, you are entirely responsible for the Content, and any harm resulting from, that Content or your conduct.
  • We disclaim any responsibility for any harm resulting from anyone’s use, purchase, or downloading of Content. If you access or use any Content, you are responsible for taking precautions as necessary to protect yourself and your computer systems from viruses, worms, Trojan horses, and other harmful or destructive content.
  • Please note that additional third party terms and conditions may apply to the downloading, copying, purchase, or use of Content.

Fees, Payment, and Renewal

Fees for Paid Services. Some of our Services are offered for a fee, such as events, books, curriculum and online courses (collectively, “Paid Services”). By using a Paid Service, you agree to pay the specified fees.

Taxes. To the extent permitted by law, or unless explicitly stated otherwise, all fees are exclusive of applicable federal, provincial, state, local or other governmental sales, goods and services, harmonized or other taxes, fees, or charges now in force or enacted in the future (“Taxes”). You are responsible for payment of all applicable Taxes relating to your use of our Services, your payments, or your purchases. If we are obligated to pay or collect Taxes on the Fees you’ve paid or will pay, you are responsible for such Taxes, and we may collect payment for such Taxes.

Payment. If your payment fails or if Paid Services are otherwise not paid for or paid for on time, we may immediately cancel or revoke your access to the Paid Services. If you contact your bank or credit card company to decline or reverse the charge of fees for Paid Services, we may revoke your access to our Services in general.

Fee Changes. We may change our fees at any time, or start charging fees for Services that were previously free. When applicable, we may give you advance notice of the fee changes. If you don’t agree with the fee changes, you must cancel your Paid Service.

No-Show Policy. We may have a “no-show policy” for some Paid Services (for example, for an online event), which means that if you fail to show up or are late for a scheduled session, we may withhold the Service without a refund.

Refunds. While you may cancel a Paid Service at any time, refunds are issued as stipulated or at our sole discretion, unless otherwise required by applicable law.

General Representation and Warranty

You represent and warrant that your use of our Services:

  • Will be in strict accordance with these Terms;
  • Will comply with all applicable laws and regulations (including, without limitation, all applicable laws regarding online conduct and acceptable content, privacy, data protection, the transmission of technical data exported from the United States or the country in which you reside, the use or provision of financial services, notification and consumer protection, unfair competition, and false advertising);
  • Will not use the Services for any unlawful purposes, to publish illegal content, or in furtherance of illegal activities;
  • Will not infringe or misappropriate the intellectual property rights of any third party;
  • Will not overburden Discovery Institute’s systems, as determined by us in our sole discretion;
  • Will not disclose sensitive personal information of others;
  • Will not be used to send spam or bulk unsolicited messages;
  • Will not interfere with, disrupt, or attack any service or network; and
  • Will not be used to create, distribute, or enable material that is – or that facilitates or operates in conjunction with – malware, spyware, adware, or other malicious programs or code.

Copyright Infringement and DMCA Policy

As we ask others to respect our intellectual property rights, we respect the intellectual property rights of others. If you believe that material located on or associated with a Discovery Institute product or service violates your copyright, please notify us in accordance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”) Policy. We will respond to all such notices, including as required or appropriate by removing the infringing material or disabling all links to the infringing material.

Third Party Services

In using our Services, we may use or link to apps and web services developed by a third party (“Third Party Services”). If you use any Third Party Services (e.g. Zoom for webinars, Thinkific for courses), you understand that:

  • Third Party Services are not exhaustively vetted, endorsed, or controlled by Discovery Institute.
  • Any use of a Third Party Service is at your own risk, and we shall not be responsible or liable to anyone for Third Party Services.
  • Your use is solely between you and the respective third party (“Third Party”) and will be governed by the Third Party’s terms and policies. It is your responsibility to review the Third Party’s terms and policies before using a Third Party Service.
  • Some Third Party Services may request or require access to your data, for example, via a pixel or cookie. If you use the Third Party Service or grant access, your data will be handled in accordance with the Third Party’s privacy policy and practices. We do not have control over how a Third Party Service may use your data. You should carefully review Third Party Services’ data collection, retention, and use policies and practices before enabling Third Party Services.

Links

We also have not reviewed, and cannot review, all of the material, including computer software, made available through the websites and web pages that link to, or are linked from, discovery.org or our other Services. For example:

  • We do not have any control over those websites and are not responsible for their contents or their use.
  • The existence of a link to or from one of our Services does not represent or imply that we endorse such website.
  • You are responsible for taking precautions as necessary to protect yourself and your computer systems from viruses, worms, Trojan horses, and other harmful or destructive content.
  • We disclaim any responsibility for any harm resulting from non-Discovery Institute websites.

Changes

Discovery Institute may change our Services and/or the Services Terms and Conditions of Use. If a change to this Agreement is made, Discovery Institute will post the revised Website Terms and Conditions of Use on this website. Discovery Institute reserves the right to add to or change our Services at any time and without liability. Discovery Institute reserves the right to refuse to offer access to its content to anyone at any time without notice.

Copyright Discovery Institute

Our Services and their contents are owned by Discovery Institute or third parties and are protected by law, including but not limited to copyright and trademark law. Certain content, such as copyrighted materials and trademarks, are used by permission of third parties. Except as allowed by law (such as fair use) or as expressly permitted in connection with specific content, this website and its contents may not be reproduced, modified, distributed, displayed, performed, or used in any way without the prior written permission of Discovery Institute or the third-party owner.

Disclaimer of Warranties

Our Services are provided “as is.” Discovery Institute and its suppliers and licensors hereby disclaim all warranties of any kind, express or implied, including, without limitation, the warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and non-infringement. Neither Discovery Institute, nor its suppliers and licensors, makes any warranty that our Services will be error free or that access thereto will be continuous or uninterrupted. You understand that you download from, or otherwise obtain content or services through, our Services at your own discretion and risk.

Jurisdiction and Applicable Law

Discovery Institute Services mostly originate in the United States. Though we have no reason to think not, we cannot know whether our Services abide by the particularities governing content and Internet access in all countries. If you access our Services from outside the United States, you do so at your own risk and are responsible for compliance with the laws of your jurisdiction.

Except to the extent any applicable law provides otherwise, the Agreement and any access to or use of our Services will be governed by the laws of the state of Washington, U.S.A., excluding its conflict of law provisions. The proper venue for any disputes arising out of or relating to the Agreement and any access to or use of our Services will be the state and federal courts located in King County, Washington.

Limitation of Liability

You understand and agree that Discovery Institute shall not be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or exemplary damages, including without limitation, damages for loss of profits, goodwill, use, data loss, or other losses (even if advised of the possibility of such damages) resulting from any matter related to your use of this website.

Miscellaneous

The Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between Discovery Institute and you concerning the subject matter hereof. If any part of the Agreement is held invalid or unenforceable, that part will be construed to reflect the parties’ original intent, and the remaining portions will remain in full force and effect. A waiver by either party of any term or condition of the Agreement or any breach thereof, in any one instance, will not waive such term or condition or any subsequent breach thereof.

You may assign your rights under the Agreement to any party that consents to, and agrees to be bound by, its terms and conditions; Discovery Institute may assign its rights under the Agreement without condition. The Agreement will be binding upon and will inure to the benefit of the parties, their successors and permitted assigns.