YCONIC:Terms of Service

Please read these Terms of Service carefully before using the Yconic platform

Accepting the terms

Use of the Yconic platform (the ‘Platform’), whether as a visitor or a Registered User, is subject to the following ‘Terms of Service’ and other relevant documents, such as:

• the Privacy Policy,
• authorised policies and procedures (e.g. Yconic’s data protection protocols), and
• any other terms that may have been agreed to in writing by Registered Users or, if minors, their parent(s)/guardian(s) and the Global Action for Young Energy Leaders (GAYEL) Consortium.

Any of the above may be modified from time to time; Yconic will notify Registered Users.

If you do not wish to be bound by the Terms of Service, you will not be able to continue to use or access the Platform. The Terms of Service apply to accessing, browsing and continued use of the Platform.

Yconic provides the following information to help users understand that their continued use of the Platform implies certain obligations, even though no formal agreement is created between Users and following entities: Yconic owners, server hosts, contributors, project administrators, operators, and anyone else officially connected in any way with this project. If any issue should arise between a User and one of the entities mentioned above, the User will need to make claims directly against the entity concerned.

Modifications to the Platform

ACT 4, as the Project Coordinator for Yconic, reserves the right to suspend, discontinue or make changes to the Platform at any time. It will post notifications of substantive changes on the Platform and may send an email to Registered Users. Registered Users agree that ACT 4 may limit or restrict access to parts or all of the Platform without notice or liability. It is the responsibility of Registered Users to check the Platform periodically for changes.

Updated Terms will be displayed on this page.

If the Terms are modified in a manner that substantially affects the rights of Registered Users, they may terminate their use of the Platform by informing ACT 4 (info@en-act.org). By continuing to use the Platform following such changes, Registered Users agree to be bound by the updated Terms of Service.

Personal Information

To comply with the agreement between ACT 4 and ERASMUS+ France, in relation to the aims of the GAYEL project, (Project Agreement n°2023-1-FR01-KA220-SCH-000163993), ACT 4 and its Partners (including energypedia GmbH) will need to collect some personal data. Such collection of personal data is strictly for the specific purposes underlined in privacy policy. Yconic offers choices to Registered Users as to which personal data linked to their profile are publicly available to other Registered Users of the Platform. It is strictly prohibited for Registered Users to harvest or collect information about other Registered Users, including email addresses. The lifetime of these data is limited to that of the corresponding Yconic account; once a Registered User deletes their account, Yconic deletes all associated data. While Yconic has put in place extensive measures to protect personal information, it cannot guarantee 100% security. Such information can be accessed by individuals with physical access to the servers that host the Yconic platform.

Safeguards for youth

To support safe use of the Platform, Yconic suggests that Registered Users review these guidelines to safely be a young editor on wiki-based platforms. Considering the target audience for Yconic, the Terms of Service are established to implement reasonable measures to safeguard the rights of children under the age of 16. In particular, Yconic notes two potential risks related to public disclosure of Sensitive Personal Data (as per the General Data Protection Regulation):

• some such data may accidentally become publicly self-disclosed by people who appear to be children;
• some may be deliberately exposed by individuals who appear to be children, including adults who may pose as children.

Other risks that Yconic recognises include:

• incidences of harassment, or of breach of trust and safety; or
• attempts to pursue or facilitate inappropriate adult–child relationships.

Anyone who notices such incidents on the Platform is encouraged to report them to: yconic.reporting@en-act.org.

Yconic’s Oversight Group (comprising members from the GAYEL Consortium and its affiliated teachers) will:

• review and, if necessary, privately suppress or remove any Sensitive Personal Data.
• review the complaint; if deemed valid, immediately remove the offending Registered User from the Platform; and, if necessary, report inappropriate or illegal behaviour to the relevant authorities.

Yconic User Charter

To promote effective operation of the Yconic Platform – and dynamic exchange among Registered Users – Yconic sets a few standards and norms for behaviour. Registered Users should take the time to read them before posting their first contribution.

1. Registration

In keeping with the principles of wiki-based platforms, any individual with a subject-specific curiosity may register on Yconic. Organisations and enterprises cannot register. However, Registered Users may indicate their link(s) to certain organisations or enterprises in their own profiles. Registered Users can cancel their registration at any time by sending an email to info@en-act.org. ACT 4 reserves the right to disqualify individuals who deliberately provide false information when registering.

2. Content contributions and ethics

Yconic is a collaborative Platform on which participation is voluntary. Users who register through an educational institution, as part of the GAYEL project, may have additional requirements. Any Registered User may contribute content to Yconic, and is free to contribute as much or as little as they choose.

All content uploaded – and any subsequent changes – are considered as publications.

The author of any publication will be publicly identified by their username and hence agrees with the terms of the wiki's license, which can be reviewed here: Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0). These wiki licenses allow creators to communicate which rights they reserve, and which rights they waive for the benefit of recipients or other creators. These wiki licenses do not affect freedoms that the law grants to users of creative works otherwise protected by copyright law. Licenses credit the licensor, keep copyright notices intact on all copies of the work, and link to the license from the copies of the work. Users who wish to import to Yconic any text or content found elsewhere – or that they have co-authored with others – can do so only if such content is available under terms that explicitly allow wider distribution.

Registered Users must properly attribute imported text or content, which usually implies giving due credit to the original author(s). Importing information or content protected by copyright is expressly prohibited as it infringes on copyright. Users who identify copyright infringements should report them to: yconic.reporting@en-act.org, which will: a) delete the information or content in question; and b) notify the publisher of unethical behaviour.

Plagiarism will result in the Registered User being removed from the Platform.

With the exception of Original Content, none of the contributors, sponsors, administrators, or anyone else connected with the Yconic Consortium can, in any way whatsoever, be held responsible for the appearance of any inaccurate or libelous UGC. The same is true for the use of information contained in or linked from these web pages.

3. Content accuracy

Original Content uploaded by the Yconic Consortium is verified to be accurate. As is the case for any open-source wiki system, Yconic cannot guarantee the accuracy of all user-generated content (UGC) that will be added in the future. To maintain a high standard of accuracy, Yconic will periodically review UGC. In parallel, Yconic calls upon its Registered Users to correct errors or mistakes, or to report such problems to: info@en-act.org.

4. Peer Review

Review of content by any/all other users (i.e. peers) is core to continuously improving the quality of wiki platforms. All Registered Users of Yconic will be able to review and edit content, for accuracy as well as for style and overall narrative. The aim of peer review is to enhance the quality and accuracy of UGC, rather than imposing additional demands on contributors. Users should understand, however, that Yconic is not uniformly peer reviewed. Also, while other Registered Users may engage in casual peer review (and correct errors in the process), they are not legally obligated to do so.

5. Moderation / Mutual Respect

All Yconic Users are expected to engage with others in a civil, calm and cooperative manner. The Platform strictly prohibits any activity that serves to express grudges, incite personal conflicts, promote ideological battles, or nurture prejudice, hatred, or fear.

Additionally, Yconic administrators will systematically remove any articles containing off-topic and/or offensive content or that violate the principles of mutual respect. Registered Users who post such content will receive a written warning, and their accounts may be temporarily suspended. Repeated violations may result in permanent deletion of the Registered User’s account.

6. Advertisements

Yconic must not be used for promotional or advertising purposes. Unless factually related to the topic(s) or a given publication on Yconic, mention of service providers, websites, product names and the like are prohibited. Any information related to companies and products must be presented in an objective and unbiased manner. External links to commercial organisations are permitted only when they reference major entities that are relevant to the subject matter of a particular publication. Publications that solicit business, promote a product or service, or serve as public relations pieces designed to advance a company or individual are considered advertisements and are prohibited and will be removed. If a publication is relevant to the Platform but written in the tone of an advertisement, Yconic administrators may request that authors rewrite it from a neutral point of view.

7. Advocacy Campaigns

Training youth to develop advocacy campaigns is core to the Yconic Platform. Yconic acknowledges that such activities may seem to be presented in a biased manner. Registered Users should apply appropriate tone and messaging in campaign activities, in line with guidelines provided by Yconic. In the case that the bias is excessive, Yconic will notify the publishers and request modifications. In the case of repetitive violation, Yconic administrators have the right to delete such publications and advocacy content, and to block the respective Registered User(s).

8. Offensive and/or Illegal Content

The open nature of wiki platforms - i.e. that any User can edit a publication and most changes made are displayed immediately – carries the risk that content (text, images or links) some users consider objectionable or offensive may be uploaded without Yconic administrators being immediately aware of its presence. Users who do find offensive or illegal content should immediately contact: yconic.reporting@en-act.org. Users are welcome to express their views and provide constructive suggestions but should also consider whether the content may be considered appropriate for a given learning objective. The personal opinion of content ‘being objectionable’ is generally not sufficient grounds for its removal. The Yconic Oversight Group will periodically review and manage new content. Even so, it cannot guarantee that all publications will always be acceptable to all users, or will consistently conform to general social norms. When contacted about specific content, the Oversight Group will convene quickly to review it and either: a) delete it; or b) implement edits to support its maintenance. As it may risk being libelous or infringing the subject’s right to privacy, any UGC about living people must meet especially high standards. Publications written as an attack on the reputation of another person will be deleted and may result in the User being suspended.

9. Personality Rights

In certain areas of the Yconic Platform (e.g. Workshop), Registered Users might generate materials that portray an identifiable person who is alive or recently deceased. In some jurisdictions, use of images of such persons is restricted by laws pertaining to personality rights (independent from copyright status). Registered Users are solely responsible for ensuring they do not infringe someone else's personality rights. Users should verify the right to use such content before posting it.

10. File Storage

The Yconic Platform is not a file or content management portal. Registered Users should upload only files that are used (or will be used) in publications or project pages. Yconic will delete any content that seems irrelevant to participation in the Platform.

11. Third-party websites

The Yconic Platform contains many links to other online resources, including third-party websites. Registered Users acknowledge that neither the Yconic Consortium nor its Data Controller (ACT 4) are responsible or liable for the content or any aspect of such third-party websites. Inclusion of such links does not, in any way, constitute endorsement of, or association with such websites. The Yconic Privacy Policy offers tips on how to safely navigate third-party websites.

General Legal Terms

Registered Users of the Yconic Platform should understand that the above ‘Terms of Service’ do not, in any way, constitute any legal agreement or understanding between Users and ACT 4. Similarly, members of the Yconic Consortium have no legal responsibility in the case that one Registered User changes, edits, modifies or removes content posted by another Registered User. All Users can, however, express related concerns to: info@en-act.org. ACT 4 may provide Registered Users with notices, including those regarding changes of the Terms, by email or through postings on the Platform. ACT 4 may transfer its Data Controller rights and obligations to another organisation. Similarly, energypedia GmbH may transfer its Data Processor rights and obligations to another organisation. In either case, ACT 4 will notify Registered Users in writing. Such changes would but not affect User rights under the Terms of Service. Where the words ‘in writing’ appear in the Terms of Service, this includes email. If Registered Users wish to contact ACT 4 in writing, or if any provision in the Terms of Service requires that they give ACT 4 notice in writing, Registered Users can send this by e-mail to: info@en-act.org.