CEPF PHOTO AND VIDEO CONTEST LEGAL CONDITIONS

On behalf of the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF), Conservation International Foundation (“CI” or “Sponsor”) is the sponsor of the CEPF Photo and Video Contest (the “Contest”).  NO PURCHASE OR DONATION IS NECESSARY TO PARTICIPATE.

Participation in the Contest constitutes agreement to these Official Rules and acceptance of all decisions made in the course of this Contest by CI, which are final and binding on all matters pertaining to this Contest.

1. ELIGIBILITY: The contest is open to employees and volunteers of all current and former CEPF grantees, except employees of Conservation International and its affiliates and the immediate families of such employees. Entry is limited to individuals of 18 years of age and older at the time of the Contest. This Contest is not open to residents of Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Myanmar, Sudan, Syria, the Province of Quebec and is void in any other nation, state, or province where prohibited or restricted by applicable law.  Furthermore, Specially Designated Nationals and anyone sanctioned (directly or indirectly) by the U.S. Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctions are ineligible to enter the Contest.

2. HOW TO ENTER: During the Entry Period, submit entries by sending the file(s) or a link to downloadable files to photocontest@cepf.net and include "PC2024" in the subject line. Entries must include:

  • Name of copyright owner, including how the image should be credited.
  • Name of grantee and project funded by CEPF.
  • Caption for the photo, including the subject of the image.
  • The location where the photo was taken​.

Each individual may enter no more than 10 images and 2 videos, and they must be your own original work and must be submitted with all of the information outlined above.

3. CONTENT AND OTHER REQUIREMENTS FOR ENTRIES.

  1. All Entries must be original video/photos. 
  2. Prior to entering any photo or video in the Contest, the participant must obtain the explicit permission of each individual (in the event of individuals under the age of 18, the permission of the legal guardian) depicted in the Entry to use their name, voice and likeness for use by CEPF/CI for the purposes set forth below.
  3. Entries should not contain information about the participants or individuals depicted in the Entry such as email, physical addresses, or phone numbers.
  4. CI is a tax-exempt, nonprofit organization and its values and mission are important. Consequently, all Entries will require the approval of CI for appropriateness of content and compliance with the content requirements before being accepted as an official Entry. CI will also not accept Entries that do not support CI’s values and mission.
  5. In addition, the Entry:
  • must not contain material that violates or infringes any rights of any other party, including but not limited to copyright, trademark, privacy, publicity or any other intellectual property rights;
  • must not disparage CI, its programs and services, or any other person or party;
  • must not contain material that is inappropriate, indecent, obscene hateful, tortious, defamatory, slanderous or libelous;
  • must not contain material that promotes bigotry, racism, hatred or harm against any group or individual or promotes discrimination based on race, gender, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation or age;
  • must not contain material that is unlawful, in violation of or contrary to the laws or regulations of the United States or of any jurisdiction where the Entry is created;
  1. CI may, in its sole discretion, remove any Entries and disqualify a participant from the Contest if it believes, in its sole discretion, that the Entry fails to conform to these Content and Other Requirements.

4. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND PERSONAL RELEASE.

a. By submitting an Entry, the participant warrants and represents the following with respect to each Entry:

  • the Entry is an original work and the participant is the sole and exclusive owner of or, as applicable, has obtained all necessary license permissions with respect to, each Entry; 
  • the Entry does not infringe or violate any intellectual property or other rights (including publicity and privacy rights) of any third party;
  • the participant has obtained the explicit permission of each individual (in the event of individuals under the age of 18, the permission of the legal guardian) depicted in the Entry to use his/her name, voice and likeness for use by CI for the purposes set forth below;
  • where permissible, the participant has voluntarily waived all “moral rights” that participant may have in the Entry

b. Participant will retain all rights to any photograph they submitted—including ownership if applicable. By submitting and Entry, the participant grants to CI a perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free, transferable, sub-licensable right and license to use, copy, modify, adapt, publish, translate, create derivative works from and distribute such Entry content and/or incorporate such Entry content into any form, medium or technology throughout the world without compensation to participant; such uses include, but are not limited to: publication on www.cepf.net, www.conservation.org, and CEPF and CI social media properties and other use in internal and external communications related to CEPF’s and CI’s mission.

d. By submitting an Entry, the participant waives any right to review or approve the finished product in which the Entry may appear.

5. ENTRY PERIOD: Entries may be made from 12:00:01 a.m. EDT on 17 April 2024 until 11:59:59 p.m. EDT on 8 May 2024. 

6. WINNER SELECTION AND ODDS OF WINNING:

  1. One still-photo contest winner will be selected among eligible and qualifying participants by a panel of CEPF staff on or about 9 May 2024. The winner will be selected based on the following judging criteria: (i) technical excellence (50%); (ii) composition (25%) (iii) overall impact and artistic merit/quality (25%).
  2. A maximum of 30 of the still images submitted and a maximum of 5 videos submitted will be chosen by the panel to compete for the "Facebook Favorite" awards. These will be judged by fans on CEPF’s Facebook page based on the number of likes received to determine one "Facebook Favorite Award" for still images and one for video. In the case of a tie, the CEPF judges panel will select the winner. Facebook Favorite voting will begin 12:00:01 a.m. EDT 13 May 2024 and end at 11:59:59 p.m. EDT 17 May 2024.
  3. Odds of winning depend on the number of eligible entries received.
  4. Participants not complying with any of these Official Rules, as applicable, will be subject to disqualification. CI’s determination of eligibility for a prize and selection of the winner(s) are final and binding.
  5. CI reserves the right to change the winner selection method and to screen the Contest winners.

7. WINNER NOTIFICATION:

  1. Winners will be notified by email on or before midnight EDT on 20 May 2024. Winners will receive an email from the Contest administrator from the email account  photocontest@cepf.net.
  2. Winners will be required to respond to the notification and reply via email with the requested information within 30 days of the notification. If a winner does not respond within the required time frame, the prize will be forfeited.
  3. The winners must continue to comply with all terms and conditions of these Official Rules and winning is contingent upon fulfilling all requirements.
  4. Any personal information submitted as part of the Contest will be used by CI in accordance with CI’s Privacy Notice and Participant expressly consent to the Privacy Notice. Except where prohibited, Participant consents to CI’s use of the name in any list of winners (if applicable) and/or for promotional purposes in any media without further payment or consideration.
  5. The winner list will be posted to cepf.net by 22 May 2024.

8. PRIZES:

a. The winner of each of the three prize categories will receive US$500. No alternative prize or other substitution is permitted except as elected by CI in its sole discretion in the event of prize unavailability. Prizes are not nontransferable. All federal, state, and/or local taxes are the sole responsibility of the winner. Total value of all prizes: US$1,500.

b. Winners may be required to provide his/her valid tax identification number and/or other tax forms to CI for tax purposes in order to claim a prize. Winners are solely responsible for all federal, state and local taxes on prize value and, as applicable, will be issued an IRS Form 1099 based on the prize value determined by CI.

c. By accepting a prize, winner agrees that CI, META, and their respective affiliates, officers, directors, agents, and employees (“Released Parties”) will have no liability or responsibility whatsoever for any claim arising in connection with participation in this Contest or with acceptance, possession or use of any Prize awarded.

9. LIMITATIONS OF LIABILITY: CI is not responsible for: (1) technical failures of any kind, including but not limited to the malfunctioning of any computer, cable, network, hardware or software, delay in operation or transmission, communications line failure, technology outage, theft or destruction or unauthorized access to, or alteration of entries, whether caused by the sender or any of the equipment or programming associated with or utilized in the Contest; (2) the unavailability or inaccessibility of any transmissions or telephone or Internet service; (3) unauthorized human intervention in any part of the entry process of the Contest; (4) electronic, clerical or human error which may occur in the administration of the Contest or the transmission, receipt or processing of entries or notification of winners; or (5) any injury or damage to persons or property, including but not limited to participant's computer, hardware or software, which may be caused, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, from participant's participation in the Contest. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, CI reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to terminate, modify, cancel or suspend the Contest if fraud, misconduct, technical failures including any network server or hardware failure, viruses, bugs, errors in programming, security, or any other errors or other causes beyond the control of CI corrupt the administration, security, or proper administration of the Contest as determined by CI/Administrator. In the event of termination, a notice will be posted online and the drawing will be conducted from among all eligible entries received prior to termination. In the event of termination, prize will be awarded in a manner to be determined by CI consistent with state requirements. Under no circumstances, including negligence, shall the Released Parties be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, special or consequential damages that result from the use of or inability to use the web site, or out of any breach of any warranty. This exclusion or limitation of liability will not apply to the extent that any applicable statute prohibits such exclusion or limitation of liability. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, EVERYTHING ON THE CI'S WEB SITE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR NON‐INFRINGEMENT. SOME JURISDICTIONS MAY NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES; CHECK YOUR LOCAL LAWS FOR ANY RESTRICTIONS REGARDING THESE LIMITATIONS OR RESTRICTIONS. Any attempt by a participant or other individual to deliberately damage any web site or undermine the legitimate operation of this promotion, including but not limited to any fraudulent claims, may be a violation of criminal and civil laws. Should such an attempt be made, CI reserves the right to seek remedies and damages from any such individual, to the fullest extent permitted by law, including criminal prosecution. CI's failure to enforce any term of these Official Rules shall not constitute a waiver of that provision. Participant engaging in any of the foregoing activities may be disqualified and will forfeit any prizes won. CI is not responsible for any incorrect or inaccurate information, whether caused by participants, printing errors or by any equipment or programming associated with or utilized in the Contest; nor is CI responsible for technical failures of any kind, including but not limited to malfunctions, interruptions or disconnections in phone lines or network or software, unauthorized human intervention in any part of the entry process or the Contest, technical or human error which may occur in the administration of the Contest or the processing of entries; or any injury or damages to persons or property which may be caused, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, from participant's participation in the Contest.

10. RELEASE OF LIABILITY/INDEMNIFICATION: By submitting an Entry, to the largest extent allowed by law, the participant (i) releases CI, its affiliates, their respective directors, officers and employees from any and all claims and liability relating to the participation in the Contest or use of the Entry, including but not limited to any invasion of privacy, right of publicity, defamation, or intellectual property infringement, (ii) agrees to indemnify, defend and hold harmless CI, META and their respective affiliates, officers, directors, agents, and employees (“Released Parties”) from any claims, demands, losses, and liabilities relating to the participation in the Contest or use of the Entry, including but not limited to any invasion of privacy, right of publicity, defamation, or intellectual property infringement.

11. DISPUTE RESOLUTION: CI’s decisions as to all matters related to the administration of the Contest and selection of the prize winners are final, and by entering the Contest participant agrees to abide by these Official Rules and all of CI’s decisions. Participant agrees that any and all disputes, claims, and causes of action arising out of or connected with the Contest, or any prizes awarded, other than the administration of the Contest or the determination of winners, shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action, in accordance with the laws of the District of Columbia, USA, and exclusively by a court of competent jurisdiction within the District of Columbia. By participating in the Contest, participants consents to the personal jurisdiction of such courts and waive any and all objections thereto.

12. THIS CONTEST IS IN NO WAY SPONSORED, ENDORSED, ADMINISTERED BY, OR ASSOCIATED WITH META. NO SHARING, REPOSTING, TAGGING OTHERS, OR OTHER PUBLICATIONS ARE REQUIRED TO ENTER THE CONTEST