Terms of Use - FeralMap

Welcome to feralmap.com ("FeralMap," "we," "us," or "our"), a platform developed and maintained by Nene.org. These Terms of Use ("Terms") constitute a binding legal agreement between you ("you," "your," or "User") and FeralMap. By accessing, browsing, submitting data to, or otherwise using the Platform, you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you do not agree, you must immediately discontinue use of the Platform.

1. Purpose of FeralMap

FeralMap is a community-driven platform to collect, share, and visualize data on feral and invasive species in Hawaiʻi. Our mission is to ensure data is transparent, accessible, and usable by the public, policymakers, researchers, and agencies, while balancing ethical, conservation, and legal considerations.

2. Data Transparency and Licensing

What is published:

FeralMap publishes a public projection of each report: the species, the kind of observation, reported counts, the observation day, and a location generalized to a map cell. Photos you attach are resized, stripped of metadata and published as prepared copies unless they are withdrawn or removed after a report. Original photos, free-text notes, exact coordinates, your account identity and contact details, and structured descriptions of people or vehicles are excluded from the public report fields. Published photo copies can still show faces, homes, license plates or other identifying details; resizing and metadata removal do not redact image content. Restricted report fields and originals are kept for review and analysis as described in the Privacy Policy.

License Grant:

The published projection and published photo copies are released to the public under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0). By submitting a report, you grant FeralMap a worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free, non-exclusive license to store, review, analyze, adapt and publish your submission in that form, and you grant the public the CC BY 4.0 license over what is published. Unpublished material is not licensed to the public.

Attribution Requirement:

Any use of FeralMap data must include attribution substantially in the following form:

Data provided by FeralMap (feralmap.com), developed by Nene.org, and community contributors under CC BY 4.0.

Download the published projection and read the column guide at feralmap.com/data.

Sensitive Data:

For conservation or privacy reasons, FeralMap may further generalize, restrict, or withhold location or other data, for example near endangered species nesting sites. A published map point is a reported observation, not a verified fact, a count of unique animals or a colony.

3. User Responsibilities

By using the Platform, you agree:

To submit only accurate, good-faith observations to the best of your knowledge.
Not to knowingly submit false, misleading, defamatory, or harmful information.
Not to upload content that infringes third-party intellectual property, privacy, or publicity rights.
Not to submit any material that is unlawful, obscene, harassing, or otherwise inappropriate.
That your submissions may be aggregated, analyzed, and incorporated into research, publications, and conservation management strategies.

4. Acceptable Use

You agree not to:

Use the Platform for any unlawful purpose, including harassment or targeting of individuals.
Attempt to disrupt, damage, or exploit the Platform (e.g., hacking, automated scraping, denial-of-service).
Use the Platform to encourage or facilitate illegal animal feeding, release, relocation, or activities contrary to conservation law.

5. Disclaimer of Accuracy and Warranties

FeralMap provides content and data "as is" and "as available."
While we strive for accuracy, FeralMap does not guarantee that submissions are correct, complete, or reliable.
Users are solely responsible for verifying information before relying on it.
FeralMap disclaims all warranties, express or implied, including but not limited to merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement.

6. Privacy

FeralMap collects limited personal information (a reporting handle, an optional recovery email, account credentials, and any contact details you choose to add) for account management, receipts and private follow-up.
By submitting a report, you acknowledge that its generalized location and the other published fields described in Section 2 become public.
Submitting a report does not send it to any government agency and does not request a response. If an animal or situation needs urgent attention, contact the responsible agency directly.
You are responsible for not including unnecessary personal or identifying information in submissions.
Please review our Privacy Policy for more information on how we handle data.

7. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law:

FeralMap, Nene.org, and their officers, directors, employees, contractors, and affiliates shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or for any loss of profits, data, or goodwill, arising out of or related to your use of the Platform.
In no event shall FeralMap's total liability exceed $100 USD.

8. Indemnification

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless FeralMap, Nene.org, and their affiliates, officers, directors, employees, and agents from any claims, liabilities, damages, costs, or expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of or related to your use of the Platform, your submissions, or your violation of these Terms.

9. Termination

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate your access to the Platform at any time, with or without notice, if you violate these Terms or engage in conduct harmful to the Platform's integrity or mission.

10. Modifications to Terms

We may revise these Terms from time to time. Updated versions will be posted on this page with a revised effective date. Continued use of the Platform after updates constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

11. Governing Law and Venue

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Hawaiʻi and applicable U.S. federal law. Any disputes shall be resolved exclusively in the state or federal courts located in Hawaiʻi County, Hawaiʻi, and you consent to personal jurisdiction therein.

12. Contact Information

For questions regarding these Terms, please contact:

FeralMap Team (Nene.org)

Email: contact@nene.org

Website: feralmap.com