Terms & Conditions of Use

RAINFOREST ALLIANCE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF USE for SustainableTrip.org

Last Revised: May 16, 2013

SustainableTrip.org (the “Site”) is a website managed by the Rainforest Alliance (“Rainforest Alliance”, “we” or “us”) that provides information and resources to travelers, tour operators and travel agents concerning sustainable hotels, tour operators and other businesses in Mexico, Central and South America and the Caribbean.

Visitors may subscribe to receive the SustainableTrip.org Monthly Update email newsletter, which features links to all new content posted on the Site during the previous month (and thereby become “Subscribers”).

Tourism businesses that are verified by the Rainforest Alliance or certified by members of the Sustainable Tourism Certification Network of the Americas are eligible to be listed on SustainableTrip.org. Other tourism businesses, that are located in countries where the Rainforest Alliance is not working or where a certification program is not available, which are recommended by a reputable organization may also apply to be listed. Guidelines for participation are posted on the Site.

In order to participate on the Site, businesses (“Members” or “you”) must complete an online questionnaire available at sustainabletrip.org/add/. Before submitting your information, you must first represent that you have read and understand, and agree to abide by, all of the terms and conditions of use contained herein (the “Agreement”). Your use of and participation on the Site indicates your acceptance of these terms and conditions of use and the privacy policy of the Site.

The Rainforest Alliance may change or modify the Site or this Agreement at any time. The Rainforest Alliance advises you to review this Agreement periodically for changes, because your continued use of the Site indicates your acceptance of any changes.

1. Member Username and Password, Authority to Act and Confidentiality.

(a) Members agree to provide the Rainforest Alliance with current, complete and accurate information when completing SustainableTrip.org’s online “Add a Tourism Business” form. If an individual submits information on behalf of a business as a Member, the individual unconditionally warrants that he/she is legally authorized to act on behalf of the Member and to bind it to the terms of this Agreement. Individuals submitting information must be at least 18 years of age.

(b) Members can update their information at any time, either by contacting SustainableTrip.org staff, or by requesting that Site staff send them a secure link where they can access their business profile online and update their information directly in the Site database.

(c) Members agree to notify the Rainforest Alliance immediately of any errors on their business profile(s)or any security breaches such as unauthorized users updating their information.

2. Privacy of Information. The Rainforest Alliance understands the desire of Members and Subscribers to know how their information is used and secured, and is committed to taking all reasonable and appropriate measures to safeguard against unauthorized disclosures of information. Our privacy policy, which explains the Rainforest Alliance’s online information practices and data security on the Site and is hereby incorporated herein.

3. Member Rules, Restrictions and Obligations. Members are prohibited from:

(a) submitting information to, on and through the Site or using the Site, except as permitted under the terms and conditions stated in this Agreement;

(b) obtaining unauthorized access to other Members’ information or data, or otherwise breaching or attempting to breach the security of Member information or data;

(c) misrepresenting themselves and their businesses in connection with their use of the Site, or knowingly uploading, posting or transmitting incorrect, inaccurate or incomplete information to, on or through the Site;

(d) permitting unauthorized access to the Site or use of Members-only features of the Site by third party non-members;

(e) submitting any information that is libelous, defamatory, obscene, pornographic, vulgar, abusive, harassing, threatening, harmful to others or otherwise objectionable;

(f) submitting any personally identifiable information without first obtaining such person’s consent to do so;

(g) infringing upon the copyrights, privacy rights, trademarks or other intellectual property rights, rights in confidential information or trade secrets of the Rainforest Alliance, any other Member or any other person;

(h) interfering with or disrupting the use of the Site by the Rainforest Alliance, other Members or the general public;

(i) altering or tampering with the Site’s software, appearance or functionality;

(j) uploading, posting or transmitting a computer virus, worm or other contamination which causes the Site to become inaccessible, inoperable or contaminated, or which is designed to be destructive, harmful or threatening to others;

(k) engaging in unlawful activities in connection with the Site, or in activities which place the Rainforest Alliance or other Members at risk of civil or criminal liability;

(l) reproducing, duplicating, copying, selling, commercially exploiting access to the Site or any of the content made available on the Site (except for content you posted), or otherwise using the Site for commercial uses or purposes;

(m) using the Site or the publicly available information about Members contained on the Site in connection with surveys, contests, pyramid schemes, chain letters, junk mail, spamming, unsolicited messages, or off-topic messages; and

(n) promoting the Site through “spam” messages to third parties.

4. License. By submitting content to the Site, Members grant a royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive right and license to the Rainforest Alliance to use, reproduce, modify, publish, translate, create derivative works from, distribute, transmit, perform and display the profile (in whole or in part) worldwide and/or to incorporate into other works in any form, media, or technology now known or later developed for the full term of any rights that may exist in such content or information, subject to these terms and conditions of use and the privacy policy referenced herein. Any visitor to the Site who seeks to reproduce, modify, publish, translate, or otherwise use content posted by a Member must obtain the necessary permission from the owner of such content.

5. Trademark Notice. Rainforest Alliance™, SustainableTrip.org™, the Rainforest Alliance logo, the Rainforest Alliance Certified™ seal, the Rainforest Alliance Verified™ marks, and other names of Rainforest Alliance products, services and programs referenced in this Site are protected trademarks or registered trademarks of the Rainforest Alliance. All rights reserved.

6. Copyrights and Copyright Infringement. (a) All Site content posted by the Rainforest Alliance is protected Copyright © 2014 by Rainforest Alliance, Inc. All rights reserved. Site content posted by the Rainforest Alliance may not be reproduced without the Rainforest Alliance’s prior written permission, with the following exception: Members may print copies for their own business use, provided that the content of the copies may not be altered and the appropriate copyright and/or trademark notice must be affixed to each copy printed, where applicable.

(b) The Rainforest Alliance disclaims all copyrights to, ownership rights to, responsibility and liability for Site content posted by Members. The Rainforest Alliance reserves the right to remove a portion or all of a Member profile without notice. Members are solely responsible for the accuracy, validity or legitimacy of their Member profiles. Members represent and warrant that they own or have sufficient rights to content to grant the licenses provided herein.

(c) Members agree not to infringe the copyrights or other intellectual property rights of any other Members or users of the Site. Members must report immediately to the Rainforest Alliance any actual or suspected violations of copyright or intellectual property rights of which it becomes aware, whether such actual or suspected violation involves the Rainforest Alliance’s rights, the Member’s rights, the rights of another Member of the Site or a third party.

7. Warranty and Liability Disclaimers. (a) Except as limited by law, the Rainforest Alliance makes no representations or warranties, express or implied, with respect to the Site or any portion thereof, including any warranties of merchantability, suitability, fitness for a particular purpose, title, or non-infringement of copyright, trademark or patent rights of others. The Rainforest Alliance does not represent or warrant that the information or data available on the Site will be accurate or error-free.

(b) Except as limited by law, the Rainforest Alliance makes no representations or warranties, express or implied, that the files or functions contained in the Site or made available for downloading are free from computer viruses, worms or other harmful contamination, or that users of the Site will have uninterrupted and error-free access to the Site. Members who use the Site are responsible for implementing their own procedures and protections against possible damage to hardware, software and systems. You use the Site at your own risk.

(c) In no event shall the Rainforest Alliance be liable for any loss, claim or damages, direct or indirect, consequential or incidental, punitive or other, arising from (1) the use of or failure to use the Site, (2) any failure or delay in including updated materials on the Site, (3) any errors, omissions, inaccuracies or typographical errors on the Site, (4) any libelous, defamatory, obscene, pornographic, vulgar, abusive, harassing, threatening, harmful or otherwise objectionable or illegal content on the Site transmitted to or placed on the Site, (5) any infringement of another’s rights, including intellectual property rights, (6) any unauthorized access to or alteration of transmissions of data on the Site or failure of information or data to transmit, or (7) any decisions made or actions taken in reliance upon information found on the Site.

(d) The Rainforest Alliance reserves the right to make changes or improvements to the Site, or to update information or data on the Site, at any time.

8. Indemnification. You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless the Rainforest Alliance, its subsidiaries, affiliates, officers, directors, employees and agents, against any claims, actions, demands, liabilities or damages (including reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs), whether direct or indirect, consequential or incidental, asserted or awarded against the Rainforest Alliance or its subsidiaries, affiliates, officers, directors, employees and agents, by any third party, which arise from your use of the Site, including but not limited to your breach of any of the terms and conditions of this Agreement, your negligence, gross negligence or willful misconduct, or your breach of any warranty, representation or covenant contained herein. You shall use your best efforts to cooperate with the Rainforest Alliance in the defense of any such claims.

9. Communications between the Rainforest Alliance and Site Members. The Rainforest Alliance may send electronic mail to Members regarding changes or additions to the Site. The Rainforest Alliance may also send electronic mail to Members for the purpose of obtaining feedback on Members’ use of the Site. Information obtained by the Rainforest Alliance through communications with Members will be used to improve the Site and better understand Members’ needs.

10. Termination. (a) By Member: You may remove your Member Profile at any time by sending an electronic mail to Site staff at info@sustainabletrip.org requesting a termination and stating the reason for your request. The Rainforest Alliance will respond within five business days and will confirm by electronic mail.

(b) By Rainforest Alliance: The Rainforest Alliance, may, at its discretion, terminate or remove all or a portion of a Member profile for any reason, at any time, including but not limited to, breach of any of the terms and conditions contained within this Agreement. In such event, the Rainforest Alliance will send an electronic mail notification to the Member which states the basis for the termination or removal.

11. Links. The Site may contain links to other websites not operated by the Rainforest Alliance. These websites are not controlled by the Rainforest Alliance and the links are provided only as a convenience. The Rainforest Alliance does not endorse any other websites and is not responsible for their content or availability. The Rainforest Alliance recommends that you review terms and conditions of use and privacy policies when visiting other websites.

12. Miscellaneous Provisions. (a) The terms and conditions contained herein shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York.

(b) Members agree that regardless of any statute or law to the contrary, any claim or other legal action arising out of or related to use of the Site must be filed within one year after the reason for the claim or other legal action arose. In addition, the claim or other legal action must be filed in a court located in the County of New York, State of New York, U.S.A.

(c) Members agree that no joint venture, partnership, employment or agency relationship exists between you and the Rainforest Alliance as a result of this Agreement or use of this Site.

(d) In the event that any portion of this Agreement is deemed to be invalid or unenforceable pursuant to applicable law including, but not limited to the warranty disclaimers and liability limitations set forth above, the remaining provisions of this Agreement shall remain in full force and effect.

(e) The Rainforest Alliance’s failure to exercise or enforce any right or provision contained in this Agreement shall not constitute a waiver of that right or provision.

(f) This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between you and the Rainforest Alliance regarding the use of this Site, and supersedes all prior writings or understandings between you and the Rainforest Alliance with respect to this Site.

(g) The Rainforest Alliance reserves the right to, and may from time to time, change or modify the terms and conditions under which it offers Members access to and use of the Site. It is your responsibility to review this Agreement periodically, because your continued use of the Site signifies your acceptance of any changes to this Agreement. The date on which this Agreement was last modified shall be posted at the top of the Agreement.

Any questions about these terms and conditions of use of the Site may be directed to the Site administrator by emailing .