Julianna Yau’s blog

Last week, I attended the first Ignite Waterloo event, and was completely blown away. It was my first time attending any Ignite event, and I’m amazed by how well the format works — 5 minutes and 20 slides per presentation, and no notes! The most invigorating part of it was the sheer variety of presentations. Although I wasn’t interested in all of the presentations (maybe 2 or 3?), I was exposed to much more than I would have at any other event.

It was extremely refreshing to be in a wholly different group than the usual suspects. Because of the variety of topics, it wasn’t just people from the local geek community. I met Angela Pause, a freelance writer, and her friend (whose name escapes me, but I believe starts with an M), who used to be a scenic painter. I met Saravana Rajan, who works in the health industry and is doing some really cool consulting work to improve long-term care & monitoring of chronic diseases.

But, more importantly, I was overwhelmingly proved wrong in my earlier feeling that Waterloo lacks the coolness that I had formerly found in Toronto. It seems the vibe and richness has always been here, but took Ignite Waterloo to really bring to the surface and hit me over the head. It’s been a long time since I’ve been to an event anywhere with the electricity and excitement I felt at Ignite Waterloo. I can hardly wait for the next one!

I used to be a big supporter of Telus. Great customer service, competitive plans, and…well, I really didn’t need anything else!

But that is quickly changing.

I recommended Telus to my business partner, and she has had nothing but problems with them. Billing problems, delayed delivery of voicemail notification, delayed delivery of text messages, and god knows what else. This is a huge problem for us, as we can’t conduct business efficiently if she can’t get her messages promptly (some of them were delayed by almost 48hrs).

Their customer service has degraded quite a bit. Not that I ever had to call them much, but service was always with a smile. The staff at their stores used to be more knowledgeable and better mannered. I used to be able to understand the person on the other end of the phone. None of that is true anymore.

Their new “Clear Choice” plans are what really did it for me, though. I was excited when Telus announced they were getting rid of the system access fee, and expected the new plans to be 2 or 3 dollars off either way. Instead, I found that the closest approximation to my current plan is a whopping $17 more per month. That’s $204 more a year! Of course, I realize that I can keep my current plan, but the prospects of changing my plan are more than a little distasteful. The next plan up from what I have now will cost me $34 more per month — or $646 over the course of the remainder of my 19 month contract.

What’s worse is the equivalent to my plan on Bell is actually 81 cents cheaper per month, and Rogers’ is only 32 cents more per month. An upgrade of my current package to Bell? $16 more per month — that’s a dollar less than what my current package would cost with a “Clear Choice” plan.

So the real clear choice seems to be leaving Telus whenever I can get a sweet deal and a new phone from Bell, Rogers, or one of the new telcos opening up shop next year!

Math overview:

(all plans except Clear Choice include System Access Fee, 911 Fee and Taxes; prices are current as of November 26, 2009 and are monthly)

I have been without a netbook since this summer, after selling my 701 (first generation) EeePC because the keyboard couldn’t keep up with me. After a relatively quiet summer, I picked up a new 1005HA EeePC, mainly for the 10.5 hr battery. As with all things you fall in love with, it is making me rethink some of my life choices… and in this case, the way I compute.

For a few years now, I have been a mostly a convert of open source software, using OSS for everything from my operating system (OpenSUSE) to my office suite (OpenOffice.org). This was driven primarily by:

1. My dislike for the unfinished state in which all Windows releases are made
2. The vulnerability to viruses of Windows
3. The lack of money to buy closed-source software

Because OpenSUSE is a Linux distribution and doesn’t have perfect drivers for all of my hardware, I still kept Windows on my laptop as a backup, just incase. With one computer, this worked fairly well, as I could use my operating system of choice about 95% of the time.

Now, I’m faced with the problem of having to maintain not 2 operating systems, but 4 – 2 on my primary laptop and 2 on my netbook. With the increased frequency of updates and upgrades for operating systems and software, keeping everything current is not only daunting, but feeling like it may be detrimental to productivity (e.g. having to run updates on all my OSs and software before I can do anything). Then, of course, there is the problem of maintaining parallel sets of user settings in all 4 operating systems and the software in each of them. Thinking about having to do all of this makes me feel like my own IT department.

After looking at the time I have at my disposal and the work I have to accomplish, maintaining 4 copies of an OS is simply not an option. This leaves me with the very disappointing option of running Windows, with only open source software, rather than running OpenSUSE. It feels almost like defeat to have to return to Windows as a primary operating system, but the sad fact is that Linux stability and hardware support just isn’t good enough for it to be a primary operating system for everyday use. It’s a good OS, but only if you have the time to maintain it.

The Canadian Conference of the Arts is pleased to present, in association with the Centre for Cultural Management, University of Waterloo, and the Alliance for a Grand Community and the Waterloo Regional Arts Council:

Cultural Policy 101 Workshop:
The Politics of Art and the Art of Politics

Wednesday November 18, 2009
7:00 – 10:00 pm

Council Chambers (3rd floor), Waterloo City Centre
100 Regina Street South (at William) in Waterloo

Cultural Policy 101: The Politics of Arts and the Art of Politics seeks to engage and inform arts professionals, students, and interested Canadians on how the arts, culture, and heritage sector in Canada has been, and continues to be, shaped by public policy. This exciting workshop, led by CCA’s National Director Alain Pineau, will give participants:

• A brief background of Canadian cultural policy and the recent developments to our rich history
• An overview of current practices in the workings of government and policy development
• A toolkit for advocating for the arts
• A practical case study exercise

To register, please contact Bill Poole at the Centre for Cultural Management
wpoole@uwaterloo.ca or 519-888-4567 x 35057

The workshop will be limited to 40 participants.

For me, yesterday’s Creative Enterprise Forum unearthed many unresolved issues that I noticed last year while advocating support for the arts. The forum left me with more questions and concerns than answers or confidence that the Council’s time and resources are being properly spent. The raw notes can be found here.

Although someone who was recruiting for their Leadership task force recognized me and said my name had been passed to her, I have yet to be approached by anyone from the Creative Enterprise Initiative or the Prosperity Council. So this is an open letter to them, with my thoughts on what is concerning and what is missing from their plan. Like all blog posts, this one probably still needs a proper copyedit, but this is the best I can do in three hours, before I return to other projects.

My comments here are very blunt and I haven’t bothered to sugar-coat anything. Overall, I would say that what they are doing for organizations have promise, but there is still much to be desired. If anyone from the Initiative or Council wants to speak with me, I would be happy to engage in an open and honest dialogue about what is lacking. Otherwise, I’ll continue to fix these things myself and with the help of other like-minded citizens.

1. Outreach
2. The Enabling Organization
3. Methods & Timeline
4. Semantics
5. The Creator
6. Space
7. Bold, New Ideas

1. Outreach

Perhaps what left the most bitter taste in my mouth yesterday, and what caused me to leave early, was the Creative Enterprise Initiative’s lack of transparency when it comes to identifying who it was in the arts and “youth” communities they engaged. Someone posed this question to them, and this was not actually answered—there was a short, general statement, without any organizations or individuals named. They also mentioned a “meeting” they had last year at Kitchener City Hall; I was at this meeting, and it was extremely one-sided and was a presentation, again, of what they have already done, rather than gathering information from the arts community. This leaves cynics like me wondering whether there was consultation at all with the real-life stakeholders of this initiative.

I was also left wondering why I was never contacted. Although I don’t think I’m the person to speak to, as I noted above, my name has obviously been brought to their attention. I have met with both the NDP and Liberal candidates for my riding in the last election. I am no stranger to copyright legislation or arts administration, or other political issues in the arts. But I was never contacted, and didn’t know this forum was taking place until last week. This is also despite the fact that I receive listings to be added to Artifice, one of the few arts mailing lists serving the region, and am able to keep a pulse on what’s happening in the arts community.

The Creative Enterprise and Prosperity Council websites also leaves much to be desired. No recent information can be gotten from the Prosperity Council’s website, and no contact information is on the Creative Enterprise’s website. This leaves me wondering how the community (artistic and geographic) can find out what they are doing if they aren’t able to secure an invite to forums like the one hosted yesterday. This also doesn’t inspire confidence in the marketing support they are going to offer through the Enabling Organization, if few know about the Initiative or Council themselves. Perhaps this exclusivity was intentional, but this again leaves one wondering who they are supposed to be supporting.

They say that they want to reach “youth”; it doesn’t take much to know that most “youth” spends time online, and without even a maintained website, it’s hard to see how “youth” can learn more about these bodies. I also wonder how they define “youth” (which is why it’s in quotes). Is it 17 and under? If so, where do university students, recent grads and 25-35s fit in their plan?

2. The Enabling Organization

The scope of the Enabling Organization is still very vague at this point. I have two main concerns: one broad, and one specific.

The first concern is that while the Enabling Organization looks to be an excellent resource for galleries and other organizations, support for individuals (and creators in particular) is obviously absent. I realize that the scope and plan for the EO will change over time, but it worries me that the initial plan has left out such a significant part of the arts community.

The second concern is what they have in mind for grantwriting support. The Canada Council and Ontario Arts Council already offer excellent support for those looking to obtain grants from them. Globe Studios recently brought someone to Kitchener from the OAC, and the Multimedia Cinema Club has someone from the Canada Council here this weekend. The Guelph Arts Council also regularly has grantwritting sessions with people from the OAC. CARFAC Ontario and Visual Arts Ontario both offer grantwritting courses (last year, CARFAC Ontario even offered their course by teleconference to a toll-free number, for those who could not attend a class in Toronto). I hope that whatever grantwritting support the Enabling Organization offers will not duplicate efforts already established elsewhere.

3. Methods & Timeline

Members of the Creative Enterprise Initiative speak frequently about wanting a “made in Waterloo” solution that isn’t mimicking another city. What I fear is that in trying to be home-brewed, more time will be spent on reinventing the wheel than implementing a plan. The concept of taking something and customizing it for ourselves can’t be disregarded as a valid method. While creativity is key, there is much to be said for learning from the successes and failures of others. How is taking the essence of something like the Centre for Social Innovation from Toronto, and building our own arts version of that, any different than striving to create an arts version of the Accelerator Centre?

I also wonder how effective these consultations, task forces and organizations will be in effecting any immediate change to keep some of the young talent in the region before the end of a 10-20 year plan. Things like #hohoTO have proven that we need neither a long gestation period nor a large core group to achieve large, financial goals. Things like BarCamps, the next evolution of conferences, are a new and effective way for minds to meet and ideas being formed. These newer methods of doing things are how things are getting done—without task forces, committees and forums. Any attempt to engage “youth” will involve these “bold, new ideas” for how to do things, even though I’ve heard they are extremely unsettling for those who are accustomed to the presentation-and-questions format of “engaging” people.

Yesterday’s presentation mentioned short-term actionable items to build momentum. My biggest question here is what these items are and how soon is the short-term? We are long overdue for change, and initiatives such as KWArtzLab, KWCultureCamp and KWArtCamp are already quickly forming to fill an immediate need that isn’t being served by local arts councils or addressed by the Creative Enterprise Initiative or Prosperity Council.

Speaking very personally, a 10-20 year, or even 5-10 year, plan isn’t going to be of very much use to many of us between 20 and 35. “We” being many of the people who will likely be needed to carry a 10-20 year plan to fruition. If some very basic things don’t change quickly, like more opportunities for new artists or affordable, safe space to create, many of us will have a difficult time deciding whether to move, shelve our creative output, or end it entirely. Perhaps not many are as intent as I am with maintaining a reasonable standard of living (a home that is in a safe neighbourhood and isn’t plagued by unsafe structures or mice) or insisting on working in space that won’t result in my body or living space being polluted—but I also don’t think that these things are unreasonable requests.

The problem is finding space for creation and having access to funds for sustenance is not easy. I support myself through a full-time job, am currently without a studio which is affordable and welcomes a messy artist, and have few local prospects for showing any work that I am able to complete (despite the fact that my work sells quickly when I do host my own shows). I know many others are in similar situations, and without one of these factors changing quickly, staying in the Region will not be a smart choice.

4. Semantics: The Arts vs Artist vs Culture vs Heritage

This problem is two-tired. The first is that art, culture and heritage are not the same thing and can not be cultivated or encouraged in the same way. While they work wonderfully together, nurturing each of these requires individual attentions.

The second is that I have noticed that supporting The Arts and supporting Artists is two distinct things, though few are willing to admit it. Supporting The Arts is supporting organizations and institutions — symphonies, rather than the violinist; theatres, rather than the playwright or actor; galleries, rather than the visual artist; jazz festivals and record labels, rather than the musician. What I’m seeing here, and elsewhere, is a distinct support for The Arts, and the absence of support for the Artist who fills the theatres, galleries, festivals and symphony halls.

5. The Creator

So how, exactly, does the creator/artist fit into the Creative Enterprise Initiative?

The forum mentions sustaining individuals, but there is no apparent part of this draft of their plan which even hints at support for individuals—whether they be small business owners in the creative community, or creators/artists. When the plan outlines the needs which have to be addressed, these items speak only to the needs of organizations, such as operational funding and experimental project funding. While some of this money may make it to the individual creator, creators can not depend on this funnelling for sustenance. This is why granting agencies such as the Canada Council and Ontario Arts Council have separate grants for organizations and individuals.

As I mentioned above, the Enabling Organization is also sorely lacking any plans for enabling creativity at the individual level. This is no surprise, as the needs that it was designed to fulfil are also those of organizations. But where can artists turn when a bad landlord has unjustly entered their studio and destroyed their work? Where can a musician go to obtain temporary equipment for a large show? Who can help ensure that more local writers are featured in bookstores in the region, rather than the big names who already get plenty of attention? What happens when mediation is required between an individual creator and a gallery, studio, theatre or publisher?

More importantly, why were these considerations left out of the plan if people in the arts community had been consulted prior to the presentation of this plan?

6. Space

Perhaps the biggest problem facing individuals right now is space. The Creative Enterprise Initiative speaks of an “Accelerator Centre for the Arts”, which offers meeting, rehearsal and performance space.

But what about dirty space?

Space where a metalsmith can generate toxic fumes. Safely. Space where woodworkers and stoneworkers can generate dust. Safely. Space where potters can dispose of their materials. Safely.

Space where rehearsals for metal bands don’t result in calls to by-law offices. Space where actors can scream without police showing up.

Space here creativity can happen without bounds.

The arts version of an Accelerator Center, at this point, sounds mostly academic and administrative. While this is necessary, I don’t see how we can “foster creativity” without space to create. I have personally been in (and left) studio spaces in Kitchener. None were properly equipped to handle something simple as noise and dust. Certainly, none would be able to handle anything more toxic, such as chemical fumes, without the artist or craftsman investing heavily into the infrastructure, as I had (and still ended up leaving due to other factors in the building).

Creativity is not just painting, desktop design or playing Bach on the piano. We need a space where creation can be dirty, noisy, and even toxic—but for it to be safe and accessible. We don’t need a handout, but we do need the infrastructure.

7. Bold, New Ideas

Overall, I’m very skeptical that the Creative Enterprise Initiative or the Prosperity Council is open to ideas that are bold and new enough to effect real change, without becoming like one of the cities they are trying so hard not to mimic.

Education receives disappointing attention in this plan. I’ve spoken with professors who recognize the lack of real-world training in their arts programs. Things as simple as having a business card or knowing how to get funding for their projects is not part of the education all creators receive. How can we expect arts graduates from Laurier and the University of Waterloo to be as successful as their science and computer science counterparts if they aren’t given the same preparation?

Things like the Enabling and Barnraisers organizations have very broad scopes at this time, and smack of the same bureaucratic practices that many of us have seen and abandoned for new collaborative structures. Arts Councils are not new, and calling them an Enabling Organization that does the same thing will not give us anything new.

And why a solution to manpower is to find more volunteers for arts organizations, rather than finding ways to create more jobs in the arts, is absolutely baffling to me. Not only are volunteers a recourse only because of lack of funding, but I thought one of the goals of the Prosperity Council was to create more jobs. Why not turn the hundreds of volunteer positions into paid full-time, part-time and contract positions? Is this, perhaps, too bold and too new of an idea? I thought it was not merely needed, but obvious. Perhaps I’m wrong.

These are my raw notes from the Creative Enterprise Forum. These notes are not exhaustive, and are as much as I could record quickly. Commentary to follow.

Things of note:

• create and fund a regional arts & culture development & promotion body → outstanding item to address
• cultural vitality → sustainability
• arts, culture & heritage
• ultimate goal is to generate private employers
• attract the best minds, generate new ideas, wrap a business around it, create jobs

Ultimate Goals

• improving our community’s quality of life
• attracting & retaining the best & brightest artistic & technical minds
• cultivating the not-for profit and for-profit creative economy
• fostering enterpreneurism and bold, new ideas

Members of note

• Doug Craig – Mayor, City of Cambridge → Vision Task Force
• Bruce Gordon, Manulife Financial & Manulife Bank → Structure Task force
• -Pauline Houston, City of Kitchener → Structure
• Mike Murray, Region of Waterloo → Resources Task force
• Brenda Halloran, Mayor, City of Waterloo → Resources Task Force

“The Prosperity Council and its supporters believe that a creative sector with a sustainable infrastructure is necessary to fully realize our long-term growth opportunities”

How they plan to do this

• must make a “made in Waterloo” solution
• shouldn’t be a copy of other “creative communities”
• long-term vision must be broad and emphasize creativity and innovation across all sectors of community
• also requires a short-term focus on actionable items (quick wins) that help build momentum
• need to develop a framework or infrastructure that will support the development and implementation of the Vision over many years

5 key themes

• sustainability for creative orgs and individuals
• leveraging collaboration within the creative sector (and other sectors)
• communication & marketing
• education and community engagement
• bold and undiscovered ideas
• world-class institution for the arts, like CIGI or PI

Goal: to create a world-leading environment that

• transforms the human experience
• makes Waterloo Region one of the most attractive and compelling places on the planet
• fosters artistic creativity
• supports constant innovation in commerce & technology

“This successful human environment fosters and promotes Cultural, Economic, Environmental and Social well being for all of its constituents”

What has been done

• already achieved reasonable success in each of the four pillars of sustainability, but have not committed the same level of resources and attention to the arts and culture sector as some of the others
• we are recommending the near-term focus be leveraged towards Cultural vitality (rough note)
• researched & inventoried; compared results with the “Business for the Arts” national fundings survey of arts and culture across the country

Resources

• base sustainability shortfall is $2.5-$5 million annually
• not getting our “fair share” of federal and provincial funding
• local “performing arts organizations” get about 7.5% of their funding from provincial/federal agencies – the national average is 15%
• local “museums and art galleries” get about 10% of their funding from prov & fed gov agencies – the national average is 60%
• private sector funding of performing arts lower than national/provincial averages (relatively small # of corporate supporters)
• business community is not supporting the arts as much here
• companies know they need to give, but don’t know how to do it in arts & culture heritage → don’t know which festival to support, for example
• municipal per capital is “middle of the pack” ($15.50) compared to similar Ontario municipalities, but lower than some important comparators/competitors:
  Ottawa 18.07
  Toronto 24.82
  Hamilton 37.27
• Toronto stepped up funding for arts & culture post-SARS to get people back

Needs

• additional stable base operating funding
• additional special funding to support bold new initiatives (similar to venture capital)
• company needs to be able to make mistakes
  arts funding too tied to organizational funding
• additional funding for sector marketing (raising profile, awareness, support in the community)

Human Resource needs

• attract, hire, retain high quality, skilled, creative staff and managers
• attract and deploy volunteers efficiently and effectively
• attract well-qualified BOD members
• management and leadership training & development for staff, volunteers and BOD
• develop joint benefit plans

Physical resource needs

• affordable, accessible space for rehearsals, performance, meetings
• can be shared space

Financial resources

• public
  • local government
  • provincial
  • federal
• foundations/Not For Profits
• private sector
  • corporate
  • individuals
• high-impact: increase property taxes and other things

Recommendations will

• implement vision
• put initial focus on the arts, culture and heritage sectors
• engage more than just those who participate in the arts, culture, and heritage sectors of Waterloo Region

Rec #1: Establishment of “Barnraisers’ council of Waterloo Region”

• how to deal with issues going forwards
• provide high level, strategic consensus building that is necessary for a large, multi-faceted community to adapt continually
• identify strategic issues & recommend possible responses
• be guided by the need to achieve balance in our overall objectives
• include reps form business, local gov, health care & education, arts/creative sector, foundations & NFP orgs
• include individuals who can make commitments or cause those commitments to be made; commit themselves and their orgs to a role in the solutions and also get others to do so

Recommendation #2

• establishment of an “enabling organization” for the creative sector
• provides services to enable the arts, culture, and heritage sectors to achieve their potential
• Waterloo Regional Arts Council 2.0
• encourage and enable the creative sector
• help provide the environment for arts to create great art
• allow orgs and individuals to focus on their “core” business
• encourage divergent orgs to find & build upon common purpose
• find centers of excellence and build on them
• org would provide/coordinate:
  • admin services
  • human resources
  • benefit plans
  • audience development programs
  • marketing assistance
  • festivals
  • grant writing assistance
  • advocacy
  • corporate funding –> facilitate funding through corporate funding program
  • physical space –> 5-10 years, Accelerator Center equiv for arts

Barnraiser’s Council

• David Johnston has agreed to assist in the formation of the council and will take the lead on determining its initial membership
• goal is to have members in place by the end of 2009

The Task Force Co-chairs will continue in their roles to:

• determine initial board, structure, by-laws etc
• secure 3-5 years of guaranteed funding for the Enabling Org
• initiate search for a high-level Executive Director
• address the creative sector base sustainability funding gap-it cannot be solved by any one sector –all must step up!
• request for additional investment in arts & culture to all 3 sectors – municipal, businesses, fed/prov governments
  • (approx 1M/yr from each)
  • ask the Region to incrementally increase funding by $1 per resident and the local municipalities to also incrementally increase funding by $1 per resident

This is a community investment agenda: all must participate!

Change mind shift from “charity” to “investment”

New leadership

• Engage a diverse alliance of young leaders to work together with us towards strengthening and developing our arts, culture and heritage environment
• met with group under 40 – high school to 40
• want to get them engaged; eg new media
• the “final” product in 10 or 20 years will look much different from what is set out here. It must, by its nature, or it will not be an eneabler and encourager of adaptation through innovation and creativity”

Mentioned spOtlight festival in passing

Talked about a creative economy

Peter Braid

• $50 mil invested in post-secondary education
• $50 million to Institute to Quantum Computing
• Vital Signs

Cheryl Ewing

• eyeGo

Other speakers

• CCT website (what the heck is this?)
• focus on HERITAGE → Oktoberfest, Grand River (the river)
• education
• want to develop a recognized arts institute

(My laptop’s battery died at this point, as there was no where to plug it in)

I was at Loop Gallery in Toronto today, to take a look at Liz Parkinson’s show (on until July 19). I was a student of Liz’s in the days of yore, and a ashamed that I have already forgotten how wonderfully calming and beautiful her work is. The door of the gallery was open, and the light breeze blowing into the gallery gave the work a ghostly feeling. The prints were monochrome/non-colour on what looked like ricepaper, and had a very ancient feel to them.

I received the following email from Schmap.com today:

You’ve been sent a Flickr Mail from Emma J. Williams:

————————————————————

:: Schmap: Paris Photo Shortlist

Hi Julianna,

I am writing to let you know that three of your photos have been short-listed for inclusion in the eighth edition of our Schmap Paris Guide, to be published at the end of this month.

http://www.schmap.com/shortlist/[code removed]

Clicking this link will take you to a page where you can:
i) See which of your photos have been short-listed.
ii) Submit or withdraw your photos from our final selection phase.
iii) Learn how we credit photos in our Schmap Guides.
iv) Browse online or download the seventh edition of our Schmap Paris Guide.

While we offer no payment for publication, many photographers are pleased to submit their photos, as Schmap Guides give their work recognition and wide exposure, and are free of charge to readers. Photos are published at a maximum width of 150 pixels, are clearly attributed, and link to high-resolution originals at Flickr.

Our submission deadline is Friday, July 17. If you happen to be reading this message after this date, please still click on the link above (our Schmap Guides are updated frequently - photos submitted after this deadline will be considered for later releases).

Best regards,

Emma Williams,
Managing Editor, Schmap Guides
www.schmap.me/ewilliams

I wasn't very interested in the offer to begin with, but thought I'd at least take a look to see what the terms are, and which pictures they were interested in.

I don't consider those to be any of my better pictures from Paris, so I'm a bit surprised they made it onto a shortlist. The TOS are pretty standard, but notably has some good wording about the images not being sublicensed and the photographer being credited for the photo.

TERMS OF SUBMISSION

THESE TERMS OF SUBMISSION (THE “TERMS”) REPRESENT A LEGAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN YOU, EITHER AN INDIVIDUAL PERSON OR A SINGLE LEGAL ENTITY (“YOU”), AND SCHMAP, INC. (“SCHMAP”). BY CLICKING THE “SUBMIT” BUTTON, YOU CONFIRM YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF THE TERMS.

1. PHOTOS
The term "Photos" refers to one or more photographs and/or images licensed by You to Schmap pursuant to the Terms.

2. LICENSE GRANT
Subject to the terms and conditions herein, You hereby grant Schmap a worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive, perpetual license to include the Photos in the current and/or subsequent releases of Schmap's destination/local guides.

3. FAIR USE RIGHTS
Nothing in these Terms is intended to reduce, limit, or restrict any rights arising from fair use, first sale or other limitations on the exclusive rights of the copyright owner under copyright law or other applicable laws.

4. LIMITATIONS
The license granted in Section 2 above is made subject to and limited by the following express limitations:

(a) Schmap may only distribute, publicly display, publicly perform, and/or publicly perform the Photos pursuant to the Terms.

(b) Schmap shall be required to keep intact all copyright notices for the Photos and provide, reasonable to the medium or means of utilization, the name of the original author (or pseudonym, if applicable) if supplied, for attribution in Licensor's copyright notice, terms of service or by other reasonable means, and a credit (implemented in any reasonable manner) identifying the use of the Photos in any derivative Photos created by Schmap.

(c) Schmap shall, to the extent reasonably practicable, provide Internet link(s) to your Photos.

(d) Schmap shall not sublicense the Photos.

(e) Schmap shall indicate to the public that You reserve all rights with respect to use of the Photos.

(f) Schmap shall continue to make its destination/local guides available at no cost to end users.

(g) Schmap shall display the Photos at a maximum width of 150 pixels.

5. RIGHTS
You confirm that You own or otherwise control all of the rights to the Photos and that use of the Photos by Schmap will not infringe or violate the rights of any third parties.

6. NO OBLIGATION
Schmap shall have no obligation whatsoever to reproduce, distribute, broadcast, or otherwise make use of the Photos licensed by You to Schmap hereunder.

7. NO AFFILIATION
While the Flickr website and/or Flickr API have been used to short-list your Photos, Schmap claims no affiliation or partnership with Flickr.

8. MISCELLANEOUS
If any provision of the Terms is ruled unenforceable, such provision shall be enforced to the extent permissible, and the remainder of the Terms shall remain in effect. The Terms constitute the entire agreement between the parties with respect to the Photos licensed hereunder. There are no understandings, agreements or representations with respect to the Photos not specified hereunder. If there is any dispute about or involving the Terms or the license granted hereunder, You agree that such dispute shall be governed by the laws of the State of California without regard to its conflict-of-law provisions. You agree to personal jurisdiction by and venue in the state and federal courts of the State of California, City of San Francisco. The license granted in the Terms may not be modified without the mutual written agreement of You and Schmap.

I don't understand how my images were selected for this project, because most of my Flickr photos, including those shortlisted, are still traditionally licenced; only a small selection of them have a Creative Commons license.

Although a few people have told me that they've also received these invites from Schmap and have allowed them to use their images, I have withdrawn my photos from their shortlist. I totally agree with this post on Thought Bubbles about Schmap, and can't help but allow my history with copyright to inform my decision. This business model (particularly considering that they didn't filter for photos that people have licenced with Creative Commons) uses photos without payment to enhance profit for their company -- not cool. Of course, Google's business model is also in that murky grey area, but a little differently. I'd argue that their image search doesn't use photos in the same way because I've never noticed any ads [yet] on their image search results.

There are tons of people who will give you "free" exposure online and offline. But most of the time, it's not worth what you're being "paid".

Incidentally, I went through my pictures and found a handful which I consider to be much better than the ones they selected:

This is the last video I have of Theo Jansen’s work. It took me a while to get it ready because I had to edit the footage to under 1GB. The creature is the Animaris Ordis, and this was a sculpture that visitors to his exhibit were allowed to move around the room. The simplicity and functionality of the joints was amazing.

These are photos and video of Animaris Modularis by Theo Jansen, exhibited at Hibiya Patio in Tokyo. Content posted with permission by the artist.