These Terms of Service govern your use of the website and services provided by China Ecological Environment News Agency Limited. By accessing this website, reading our reporting, submitting a message or commissioning our reporting services, you agree to be bound by these terms. If you do not agree with them, please do not use the website.
The newsroom publishes independent ecological journalism under the developer name EcoChina News. We want these terms to be clear and fair, so they are written in plain English. Where a term needs explanation, we have tried to explain it in the same paragraph rather than sending you to another document.
Please read these terms together with our Privacy Policy, which explains how we handle personal information. Both documents apply whenever you interact with the Company online.
1. Who We Are
China Ecological Environment News Agency Limited is an independent ecological newsroom and the operator of this website. The Company is registered with its office at 12/F San Toi Building, 137-139 Connaught Road Central, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong (HK). Throughout these terms, references to the Company, to we, to us and to our mean China Ecological Environment News Agency Limited.
Our reporting covers environmental conditions, policy, data and communities across the Chinese-speaking regions of China. Our services include field reporting, policy monitoring, data journalism, long-form investigations, visual essays and newsroom training.
You can reach the newsroom at office@mgarza.mom or by telephone at +12245767988. These details also appear at the end of these terms.
2. Eligibility
You may use this website if you can form a binding agreement with the Company under the law that applies to you. If you are using the website on behalf of an organisation, you confirm that you have authority to accept these terms for that organisation.
The website is not directed at children who are too young to consent to data processing in their jurisdiction. If you are below that age, please use the website only with the involvement of a parent or guardian.
We may require you to provide accurate information when you contact us or engage our services. Providing false information, or impersonating another person, is a breach of these terms.
3. Permitted Use of the Website
We grant you a limited, non exclusive, non transferable right to access and read the website for lawful purposes. This right does not transfer ownership of any content to you, and it may be withdrawn if you breach these terms.
You are welcome to read our reporting, share links to our pages, quote short passages with clear attribution, and use our published material for teaching, research and public discussion within the limits described in the section on the use of our reporting.
You agree not to interfere with the normal operation of the website, not to attempt to gain unauthorised access to any system or data, and not to use automated tools to harvest content in a way that imposes an unreasonable load on our infrastructure.
4. Prohibited Conduct
To keep this website and our newsroom safe, the following activities are not permitted. This list is not exhaustive, and behaviour that undermines the integrity of our reporting or the safety of our sources and staff may also breach these terms.
- Attempting to access accounts, servers or data without authorisation.
- Uploading or transmitting malicious code, viruses or harmful material.
- Using the website to harass, threaten, defame or harm any person.
- Submitting false information in a way that misleads the newsroom or the public.
- Reproducing our reporting in bulk or reselling it without written permission.
- Removing or altering attribution, notices or marks on our published material.
- Using our website in a manner that breaks any applicable law or regulation.
- Interfering with the ability of other readers to use and enjoy the website.
We may investigate suspected breaches, restrict access, and cooperate with authorities where the law requires it. Protecting the newsroom from abuse is part of protecting the public record that we maintain.
5. Intellectual Property
All content on this website, including text, photographs, graphics, data visualisations, page design and the newsboard presentation, is owned by China Ecological Environment News Agency Limited or used with permission from the rights holder. These materials are protected by copyright and related laws.
The name China Ecological Environment News Agency Limited, the EcoChina News developer name and the visual identity of this website are marks of the Company. You may not use them in a way that suggests sponsorship, endorsement or affiliation without our written consent.
Nothing in these terms transfers intellectual property rights to you. All rights not expressly granted are reserved by the Company and by the respective rights holders.
6. Use of Our Reporting
We want our environmental reporting to travel. You may quote short extracts in a review, commentary, academic work or news summary provided that you attribute the material to China Ecological Environment News Agency Limited and, where practical, link to the original page.
You may not republish an entire article, a full data set or a complete photo essay without written permission. Commercial use of our material, including use in advertising or paid publications, requires a licence agreed in advance.
Where we publish data visualisations, the underlying figures often come from public sources. You are encouraged to work from those original sources and to credit both the source and our analysis. If you are unsure whether a proposed use is permitted, write to us and we will answer clearly.
7. Submissions and Correspondence
When you send a message, tip, document, photograph or other material to the newsroom, you confirm that you have the right to share it and that doing so does not breach any law or agreement to which you are subject.
You retain ownership of material you send to us. By submitting it, you grant the Company a non exclusive, worldwide, royalty free licence to use, reproduce, edit and publish the material in connection with our reporting and related activities. We will handle personal information in line with our Privacy Policy.
Journalistic judgement determines what we publish, how we edit it and when it appears. We are not obliged to publish any submission, and sending material does not create a confidential relationship unless we agree so in writing. If you need confidentiality for safety reasons, discuss the matter with us before sending the material.
8. Corrections Policy
Accuracy matters more to us than pride. If we publish something that is wrong, we correct it openly and explain what changed. If you believe a published item contains an error, write to office@mgarza.mom with the page, the statement you question and any supporting evidence.
Our editors review each correction request against the field record and the original sources. Where an error is confirmed, we update the item, add a correction note describing the change, and publish the correction in a manner consistent with the seriousness of the error.
Requests that amount to a disagreement with a well supported finding are handled as correspondence rather than as corrections. We may still publish a response, because a fair hearing is part of our method, and readers benefit from seeing the exchange.
9. Third Party Content and Links
This website may include content supplied by third parties and links to external websites. Such content and links are provided for information and verification purposes. China Ecological Environment News Agency Limited does not control external sites and is not responsible for their content, availability or practices.
Following a link away from our website takes you outside the scope of these terms. You use external sites at your own discretion and subject to their own terms and policies.
If you believe a link on our website points to unlawful or harmful material, please tell us and we will review it promptly.
10. Commissioned Services
The Company accepts commissions for field reporting, policy monitoring, data work, long-form investigations, visual essays and training. The specific scope, timetable, deliverables and fees for a commission are set out in a separate written agreement between the Company and the commissioning party.
Editorial independence is not negotiable. A commissioning party may discuss the subject and the intended use of the work, but may not review or approve copy before publication, and may not require a particular conclusion. We decline commissions that would compromise accuracy or fairness.
Unless the written agreement says otherwise, the Company retains ownership of the reporting it produces and may publish it on its own platforms. Fees, payment terms, expenses and cancellation conditions are stated in the agreement, and work begins after the agreement is signed.
11. Training and Mentorship
Our training and mentorship programmes are offered to journalists, community groups and partner newsrooms. Participants agree to follow the editorial and safety standards of the Company while taking part, including standards on source protection and field conduct.
Materials provided during training are for the use of the participant and may not be resold or republished as a separate course without written permission. Work produced by a trainee under supervision is governed by the same editorial standards as staff work.
Enrolment may be declined or ended where a participant acts in a way that risks the safety of others or the integrity of the programme. Any fees and refund conditions are set out in the programme description provided before enrolment.
12. Disclaimer of Warranties
The website and its content are provided on an as available basis. While the newsroom works to keep information accurate and current, we do not warrant that the website will be uninterrupted, free of errors, or free of harmful components.
Environmental conditions change and policy evolves. A report that was accurate on the date of publication may become outdated as circumstances shift. Readers should consider the publication date of a report and consult primary sources where a decision depends on the detail.
To the fullest extent permitted by law, the Company excludes all implied warranties, including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and non infringement. Nothing in these terms excludes a warranty that cannot lawfully be excluded.
13. Limitation of Liability
To the fullest extent permitted by law, China Ecological Environment News Agency Limited will not be liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages arising from your use of the website or from reliance on its content.
Where liability cannot be excluded, our total liability to you in connection with the website will be limited to the greater of the amount you paid to the Company for the relevant service, or one hundred Hong Kong dollars. Some jurisdictions do not allow certain limitations, so parts of this section may not apply to you.
Nothing in these terms limits liability for fraud, for wilful misconduct, or for any other liability that the law does not permit to be limited.
14. Indemnity
You agree to indemnify and hold harmless China Ecological Environment News Agency Limited, its officers, employees and contributors against claims, losses, liabilities and reasonable costs arising from your breach of these terms, your misuse of the website, or your infringement of the rights of another person.
This obligation applies only to the extent that the claim arises from your conduct and not from the conduct of the Company. We will notify you of any such claim and will cooperate reasonably in the response.
15. Privacy and Data Protection
Our handling of personal information is described in our Privacy Policy, which forms part of these terms. By using the website, you acknowledge that you have read that policy and understand how the newsroom collects and uses information.
Source protection is a core commitment of the newsroom. Where information is gathered for journalistic purposes, it is handled under the additional protections described in the Privacy Policy, and those protections apply alongside these terms.
If you have a concern about how your information has been handled, contact us at office@mgarza.mom and we will investigate promptly.
16. Website Availability
We aim to keep the website available at all times, but we do not guarantee continuous access. Maintenance, security work, network problems and events beyond our control may interrupt the service. We may also change, suspend or withdraw any part of the website without notice.
We are not liable for any loss caused by an interruption that is outside our reasonable control. Where a planned change would significantly affect users, we will try to give advance notice on the website.
17. Termination
You may stop using the website at any time. We may restrict or end your access if you breach these terms, if we are required to do so by law, or if continuing access would put the Company, our staff, our sources or other readers at risk.
Provisions that by their nature should survive termination continue to apply, including those dealing with intellectual property, disclaimers, limitation of liability, indemnity and governing law.
18. Governing Law and Disputes
These terms are governed by the laws of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, without regard to conflict of law rules. The courts of Hong Kong have jurisdiction over disputes arising from these terms, unless a mandatory rule in your jurisdiction provides otherwise.
Before beginning formal proceedings, we ask that you contact the newsroom so that we can try to resolve the matter directly. Many disagreements are the result of a misunderstanding that a direct conversation can settle fairly.
If a dispute cannot be resolved informally, either party may bring proceedings in the courts identified above. Nothing in this section prevents either party from seeking urgent relief where it is genuinely needed.
19. Changes to These Terms
We may update these Terms of Service from time to time to reflect changes in our services, our practices or the law. When we make a material change, we will update the effective date at the top of this page and, where appropriate, post a notice on the website.
Your continued use of the website after an updated version takes effect means that you accept the revised terms. If you do not accept a change, you should stop using the website before the change takes effect.
Earlier versions of these terms are retained so that the evolution of our commitments remains visible to the public.
20. General Provisions
If any provision of these terms is found to be invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions continue in effect, and the invalid provision is interpreted as closely as possible to its original intent.
A failure by the Company to enforce a provision is not a waiver of that provision. These terms, together with the Privacy Policy and any written commission agreement, form the entire agreement between you and the Company about your use of the website.
You may not assign your rights under these terms without our written consent. We may assign our rights to an affiliate or in connection with a reorganisation, provided that these terms continue to protect you.
Headings are used for convenience only and do not affect the interpretation of these terms.
21. How to Contact Us
If you have a question about these Terms of Service, wish to request permission to use our reporting, or want to discuss a commission, please contact the newsroom using the details below.
China Ecological Environment News Agency Limited
12/F San Toi Building, 137-139 Connaught Road Central, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong (HK)
Email office@mgarza.mom
Telephone +12245767988
We will respond as quickly as we can, and we will explain any decision about permission or partnership in plain terms.
These Terms of Service work together with our Privacy Policy to set out the rules that govern this newsboard. Both documents are maintained openly, because a newsroom that reports on the conduct of others should be equally clear about its own.