As faculty, students and staff at Brooklyn College of The City University of New York, you must comply with copyright law when using materials that you or others have created, own, and/or license when you are engaged in:

• Instructional activities
  • Face-to-Face classroom teaching
  • Online teaching
  • Teaching support (through course packs, library reserves, Web sites, etc.)
• Research & publishing activities
  • Original publications
• Learning activities
  • Course assignments (papers, presentations, Web sites, etc.)
• Other activities using College resources

This document is intended to help you understand how to apply United States copyright law to what you do when engaged in these activities.

Be aware that foreign copyright laws differ from U.S. copyright laws. For example, works which are in the public domain in the United States may not be in the public domain outside the U.S.

Most foreign countries offer protection to works under conditions specified by the Berne Union for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Property (Berne Convention) (http://www.wipo.org/treaties/ip/berne/) and the Universal Copyright Convention (UCC) (http://www.unesco.org/culture/laws/copyright/html_eng/page1.shtml).