Canadian Copyright

Any photographs that you did not take yourself will require copyright permission, and you should not include photographs of human research participants. We also recommend blurring the faces of people who appear in your photographs, unless they have given you permission to take their picture for your thesis.

Images and photographs found through Google Images or on websites such as flickr.com are never ok to use without permission. You will need to determine who owns the copyright to the images you wish to use, and if they haven’t indicated that it’s ok to use them for commercial use, you will need copyright permission to publish them in your thesis. Sites such as Flicker.com or Wikimedia Commons allow you to search specifically for images that have been released for commercial reuse.

Figures, diagrams, and drawings are considered to be “whole works”, and they are protected by copyright. Redrawing or adapting a figure will also require copyright permission. If you are using a figure from an academic source such as a journal or book, check to see if that title is covered by our copyright clearance license by going to www.copyright.com. Type in the name of the book/journal in the search box. If you see a green checkmark beside "Academic -- Digital/Print" then our license covers your use. However, you will need to ensure that the figure you are using was created by the author of the book/journal article and that the author did not get permission to use someone else's work--since that permission is not transferrable. In other words, if the author sought permission to use that image in their work, you will need to find the original source of that figure and seek permission from the original author.

If you can't find the original author/source, try contacting the publisher for copyright permission.

Adapting Figures

You may end up changing a figure significantly to suit your needs. This is considered an adaptation, and you must give a proper citation for adapted work. You must obtain copyright permission to use adapted figures, no matter how different they are from the original.

You should only adapt a figure if it is necessary to do so; redrawing a figure without adding your own ideas is not advised. It is often easier to obtain copyright permission to use an original figure rather than an adaptation.

If you create a map using a cartography program you will not need permission to publish it in your thesis. However, if you adapt or use a map that someone else created, it will require copyright permission. If you purchase a map or aerial photograph for your thesis make sure that the purchase agreement is for commercial use of the image. Maps that belong to a sponsoring organization still require copyright permission.

Maps from Google Maps and Google Earth do not require copyright permission as long as you obey their stipulations regarding attribution and use. You should carefully review their copyright website if you are considering using their maps in your thesis.

Visit Google's "Using Maps in Print" to read about what you need know before using maps in print.

Your Map must include Google’s copyright attribution for the map you are using. Please make sure you read and understand the stipulations outlined on Google's attribution page.

The Map Data information must be legible in the image, or included in the figure description.

Facts are not protected by copyright, however presenting facts in a new or unique way may be. For example, a table presenting statistical data on the Montreal population is not protected, but a table presenting this data in a specific way may be. You will need to carefully consider the content of a table when determining if you require copyright permission to reprint it. Feel free to contact the library if you have questions.

Mission, vision, and other organizational statements are considered a "whole work". This means that copyright permission is needed to print these statements in your thesis regardless of the length of the statement. You will still need copyright permission even if you are quoting your sponsoring organization's organizational statements.

You will need to obtain copyright permission to publish logos in your thesis. You may want to consider removing logos from your manuscript if they aren't necessary.

Before embarking on a mission to seek permission for using copyright protected materials, check to see if our Copyright Clearance Center license covers that title. Adler University purchases an annual license with the the Copyright Clearance Center which allows faculty, staff and students to use materials without worrying about infringing on copyright.

Seeking permission is a straightforward process, but obtaining responses from copyright owners can take a long time. You are strongly encouraged to send out your permission requests as early as possible.

The first step in the process is to identify the copyright owner. Usually you will be able to identify the owner somewhere on the work by looking for the copyright symbol ©, which should have the copyright owner’s name next to it. You’ll often find this at the beginning of a book, at the side of a photograph or at the bottom of a web page. Your options include seeking permissions from individuals, commercial publishers or journals.

If the copyright owner is a commercial publisher, the fastest course of action is often to search for the work in question at the Copyright Clearance Center (CCC). The CCC handles permissions for a large number of publishers, and permission to include images in theses can often be obtained through the CCC website swiftly and at no cost.

If you cannot obtain permission through the CCC, then the next step is to check the publisher’s website. Many publishers will require that you submit your request directly to their permissions department, while others will require that you use an online form.

When you arrive at the website, look for a link that says "Rights and Permissions" (or something similar), then read through the available information to determine the correct method for requesting permission.

If the copyright owner is an individual, then the next step is to email or write to them, explaining how and why you want to use the work and requesting permission. The permission should be in writing; an email message will suffice. It’s also a good idea to keep a record of:

• Who gave the permission
• What was permitted
• The date
• How to contact the person who gave the permission.

Include the following information in your requests:

Introduction

Tell the copyright owner that you are a graduate student preparing a thesis for submission as part of the requirements for your degree at Adler University.

Request

Give standard reference information for the work you wish to use, including figure/table number, if any, and page numbers. You should briefly describe the context in which you propose to use the work in your thesis.

Distribution

Tell the copyright owner where their work will be distributed: on ProQuest and Theses Canada.

You will not know at the time you are asking permission, whether your thesis will be published in an academic journal. If you believe that it is a realistic possibility, you may wish to ask the copyright owner’s permission to use their work in the published version of your thesis.

Action

Request a reply by a given date, and offer to send the copyright owner a copy of your completed work.

Record Keeping

Keep copies of request letters and all correspondence with the copyright owner.

When you are unable to obtain permission or there is a charge for obtaining permission, you must either:

• remove the copyrighted material and insert the text described below; or
• replace the material with a different work for which permission is either obtainable or not required (such as works that are covered by Creative Commons licenses or that are in the public domain).

If you have removed copyrighted material from your thesis and not replaced it, you must insert the following:

• A statement that the material has been removed because of copyright restrictions
• A description of the material and the information it contained, plus a link to an online source if one is available
• A full citation of the original source of the material

Example: Figure 3 has been removed due to copyright restrictions. It was a diagram of the apparatus used in performing the experiment, showing the changes made by the investigating team. Original source: Wu, G. and Thompson, J.R. (2008). Effect of Ketone Bodies on Dairy Cattle. Biochemistry Journal, 255(2), 139-144.

The brief description of the removed figure is important, as it gives the reader a chance to follow the thesis argument without needing to look up the actual figures. If possible, including a link to an online source is also very useful.

Important: Your thesis must be as complete as possible. Removal of material is only acceptable if you are denied permission, if an unreasonable fee will be charged for use of the material, or if you receive no response from the copyright owner after making a reasonable effort at contact.