Policy

Them Days Policy

AI Policy (Section 01)
Policy Statement
This policy reflects the valuable and significant cultural and intellectual content of Them Days Magazine and Archives, which involves the histories, talents, and skills of many individuals. Additionally, it reflects the enormous environmental impact of large language models and photo and video generative AI programs, as well as the psychological impact on people training generative AI.

Definitions
Artificial Intelligence (AI): Systems that predict outcomes based on statistical models derived from large datasets.
Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI): Produces text, images, and videos in response to prompts. Large language models (LLMs), a type of GenAI, use a diverse range of text, often drawing on digitized texts and text from the internet, to produce text that is near or even indistinguishable from text composed by a human.

Permitted Uses
Them Days can use tools to produce non-editorial content, including marketing communications, strategic documents or automated workflows.
Writers and editors can use AI tools for tasks such as background research, identifying sources, and proposing interview questions.

Prohibited Uses
Them Days archives are open to members of the public, but not open to scanning, uploading, or feeding into AI programs.
Them Days writers and editors cannot feed sensitive information into AI. Sensitive information includes, but is not limited to, sources’ non-public information or data, intellectual property or privileged information.
Meetings: All participants in Them Days Board and Committee meetings have the right to privacy. In addition, discussions and activities often involve confidential topics. As such, AI based assistants and transcription tools are prohibited. Exceptions apply when an accommodation is required. Arrangements must be made in advance of the meeting/event.
Disclosure
This policy is public to serve as disclosure to readers on how Them Days uses AI.

AI Tools
Acceptable: None at this time!
Unacceptable:
ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, Sora and other video generating tools, DALL-E 3, Trint, Otter.AI, Google Translate, Google Pinpoint and other video generating, image generating, transcription, and translation tools

 

Environmental Policy (Section 02)
Policy Statement
Them Days will consider the environmental impact of its operational footprint and will strive to make the most environmentally-friendly choice in all of our decisions and practices.
 
Policy in Action:
Them Days actively recycles refundable beverage containers (you are welcome to add to our account at Rodger’s Recycling under our account 709-896-8531!) and all other recyclables (paper, cardboard, plastic, metal) through the HV-GB Recyclers group. We ensure that electronics are recycled after a long usage period, and ensure that batteries and other hazardous materials are properly disposed of. We have an office compost for food, tea leaves, and coffee grounds.
 
We use the backs of non-confidential papers for printing, reuse poly mailers, and bubble envelopes for shipping.
 
With our latest renovations, we have installed LED lighting and heat pumps to decrease our electricity consumption, and we reused materials whenever possible (like our kitchen cupboards). 
 
We also purchase supplies for our office as locally as possible to reduce the environmental footprint of our purchases (and to support other local businesses). At our events, we use re-usable cutlery and plates before turning to disposable, and when we do, we prefer to use those that are compostable in a home composting system.