Video Conferencing and Virtual Events Policy

At the Extension Foundation, we strive to provide high-quality professional development events to the Cooperative Extension Service. To ensure accessibility and inclusivity, we record our meetings and provide automated closed captions. These captions can be made available upon request for individuals with accessibility needs.

It has come to our attention that some participants are utilizing artificial intelligence technology, specifically Otter.ai bots, to transcribe our meetings without our consent. To maintain the integrity and security of our events, we have established the following policy:

Meeting and Event Recordings: The Extension Foundation typically records its professional development events and posts these recordings on the Connect Extension platform. These recordings are intended for internal use, archival purposes, and to benefit participants who may have missed the live event.

Automated Closed Captions: We provide automated closed captions for our events to enhance accessibility. If you have a specific accessibility need and require access to the captions after the event, please contact us, and we will ensure they are made available to you.

Prohibition of AI Technology: Under no circumstance are participants allowed to use artificial intelligence technology, such as Otter.ai bots or similar tools, to transcribe our meetings without explicit permission. The unauthorized use of AI technology disrupts the flow of our events, compromises the privacy and security of participants, and may violate our policies.

Termination of AI-Bots: If an artificial intelligence bot is detected in our video conferencing sessions, we reserve the right to terminate the session and remove the bot and participant from the meeting. This action is necessary to protect the privacy, security, and experience of our participants.

We kindly request all participants to respect this policy and refrain from using AI technology to transcribe our meetings. By adhering to these guidelines, we can ensure a productive, inclusive, and secure environment for all attendees.

Our mission is to help Cooperative Extension generate a more visible, measurable, local impact.

We achieve this through our nationally funded programs made possible by member dollars and cooperative agreements with federal agencies, and through partnering on state, regional, and national initiatives with Cooperative Extension and the Extension Committee on Organization and Policy (ECOP). We serve all Land Grant Universities, regardless of membership status.

The Extension Foundation is a nonprofit established by Extension Directors and Administrators nationwide. Extension Foundation is embedded in the U.S. Cooperative Extension System and serves on Extension Committee on Organization and Policy (ECOP).

USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture

This website is supported in part by New Technologies for Ag Extension (funding opportunity no. USDA-NIFA-OP-010186), grant no. 2023-41595-41325 from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture or the Extension Foundation.

Sign up for our Newsletter

Stay up to date with the Extension Foundation.