Effective Date: 7/28/2026

Last Updated: 7/28/2026

 

1. Acceptance of These Terms

These Terms of Use (“Terms”) govern your access to and use of instituteforhumanawareness.com, its Library, publications, forms, Member pages, and related online features (collectively, the “Site”). The Site is operated by Steve Engle, doing business as The Institute for Human Awareness™ (the “Institute,” “we,” “us,” or “our”), a registered trade name in the State of Ohio.

 

By accessing or using the Site, creating a Member account, submitting information, or downloading Institute content, you agree to these Terms and acknowledge the Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, do not use the Site.

 

2. Purpose of the Site

The Site provides educational and informational material concerning awareness, human experience, history, science, philosophy, spirituality, nature, civilization, the cosmos, universal patterns, and related subjects. It also provides access to Institute publications, newsletters, Member participation opportunities, and future interviews, conversations, Field Notes, or educational activities.

 

The Institute is a platform for thoughtful inquiry. It does not require Members or readers to accept predetermined beliefs or conclusions.

 

3. Eligibility

You may view public Site content if you can lawfully do so. You must be at least 18 years old to create a Member account or submit a Member profile. The Site is not directed to children under 13.

 

By creating a Member account, you represent that the information you provide is accurate and that you meet the eligibility requirements.

 

4. Member Accounts

Membership is currently free and represents participation in a shared journey of inquiry, reflection, learning, and growth. Membership is not an endorsement of every Institute publication or viewpoint.

 

You are responsible for:

• maintaining accurate account information;

• protecting your login credentials;

• activity conducted through your account; and

• notifying us promptly if you suspect unauthorized access.

 

You may not share credentials, impersonate another person, create an account for someone without authorization, or use a Member account for unlawful or abusive purposes.

 

At launch, Member accounts are private and are not intended to create a public Member directory or open social network. Member features may evolve over time.

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5. Newsletter Subscription

Newsletter subscription is separate from Membership. You may subscribe without creating a Member account and may become a Member without subscribing. You may unsubscribe from newsletter communications at any time using the link provided in an email.

 

6. Permitted Use

Subject to these Terms, you may:

• access and read public Site content;

• download publications offered for download for your personal, noncommercial use;

• share links to public Institute pages or publications;

• quote limited portions of Institute content as permitted by law and with appropriate attribution; and

• participate in Institute forms, surveys, and Member activities for their intended purposes.

 

7. Prohibited Use

You may not:

• violate applicable law or the rights of another person;

• interfere with Site security, operation, availability, or access controls;

• attempt to gain unauthorized access to accounts, systems, or information;

• upload malicious code, spam, deceptive content, or harmful material;

• harass, threaten, discriminate against, impersonate, or invade the privacy of another person;

• misrepresent your affiliation with the Institute;

• copy, republish, sell, license, or commercially exploit Institute content except with written permission or as permitted by law;

• systematically scrape, harvest, or extract Site content or personal information;

• use Institute content to train, fine-tune, benchmark, or develop an artificial-intelligence or machine-learning system without written permission, except to the extent such restriction is prohibited by applicable law;

• remove copyright, trademark, authorship, or other proprietary notices; or

• use the Site in a manner inconsistent with its educational and community purposes.

 

8. Intellectual Property

Unless otherwise stated, Site content—including text, publications, graphics, photographs, videos, designs, downloads, the Institute seal, and other original materials—is owned by Steve Engle or used with permission and is protected by applicable copyright, trademark, and other laws.

 

The Institute for Human Awareness™ name and related branding are used as trademarks. The Institute name is also a registered trade name owned by Steve Engle in the State of Ohio.

 

No ownership interest is transferred to you by your use of the Site. All rights not expressly granted are reserved. Nothing in these Terms limits rights available under applicable law, including fair use.

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9. Downloadable Publications

Publications, including Volume I - The Beginning, may be downloaded for personal reading and reference. Unless written permission is obtained, you may not reproduce an entire publication, remove authorship or copyright notices, distribute modified versions, sell copies, or present Institute content as your own.

 

Links to the official Site or official publication download are encouraged.

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10. Member Responses, Feedback, and Other Submissions

You retain ownership of original material you submit through a form, survey, Member question, or communication.

By submitting feedback, ideas, responses, questions, recommendations, or other material, you grant the Institute a nonexclusive, worldwide, royalty-free permission to review, store, reproduce, summarize, adapt, and use that material for Institute-related purposes. Unless the context clearly indicates public submission, we will seek additional permission before publicly identifying you by name with a quotation, story, or contribution.

 

We may use aggregated or de-identified themes from Member responses without identifying individual participants.

 

Do not submit confidential information, medical records, diagnoses, treatment details, financial account information, government identification numbers, or material you do not have the right to provide.

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11. Educational and Informational Purposes Only

Site content is provided for educational and informational purposes. The Institute explores subjects through historical, scientific, philosophical, comparative, experiential, and reflective lenses. Content may discuss established evidence, scholarly interpretation, debated hypotheses, philosophical or metaphysical perspectives, and personal experience.

 

The Institute seeks to distinguish these categories, but does not guarantee that every statement is complete, current, error-free, or suitable for a particular purpose. You are responsible for evaluating information and consulting qualified sources or professionals when appropriate.

 

12. No Professional or Therapeutic Relationship

The Site and Institute activities do not provide medical, mental-health, psychological, therapeutic, legal, financial, investment, religious, or other professional advice or services.

 

Use of the Site, Membership, newsletter subscription, participation in a survey or conversation, or communication with the Institute does not create a therapist-client, coach-client, physician-patient, attorney-client, advisor-client, fiduciary, clergy-parishioner, or other professional relationship.

 

Do not delay or disregard professional care because of Site content. If you are experiencing an emergency or crisis, contact appropriate emergency services or a qualified professional in your location.

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13. Third-Party Content and Links

The Site may reference or link to third-party research, publications, authors, videos, websites, products, or services. Links and references are provided for context or convenience and do not necessarily constitute endorsement.

 

We do not control and are not responsible for third-party content, availability, accuracy, privacy practices, security, or terms.

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14. No Warranties

To the fullest extent permitted by law, the Site and its content are provided “as is” and “as available.” We disclaim warranties of any kind, express or implied, including warranties of accuracy, completeness, reliability, availability, merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title, and noninfringement.

 

We do not warrant that the Site will be uninterrupted, secure, error-free, or free of harmful components, or that use of the Site will produce any particular personal, educational, spiritual, relational, or other outcome.

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15. Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Steve Engle and The Institute for Human Awareness will not be liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary, or punitive damages; loss of data, opportunity, goodwill, or profits; or harm arising from reliance on Site content, inability to access the Site, third-party services, or unauthorized account access.

 

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited.

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16. Indemnification

To the fullest extent permitted by law, you agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless Steve Engle and The Institute for Human Awareness from claims, liabilities, damages, losses, and reasonable costs arising from your unlawful use of the Site, violation of these Terms, infringement of another person’s rights, or material you submit.

 

17. Suspension or Termination

We may restrict, suspend, or terminate access to a Member account or Site feature when we reasonably believe an account has violated these Terms, created a security risk, harmed another person, disrupted the Site, or been used inconsistently with the Institute’s purposes.

 

You may stop using the Site at any time and may request deletion of your Member account, subject to the Privacy Policy and applicable retention obligations.

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18. Changes to the Site or These Terms

The Institute is an evolving organization. We may modify, suspend, discontinue, or introduce Site content and features. We may update these Terms by posting a revised version with a new effective or revision date. Your continued use after the effective date of revised Terms constitutes acceptance to the extent permitted by law.

 

If a material change affects Member accounts or participation, we may provide additional notice.

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19. Privacy

Our collection and use of personal information are described in the Privacy Policy. The Privacy Policy is incorporated by reference into these Terms.

 

20. Governing Law and Venue

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Ohio, without regard to conflict-of-law principles. Any dispute arising from the Site or these Terms shall be brought in a state or federal court with jurisdiction in Franklin County, Ohio, unless applicable law requires otherwise.

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21. Severability and Waiver

If any provision of these Terms is held unenforceable, the remaining provisions will remain in effect. A failure to enforce a provision is not a waiver of the right to enforce it later.

 

22. Entire Agreement

These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy and any additional rules presented for a specific Site feature, constitute the agreement between you and the Institute concerning use of the Site.

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23. Contact

Steve Engle, doing business as The Institute for Human Awareness™
Website: https://instituteforhumanawareness.com
Legal/contact email: legal@instituteforhumanawareness.com