Important

1. LOWLANDS-L is a moderated discussion group. It is not a “chat room,” nor does it offer organized instructional curricula.

2. LOWLANDS-L is dedicated to discussion, exchange and dissemination of information as well as to networking among persons that share certain interests.

3. LOWLANDS-L has no eligibility and participation restrictions with regard to gender, sexual orientation, ethnic, national and religious affiliation, geographical location, citizenship, educational level and language proficiency.

4. The philosophical premise of LOWLANDS-L is that all of the world’s people and their languages and cultures are equally important, have a right to exist and are worthy of respect, appreciation and attention.

5. The fundamental purposes of LOWLANDS-L are as follows:

   1. to serve the common interests of those persons that voluntarily joined the organization as members,

   2. to dispense, on any level of education and expertise, relevant information as a pro bono global public service,

   3. to promote study, research and appreciation of all of the “Lowlands” linguistic and cultural varieties, and

   4. given majority consent of its membership, to act as a change agent.

6. While focusing on a specific group of languages and cultures, LOWLANDS-L is not intended to be territorial and isolationist in scope and approach. All other languages and cultures may be discussed as long as this is relevant and beneficial to the organization and its focus.

7. LOWLANDS-L offers opportunities to present and explore alternative views of the languages and cultures of “the Lowlands” and their relationships to each other. However, the organization as a whole does not endorse individual members’ views and opinions. The organization distances itself from and as much as possible excludes the voicing of opinions, suggestions, claims and allegations whose primary intent is to create or encourage disorder, disparagement, discrimination, discord and disparity among its members and among the people of the world.

8. LOWLANDS-L members have no obligations other than to follow the rules and to respect each other’s feelings, rights and privacy. They have the choice between open participation and anonymity. The identity of anonymous members will be known only to the administrators, who are obligated to do their utmost to safeguard them. Only members who are widely known public figures and others who have above-average security concerns may upon application be granted permission to use pseudonyms and disguised e-mail addresses. (E-mail addresses are visible only to other members. They are masked in all archived proceedings.)

9. LOWLANDS-L does not focus on one specific language or culture but on a group of closely related linguistic and cultural varieties (which does not include German, North Germanic and Celtic, although contacts and comparisons with these and other languages are frequently discussed).

10. Persons who study one or more of these linguistic or cultural varieties are likely to benefit from supplemental information and resources shared on LOWLANDS-L. However, LOWLANDS-L does not offer actual language courses, nor is it intended to serve as a substitute for regular, structured language teaching.

11. LOWLANDS-L is not a translation agency. Translation work is limited to projects that are deemed beneficial to subscribers and to the general public.

12. Postings to Lowlands-L by individuals and organizations reflect their own thoughts, interests, and activities; they do not implicitly or explicitly represent official positions and policies of Lowlands-L as an organization. Individual authors assume responsibility and liability for the content of their documents.

13. The LOWLANDS-L forum does not serve as a chat room. Messages (“postings”) from members are published bundled by topics newsletter-style. Interspersed lighthearted comments are welcome to enhance a friendly, welcoming atmosphere. However, in order to keep the volume of mail within a reasonable range, postings must be based on substantial points of discussion and relevant information sharing. Purely social interaction ought to be limited to private communication outside the forum.