DRAFT TEMPLATE — REQUIRES LEGAL REVIEW before launch.

The Leap Grant: Official Rules

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A purchase or paid membership does not improve your chances of winning. Void where prohibited.

Note for legal review: this promotion is deliberately structured as a skill-based contest, not a sweepstakes. The winner is chosen by judges against the published criteria in section 6. There is no random draw and no element of chance in selecting the winner. Please confirm this structure holds in each eligible country and state, and whether any registration, bonding or local-language requirements apply.

The Leap Grant (the “Contest”) is sponsored by TODO: sponsor legal name, TODO: sponsor address (“Holocene”, “Sponsor”, “we”). Contact: TODO: contact email

2. Eligibility

Open to individuals who are 18 or older (or the age of majority where they live, if higher) at the time of entry.
Open to legal residents of: TODO: list of eligible countries.
You must be on the Holocene waitlist with a confirmed email address when you enter. Joining the waitlist is free.
Employees and contractors of the Sponsor, and their immediate family and household members, are not eligible.
Void where prohibited or restricted by law.

3. Entry period

The Contest opens on TODO: start date and closes on TODO: end date (the “Entry Period”). TODO: time and timezone. Entries received outside the Entry Period are not eligible. The Sponsor’s clock is the official clock.

4. How to enter

Join the Holocene waitlist at TODO: site URL and confirm your email. It is free.
Record a video of about 30 seconds about the trip you keep putting off: where you would go, and why you haven’t gone yet.
Post the video publicly on TikTok or Instagram. TODO: required hashtag or tag, if any.
Submit the entry form at TODO: site URL/leap-grant during the Entry Period with your name, email, home airport, the link to your video, a short description of the trip, and your agreement to these Official Rules.

Limit: one entry per person. If you submit more than one, only the first valid entry is judged.

Your video must stay public and viewable at the submitted link until the winner is announced.

5. Entry requirements

Your entry must:

be your own original work, featuring you
be about 30 seconds long. Videos much longer than this may be judged on the first 30 seconds only.
not include other identifiable people unless you have their permission
not include music, footage or other material you do not have the right to use, beyond what the platform’s own licensed tools provide
not be unlawful, hateful, sexually explicit, dangerous or defamatory, and not promote any brand other than Holocene
follow the terms of the platform you post it on

We may disqualify any entry that does not meet these requirements, or that we reasonably believe involves fraud, bots, or bought engagement.

6. Judging and how the winner is picked

This is a contest of skill. The winner is not chosen at random. Likes, views, shares and follower counts are not judging criteria.

After the Entry Period, a panel of TODO: number of judges appointed by the Sponsor will score every eligible entry on these criteria:

Story and honesty (40%): how clearly and sincerely the video shows the trip and what has been holding you back.
Creativity (30%): originality in how the story is told.
Impact of the grant (30%): how well the entry shows what the grant would make possible.

The entry with the highest total score wins. If there is a tie, the tied entry with the higher “Story and honesty” score wins. If still tied, an additional judge will score the tied entries on the same criteria.

Judging will be completed by TODO: judging date. The judges’ decisions are final.

The odds of winning depend on the number and quality of eligible entries.

7. Prize

One (1) prize: $1,000 USD toward the winner’s trip. TODO: confirm prize amount.
Paid by TODO: payment method (for example bank transfer or PayPal) within TODO: number of days after the winner is verified.
The prize cannot be transferred or swapped. No alternative prize will be offered, except that the Sponsor may substitute a prize of equal or greater value if needed.
The winner is responsible for booking and paying for their own travel, and for all travel documents, visas, insurance, and any costs above the prize amount. Holocene does not book travel and is not responsible for the trip.
TODO: confirm whether the winner must show the prize was used for the described trip.

Total value of all prizes: $1,000 USD. TODO: confirm.

8. Winner notification

We will contact the potential winner by email at the address on their entry on or around TODO: notification date.
The potential winner must reply within 7 days and may be asked to confirm eligibility, identity and age, and to sign a declaration of eligibility and a release where the law allows.
If the potential winner does not reply in time, is not eligible, or does not comply with these rules, the prize goes to the entry with the next-highest score.
TODO: Canada only, if eligible: a mathematical skill-testing question may be required.

9. Taxes

The winner is responsible for all taxes on the prize. US winners may be asked to complete an IRS Form W-9, and may receive a Form 1099 where required. Winners outside the US may be asked for equivalent tax information, and tax may be withheld where the law requires. TODO: confirm reporting and withholding with accountant.

10. Content licence

You keep ownership of your video. By entering, you grant the Sponsor a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to use, reproduce, edit for length or format, publish and display your video and entry description, in any media, to run and promote the Contest and Holocene. TODO: licence duration (for example, two years from the end of the Entry Period).

You confirm that you have all the rights and permissions needed to grant this licence, and that your entry does not infringe anyone else’s rights.

You can ask us to stop using your video in new marketing at any time by emailing TODO: contact email. TODO: confirm with lawyer.

11. Publicity release

Except where prohibited by law, by accepting the prize the winner agrees that the Sponsor may use their name, city, likeness, video and statements about the Contest for promotional purposes, in any media, without further payment or permission.

12. Privacy

We use the information on your entry form to run the Contest, contact you about it, and judge entries. See our Privacy Policy at TODO: site URL/privacy. Entering does not add you to any mailing list beyond the waitlist you already joined.

13. General conditions

The Sponsor may disqualify anyone who tampers with the entry process, breaks these rules, or acts in an unsportsmanlike or disruptive way.
If the Contest cannot run as planned for reasons outside our reasonable control, including fraud or technical failure, we may cancel, suspend or change it, and will judge the eligible entries received up to that point where it is fair to do so.
If fewer than TODO: minimum number eligible entries are received, or no entry meets a reasonable standard under the judging criteria, TODO: confirm with lawyer whether the Sponsor may withhold the prize.
We are not responsible for entries that are lost, late, incomplete, or that cannot be viewed, or for technical problems with any platform or network.

14. Release and limitation of liability

To the fullest extent the law allows, by entering you release the Sponsor and its officers, employees and agents from any claims arising from your participation in the Contest or from accepting or using the prize, including any travel you take. Nothing in these rules limits liability that cannot be limited by law.

15. Platform disclaimers

This Contest is in no way sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with TikTok, Instagram or Meta. You are providing your information to Holocene, not to those platforms. By entering, you release TikTok, Instagram and Meta from any responsibility in connection with the Contest. Questions about the Contest should go to the Sponsor, not the platforms.

16. Governing law and disputes

These rules are governed by the laws of TODO: governing law and jurisdiction. TODO: dispute resolution clause. This does not affect consumer rights you have where you live.

17. Winner’s name

For the name of the winner, email TODO: contact email within 60 days after TODO: end date. The winner’s first name and city may also be announced on our site and social channels.

TODO: sponsor legal name

TODO: sponsor address

TODO: contact email