Skip to Main Content

NSCC OER Toolkit -- Adopt & Adapt OER

OER, Copyright, & GenAI

Copyright

Two important areas to consider when using Generative AI (GenAI) for OER are:

  1. Content the GenAI tool was trained with
  2. Content that the GenAI tool generates.

Copyright Infringement?

GenAI tools have been trained on copyrighted works, often without the permission of copyright holders. Tech companies assert that this use qualifies as fair dealing, while creators argue that GenAI tools have copied and ingested their work ilegally. There are multiple unresolved lawsuits on this issue. This means that AI-generated content could be subject to future copyright claims.

Who owns the content?

Can work created by GenAI be copyrighted?

Copyright law in Canada is often shaped by legal decisions. "As more organizations adopt generative AI, the Canadian courts, rather than legislators, are expected to play a key role in shaping how copyright law adapts to AI technologies."1

  • In most jurisdictions, including Canada, current copyright law requires human authorship—works must be original and reflect human skill and judgment to qualify for protection.2
  • As a result, pure GenAi content cannot be copyrighted.
  • Currently Canada's legal framework aligns with the U.S. on this issue.3

1,2,3 Field Law. (2025). Bespectacled Cats: An Update on AI + Copyright. https://www.fieldlaw.com/insights/publication/Bespectacled-Cats-An-Update-on-AI-Copyright

Creative Commons and GenAI

  • Creative Commons encourages the use of the CC0 licence for works that do not involve a significant degree of human creativity.
  • Creative Commons takes the position that "...in most cases, using copyrighted works to train generative AI models would be fair use in the United States, and such training can be protected by the text and data mining exception in the EU. However, whether these limitations apply may depend on the particular use case."
  • They assert that using the CC0 (public domain) licence will clarify the intellectual property status of the work and ensure the public domain grows and thrives.

Source: Walsh, K. (2023). Understanding CC Licenses and Generative AI. Creative Commons. https://creativecommons.org/2023/08/18/understanding-cc-licenses-and-generative-ai/

Applying these concepts to your work

4.2 NSCC is taking a measured and balanced approach to the use of GenAI tools as these tools present both opportunities and risks. NSCC expects the College Community to follow the policy when using GenAI tools for teaching and learning, research, and work-related functions.

  1. When using or developing GenAI content or tools, the College Community are expected to:
  1. comply with applicable laws, regulations, and related NSCC policies.
  2. reference output that was used for work or academic purposes to the GenAI application that created it through a citation (beyond basic administrative tasks such as spelling/grammar checking and documenting editing), attribution statement, label, footnote, or other means clear to the reader, viewer or listener.
  3. maintain a record of when GenAI has been used to produce content for work purposes (beyond basic administrative tasks) and be prepared to share records with their faculty, manager or other authorized personnel upon request.
  4. review output of GenAI applications with consideration to NSCC’s commitment to inclusion, diversity, equity, accessibility and anti-racism.
  5. ensure that GenAI tools are used by the College Community for informing decision-making and not making decisions. GenAI tools will not replace the judgement required from human decision-makers.