Creative Commons is a global nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting an open and accessible Internet that is enriched with free knowledge and creative resources that people around the world can use, share, and cultivate.
It was founded in 2001 by lawyers specializing in computer law and copyright: James Boyle, Michael Carroll, Lawrence Lessig and Eric Saltzman; MIT computer science professor Hal Abelson, and Eric Eldred, a librarian who designed web pages with works in the public domain, known for the Eldred v. Aschcroft, for which Lessig served as defense counsel. The Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School supported the project early on, and Creative Commons currently receives strong support from the Stanford University School of Law.