diff --git a/utils/exclude_path_keywords.yaml b/utils/exclude_path_keywords.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f554a31
--- /dev/null
+++ b/utils/exclude_path_keywords.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+exclude_paths:
+  containing :
+    - .ipynb_checkpoints
+    - .renku
+    - .git
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/utils/g5505_utils.py b/utils/g5505_utils.py
index b413271..f721578 100644
--- a/utils/g5505_utils.py
+++ b/utils/g5505_utils.py
@@ -1,3 +1,18 @@
+import sys
+import os
+
+try:
+    thisFilePath = os.path.abspath(__file__)
+except NameError:
+    print("Error: __file__ is not available. Ensure the script is being run from a file.")
+    print("[Notice] Path to DIMA package may not be resolved properly.")
+    thisFilePath = os.getcwd()  # Use current directory or specify a default
+
+dimaPath = os.path.normpath(os.path.join(thisFilePath, "..",'..','..'))  # Move up to project root
+
+if dimaPath not in sys.path:  # Avoid duplicate entries
+    sys.path.insert(0,dimaPath)
+
 import pandas as pd
 import os
 import sys
@@ -7,7 +22,7 @@ import logging
 import numpy as np
 import h5py
 import re
-
+import yaml
 
 def setup_logging(log_dir, log_filename):
     """Sets up logging to a specified directory and file.
@@ -292,6 +307,19 @@ def copy_directory_with_contraints(input_dir_path, output_dir_path,
     output_dir_path = os.path.normpath(output_dir_path)
     select_dir_keywords = [keyword.replace('/',os.sep) for keyword in select_dir_keywords]
 
+    try:
+        with open(os.path.join(dimaPath, 'utils/exclude_path_keywords.yaml'), 'r') as stream:
+            exclude_path_dict = yaml.safe_load(stream)
+            if isinstance(exclude_path_dict, dict):
+                exclude_path_keywords = exclude_path_dict.get('containing', [])
+                if not all(isinstance(keyword, str) for keyword in exclude_path_keywords):
+                    exclude_path_keywords = []
+            else:
+                exclude_path_keywords = []
+    except (FileNotFoundError, yaml.YAMLError) as e:
+        print(f"Warning. Unable to load YAML file: {e}")
+        exclude_path_keywords = []
+
     date = created_at('%Y_%m').replace(":", "-")
     log_dir='logs/'
     setup_logging(log_dir, f"copy_directory_with_contraints_{date}.log")
@@ -302,8 +330,9 @@ def copy_directory_with_contraints(input_dir_path, output_dir_path,
 
     def file_is_selected(filename):
         return not select_file_keywords or any(keyword in filename for keyword in select_file_keywords)
+    # Exclude path keywords
+
 
-    
     # Collect paths of directories, which are directly connected to the root dir and match select_dir_keywords
     paths = []
     if select_dir_keywords:
@@ -319,7 +348,11 @@ def copy_directory_with_contraints(input_dir_path, output_dir_path,
     for subpath in paths:
 
         for dirpath, _, filenames in os.walk(subpath,topdown=False):
-            
+
+            #  Exclude any dirpath containing a keyword in exclude_path_keywords
+            if any(excluded in dirpath for excluded in exclude_path_keywords):
+                continue
+
             # Ensure composite keywords e.g., <keyword>/<keyword> are contained in the path
             if select_dir_keywords and not any([keyword in dirpath for keyword in select_dir_keywords]):
                 continue