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AFi privacy policy 

Last updated: January 16, 2024 

The Accountability Framework initiative (“AFi”) is led by a diverse coalition of organisations that are dedicated to protecting forests, natural ecosystems, and human rights (the “Coalition”). The Coalition includes the AFi Steering Group, Supporting Partners, Regional Teams, and Backbone Team, as listed on the Who we are page of this website.  The AFi’s programs and services are operated by Rainforest Alliance, Inc. (“RA”, “we”, “us” and “our”).  When you interact with us through our websites or online platforms (including but not limited to accountability-framework.org and  learn.accountability-framework.org) (collectively, “Sites”), subscribe to our newsletter, participate in our events, participate in our programs or receive our services, or otherwise contact us regarding AFi, we may collect certain personal information about you. This privacy policy (“Privacy Policy”) explains how we handle the personal information we collect and process. This Privacy Policy applies to the AFi programs and services provided to you as well as your use of this website (collectively, our “Services”). 

Personal information is processed by or on behalf of the controller:  

Rainforest Alliance
27 East 28th St, 8th floor
New York, NY 10016
USA 

What information do we collect? 

We collect the following information about you: 

  • Information that you give to us directly, such as your name, email address, organisation, and job title or role. 

  • Information we collect or receive automatically when you visit our Sites as part of general analytics on visitors to our Sites or as part of data related to your use of our e-learning platform, such as your Internet Protocol (“IP”) address (the unique address of your computer which makes it possible to recognise your computer), the type of browser used to visit our website, the date and time of your visit, the duration of your visit, the pages that you visit, and e-learning course progress. 

How do we collect your information? 

We may collect and receive information directly from you when you, for example: 

  • Subscribe to our newsletter 

  • Participate in our webinars, trainings or events 

  • Register in and interact with our e-learning platform 

  • Send a message through one of our online contact forms or post a question for us on our e-learning platform 

  • Email us 

  • Contract with us, receive a grant from us, or make a grant to us 

We also collect information from you automatically when you visit our Sites. For more information on the technologies used to collect website visit information, see our Cookie Notice below.

Additionally, we may collect information about you when you choose to communicate with us or share information about us on social media platforms and social networking services (such as LinkedIn and YouTube) – for example, when you “like”, comment, or send us a message. For information on how your personal information is handled when you interact on social media platforms and networking services, please review the privacy policy of that platform or service. 

How will we use your information? 

We use the information we collect and receive about you for the following purposes: 

  • For the performance of a contract to which you are a party or in order to take steps at your request prior to entering into a contract: 

  • To meet our contractual obligations and manage our business relationship; or 

  • To notify you about changes to our terms of service or Privacy Policy. 

  • For our legitimate business interests: 

  • To provide you with or improve our Services; 

  • To reply to your inquiries; or 

  • To email you about news, information about webinars, trainings and other events, new website features we think you might like, or updates to our Services (such as new modules on our e-learning platform). 

  • For compliance with a legal obligation, or 

  • Where you have otherwise given consent to the processing of your personal data for one or more specific purposes. 

Marketing 

If you have agreed to receive marketing communications from us, we will email you information about events, activities, or materials of ours that we think you might like. You may always opt out of marketing communications at a later date. 

If you no longer wish to be contacted for marketing purposes, please email us at contact@accountability-framework.org

How will we share your information and with whom? 

We share your information within the Coalition among its members and their affiliates to provide our Services, when we have your consent, or as described in this Privacy Policy. 

We share your information with companies or individuals that provide services to us under contractual arrangements. These companies are limited in their ability to use information they receive from us and may use information they receive only to the extent necessary for the purposes of providing the services for which we have engaged them. 

We will also share your information in response to any legal process or when necessary to protect RA, the Coalition or our Services. This includes where we have a good faith belief that: (a) it is necessary to respond to lawful governmental requests or legal processes (for example, a court order, search warrant, or subpoena); (b) the information is relevant to a crime that has been or is being committed; (c) an emergency exists that poses a threat to your safety or the safety of another person; or (d) is necessary to protect the rights or property of RA or AFi. 

In addition, we may share de-identified, aggregated information regarding your (and others’) participation in our e-learning platform with select third parties, such as donors, for impact demonstration purposes. 

How do we store your data? 

We apply all reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information against loss or against any form of unlawful processing and shall impose such security obligations on any data processor we enlist. 

We will keep records only for as long as they are needed for us to provide you with our Services, for the purposes outlined in this Privacy Policy, and to comply with our legal obligations. 

European Union (EU) Users 

For data subjects whose data was collected or processed within the European Economic Area (“EEA”), please be advised that we may transfer your information to third countries outside of the EEA, which the European Commission (“EC”) may not have deemed “adequate” for information security purposes, including the United States. That data is transferred under adequate data transfer mechanisms, including the Model Clauses, which were approved by the EC. For questions regarding our data transfer mechanisms, please contact us at contact@accountability-framework.org. 

If your data was collected or processed within the EEA, you have the following choices and rights, subject to exceptions or requirements under current laws, including the European Union (“EU”) General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”): 

  • Right of access. You have the right to request copies of your personal data from us. 

  • Right to rectification. You have the right to request that we correct any information you believe is inaccurate.  You also have the right to request that information you believe is incomplete be completed. 

  • Right to erasure (“right to be forgotten”). You have the right to request that we erase your personal data, under certain conditions. 

  • Right to restrict processing. You have the right to request that we restrict the processing of your personal data, under certain conditions. 

  • Right to object to processing. You have the right to object to our processing of your personal data, under certain conditions. 

  • Right to data portability. You have the right to request that we transfer the data that we have collected to another organisation, or directly to you, under certain conditions. 

If you would like to exercise any of these rights, please email us at contact@accountability-framework.org. Upon your request, we will respond to you within one month by: (a) complying with your request as soon as practicable; or (b) providing to you an explanation regarding our inability to comply with your request based on our legal obligations. If your request is complex, we may extend this period by an additional two months, and you will be informed about any such extension within the initial one-month period. 

If you withdraw your consent to process your information, we will discontinue the processing of your information upon receipt of your withdrawal. However, any processing performed prior to your withdrawal remains a legitimate processing based on a valid consent at the time. We will not be under the obligation to reverse the processing. 

Furthermore, you have the right to lodge a complaint with an EU supervisory authority should you feel that we have violated any of your rights as provided under the GDPR. 

Other Websites 

Our Sites contain links to other websites.  Our Privacy Policy applies only to our Sites.  If you click on a link that takes you to another website, please read their privacy policy. 

Children’s Privacy 

Our Services are not directed toward children, and we do not knowingly collect, use, or disclose personal information from children under the age of 16 without prior parental consent. 

Changes to this Privacy Policy 

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time, so you should review it periodically.  If there are significant changes to AFi’s information practices, you will be provided with appropriate online notice. 

How to contact us 

If you have questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy, please email us at contact@accountability-framework.org. 

Cookies Notice

What are cookies?

A cookie is a small amount of data generated by a website and saved by your web browser. When you visit our website, we may collect information from you automatically through cookies.

When you visit our website, you will receive a one-time cookie pop up consent wherein you are given the opportunity to consent to the use of cookies. Should you decide not to consent to the use of cookies, some functionality and Services related to your use of our websites may not work properly.

What do we use cookies for?

We use cookies in a range of ways to improve your experience on our website, including:

  • Understanding how you use our website, and
  • To make our website easier to use and to better tailor the website to your interests and needs.

Cookies can also be used to improve the speed of your future activities and sessions on the Website. We also use cookies to compile anonymous statistics with which we can gain insight into the way people use our website, so that, for example, the structure and content of our website can be improved.

What types of cookies do we use?

Our website uses the following types of cookies:

  • Technically necessary. These cookies are essential to ensure that our website functions properly. They allow you to navigate through the website and use our functionality.
  • Analytics. These cookies help us understand, in the aggregate, how visitors interact with our website by providing information about the pages visited, the time spent on the website, and any problems encountered, such as error messages. This helps us improve website performance.  We use Google Analytics to collect analytics information; visitors can opt-out of Google Analytics using the Ads Settings and by using the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.
  • Functionality. We use functionality cookies to recognise you on our website and remember your previously selected preferences. These could include language preferences and the region you are located in.

How can I manage or delete cookies?

Most Internet browsers are set up to automatically accept cookies. You can change the settings on your browser to block cookies or remove cookies from your browser. If you disable the cookies we use, please note that some of our website features may not function as a result.

For more information about cookies and how to manage them, visit allaboutcookies.org.

Cookie Type Cookie Name Cookie Purpose
Session & TYPO3 Content Management Cookie session & fe_typo_user We use session cookies to record an individual users preferences that the user has specified, so that each time the user returns their preferences remain. Commonly this would be language settings, shopping carts, anything where you have indicated a preference. Where forms are used on the site, we hold the information in a session cookie so that we can improve the user experience on the site. Should a user, for example, forget to fill in parts of a form when submitting a form, we can auto-fill the values for those fields that have been filled in, thereby reducing the amount of fields a user needs to amend. This information is stored only in your browser and is destroyed once your browser is closed.
Google Analytics __utmz __utmc __utmb __utma These cookies are used to collect information about how visitors use our site. We use the information to compile reports and to help us improve the site for you. The cookies collect information in an anonymous form, including the number of visitors to the site, where visitors have come to the site from and the pages they visited.
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