Privacy policy for ACT for Bees and Other Pollinators

Our website address is: https://actforbees.org.

ACT for Bees and Other Pollinators is committed to handling personal information in a manner consistent with the principles of the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles, as a matter of good practice.

This Privacy Policy discloses our practices regarding information collection via our website and the services provided on it.

By accessing or using our website and/or service, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree with this Privacy Policy, please do not use our website or service.

Technical information and analytics

When you access our website, certain technical information may be collected automatically, including:

  • the type of browser, operating system and device you use
  • the date and time of your visit
  • the website you visited before ours
  • the pages you access
  • the time spent on pages and across the website
  • files downloaded
  • search terms used on our website
  • your Internet Protocol (IP) address.

We use this information to operate, maintain and improve our website, understand how visitors use our website, and support our activities and communications.

Some of this information may be collected using cookies and similar technologies, including analytics services such as Google Analytics. Cookies are small data files stored on your device that help improve website functionality and performance.

Information collected through analytics and cookies is generally aggregated or de-identified and is not intended to identify individual users. Reports may include information such as pages viewed, files downloaded and newsletter subscription activity.

We may combine technical information with other non-identifiable or aggregated information to better understand website usage and community engagement trends.

Google Analytics and other third-party service providers may process or store information on servers located outside Australia, including in the United States of America (USA). These providers may also disclose information where required by law or where third parties process information on their behalf.

You can control or disable cookies through your browser settings. However, doing so may affect the functionality of some parts of our website.

You can also opt out of being tracked by Google Analytics across all websites by using tools made available by Google.

Personal information

Personal information is information about an individual whose identity is apparent or can reasonably be identified.

We generally only collect personal information that you choose to provide to us, such as when you:

  • send us an enquiry or feedback
  • participate in a survey
  • subscribe to newsletters or other communications
  • contact us through our website or social media channels.

If you choose not to provide personal information, you may be unable to participate in certain activities or receive particular services, however you will still be able to browse our website.

We do not intentionally collect directly identifying personal information automatically through our website. However, some technical information may be collected automatically when you use our website, including IP addresses and analytics data.

We use personal information for purposes related to our activities and operations, including:

  • responding to enquiries and requests
  • providing information you have requested
  • administering newsletters and subscriptions
  • communicating about our activities, events, campaigns and services
  • operating and improving our website and communications.

We generally only use personal information for the purpose for which it was provided and will not disclose it to other organisations without your consent unless:

  • required or authorised by law
  • reasonably necessary to provide a service you have requested, or
  • otherwise described in this Privacy Policy.

We do not provide personal information to third parties for direct marketing purposes without your consent.

Your IP address may be collected automatically when you access our website. IP addresses may constitute personal information where an individual can reasonably be identified from them. We do not use IP addresses to identify individual users or monitor individual browsing activities, except where required by law or in connection with the protection or security of our website or services.

You may opt out of receiving communications from us at any time by using the unsubscribe function in our emails or by contacting us directly.

Disclosure and third-party providers

We generally do not share personal information with other organisations without your consent unless:

  • it is reasonably necessary to provide a service you have requested
  • it is required or authorised by law, or
  • otherwise described in this Privacy Policy.

We may use third-party service providers to support our website, communications and newsletter services, including website analytics and email subscription platforms. These providers may process information on our behalf and may store or process data outside Australia.

If you choose to interact with us through public or third-party platforms, such as social media services, blogs, forums or public surveys, any information you choose to share may be visible to others and subject to the privacy practices of those platforms. We encourage users to exercise care when sharing personal information in public online spaces.

Mailchimp

We use Mailchimp to manage electronic newsletters and subscriber communications. Mailchimp is based in the United States of America (USA), and information collected through this service may be stored or processed on servers located outside Australia, including in the USA.

If you subscribe to our newsletter, Mailchimp may collect personal information such as your email address and, where provided, your name. Mailchimp and related technologies may also collect technical information about how newsletters are accessed and used, including:

  • whether emails are opened
  • clicks on links within emails
  • browser and device information
  • IP address and approximate location information.

We use this information to manage subscriptions, distribute newsletters, and better understand how our communications are being used and accessed.

You can choose not to subscribe to our newsletter, or unsubscribe at any time using the unsubscribe link included in our emails.

For more information about how Mailchimp manages your information please refer to Mailchimp's Privacy Policy and Terms of Use and the Intuit Global Privacy Statement.

Social media

We use social media platforms to communicate with the public about our activities and community initiatives. These platforms may collect and handle personal information in accordance with their own privacy policies.

Our website and communications may include links to or interactions with third-party platforms such as Facebook and Instagram, which are operated by Meta. These platforms may collect information about your interactions with their services, including where you do not have an account with them.

We encourage users to review the privacy policies of any third-party platforms they choose to use.

Storage and security of your personal information

We take reasonable steps to protect personal information from misuse, interference, loss, unauthorised access, modification and disclosure. These measures may include physical, electronic and administrative safeguards appropriate to the nature of the information we hold.

While we seek to protect personal information submitted through our website and communications, the internet is not a completely secure environment. Information transmitted online, including through email or web forms, may be at risk of interception, access or alteration by third parties.

For this reason, you should exercise care when transmitting personal information electronically, particularly sensitive or confidential information.

Access to, correction of and retention of personal information

You may request access to personal information we hold about you by contacting us.

We will take reasonable steps to verify your identity before providing access to, or correcting, your personal information.

We also take reasonable steps to ensure that personal information we hold is accurate, up to date, complete, relevant and not misleading, having regard to the purpose for which it is used.

In some circumstances, access to or correction of personal information may be limited where permitted or required by law.

We take reasonable steps to destroy or de-identify personal information when it is no longer required for the purpose for which it was collected, unless we are required to retain it by law.

Where personal information has been shared with third-party service providers in accordance with this Privacy Policy or with your consent, we may not be able to correct or remove information held by those third parties. In those circumstances, you may need to contact the relevant third party directly.

Unsolicited personal information

Unsolicited personal information is personal information received by us where we have taken no active steps to collect the information.

If we receive personal information that we did not actively request, we will take reasonable steps to determine whether it is necessary for our activities and, where appropriate, delete or de-identify it.

Protection for children

We generally do not knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of 15 without the consent of a parent or guardian.

If we become aware that personal information has been collected from a child under 15 without appropriate consent, we will take reasonable steps to delete or de-identify that information as soon as practicable.

Parents or guardians who believe that a child has provided us with personal information without their consent may contact us to request its removal.

Disclaimer

Links to third-party websites are provided for convenience only. We are not responsible for the content or privacy practices of those websites.

Changes to this Privacy Policy

We reserve the right, at our discretion, to change, modify, add, or remove portions from this Privacy Policy at any time.

Where practical, we will notify users of significant changes to this Privacy Policy by updating this page.

Privacy complaints and access requests

If you believe we have breached your privacy rights, or you would like to access the information we have collected about you, you may contact Julie Armstrong via our online contact form.

Please provide sufficient details about your concern.

We will acknowledge your complaint within a reasonable period and seek to resolve it promptly.

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC).