Privacy practices

Ouranos cares about your privacy. For that reason, we have robust security measures in place to protect the confidentiality of personal information.

These privacy practices describe how Ouranos collects, uses, discloses and stores personal information that may be provided by a user in connection with the use of Ouranos’ website (hereinafter, the Website) or the services provided by Ouranos (hereinafter, the Services). They also set out our commitments regarding the management and protection of personal information.

Personal information

Personal information is any information about an individual that can be used to identify that individual. This information may include, but is not limited to, name, gender, age and/or date of birth, language of correspondence, mailing address, telephone number, email address, and membership in an organization. An individual’s name, business title, business address and business telephone number as an employee of an organization are not considered personal information, however.

Your consent

By accessing this Website or using our Services, users consent to the collection, use, disclosure and storage of personal information in accordance with the practices described here.  

We only collect, use and disclose your personal information with your consent or as permitted or required by law. How we obtain your consent depends on the circumstances. For example, we may ask you to fill out a form for a specific purpose, such as subscribing to a newsletter or participating in an event.

In general, your consent is implied when your personal information is collected. For example, when you sign up for the Ouranos newsletter, the act of signing up in itself constitutes implied consent. If we wish to use your personal information for purposes that were not identified at the time of collection, we will ask for your consent before using it for this new purpose.

You may withdraw your consent to the collection, use or disclosure of your personal information at any time by contacting us using the contact details provided in the “Who to contact” section at the bottom of this page. In some cases, withdrawal of your consent may make it impossible to provide you with certain Services.

What data do we collect?

The data we collect is provided to us directly by users or is collected automatically while browsing the Website.

1. Information provided by users

Users of our Services provide various pieces of information as part of the normal use of the Services. Examples include:

• By using our Services requiring certain personal information, such as a name, address, email and phone number, allowing us to communicate with users

• By subscribing to an email contact list

• By participating in a survey

• By submitting a job application

• By registering for an event (e.g., training activities, symposium, etc.)

2. Information that is collected automatically

By accessing the Website, the user’s computer and the Website’s server automatically exchange information that is required to ensure language compatibility between the two. The information exchanged is as follows:

• The type of browser and operating system used

• The pages visited

• The date and time the pages were accessed

• The time of the visit

• The user’s geographical location

• The address of the referring site when the Website is accessed from another site

Note that Ouranos retains much of this data for statistical purposes to help us make informed decisions on how to improve the Website based on usage trends. 

The Website is hosted in Quebec.

Why do we collect this data?

Ouranos limits the use of personal information to the purposes for which it was collected, including:

• Enabling the provision our Services

• Managing our administrative activities

• Improving the experience on our website

• Communicating with our users (by email or through an email system)

• Performing statistical analyses of our Services or Website

• Evaluating an application for a job or internship

Information security

Within the organization, we only make users’ personal information available to those employees for whom the data is needed for the performance of their duties. 

We cannot disclose the personal information we hold to a third party unless the user consents in writing, except as required by law. However, we may share this personal information with our service providers when it is needed to perform a task or contract in connection with our provision of Services. 

To protect users’ personal information, we take reasonable precautions and follow industry best practices to ensure that it is not lost, misappropriated, accessed, disclosed, altered, or improperly destroyed.

However, despite these precautions, no data transmission or storage method is totally secure or error-free. We therefore cannot guarantee absolute security. If you have reason to believe that your interaction with us is no longer secure, please contact us immediately.

Data retention

We will use, disclose or retain your personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected, or as permitted or required by law. For more information on how long we keep your personal information, please contact us using the contact details provided in the “Who to contact” section below.

Accessing your personal information 

Upon written request, you have the right to access the personal information we hold about you and, where appropriate, to request any necessary corrections, in accordance with the requirements or the rights granted under the law.

Data hosting

Your personal information is currently hosted in Quebec, Canada, and is subject to the applicable Canadian and Quebec privacy rules and laws. 

Third-party services

This Policy applies only to our Services. It does not cover websites, products or services provided by third parties. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of these third parties and strongly encourage you to review their privacy policies before using their websites, products or services.

Updates to the privacy policy

We will update the information on this page as necessary to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal obligations, and other factors. Unless otherwise specified, any changes made will be effective as soon as they are posted on this page. By using the Website following a change, the user agrees to the privacy practices set forth on this page.