Privacy Policy

1. Information We Collect

Information you provide

We may collect information that you choose to provide to us, including your:

• name;
• email address and other contact information;
• organization and professional role;
• communication preferences; and
• information contained in correspondence or inquiries that you send to us.

When you subscribe to our newsletter or other updates, we collect your email address and information necessary to administer your subscription.

If you register for an event, apply for an opportunity, participate in a project, or otherwise interact with us, we may collect information reasonably necessary for that activity.

Donations

Donations may be processed through a third-party payment or fundraising service, such as Zeffy.

We may receive information relating to a donation, such as your name, contact information, donation amount and date, transaction reference, acknowledgment preferences, and any restrictions that we have agreed to accept.

Payment credentials submitted directly to a third-party payment provider are processed by that provider under its own privacy policy and terms.

Technical and usage information

When you use the Site, we and our service providers may collect technical information such as:

• IP address;
• browser and device type;
• operating system;
• referring pages;
• pages viewed;
• dates and times of access;
• approximate geographic location;
• interactions with the Site; and
• technical, security, or error information.

We use this information to operate, secure, understand, and improve the Site.

Analytics

We use Google Analytics to understand how visitors use the Site, improve our content and functionality, and evaluate the effectiveness of our outreach, including campaigns conducted through Google Ad Grants.

Google Analytics may use cookies and similar technologies to collect information about website activity, including pages viewed, interactions, browser and device information, approximate location, and identifiers associated with a browser or device.

We are piloting Google Ads through Google Ad Grants. We may link Google Analytics with our Google Ads account and use advertising measurement tools to understand interactions with our advertisements and certain actions taken after an ad interaction, such as newsletter subscriptions. Such measurement may involve cookies, ad-click identifiers, and information about those actions. We do not use Site activity to create remarketing audiences or for personalized advertising.

You can turn off optional analytics through Cookie Settings available on the Site. Disabling analytics does not affect your ability to access the Site's public content.

2. How We Use Information

We may use information to:

• operate, maintain, and secure the Site;
• respond to inquiries and correspondence;
• administer newsletter and other subscriptions;
• organize events and participation;
• process and acknowledge donations and other support;
• consider employment, volunteer, research, or collaboration inquiries;
• maintain organizational, accounting, and legal records;
• understand how the Site is used;
• improve our content, accessibility, and services;
• detect or prevent misuse, fraud, or security threats; and
• comply with applicable legal and professional obligations.

We do not automatically add someone to our newsletter merely because they contact us for another purpose.

3. Legal Inquiries and Sensitive Information

Please do not send confidential, privileged, sensitive, or time-sensitive legal information through a general website form, public repository, or ordinary email unless Climate Justice Counsel has specifically instructed you to use that channel.

An initial inquiry should contain only enough information to describe the general nature of your request and provide appropriate contact information.

Please do not send case files, identity documents, detailed medical information, witness statements, sensitive community information, or other confidential materials unless requested through an appropriate channel.

Contacting Climate Justice Counsel through the Site does not, by itself, create an attorney-client relationship or mean that we have agreed to represent you, investigate a matter, or protect a legal deadline.

If we invite further discussion, we may provide instructions for communicating additional information securely.

Nothing in this Policy limits any confidentiality or other duty arising under applicable law or professional rules, including duties concerning prospective clients.

4. Newsletters and Communications

If you subscribe to our newsletter or other communications, we use the information you provide to send the communications described at signup. These may include organizational updates, research, publications, events, and opportunities to support our work.

We currently use Resend as an email-service provider.

You may unsubscribe from promotional or newsletter communications at any time using an unsubscribe link provided in the communication or by contacting us.

Unsubscribing from newsletters does not prevent us from responding to an inquiry or sending necessary communications relating to an event, donation, application, or other interaction that you initiated.

We may retain a limited suppression record after you unsubscribe so that we can honor your request.

5. Cookies and Analytics

We use cookies and similar technologies to operate the Site, understand how it is used, remember certain preferences, and improve the user experience.

Some technologies may be necessary for Site functionality or security. We also use optional analytics technologies, including Google Analytics.

Optional analytics are enabled by default unless you turn them off through Cookie Settings.

You may change your analytics preference at any time through Cookie Settings available in the Site footer. Your choice generally applies to the browser and device on which it is made and may need to be made again if you clear browser storage or use another browser or device.

You may also control or delete cookies through your browser settings.

We do not use Site cookies for cross-context behavioral advertising, and we do not sell personal information collected through the Site.

6. How We Share Information

We do not sell, rent, or exchange personal information or supporter lists.

Service providers

We may provide information to companies that perform services on our behalf, including website hosting, security, analytics, email delivery, event administration, fundraising, payment processing, and related organizational services.

These providers may process information as necessary to perform their services and may also be subject to their own legal obligations and privacy policies.

Events and collaborations

Where an event or project is organized jointly with another organization, we may share information reasonably necessary to administer your participation, as explained in connection with that activity.

We do not authorize a collaborating organization to add you to an unrelated mailing list merely because you participated in a joint activity.

At your direction

We may share information when you ask or authorize us to do so, such as when arranging an introduction or coordinating a collaborative activity.

Legal and protective purposes

We may disclose information where required by applicable law or valid legal process, or where reasonably necessary and legally permitted to protect the security, rights, or safety of Climate Justice Counsel, another person, or the public.

Any disclosure remains subject to applicable legal, ethical, confidentiality, and professional obligations.

7. Donor and Supporter Privacy

We do not sell, rent, or exchange donor or supporter lists.

We do not provide personal information to another organization for its independent fundraising or marketing, or share personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising.

We will not publicly identify a donor or disclose identifying details of a donation for recognition purposes without permission.

This does not prevent disclosures required by law or confidential disclosures reasonably necessary to payment providers, accountants, auditors, professional advisers, and other authorized service providers.

A request not to receive public recognition does not make a donation anonymous to Climate Justice Counsel, its payment provider, or an authority lawfully entitled to receive relevant records.

8. Retention

We retain personal information for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes for which it was collected and for legitimate organizational, legal, accounting, security, and professional needs.

For example:

• inquiries may be retained while we respond and for an appropriate recordkeeping period afterward;
• donation records may be retained as necessary for financial, tax, and reporting purposes;
• newsletter information may be retained while a subscription is active; and
• limited information may be retained after an unsubscribe request to ensure that the request continues to be honored.

Information subject to a legal or professional preservation obligation may need to be retained for a longer period.

When information is no longer reasonably necessary, we may delete it or render it non-identifying.

9. Security

We take reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational measures to protect personal information against unauthorized access, use, alteration, or disclosure.

No website, electronic communication, or information system can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

For that reason, please follow any instructions we provide for communicating sensitive information.

If you believe information submitted to Climate Justice Counsel has been compromised or misused, contact report@climatejusticecounsel.org.

10. International Visitors

Climate Justice Counsel is based in the United States. Information may be processed in the United States and in other countries where our authorized personnel or service providers operate.

Privacy and data-protection laws differ between countries.

Where applicable law imposes particular requirements on our processing of personal information or international transfers, we will address those requirements as applicable to the circumstances.

Nothing in this Policy is intended to limit rights that cannot lawfully be limited.

11. Your Choices and Privacy Requests

You may contact us to:

• ask what personal information we hold about you;
• request correction of inaccurate information;
• request deletion of information;
• change communication preferences;
• ask questions about our use of information; or
• exercise other privacy rights available to you under applicable law.

Where we rely on your consent for a particular activity, you may withdraw that consent.

Depending on applicable law and the circumstances, additional rights may apply.

We may take reasonable steps to verify your identity or an authorized representative's authority before responding to a request. Please do not send identity documents unless we ask you to use an appropriate channel.

We may retain information despite a deletion request where reasonably necessary to comply with legal or professional obligations, protect another person's rights, maintain appropriate records, prevent fraud, or establish, exercise, or defend legal claims.

Send privacy requests to report@climatejusticecounsel.org, preferably with “Privacy Request” in the subject line.

12. Children's Privacy

Our general public website, newsletter, and contact features are not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly seek personal information from children under 13 through those features.

If a parent or guardian believes that a child has provided personal information through the Site, they may contact us so that we can review the matter and take appropriate action.

Activities specifically involving children would be subject to appropriate additional arrangements and safeguards.

13. Third-Party Websites

The Site may link to websites and services operated by others, including donation platforms, event services, publications, social networks, and research resources.

When you interact directly with a third-party service, that service's terms and privacy practices apply.

A link from Climate Justice Counsel does not necessarily mean that we control or endorse the privacy practices of that service.

14. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy as our activities, technology, or legal obligations change.

The current version will be posted on this page with its effective date. Where applicable law requires additional notice or consent for a change, we will provide it.

15. Contact Us

Questions, concerns, or privacy requests may be sent to:

Climate Justice Counsel
report@climatejusticecounsel.org