1. Introduction

Talawa Youth Development and Educational Alliance ("we," "our," or "us") is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you visit our website talawa.ca (the "Site") or engage with our charitable services.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Personal Information

We may collect personal information that you voluntarily provide to us when you:

• Apply for a scholarship through our application form
• Make a donation to our organization
• Contact us via our contact form or email
• Subscribe to our newsletter or updates
• Register for events such as our annual gala

This information may include: name, email address, phone number, mailing address, payment information (processed securely through third-party payment processors), and any other information you choose to provide.

2.2 Automatically Collected Information

When you visit our Site, we may automatically collect certain information about your device, including information about your web browser, IP address, time zone, and some of the cookies installed on your device. Additionally, we may collect information about your browsing actions and patterns through analytics services.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

• Process scholarship applications and provide educational support
• Process and acknowledge donations
• Communicate with you about our programmes, events, and fundraising initiatives
• Respond to your inquiries and provide customer service
• Send you updates, newsletters, and information about our work (with your consent)
• Improve our website and services
• Comply with legal obligations and protect our rights
• Provide tax receipts for eligible donations

4. Disclosure of Your Information

We may share your information in the following circumstances:

• Service Providers: We may share information with third-party service providers who perform services on our behalf, such as payment processing (GoFundMe), email delivery, and website hosting.
• Legal Requirements: We may disclose your information if required by law or in response to valid requests by public authorities.
• Business Transfers: In connection with any merger, sale of assets, or acquisition of all or part of our organization.
• With Your Consent: We may share your information for any other purpose with your consent.

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties for marketing purposes.

5. Third-Party Services

We use GoFundMe as our donation platform. When you make a donation through GoFundMe, you are subject to GoFundMe's privacy policy and terms of service. We encourage you to review their policies. We only receive information necessary to acknowledge your donation and provide tax receipts.

6. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organizational security measures to protect your personal information against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. However, no method of transmission over the Internet or electronic storage is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

7. Data Retention

We retain your personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this Privacy Policy, unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law. Donation records are retained as required by Canadian tax laws and regulations.

8. Your Privacy Rights

Depending on your location, you may have certain rights regarding your personal information, including:

• The right to access and receive a copy of your personal information
• The right to request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information
• The right to request deletion of your personal information
• The right to withdraw consent for processing where consent is the legal basis
• The right to opt-out of marketing communications

To exercise these rights, please contact us at info@talawa.ca

9. Children's Privacy

While we provide scholarships to children and youth, our Site is not directed to individuals under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 without parental consent. Scholarship applications for minors should be submitted by a parent or guardian.

10. International Transfers

Your information may be transferred to and maintained on servers located outside of your country of residence. By using our Site, you consent to the transfer of information to Canada and other countries where our service providers operate.

11. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

We use cookies and similar tracking technologies to track activity on our Site and hold certain information. You can instruct your browser to refuse all cookies or to indicate when a cookie is being sent. However, if you do not accept cookies, you may not be able to use some portions of our Site.

12. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update our Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any changes by posting the new Privacy Policy on this page and updating the "Last Updated" date. You are advised to review this Privacy Policy periodically for any changes.

13. Contact Us

If you have questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy or our privacy practices, please contact us: