Privacy Policy

THE GREAT CANADIAN AND AFRICAN DIASPORA FOUNDATION

Donor AND Client Personal Information Protection Policy

The GCAD Foundation is committed to safeguarding the personal information entrusted to us by our donors. We manage all personal information in accordance with Ontario’s Personal Information Protection Act and other applicable federal laws. This policy outlines the principles and practices we follow in protecting our donor personal information.

This policy applies to The Great Canadian and African Diaspora Foundation, and to any person providing services on our behalf. A copy of this policy is provided to any donor on request.

What is personal information?

Personal information means information about an identifiable individual. This includes an individual’s name, home address and phone number, age, sex, marital or family status, an identifying number, financial information, educational history, etc.

What personal information do we collect?

We collect only the personal information that we need for the purposes of providing services to our clients, including personal information needed to:

1. To deliver requested products and services
2. To register a client in a program or seeking donations
3. To show financial accountability and to update donor list

We normally collect client personal information directly from our clients, with their consent or as authorized by law in case we have to issue a receipt to the donor for tax claim or reporting purposes.

We inform our clients, before or at the time of collecting personal information, of the purposes for which we are collecting the information. The only time we don’t provide this notification is when a client volunteers information for an obvious purpose (for example, producing a credit card for donation and the information will be used only to process the payment).

Consent

We ask for consent to collect, use or disclose client personal information, except in specific circumstances where collection, use or disclosure without consent is authorized or required by law. We may assume your consent in cases where you volunteer information for an obvious purpose.

We assume your consent to continue to use and, where applicable, disclose personal information that we have already collected, for the purpose for which the information was collected.

We ask for your express consent for some purposes and may not be able to provide certain services if you are unwilling to provide consent to the collection, use or disclosure of certain personal information. Where express consent is needed, we will normally ask clients and donors to provide their consent orally (in person, by telephone), or in writing (by signing a consent form).

A client may withdraw consent to the use and disclosure of personal information at any time, unless the personal information is necessary for us to fulfil our legal obligations. We will respect your decision, but we may not be able to provide you with certain products and services if we do not have the necessary personal information.

We may collect, use or disclose client personal information without consent only as authorized by law. For example, we may not request consent when the collection, use or disclosure is to determine suitability for an honor or award, or in an emergency that threatens life, health or safety.

How do we use and disclose personal information?

We use and disclose client personal information only for the purpose for which the information was collected, except as authorized by law. For example, we may use client contact information to issue tax donation receipts.

If we wish to use or disclose your personal information for any new business purpose, we will ask for your consent. We may not seek consent if the law allows this (e.g. the law allows organizations to use personal information without consent for the purpose of collecting a debt).

What personal employee information do we collect, use and disclose?

We collect, use and disclose personal employee information to meet the following purposes:

1. Determining eligibility for employment or volunteer work, including verifying qualifications and references
2. Establishing training and development requirements
3. Assessing performance and managing performance issues if they arise
4. Complying with requirements of government and corporate funding
5. Complying with applicable laws such as Canada revenue Tax Act

The GCAD Foundation will inform our employees, donors and volunteers of any new purpose for which we will collect, use, or disclose personal employee information, or we will obtain your consent, before or at the time the information is collected.

We will obtain your consent to collect, use and disclose your personal information for purposes unrelated to the employment or volunteer relationship (e.g. such as providing you with information about our workplace charity program).

How do we safeguard personal information?

The GCAD Foundation makes every reasonable effort to ensure that personal information is accurate and complete. We rely on individuals to notify us if there is a change to their personal information that may affect their relationship with our organization. If you are aware of an error in our information about you, please let us know and we will correct it on request wherever possible. In some cases, we may ask for a written request for correction.

We protect personal information in a manner appropriate for the sensitivity of the information. We make every reasonable effort to prevent any loss, misuse, disclosure or modification of personal information, as well as any unauthorized access to personal information.

We use appropriate security measures when destroying personal information, including shredding paper records and permanently deleting electronic records.

We retain personal information only as long as is reasonable to fulfil the purposes for which the information was collected or for legal or business purposes.