Privacy policy

LandScale is a system to assess and communicate trusted landscape-level insights that help organizations deliver improvements in sustainability at scale (“LandScale”).  The LandScale initiative is led by a Steering Group, consisting of Rainforest Alliance, Inc., a New York not-for-profit corporation (“RA”), Verra, a not-for-profit organization incorporated in the District of Columbia, USA (“Verra”), and Conservation International Foundation, a public benefit corporation organized and existing under the laws of California, USA.  The LandScale system is jointly operated by RA and Verra (together, the “LandScale Operators,” “we”, “us”, “ours” and “our”).  When you interact with LandScale through this website, the LandScale platform (the “Platform”), subscribe to our newsletter, participate in one of our events, or otherwise contact us, we may collect certain personal information about you.  

This privacy policy (“Privacy Policy”) explains how we handle the personal information we collect and process.  This Privacy Policy applies to the services provided by LandScale, including the Platform, as well as your use of this website (collectively, our “Services”).  By using our websites or the Platform (together, the “LandScale Sites” or “sites”), or by providing to us your personal information when registering for events or other services, you accept the collection and processing of your personal information as described in this Privacy Policy.  

What information do we collect?

We collect the following information about you:

• Information that you give to us directly, including the following:
  • Contact details, such as: your name, email address, telephone number, organization, or any other details contained in an email signature.
  • Professional and employment information, such as: your job title and professional qualifications.   
  • Payment processing related information, such as: bank account number and digitized or electronic signatures.
  • Personal characteristics, such as: language preferences.
• Information we collect or receive automatically when you visit the LandScale Sites as part of general analytics on visitors, such as your Internet Protocol (“IP”) address (i.e. the unique address of your computer which makes it possible to recognize your computer), the type of browser used to visit the site, the date and time of your visit, the duration of your visit, and the pages that you visit.

How do we collect your information?

We may collect and receive information directly from you when you, for example:

• Register on the Platform
• Subscribe to our newsletter
• Participate in our webinars, trainings or events
• Send a message through one of our online contact forms
• Email us
• Contract with us, receive a grant from us, or make a grant to us

We also collect information from you automatically when you visit or log into the LandScale Sites. For more information on the technologies used to collect visit and login information on our sites, see our Cookie Notice.

Additionally, we collect information about you when you choose to communicate with us or share information about us on social media platforms and social networking services (such as LinkedIn and Twitter) – for example, when you “like”, comment, or send us a message.  For information on how your personal information is handled when you interact on social media platforms and networking services, please review the privacy policy of that platform or service.  

How will we use your information?

We use the information we collect and receive about you for legitimate business purposes, including the following:

• For the performance of a contract to which you are a party or in order to take steps at your request prior to entering into a contract:
  • To meet our contractual obligations and manage our business relationship.
  • To notify you about changes to our Services or terms of service.
• For our legitimate business interests:
  • To provide the functionality of our Services and improve our Services.
  • To email you about changes to our terms, conditions, and policies.
  • To reply to your inquiries.
  • To email you about news, information about webinars, trainings and other events, or new features of our Services that we think you might like.
  • To analyze data, usage trend identification, new product or service development, or interaction improvement.
• For compliance with a legal obligation, or
• Where you have otherwise given consent to the processing of your personal data for one or more specific purposes.

Marketing

If you have agreed to receive marketing communications from us, we will email you information about events, activities, or materials of ours that we think you might like.  You may always opt out of marketing communications at a later date.

If you no longer wish to be contacted for marketing purposes, please email us at info@landscale.org.   

How will we share your information and with whom?

We share your information to provide you with our Services, when we have your consent, or as described in this Privacy Policy.  

With the LandScale Operators.  Your information will be shared between the LandScale Operators (including their affiliates and subsidiaries) for the purposes set forth above in this Privacy Policy.  

With Registered Users in the Platform.  Within the Platform, we share information input by you or on your behalf in the Platform during registration and any subsequent Platform use (for example, your name and your affiliated institution), (a) with members of your assessment team, and (b) with other Platform users outside of your assessment team, when any reports containing your information are published in the Platform by your assessment team. 

With vendors.  We share your information with companies or individuals that provide services to us under contractual arrangements.  These companies are limited in their ability to use information they receive from us and may use information they receive only to the extent necessary for the purposes of providing the services for which we have engaged them.  

With other third parties.  We will also share your information with third parties in response to any legal process or when necessary to protect LandScale and the LandScale Operators or our Services. This includes where  we have a good faith belief that:  (a) it is necessary to respond to lawful governmental requests or legal processes (for example, a court order, search warrant, or subpoena); (b) the information is relevant to a crime that has been or is being committed; (c) an emergency exists that poses a threat to your safety or the safety of another person; or (d) is necessary to protect the rights or property of LandScale.

How do we store your data?

We apply all reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect your personal information against loss or against any form of unlawful processing and shall impose such security obligations on any data processor we enlist.  

We will keep records only for as long as they are needed for us to provide you with our Services, for the purposes outlined in this Privacy Policy, and to comply with our legal obligations. 

European Union (EU) Users

For data subjects whose data was collected or processed within the European Economic Area (“EEA”), please be advised that we may transfer your information to third countries outside of the EEA, which the European Commission (“EC”) may not have deemed “adequate” for information security purposes, including the United States.  That data is transferred under adequate data transfer mechanisms, including the Model Clauses, which were approved by the EC.  For questions regarding our data transfer mechanisms, please contact us at info@landscale.org. 

If your data was collected or processed within the EEA, you have the following choices and rights, subject to exceptions or requirements under current laws, including the European Union (“EU”) General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”):

• Right of access.  You have the right to request copies of your personal data from us. 
• Right to rectification.  You have the right to request that we correct any information you believe is inaccurate.  You also have the right to request that information you believe is incomplete be completed.
• Right to erasure (“right to be forgotten”).  You have the right to request that we erase your personal data, under certain conditions.
• Right to restrict processing.  You have the right to request that we restrict the processing of your personal data, under certain conditions.
• Right to object to processing.  You have the right to object to our processing of your personal data, under certain conditions.
• Right to data portability.  You have the right to request that we transfer the data that we have collected to another organization, or directly to you, under certain conditions.

If you would like to exercise any of these rights, please email us at info@landscale.org.  Upon your request, we will respond to you within one month by: (a) complying with your request as soon as practicable; or (b) providing to you an explanation regarding our inability to comply with your request based on our legal obligations.  If your request is complex, we may extend this period by an additional two months, and you will be informed about any such extension within the initial one-month period.

If you withdraw your consent to process your information, we will discontinue the processing of your information upon receipt of your withdrawal. However, any processing performed prior to your withdrawal remains a legitimate processing based on a valid consent at the time.  We will not be under the obligation to reverse the processing.

Furthermore, you have the right to lodge a complaint with an EU supervisory authority should you feel that we have violated any of your rights as provided under the GDPR.

Other Websites

Our sites contain links to other websites.  Our Privacy Policy applies only to our sites.  If you click on a link that takes you to another website, please read their privacy policy.    

Children’s Privacy

Our Services are not directed toward children and we do not knowingly collect, use, or disclose personal information from children under the age of 16 without prior parental consent.

Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time, so you should review it periodically.  If there are significant changes to LandScale’s information practices, you will be provided with appropriate online notice.

How to contact us

If you have questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy, please email us at  info@landscale.org.