Privacy policy

Architects Without Frontiers (AWF), ABN 39 109 129 679, is an Australian-based not-for-profit organisation working with communities and design professionals in Australia and internationally, primarily in the Asia Pacific region. This policy explains how personal information is handled when you visit our website, contact us, support our work or enquire about a project or partnership.

Our approach to privacy

This policy applies to personal information handled by AWF in connection with its website, communications, fundraising, partnerships and projects, including interactions with people outside Australia. Our approach is guided by the Australian Privacy Principles under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth). We comply with the privacy laws that apply to our activities; this policy does not limit any rights you have under those laws. A project or activity may also have a specific privacy notice explaining how information is handled in that context.

Information we collect

Depending on your interaction with AWF, information may include your name, email address, telephone number, organisation, role, correspondence, project information, donation details and communication preferences. Please only provide information that is relevant to your enquiry, and avoid sending sensitive information about yourself or other people unless it is needed and you are authorised to share it.

We usually receive this information directly from you, including by email, through enquiries and when you support our work. We may also receive information from donation providers and people or organisations involved in a project or partnership. Website hosting and embedded services may collect technical information such as IP address, browser and device details, pages visited and the time of a visit.

Project information can relate to other people in a community. Please avoid including identifiable health, disability or other sensitive information in a general enquiry. If such information is needed for a particular activity, its purpose and handling should be explained at collection, and any consent required by applicable law obtained. Permission to share information for a project does not automatically authorise its publication in a story, photograph or newsletter.

How information is used

We use relevant information to respond to enquiries, assess and coordinate projects, manage partnerships and support, administer donations, maintain records, communicate about our work, improve the website and meet legal obligations. Where lawful and practicable, you can deal with us anonymously or use a pseudonym. If you choose not to provide information we reasonably need, we may be unable to respond to your enquiry, arrange a project or administer a donation.

You can ask to stop receiving fundraising or news communications at any time by using an unsubscribe option where provided or contacting us. Essential correspondence about an existing donation or enquiry may still be needed.

Newsletters and Mailchimp

AWF uses Mailchimp, part of Intuit, to manage newsletter subscriptions and send news, project updates and fundraising communications. When you subscribe or give us permission to send these updates, we provide Mailchimp with your email address and any relevant information you supply, such as your name, organisation and communication preferences. Subscription status and records of when and how you subscribed may also be held in Mailchimp.

We use this information to send and manage the communications you have requested, keep subscription preferences up to date and understand how our newsletters perform. Making a donation or sending an enquiry does not, by itself, mean you have agreed to receive newsletters.

Mailchimp emails may include tracking technologies, such as small images and tracked links. Where enabled, these can record email opens and link clicks, together with technical information such as IP address, device or browser details and approximate location. This helps us understand which content is useful and improve future newsletters. Blocking remote images in your email application may limit open tracking, but does not prevent tracked links from recording clicks.

Subscriber information is disclosed to and processed by Mailchimp in the United States and may be processed in other countries where Intuit and its service providers operate. For details of their handling of personal information and tracking technologies, see the Intuit Global Privacy Statement, which covers Mailchimp, and Mailchimp’s Cookie Statement.

You can withdraw permission and unsubscribe at any time using the unsubscribe link in an AWF newsletter, or email vic@architectswithoutfrontiers.com.au. You can also ask us to correct your subscriber details or request deletion. An unsubscribe stops future newsletter marketing but may leave a limited record of your address and unsubscribe preference so we can honour your choice; it does not automatically delete every record relating to you. Essential correspondence about an existing donation or enquiry is separate from newsletter marketing.

Donations through GiveNow

Online donations are processed through GiveNow, including the form embedded on our donation page. Information you enter into that form is provided to GiveNow and its payment service providers. AWF may receive donor contact information, donation amounts, dates and preferences to administer and acknowledge your support. Payment processing is handled by GiveNow rather than by the AWF website.

For details about payment information, receipts and GiveNow’s own handling of personal information, read the GiveNow privacy policy.

Cookies, analytics and embedded content

Cookies and similar technologies can support website functionality, security and usage measurement. WordPress uses cookies for authorised users who sign in to manage the website. Embedded services, including GiveNow and Vimeo videos, may collect information or set their own cookies when they load or when you interact with them. Those providers handle information under their own privacy policies.

Where Google Analytics is enabled on our public website, it helps us understand visits, pages viewed, devices and referral sources so we can improve the site. See how Google uses information from sites that use its services and Google’s Analytics opt-out tool. Vimeo’s practices are described in its privacy policy.

You can manage or delete cookies through your browser settings. Blocking cookies may affect some features, particularly embedded donation or video services. Following a link to another website takes you to a service with its own privacy practices.

Microsoft Clarity and your analytics choice

With your permission, we use Microsoft Clarity to understand how visitors use our website through heatmaps, session replays and interaction statistics. Information can include pages visited, clicks, scrolling, device and browser details and technical connection data. We use these insights to improve navigation, usability and website performance.

Clarity loads only after you choose “Accept analytics”. If you decline, we do not load Clarity. You can change your choice through “Analytics preferences” in the footer. We store this preference in your browser for up to six months. Accepting enables analytics cookies; we do not grant advertising-cookie consent through this control. This choice applies to Clarity, not to the separate practices of embedded providers such as GiveNow and Vimeo.

We use strict text masking and exclude the donation page and visits by signed-in website editors from Clarity recording. We do not send names or email addresses as custom visitor identifiers. Microsoft may process information outside Australia, including in the United States, and handles it under the Microsoft Privacy Statement. This explains Microsoft’s own uses of data, international processing and privacy choices.

Sharing information in Australia and overseas

Information may be shared with people who need it to assist AWF, such as authorised staff, advisers, website and technology providers, donation providers, and relevant project or partner organisations. Information may also be disclosed with your permission or where required or authorised by law.

AWF’s international projects may involve sharing relevant contact details, correspondence and project information with overseas community organisations, design professionals and project partners where needed to assess or deliver a project. The recipients and destination countries depend on the particular activity. You can ask us which recipients and countries are relevant to your information using the contact details below. Working on an overseas project does not mean that all donor or subscriber information is shared with that project.

Our technology providers may also store, process or access information overseas. This includes Mailchimp and Microsoft in the United States, as described above. Google, Vimeo and their service providers may process information in the countries described in their linked privacy policies. Overseas privacy protections may differ from those in Australia.

Where the Australian Privacy Principles apply, we must take reasonable steps before disclosing personal information overseas to ensure that the recipient handles it consistently with those principles, unless a lawful exception applies. Depending on the circumstances, this may involve contractual protections and limiting the information shared. Use of this website is not, by itself, consent to waive protections for overseas disclosures.

Storage and retention

We take reasonable steps to protect personal information against misuse, loss and unauthorised access, modification or disclosure. No internet transmission or storage system can be guaranteed completely secure. Records are retained for the purposes for which they are needed and any applicable legal or record-keeping requirements. When personal information is no longer needed and retention is not required by law, we take reasonable steps to destroy it or de-identify it. You can ask us about retention or request deletion; some records may need to be retained for legal or administrative reasons.

If a privacy incident occurs, we will assess and respond to it and notify affected people and relevant regulators where required by applicable law, including Australia’s Notifiable Data Breaches scheme where it applies.

Access, corrections and privacy concerns

To request access to or correction of your personal information, update your communication preferences or raise a privacy concern, email vic@architectswithoutfrontiers.com.au with “Privacy enquiry” in the subject line. Please describe your request and the relevant interaction with AWF. We may need to verify your identity before providing or changing personal information.

We will consider access and correction requests within a reasonable period and explain any lawful reason for refusing a request and the available complaint options. There is no charge to make a request. If a charge for providing access is permitted and proposed, we will explain it before proceeding. Please tell us if you need an accessible format or help making a request.

For a complaint, please explain what happened, when it occurred and the outcome you are seeking. We will review the concern, make relevant enquiries and aim to respond within 30 days. If more time is needed, we will let you know. If you are dissatisfied with our response or have not received one after 30 days, you can contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner for advice about whether it can consider your complaint.

People outside Australia

You can contact AWF about your information from any country using the same email address above. Depending on which laws apply to our handling of your information, you may have additional rights, including rights to request erasure, restrict or object to processing, receive a portable copy, withdraw consent or complain to a local privacy regulator. These rights are subject to applicable conditions and exceptions; they do not arise solely because our website can be viewed in your country. Please tell us your country and the nature of your request so we can assess it under the relevant law. Withdrawing consent does not affect processing that was lawful before withdrawal.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy as our website, services or practices change. The current version and its update date will be published on this page. You can request a copy by contacting AWF at the email address above.