Animal Experience International Inc.

Revised: May 22, 2018

Animal Experience International Privacy Statement

Privacy Policy

Scope:

This policy applies to customer information we collect through our website www.animalexperienceinternational.com, and customer information that we collect by email, mail or through phone and/or Skype conversations with you during the application process and as you prepare for your AEI Experience.

Information We Collect:

We collect the following information when you fill in your on-line application and as you prepare for your AEI Experience:

  • Your name
  • Your gender
  • Your birth date
  • Your address and postal code / zip code
  • Your email address
  • Your Skype username
  • Your international travel history
  • Your volunteer history
  • Your medical or dietary concerns that are relevant to participating in an AEI Experience
  • Your immunization record
  • A note from your doctor saying you are healthy to participate in an AEI Experience
  • Copy of your photo identification with signature, such as a drivers license or passport
  • Copy of any relevant educational certificates or professional license to participate in an AEI Experience
  • We strive to limit the amount of personal information collected to support the intended purpose of the collection.

 

How We Use and/or Disclose Your Information:

Animal Experience International uses your information to provide the travel services you request and to support our core business functions. 

These uses include: 

  • Communicating with you by email, telephone or Skype
  • Attempting to match you with the most appropriate AEI Experience, given your experience, qualifications and interests.
  • Encouraging you to take reasonable action to ensure you are healthy prior to travel, and have received professional medical advice on necessary immunizations and medications to stay healthy while away.
  • Providing us with any relevant medical or dietary concerns that you would like us to pass along to the Placement Partner you will be visiting. 
  • Ensuring that you have received your pre-exposure rabies immunizations (a prerequisite to participate in certain AEI Experiences) 
  • Authenticating your signature as it appears on the contract and waiver. 
  • Authenticating your educational and/or professional qualifications (a prerequisite to participate in certain AEI Experiences)


When necessary, we disclose your personal information to third parties (such as our travel insurance provider or the Placement Partner you will be visiting). For example, when reserving your AEI Experience we may be required to provide your name, address, nationality, gender, age, educational or professional qualifications, medical or dietary concerns, and/or proof of pre-exposure rabies immunizations. For clients applying to participate in the AEI Experience “Bat Conservation in Cuba” we must submit a copy of your passport to our Placement Partner in Cuba for the acquirement of visitor permits to restricted areas in Cuba.

We will also disclose your personal information if we are required by law to do so. 

How We Get Your Consent

When you provide us with personal information through our on-line application form, or send us a copy of your photo identification, doctor’s note, immunization record, and/or educational or professional qualifications, we assume you consent to our collecting it and using it for the purpose of organizing your specific AEI Experience. 

If we ask you for personal information for a secondary reason, like marketing, we will either ask you directly for your consent or provide you with an opportunity to say no. Saying no is called "opting out". By opting out, you can tell us not to collect the information and/or not to share it with other companies.

Social Media

We may offer you the opportunity to engage with our content on or through third party social networking websites, plug-ins and applications. When you engage with our content this way, you may allow us to have access to certain information associated with your social media account, (e.g name, username, e-mail address, photo) to deliver the content or as part of the operation of the website, plug-in or application. 

Marketing Preferences

We want to communicate with you in ways you want to hear from us. Examples are newsletters, special offers, targeted promotion of products and services that we believe you will be interested in, and new product announcements. We use an opt-in standard for receiving news from us. Opt-in means we will only conduct the activity with your express consent. If you provide your email address to opt-in to receiving promotional and informational e-mails, you will be given the opportunity to give your express consent to receive these commercial electronic messages. You may withdraw your consent by using the “unsubscribe” link located at the bottom of all promotional messages you receive from us, or by contacting us using the contact information below.

Please be aware that, even if you have opted out of receiving marketing communications from us, we may still contact you for transactional purposes. Some examples are contacts for customer service or reminder notices. We may also need to contact you with questions or information regarding your AEI Experience, such as post-trip debriefing.

Hard Copy and Electronic Storage Protections

Personal information that is maintained in our office is subject to physical, administrative, and technical controls. When disposed of, information is shredded, destroyed, erased, or otherwise made unreadable. Hard copies of personal information are maintained in locked locations or cabinets with similar restrictions for electronic storage. Hard copies of sensitive personal information (such as photo identification or medical information), are scanned and then disposed of. E-mails and e-mail attachments containing sensitive personal information are stored electronically and then erased. Animal Experience International stores sensitive personal information electronically with a CRM provider that uses a multi-layered approach to protect your information, constantly monitoring and improving their application, systems, and processes to meet the growing demands and challenges of security. 

Privacy of Children Online

We are committed to protecting children’s online privacy. Our website is a general audience website not geared towards children. In order to protect the privacy of children, Animal Experience International does not knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of 13 without prior parental consent. Please contact us via the “Contact Us” section of this policy if you believe we may have collected information from your child and we will work to delete it.

How to Access and Update Your Information

Animal Experience International takes reasonable steps to keep your personal information accurate and complete. You can access or update your personal information, including contact or account information by contacting us at the email or postal address listed in the “Contact Us” section at the bottom of this policy. Please include your current contact information, the information you are interested in accessing, and your requested changes. We will provide you the personal information requested if reasonably available, unless it infringes on the privacy of other individuals and subject to reasonable limitations provided by law and internal procedures. Otherwise we will describe the types of information we typically collect. We will provide you with access and make changes that you request, or will provide an explanation of what actions we will be able to take with regard to the request. If you need help accessing your information related to a service provided by a third party, we will assist you by referring you to the third party. 

Changes to Our Privacy Policy

Please check our privacy policy periodically for changes. We will also notify you of significant updates and will post the date it was last updated at the bottom of the privacy policy.

Contact Us

Our staff will be happy to answer any questions you may have about your personal information. If you would like more information about our policies, or you would like to see exactly what personal information we have about you in our records, or you wish to register a complaint, please contact:

Name: Heather Reid, Co-Founder and President
Address: 30 Owen Street, Barrie, Ontario, Canada L4M 3G7
Phone: 001 705 726-7070
Email: heather@animalei.com

You can also contact the Privacy Commissioner of Canada for assistance between the hours of 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. est, at:
Toll-free: 1-800-282-1376
Phone: (819)994-5444
Fax: (819)994-5424
TTY: (819)994-6591

or by mail at:
30 Victoria Street
Gatineau, Quebec
K1A 1H3

or on the web at:
http://www.priv.gc.ca

You can also contact your Provincial or Territorial Privacy Commissioner's office for more information.

Effective: December 11, 2015

B Corps are certified by the non profit B Lab to meet rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency. We have been a B Corp since 2013 and since then we have always been in the top 10% of quantifiable benefit to the environment and the communities we operate in.