The Sage Institute for Foreign Affairs, a Virginia corporation ("the Institute," "we," "us," or "our"), is an American nonprofit organization exempt from income tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. We utilize collected information to enhance our user’s experience, achieve our mission of making international relations knowledge more accessible, and serve as a reliable educational platform for global affairs literacy.

This Privacy Policy outlines how the Institute collects, uses, shares, and protects personal information and data that we may obtain through our website, services, and other interactions. We are committed to safeguarding your privacy and ensuring the security of your personal information. By accessing and using our website or services, you consent to the practices described in this Privacy Policy.

Information Collection and Use

We may collect personal information, such as your name, email address, and other relevant contact information, when you voluntarily provide it to us while using our website, subscribing to newsletters, participating in surveys, subscribing to our website, setting up an account, or engaging with our content. This information may be used to send you updates, respond to your inquiries, or improve our services.

When you engage in certain transactions on our website, such as making donations or purchasing products, we may collect billing information, including your payment card details and billing address. This information is securely processed by trusted third-party payment processors and is solely used to complete the requested transaction.

Cookies and Analytics

We may use cookies and similar technologies to collect information about your browsing behavior on our website. This information helps us enhance user experience, analyze trends, and improve our services. We also may utilize third-party analytics services to track and evaluate website traffic.

Sharing and Disclosure

We do not sell, trade, license, lease, or otherwise transfer or transmit your personal information, except that we may share your information with trusted service providers or partners who assist us in delivering our services, processing payments, or improving our website. These third parties are obligated by contract and applicable law to maintain the confidentiality and security of your information.

Security

We employ reasonable security measures to protect your personal information from unauthorized access, loss, misuse, alteration, theft, or destruction. However, please note that no data transmission over the internet or any wireless network can be guaranteed to be 100% secure.

Disclosure to Comply with the Law

The Institute may be required to disclose personal information to federal, state, and local governments or government officials in response to lawful requests, including to comply with anti-money laundering laws, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, or lawful subpoenas from courts or law enforcement. In these cases, we will make reasonable efforts to notify you, unless prohibited by law, before disclosing your personal information. We reserve the right to disclose your personal information when required by applicable laws, regulations, legal processes, or governmental requests.

Children's Privacy

Our website and services are not directed towards individuals under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If we become aware that we have inadvertently collected personal information from a child under 13, we will take appropriate steps to delete the information and notify the child’s parent or legal guardian.

Donor Privacy

The Institute acknowledges the significance of your support as a donor. We are committed to respecting and to protecting your privacy. While certain donor information may be collected and maintained to facilitate our fundraising and communication efforts, we are committed to using this information responsibly and in accordance with relevant laws and regulations.

Personal information collected from donors may include contact information, donation history, billing details, and other relevant details. This information is used for the purpose of acknowledging donations, providing receipts, and sharing updates about our work and initiatives. The Institute does sell, trade, license, lease, share, or otherwise transfer or transmit donor information with third parties for their commercial purposes.

Please be aware that in some instances we may be required by law to disclose donor information, such as in response to a lawful subpoena. We will make reasonable efforts to notify you, unless prohibited by law, before disclosing any donor information. Additionally, if you prefer not to have your name publicly associated with a specific donation, please contact us, and we will honor your request.

Your Choices

You can update, correct, or delete your personal information by contacting us. You can also opt out of receiving promotional communications from us by following the unsubscribe instructions provided in our emails.

Surveys

From time to time, we may offer you the chance to take part in surveys on our website, by email, or through third-party platforms. Your participation in surveys contributes to enhancing our services, and we greatly value your input. Participation in these surveys is upon request, entirely voluntary, and may come with or without compensation. Please note that any data gathered through surveys is handled with the utmost confidentiality. Any employees, consultants, or volunteers who have access to this information have signed comprehensive nondisclosure agreements, underscoring their commitment to maintaining the privacy and security of the data collected.

Listing of Individuals

As an integral part of our commitment to fostering learning, we may include names, titles, links to public social media accounts, official government websites, and other publicly available content for prominent government officials, journalists, experts, religious leaders, academics, and others. This information is sourced from publicly accessible outlets and serves an educational purpose. If you are an individual listed on our website and believe there is a factual error in the information stated about you, there is a link to outdated or inaccurate content about you, or would like to be removed from our site, please reach out to us at info@thesageinstitute.org. We understand and respect that you should have the freedom to manage your online presence. Upon receipt of a request for a change or removal of content, we will promptly review your request and, if we believe it appropriate, take necessary actions to accommodate your preference. While we endeavor to respect your privacy choices, we reserve the right to decline any request to change or to remove publicly available information if we believe the change or removal would impede the Institute’s educational purposes, unless required otherwise by applicable law.

Changes to Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices and services. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.

By using our website and services, you agree to the terms of this Privacy Policy. Your continued use of our website after changes to the Privacy Policy signify your acceptance of those changes.