Privacy Policy
Effective date: September 2026 — This policy is reviewed at least annually.
Unsinkable ("Unsinkable," "us," "we," or "our") is a registered Canadian charity (Charitable Registration No. 70152 4910 RR0002). We operate weareunsinkable.com and related programs, events, and communications (collectively, the "Service").
This policy explains what personal information we collect, why we collect it, who we share it with, and the choices and rights you have. We are committed to complying with Canadian privacy law, including the federal Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), Quebec's Law 25, Alberta's Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA), and British Columbia's PIPA, in each case as applicable to our activities (including our online Shop, donation processing, and program registration).
By using the Service, you agree to the collection and use of information as described in this policy.
Definitions
Personal Information / Personal Data: Information about an identifiable individual.
Usage Data: Information automatically collected through your use of the Service (e.g., pages visited, time on site).
Cookies: Small pieces of data stored on your device by your browser.
Service Provider / Processor: A third party we engage to process personal information on our behalf.
User / You: Anyone who visits, registers with, donates to, purchases from, or submits content to the Service, including storytellers, program participants, donors, customers, and newsletter subscribers.
Types of Personal Information We Collect
We only collect personal information that is reasonably necessary for the purposes described in this policy. Depending on how you interact with us, we may collect:
a) Contact and account information
Name, email address, mailing address, and phone number
Account login credentials, if you create an account (e.g., for the Shop)
b) Storytelling and program submissions
Personal stories, comments, photos, audio, or video you submit through Storytelling, Fragments, Prisms, Wavelengths, or similar features
Information you choose to disclose in your story, which may include sensitive details about your mental health, health conditions, or lived experience
For Unsinkable Youth and other youth-focused programs: the participant's name, age or date of birth, school or region, emergency contact information, and — where the participant is a minor — a parent or guardian's name and contact information for consent purposes
c) Donation and purchase information
Donation amount and history, billing name and address
Payment card information is collected and processed directly by our payment processors (see Section 8); we do not store full payment card numbers on our own systems
Order details and shipping address for Shop purchases
d) Event and program registration information
Name, contact information, dietary or accessibility accommodations, and any other information you provide when registering for an event, Community Champions activity, or Unsinkable @ Work session
e) Communications
Information you provide when you contact us, request support, or subscribe to our newsletter
Records of correspondence with us
f) Usage and technical data
IP address, browser type and version, device identifiers, pages visited, referring/exit pages, and time and date of visits, collected automatically through cookies and similar technologies (see Section 5)
We do not knowingly collect more personal information than is necessary for the purpose it is collected for, and we do not collect Social Insurance Numbers, government ID numbers, or financial account numbers directly through the Service.
How and Why We Use Your Information
We use personal information for the following purposes:
Operate and improve the Service — hosting, maintaining, and troubleshooting the website.
Publish and manage storytelling content — reviewing, editing, and posting Submissions per our [Terms of Use].
Deliver programs and events — registering participants, coordinating logistics, and contacting parents/guardians of youth participants.
Process donations and purchases — issuing tax receipts, fulfilling orders, and processing refunds.
Communicate with you — responding to inquiries, sending program or event updates, and sending newsletters and fundraising communications (with your consent, where required).
Ensure safety — responding to concerns raised in a Submission or program setting that suggest a risk of harm.
Meet legal obligations — retaining donation records for tax purposes and responding to lawful requests from authorities.
Analyze and improve our reach — understanding how visitors use the Service, using aggregated or de-identified data where possible.
We rely on your consent (express or implied, depending on the sensitivity of the information) as the basis for collecting and using your personal information, except where we are permitted or required by law to do otherwise (for example, to comply with a legal obligation or protect someone's safety). You may withdraw consent at any time, subject to legal or contractual restrictions and reasonable notice, by contacting us using the information in Section 13.
Sensitive Information and Storytelling Submissions
Because Unsinkable's mission centres on mental health storytelling, some of the personal information you choose to share with us — including in a Submission — may be considered sensitive personal information (e.g., related to mental health, addiction, trauma, or other health matters).
We only publish a Submission if you have taken an affirmative step to submit it to us for that purpose.
You control how much detail you choose to disclose; we do not require you to disclose a diagnosis or specific health information to participate.
You may request that a published Submission be edited, anonymized (e.g., first name only or pseudonym), or removed at any time by contacting us. We will action such requests as soon as reasonably possible, though we may not be able to retract copies already shared or downloaded by others, or already circulated in print materials such as Lamplight Magazine.
Additional handling practices for storytelling Submissions, including licensing of your content, are set out in our Terms of Use.
Cookies and Similar Technologies
We use cookies and similar tracking technologies (such as pixels and tags) to operate the Service and understand how it is used. Categories of cookies we use include:
Strictly necessary / session cookies — required for core site functionality (e.g., navigation, cart functionality on the Shop).
Preference cookies — remember settings such as language.
Analytics cookies — help us understand aggregate visitor behaviour (see Google Analytics, Section 8).
Security cookies — support account and transaction security.
You can manage or disable cookies through your browser settings; disabling certain cookies may affect Service functionality (e.g., the ability to complete a donation or purchase). Where required by applicable law (including Quebec's Law 25), we will seek your consent before using non-essential cookies and provide a mechanism to manage your preferences.
We do not currently respond to browser "Do Not Track" signals, as no common industry standard exists for interpreting them.
Children's and Youth Participants' Privacy
The Service is not directed at children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 without verifiable parental or guardian consent.
For program participants who are minors (for example, in Unsinkable Youth), we collect the minimum information necessary to deliver the program safely, and we require consent from a parent or legal guardian before collecting or publishing any personal information about a minor, including any story or content submitted on the minor's behalf. Parents and guardians may contact us at any time to review, correct, or request deletion of their child's information, or to withdraw consent for a Submission to remain published.
If we learn we have collected personal information from a child without appropriate consent, we will take steps to delete that information promptly.
How We Retain Your Information
We retain personal information only as long as reasonably necessary to fulfill the purposes described in this policy, including:
Donation records: retained for a minimum of the period required by the Canada Revenue Agency for charitable tax receipt purposes (currently at least 6 years from the end of the relevant tax year).
Storytelling Submissions: retained as long as the Submission remains published, or until you request removal, subject to Section 4.
Program registration records (including youth participants): retained for the duration of the program and a limited period afterward for safety, reporting, and continuity purposes, then securely deleted or anonymized.
Usage/analytics data: retained per our analytics provider's standard retention settings, currently configured to [Insert retention period, e.g., 14 months for Google Analytics].
General inquiries and correspondence: retained for a reasonable period to support follow-up, then securely deleted.
When personal information is no longer needed, we securely delete, destroy, or anonymize it, subject to any legal obligation to retain it longer.
Who We Share Your Information With (Service Providers)
We do not sell your personal information. We share personal information only as follows:
a) Service providers who process data on our behalf, currently including:
Squarespace — our website hosting and content management platform, which processes site visitor data and form submissions, and manages our newsletter distribution and subscriber list.. See Squarespace's Privacy Policy.
CanadaHelps — our third-party donation processor, which handles donation transactions and issues charitable tax receipts. See CanadaHelps' Privacy Policy.
Shop payment processor, Stripe Payments — processes payment card information for Shop purchases. We do not store full card numbers ourselves.
Google Analytics — provides aggregate website analytics. Google may process data on servers located outside Canada. You can opt out using the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on. See Google's Privacy Policy.
Event registration platforms, Zoom or Eventbrite — manages event sign-ups and related communications. See Zoom’s Privacy Policy and Eventbrite’s Privacy Policy.
We require our service providers to protect personal information consistent with this policy and applicable law, and to use it only for the purposes for which we've engaged them.
b) Other circumstances:
With your explicit consent (e.g., if we share your story with a media outlet or partner organization).
Where required by law, court order, or valid request from a public authority.
Where necessary to protect the rights, property, or safety of Unsinkable, our community, storytellers, or the public — including where a Submission or program interaction raises a safety concern.
In connection with a merger, reorganization, or sale of assets, subject to this policy continuing to apply to your information.
International Data Transfers
Some of our service providers (including Google Analytics) may process or store personal information on servers located outside Canada, including in the United States. As a result, your personal information may be subject to the laws of those jurisdictions, which may differ from Canadian privacy law. Where we transfer personal information outside Canada, we take reasonable steps to require our service providers to protect it in a manner consistent with this policy.
How We Protect Your Information
We use reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to protect personal information appropriate to its sensitivity, including restricting access to personal information to staff and volunteers who need it to perform their role, and relying on reputable, security-conscious service providers. No method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
In the event of a breach of security safeguards involving personal information that creates a real risk of significant harm, we will notify affected individuals and the applicable privacy regulator(s) — including the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada and, where applicable, Quebec's Commission d'accès à l'information (CAI) — as required by law.
Your Privacy Rights
Subject to applicable law and some exceptions, you have the right to:
Access the personal information we hold about you;
Correct inaccurate or incomplete personal information;
Withdraw consent to our collection, use, or disclosure of your personal information (which may limit our ability to provide certain parts of the Service);
Request deletion of your personal information, including a published Submission, subject to Section 4 and any legal retention requirements;
Request portability of personal information you have provided to us, in a commonly used electronic format;
File a complaint with us, or with the applicable privacy regulator, if you believe we have not handled your personal information in accordance with this policy or the law.
Quebec residents additionally have the right, under Law 25, to be informed of any automated decision-making that significantly affects them (we do not currently use automated decision-making that produces legal or similarly significant effects), and may direct privacy-related complaints to our designated Privacy Officer (Section 13) or to the CAI.
We may ask you to verify your identity before responding to a request. We will respond within the time frame required by applicable law.
Links to Other Sites
The Service may link to third-party sites (for example, our social media channels or crisis support resources such as Talk Suicide or Kids Help Phone). We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those sites, and we encourage you to review their privacy policies directly.
Contact Us / Privacy Officer
Questions, requests, or complaints about this policy or our handling of your personal information can be directed to our contact page.
Quebec residents may also contact the Commission d'accès à l'information du Québec at cai.gouv.qc.ca. Residents of other provinces may contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada at priv.gc.ca.
Changes to This Policy
We review this Privacy Policy at least annually, and whenever our data practices materially change. We will updated the policy on this page with a revised effective date.