Privacy Notice – SPUN Science Associates Program

LAST UPDATED: September 6, 2023

This privacy notice explains how SPUN collects, uses, and protects personal data of individuals applying for and participating in Science Associates programs. We are committed to ensuring that your privacy is protected and that personal data is handled in accordance with applicable data protection laws.

Data Controller

The data controller responsible for your personal data is the Society for the Protection of Underground Networks (SPUN), located at 3500 South Dupont Highway, Suite EI – 101, Dover, Delaware, United States of America. We are responsible for determining the purposes and means of processing personal data.

Personal Data Collected

We may collect and process various categories of personal data, including:

• Contact information (e.g., name, address, email address, phone number)
• Professional details (e.g., institution/affiliation, current position/title)
• Biographical information (e.g., education, qualifications)
• Program application materials (e.g., project summaries, CV, supporting documents)
• Multimedia (e.g., photos, video footage).

We may also collect and process various categories of special category data, including:

• data revealing your racial and ethnic origin (e.g., country of birth, self-identification)
• data concerning your gender identity

Purposes and Legal Basis for Processing

We collect and process your personal data for the following purposes:

• Assessing program applications and eligibility
• Communicating with applicants and participants
• Administering the program
• Evaluating the impact of the program
• Reporting on the program to third parties
• Marketing the program and its outcomes

We generally rely on legitimate interests as the legal basis for processing your personal data. This means that we have a legitimate reason and lawful purpose for processing your personal data, being SPUN’s interest in efficiently and effectively administering its programs.

Where you have provided consent, we may use special category data submitted in program applications in an anonymous capacity (including personal data revealing your racial and ethnic origin and sexual orientation) for the purpose of monitoring and reporting on compliance with external funding guidelines and requirements and SPUN’s [Inclusive Action Policy].

Where you have provided consent, we may also use your contact information to send you the SPUN Updates newsletter.

Data Retention

We will retain the personal information you provide us when applying for and participating in grant s:

• If you are unsuccessful in your application: for a period of 10 years after we have notified you of the outcome of your application, in order to respond to any queries you may have and, in certain cases, to reconsider your application under future programs.

• If you are successful in your application: for an indefinite period in order to maintain a record of program participants.

Data Sharing and Transfers

Your personal data may be shared with the following recipients:

• SPUN employees, officers, and contractors 
• Members of the application evaluation committee
• Funding organizations or partners involved in the program
• External reviewers or experts involved in the evaluation process
• Third parties who provide us with technical support, website hosting and other services

We may also share your personal data when required by law, including where necessary in order to discharge legal or regulatory obligations, or to protect our legitimate interests.

Your Rights

Depending on the circumstances you might have some or all of the following rights:

• Right to access: You can request access to the personal data we hold about you.
• Right to rectification: You can request correction of inaccurate or incomplete personal data.
• Right to erasure: You can request deletion of your personal data under certain circumstances.
• Right to restriction: You can request restriction of processing of your personal data.
• Right to data portability: You can request a copy of your personal data in a commonly used format.
• Right to object: You can object to the processing of your personal data based on legitimate interests.

To exercise your rights or for any privacy-related inquiries, please contact us at hello@spun.earth.

Changes to this Privacy Notice

We may update this privacy notice from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements. The updated privacy notice will be posted on our website. We encourage you to refer to this Policy periodically to learn about updates to our privacy practices.

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