Privacy Policy

The General Purpose of this Privacy Policy

The Fetzer Institute would like its website visitors to know that any personal information collected from them will be treated with respect. Your information will not be passed along to other parties and we take appropriate steps to protect it.

Information Collection and Use

General Personal Information
  • When the Fetzer Institute collects information from site visitors, rest assured that it is not shared with any other organizations. If you want to be removed from any email list, you can opt out at any time.
  • We use voluntary personal information for the purpose stated at the time of collection. For example, per a visitor’s request, to forward email notifications or to mail printed materials.
  • At the point of collection, the Fetzer Institute usually offers visitors a choice about what information they need to supply in order for us to process a request. Please see the copy associated with each submission for relevant information requirements. 
Cookies

On rare occasions, an IP address or session cookie may be used to facilitate server requests from your web browser. Such information is not stored on our servers. We do not use cookies to mine data or retain information.

User Statistics

The Fetzer Institute collects general information about visitor traffic. For example, how many visitors we had today and how many server requests or files were downloaded. Analyzing this information helps us determine how to provide useful information to visitors. No personal information is collected during the tracking process.

Children

We attempt to have all material on our site be appropriate for children. 

Confidentiality and Security

The Fetzer Institute protects all personal information using physical, electronic, and procedural safeguards that comply with federal regulations.

Changes to this Privacy Policy

From time to time the Fetzer Institute will change its privacy policy. If you are concerned about privacy, please review the policy before submitting any personal information. 

Questions and Suggestions

You may contact us at any time by emailing info@fetzer.org.

  1. This "fetzer.org" website (the "Site") is owned and operated by the John E. Fetzer Institute, Inc. ("Fetzer"). Fetzer has created this Privacy Policy to demonstrate its commitment to user privacy and online data security, and to communicate its online information gathering, use and dissemination practices for users of this Site. We encourage users to take time to read and understand this Privacy Policy, and to contact us if you have any questions or concerns with this Privacy Policy or anything you see or experience on this Site.
  2. This Privacy Policy is incorporated into and subject to the terms of the "Terms of Use" for this Site. This Privacy Policy will fully disclose our policy about the collection, maintenance, use, disclosure, and security of personally identifiable information obtained from users of the Site. By personally identifiable information, we mean a user’s name, address, e-mail address, telephone number, financial information or any other information that can be used to contact an individual, or which is identifiable of a specific individual ("Identifiable Information").
  3. Fetzer collects your email address and a password for login purposes only if you choose to use the registration process to track, rate, and comment on content. Additionally, Fetzer will collect certain Identifiable Information to fulfill your request for printed and electronic materials. At your option, Fetzer will collect stories and media from you, as well as your personal preferences in order to target specific electronic communications that may be of interest to you.
  4. On certain pages of this Site, you may have the opportunity to provide comments or other user-generated content on blogs and articles. Any information you choose to disclose when posting a message to these areas, along with the screen name or ID used, becomes public. In addition, the information that you disclose in these areas may be used by Fetzer for promotional and marketing purposes. Fetzer is not responsible for any Identifiable Information that you choose to disclose in these areas of the Site.
  5. The safety of children is important to Fetzer. We do not knowingly or intentionally collect information from children under the age of 13 without parental consent. 
  6. Fetzer shall use your Identifiable Information only in association with its operation and administration of the Site and its communications with you. Fetzer shall maintain the confidentiality of your Identifiable Information in the same manner in which it protects its own information of like kind, but in no event shall Fetzer take less than reasonable precautions to prevent the unauthorized disclosure or use of your Identifiable Information.
  7. Any Identifiable Information collected from you will be treated with respect. Fetzer may disclose your Identifiable Information to its employees and contractors on a need-to-know basis provided that such employees and contractors have confidentiality obligations to Fetzer. Fetzer may also disclose your Identifiable Information as required by applicable law or pursuant to a subpoena, order and/or request of a court or other governmental, legislative or regulatory body. Lastly, Fetzer may modify your Identifiable Information such that it is not identifiable as yours, and Fetzer may store, analyze, manipulate, aggregate, display, disclose, distribute, retain and otherwise use such unidentifiable information without restriction.
  8. Fetzer’s obligations under this Privacy Policy do not apply to any information or data that: (a) is not identifiable as yours; (b) is or becomes entirely in the public domain; (c) was known to Fetzer prior to its access to the information or data; (d) received lawfully from a third party through no breach of any obligation of confidentiality owed to you; and/or (e) created by Fetzer independently of its access to or use of your Identifiable Information.
  9. You have the option to opt out of providing certain information or data, from being contacted by or receiving information from Fetzer, its sponsors, advertisers, affiliates and/or strategic partners, and to choose how Fetzer uses your information and data. You may exercise your options by sending an e-mail with your request to info@fetzer.org.
  10. You may review, update, and correct your Identifiable Information by editing your User Profile. To edit your User Profile, log on to the Site using the business administrator user and password, select "Services" and "Account Manager" and follow the prompts. To have your Identifiable Information returned, you can either send an e-mail request to "info@fetzer.org" or call 269-375-2000.
  11. Subject to the terms of this Privacy Policy, Fetzer will return your Identifiable Information, and all copies thereof, within a reasonable time after your request. However, Fetzer may retain one (1) copy of all of your Identifiable Information solely for its own record keeping purposes. Fetzer will have no obligation or responsibility to return or provide any unidentifiable information to you.
  12. The security of this Site, and of the servers and other computer equipment used to bring you this Site, is a high priority for Fetzer. We maintain this Site and all associated data with technical, administrative, and physical safeguards to protect against loss, unauthorized access, destruction, misuse, modification, and improper disclosure. We follow industry-proven security procedures such as encrypted administrative communication, restricted access to underlying machines, and firewalls at network access points. No computer system or information can ever be fully protected against every possible hazard, but Fetzer is committed to providing reasonable and appropriate security controls to protect this Site and its information against foreseeable hazards.
  13. Fetzer’s servers will automatically collect certain technical information from your computer when you access or use this Site. Below we have summarized this technical information:
    1. Internet Protocol Addresses. Internet Protocol ("IP") addresses are identification numbers assigned to a user’s computer by its Internet Service Provider each time the user logs onto the Internet, or are permanently assigned if a user has an open connection to the Internet.
    2. Web Logs. Fetzer maintains standard web logs that record basic information about visitors to this Site. Our web logs contain the following information:
      1. The type of browser you are using when you access this Site, for example, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, etc.;
      2. The type and version of operating system you use, for example, Windows 10, Mac OSX, etc.;
      3. The Internet domain from which you access this Site and/or the address of the website you linked here from; and
      4. The date(s) and time(s) you visited this Site, and the pages you viewed and/or functions you used while you were at this Site.
    3. Use of IP Addresses and Web Log Information. Fetzer does not try to identify individuals or otherwise collect Identifiable Information from IP addresses or web log information. IP addresses and web log information are used by Fetzer to, among other things, administer the Site, help diagnose technical problems, to track and analyze aggregate data associated with the Site, to design this Site, and identify popular features. Fetzer may aggregate IP addresses and/or web log information, and may store, analyze, manipulate, display, disclose, distribute, retain and otherwise use such unidentifiable information. We may also provide IP addresses and/or web log information to law enforcement agencies if someone tries to damage this Site or use it in an unauthorized or illegal way.
  14. In addition to information collected automatically, we use cookies, which are small pieces of information sent to your browser. These cookies do not collect personally identifiable information. Cookies are used to track usage patterns, traffic trends, and customer behavior, as well as to record other information from the website.

    For EU individuals, essential cookies also help inform Fetzer whether you require, or have already been served, an affirmative consent request in connection with the GDPR. Essential cookies include analytics cookies, which provide us data that allows the Trust to better understand its users and improve the website based on what we have learned from that data.
  15. Questions, comments, or complaints regarding this Privacy Policy and/or this Site should be directed to Fetzer’s Privacy Administrator by e-mailing such questions, comments or complaints to info@fetzer.org.
  16. Fetzer reserves the right to change the terms and conditions of this Privacy Policy at any time in its sole discretion. Fetzer will provide notification of any change by posting the change on this Site. You are responsible for regularly reviewing this Privacy Policy and all such changes. Continued use of the Site after any such changes have been posted shall constitute your agreement to such changes.