Who are we?

We are Brink Literacy Project, a nonprofit corporation located in Colorado, United States (also operating under Tethered by Letters). We: operate literacy and literature initiatives worldwide, including in underserved communities and demographics; work with creatives to assist them in getting published and connecting with readers; and publish F(r)iction, a totally boss literary journal that collects writing, artwork, and graphic novels from new and established creatives.

What is this?

This is a privacy policy and the reason we have it is to tell you how we collect, manage, store, and use your information.

Just so we’re clear, whenever we say“we,” “us,” “our,” or “ourselves”, we’re talking about Brink Literacy Project and whenever we say “you” or “your,” we’re talking about the person or business who has decided to use our services. And since we do a lot of different stuff, when we talk about our services, we mean any of our websites or apps; or any features, products, graphics, text, images, photos, audio, video, or similar things we use.

Why are we showing you this?

We value and respect your privacy. That is why we strive to only use your information when we think that doing so improves your experience with using our services. If you feel that we could improve in this mission in any way, or if you have a complaint or concern, please let us know by sending us your feedback via our contact form, selecting the subject “Any other queries.”

Our goal is to be as transparent and open about our use of information and data as possible, so that our users can benefit from both the way they provide information and how we use it.

This privacy policy should be read along with our Terms of Use, posted at http://www.brinklit.org/termsofuse/. That’s another big part of what we do, so please review it, and if you have any questions or concerns about what it contains, please get in touch with us via our contact form.

Information Collection and Use

In using the services, you may be asked to provide us a variety of information—some of which can personally identify you and some that cannot. We may collect, store, and share this personal information with third parties, but only in the ways we explain in this policy. Here’s how we do it and why we do it:

A. Personally Identifiable Information: How We Collect It.

Personally identifiable information is data that can be used to contact or identify a single person. Examples include your name, you phone number, your email, your address, and your IP address. We collect this kind of information in the following ways:

B. Personally Identifiable Information: How We Use It.

Brink Literacy Project uses your information in the following ways:

  • To contact you via email
  • To include you in our email listserv to provide you updates on our services and things we offer, at your request
  • To provide you our services
  • To improve our website performance
  • To tailor our services to your needs and the way you use our services

C. Who We Share Your Information With and Why

We only share your information with third parties in the following ways and for the following purposes:

  1. We share your name and email address with a third party, Mailchimp, to distribute our newsletter and information to our mailing list.
  2. We use a third-party donation system, Donorbox, and PayPal and Stripe to process your payments.
  3. We will share all collected information to the extent necessary and as required by law or to comply with any legal obligations, including defense of our company.

Please note: The above websites and services have their own Privacy Policies and other terms of use. Please review those policies and terms prior to engaging those services.

D. Your Choices in What Information You Share

We do not require you to provide any personal data to review the public content of our website.

Our process for collecting information begins when you wish to make a donation, or join our mailing or email lists. We collect personal information—your name, email address, mailing address, and telephone numbers—to provide these services. We will request your consent to use your data at the time you provide it for those services. We require your personal data as part of your contract with us so we can provide you our services. We will not use your data for more than the purpose for which it was collected.

E. Non-Personally Identifiable Information

Non-Personally Identifiable Information includes general details about your device and connection (including the type of computer/mobile device, operating system, web browser or other software, language preference, and hardware); general information from the app store or referring website; the date and time of visit or use; and, internet content provider information.

F. Non-Personally Identifiable Information: Collection and Use

We collect your Non-Personally Identifiable Information through Google Analytics when you visit our site. We use your Non-Personally Identifiable Information and behavior to analyze usage statistics, improve our services, provide quality assurance testing, and address service-related issues.

G. How Long We Keep Your Information

We will retain your Personally Identifiable Information for as long as you use our services, or until you request in writing that we delete or otherwise remove your Personally Identifiable Information.

We will retain Non-Personally Identifiable Information as part of our historical analysis of how our services are used, until such data no longer provides any historical use.

Furthermore, when we process information, we retain a record, to the extent reasonably possible, of the following information: the processor, purpose of the processing, categories of individuals and data involved, and nature of disclosure.

H. Where We Keep and Transfer Your Information

Our business is operated in the United States and third parties with whom we share your information are as well. Our servers are located here and this is where your data and information will be stored.

Please be aware that if you are a citizen of another country, and if you live in Europe in particular, that your information will be transferred out of your home country and into the United States. The United States might not have the same level of data protection as your country provides.

If you would like more information about this, please email us via our contact form, selecting the subject “Any other queries.”

I. EU Rights to Information

According to the laws of the European Union (except for limited exceptions, where applicable), anyone in those countries has the right to:

  • Be informed about their data and its processing
  • Have access to their data
  • Correct any errors in their data
  • Erase data from our records
  • Restrict processing and use of data
  • Data portability
  • Object to the use of their data, including for the purpose of automated profiling and direct marketing
  • Make decisions about automated decision making and profiling

We respect each of these rights for all of our users, regardless of citizenship. If you have any questions or concerns about any of these rights, or if you would like to assert any of these rights at any time, please email us via our contact form, selecting the subject “Any other queries.” Before we use your information in any way not authorized in this privacy policy, we will contact you to request your informed consent.

Protecting Your Information

A. Keeping It Safe

We make reasonable and commercially feasible efforts to keep your information safe. We have reasonable security measures in place to prevent your information from being accidentally lost, used, or accessed in an unauthorized way. We restrict access to your personal information to those who need to know it, are subject to contractual confidentiality obligations, and may be disciplined or terminated if they fail to meet these obligations. Those processing your information will do so only in an authorized manner and are subject to a duty of confidentiality.

That said, no organization or business can guarantee 100% data protection. With that in mind, we will also utilize commercially reasonable procedures to deal with any suspected data security breach. We will inform both you and any applicable authorities of a suspected data security breach, as and when required by law.

B. Links to Other Websites

Our site has links to the sites, content, and services of other businesses, suppliers, sponsors, and other third parties. Any products or services found through a link to any of these other sites are subject to separate privacy policies. Brink Literacy Project is not liable for any content provided or actions taken by such third parties.

C. Information We Get From Other Places

We also receive information from other sources, including PayPal, Stripe, Donorbox, and Mailchimp. We receive that information consistent with those companies’ privacy policies. For information about their privacy policies, please visit those websites.

D. Do Not Track Signals

Some technologies, such as web browsers or mobile devices, provide a setting that when turned on sends a Do Not Track (DNT) signal when browsing a website or app. There is currently no common standard for responding to DNT Signals or even in the DNT signal itself. We currently do not have any technology implemented to process DNT Signals.

E. Use by Minors

We publish art and literature. By its nature, at times, it may contain challenging content and mature themes. This content is not intended for minors. By viewing our website and its content, you confirm that you are either 18 years or older, or are accessing our website with the express permission of an adult parent or guardian.

We do not knowingly collect personal information directly from minors. If you are a parent or legal guardian and your minor child has provided us personal information, you have the right to contact us and require that we: (a) permit you to review the personal information provided, and (b) remove and delete the personal information provided. To do so, upon you contacting us, we must take reasonable steps to confirm you are the parent. You may contact us for such a request at any time via our contact form.

F. Compliance with Regulators

We regularly review our privacy policy to do our best to ensure it complies with any applicable laws. When we receive formal written complaints, we will contact the person who made the complaint to follow up as soon as is practicable. We will work with relevant regulatory authorities to resolve any complaints or concerns that we cannot resolve with our users directly.

You also have the right to file a complaint with the supervisory authority of your home country, where available, relating to the processing of any personal data you feel may have violated local regulations.

General Information for Your Further Understanding

A. No Unsolicited Personal Information Requests

We will never ask you for your personal information in an unsolicited letter, call, or email. If you contact us, we will only use your personal information if necessary to fulfill your request.

B. Changes

Our business and the services we provide are constantly evolving. We may change our privacy policy at any time. We will not reduce your rights under this policy without affirmatively requesting that you consent to that change. If you do not consent to that change, you will forego your ability to use any services that require any information affected by that change.

C. Security

The security of our services is important to us. We make reasonable efforts to secure any information you provide to our systems. Unfortunately, no data transmission over the Internet can be guaranteed to be 100% secure. As a result, we cannot guarantee your security. As with disclosure of any information electronically, there is a risk that any information you disclose by use of the services could be collected or used by others. This could result in unsolicited messages from third parties or use of such information by third parties for their own purposes, legal or illegal. You hereby waive any claims against us and agree not to hold us liable for the theft or misuse of personal information.

D. Complaints

Brink Literacy Project respects the rights of all of its users, regardless of location or citizenship. If you have any questions or concerns about any of these rights, or if you would like to assert any of these rights at any time, please email us via our contact form, selecting the subject “Any other queries.”

E. Questions about Policy

If you have any questions about this privacy policy, please email us via our contact form, selecting the subject “Any other queries.” By accessing any of our services or content, you are affirming that you understand and agree with the terms of our Privacy Policy.