Privacy Policy

General

This is the privacy policy of Alliance for Rural Electrification AISBL, a non-profit association with registered offices in Belgium at 1040 Brussels, Rue d’Arlon 63-67, registered in the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises under number 0883.277.545 (hereafter: “ARE”). ARE acts as the controller of your personal data, which it can obtain (i) directly from you, or (ii) indirectly through third parties, such as your employer, your organisation, subcontractors, its partners or its contracting parties.

Established in 2006, ARE is the only global business association that represents the whole decentralised renewable energy (DRE) sector for rural electrification in developing and emerging countries.

ARE can at any moment modify this privacy policy. We, therefore, encourage Members to consult regularly for updates.

Legal framework

This privacy policy is subject to privacy legislation, i.e.:

  • the Belgian Data Protection Act of 8th December 1992 on the protection of privacy in relation to the processing of personal data (as amended) (the “Privacy Act”); and/or
  • Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation) (“GDPR”); and/or
  • All other applicable legislation regarding the protection of privacy and the processing of personal data;
  • ARE’s server and hosting are managed by Dreamhost.

What data do we collect

The personal data ARE can process are, i.e.: first name, name, address, email address, phone number, birth date, birthplace, profession, and function within your organisation.

By agreeing to this privacy policy, you guarantee that the personal data you have provided, are complete and correct.

By agreeing to this privacy policy, partners that provide personal data of third parties (e.g. their employees, members, board members, staff, subcontractors, and contracting parties) to ARE guarantee that (i) these personal data are lawfully obtained and (ii) that the partner is authorised to transfer these personal data to ARE. These partners will comply with the Privacy Legislation. These partners will indemnify ARE against, hold ARE harmless against and shall compensate ARE for all claims that would result from non-compliance with the abovementioned guarantees and Privacy Legislation.

How do we collect your data

To optimise the experience for users of our website and ARE members, we use the following sections and third-party services to collect data from our visitors and members.

Google Analytics: We use Google Analytics to collect anonymised data from website visitors to learn how visitors use different sections of ARE’s online presence. The data collected is anonymous and cannot be traced back to individual visitors. You can read more about Google’s privacy policy here. You can opt-out of Google Analytics by installing the browser plugin provided by Google.

Member-only section: ARE members can request access to a members-only section of the ARE website.

ARE Membership Application: Organisations that would like to become ARE members can download and complete the membership form. The data provided by organisations will be used to determine if the applicant is eligible for ARE membership, ARE’s internal mailing list and the organisation’s profile on the ARE website.

ARE Member profile update: Existing ARE Members will be invited to update their business profiles on ARE website directly.

ARE Newsletter: We use an embedded form to allow website visitors to subscribe to our newsletter. ARE uses Constant Contact for its email marketing purposes. You can unsubscribe from the ARE Newsletter by clicking on the unsubscribe link at the bottom of one of the previous editions. The privacy policy of Constant Contact can be accessed here.

Registration Forms for ARE Events: ARE can process personal data in accordance with the EU GDPR, in order to:

  • achieve the purpose and exercise its activities;
  • provide direct marketing regarding its activities such as updates, newsletters, emails, marketing materials, invitations to events such as conferences, latest news, exhibitions and webinars;
  • execute the contract(s) that have been concluded with you or your employer or organisation you are a member of
  • prospect new partners and members;
  • better understand your needs and preferences in order to adjust its services hereto;
  • acquire statistical data; and
  • inform third parties.

Transfer of personal data to third parties

ARE guarantees it does not transfer your personal data to third parties, unless:

  • There is a legal obligation to transfer the personal data;
  • To its partners (e.g. subcontractors, partners or contracting parties) for the achievement of the Purpose; and
  • ARE has a legitimate interest to do so

Third parties to whom ARE may, or is obliged to, transfer personal data on the basis of the above categories, can be located within or outside the European Union. The personal data may thus be transferred to companies or authorities of non-EU countries. ARE cannot be held responsible regarding the transfer of personal data and cannot be liable for the further processing of the personal data by third parties.

What are your data protection rights?

ARE would like to make sure you are fully aware of all of your data protection rights. Every user is entitled to the following:

  • The right to access – You have the right to request ARE for copies of your personal data. We may charge you a small fee for this service.
  • The right to rectification – You have the right to request that ARE correct any information you believe is inaccurate. You also have the right to request ARE to complete the information you believe is incomplete.
  • The right to erasure – You have the right to request that ARE erase your personal data, under certain conditions.
  • The right to restrict processing – You have the right to request that ARE restrict the processing of your personal data, under certain conditions.
  • The right to object to processing – You have the right to object to ARE’s processing of your personal data, under certain conditions.
  • The right to data portability – You have the right to request that ARE transfer the data that we have collected to another organisation, or directly to you, under certain conditions.

If you make a request, we have one month to respond to you. If you would like to exercise any of these rights, please contact us at our email: are@ruralelec.org

Cookies

Cookies are text files placed on your computer to collect standard Internet log information and visitor behaviour information. When you visit our website, we may collect information from you automatically through cookies or similar technology

For further information, visit allaboutcookies.org.

How do we use cookies?

ARE uses cookies in a range of ways to improve your experience on our website, including:

  • Keeping you signed in
  • Understanding how you use our website

What types of cookies do we use?

There are a number of different types of cookies, however, our website uses:

  • Functionality – ARE uses these cookies so that we recognise you on our website and remember your previously selected preferences. These could include what language you prefer and location you are in. A mix of first-party and third-party cookies are used.
  • Advertising – ARE uses these cookies to collect information about your visit to our website, the content you viewed, the links you followed and information about your browser, device, and your IP address.

How to manage cookies

You can set your browser not to accept cookies, and the above website tells you how to remove cookies from your browser. However, in a few cases, some of our website features may not function as a result.

Security

ARE commits to take (or have) all reasonable measures (taken) to its best ability to safeguard the protection of the personal data through technical safety measures and an appropriate safety policy for its employees. The personal data are stored with ARE, or, if applicable, with the processor of the personal data on servers located on Dreamhost. You acknowledge and accept that the transfer and storage of personal data is never without risk and consequently, the damage that you may suffer from the unlawful use of your personal data by third parties can never be collected from ARE.

Liability

ARE can solely be held accountable for damages that directly result from the processing of your personal data due to a fault or negligence of ARE. In any event, ARE cannot be held liable: (i) in circumstances of force majeure and/or (ii) for any indirect or consequential damage and/or (iii) for damages that result from errors, faults or negligence by you or third parties. ARE’s liability cannot exceed EUR 1,000 (thousand euro) for breaches regarding this privacy policy and/or Privacy Legislation.

Severability

If any provision in this privacy policy is deemed to be unlawful or unenforceable, that provision shall be amended by ARE and yourself insofar as necessary in order to make it lawful or enforceable, while retaining the meaning of ARE and yourself with respect to that provision as much as possible.

Whenever possible, the provisions of this privacy policy shall be interpreted in such a manner as to be valid and enforceable under the applicable law. However, if one or more provisions of this privacy policy are found to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable, in whole or in part, the remainder of that provision and of this privacy policy shall remain in full force and effect as if such invalid, illegal or unenforceable provision had never been contained herein.

Governing law and jurisdiction

You agree that all disputes between you and ARE regarding personal data and privacy issues, are exclusively subject to Belgian law, excluding any conflict of law principles.

Every dispute, particularly regarding personal data and privacy issues, belongs to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Brussels, Belgium.

Data Storage Period

ARE stores the personal data for as long as is necessary to achieve the purpose.

Privacy policies of other websites

The ARE website contains links to other websites. Our privacy policy applies only to our website, so if you click on a link to another website, you should read their privacy policy.

Changes to our privacy policy

Our Company keeps its privacy policy under regular review and places any updates on this web page. This privacy policy was last updated on 1 March 2023.

How to contact us

If you have any questions about ARE’s privacy policy, the data we hold on you, or you would like to exercise one of your data protection rights, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Alliance for Rural Electrification
Rue d’Arlon 63-67
1040 Brussels
Belgium
are@ruralelec.org