Privacy Policy

Last updated: June 16, 2026

This Privacy Policy explains how Hummingbirds Center Research Institute - Centro Colibri, Inc. (the "Organization," "we," "us," or "our") collects, uses, discloses, and protects Personal Information in connection with https://hummingbirdscenter.org, related communications, and any official donation, checkout, ordering, or payment page that identifies the Organization and links to this Policy.

Current website status. Payment and donation functions may not yet be active on the Website. The transaction-related portions of this Policy apply when such functions are enabled through the Website or an official linked checkout. We will update operational details if our data practices materially change.

1. Organization and Data Controller

The organization responsible for the processing described in this Policy is Hummingbirds Center Research Institute - Centro Colibri, Inc., a United States nonprofit corporation recognized as a 501(c)(3) public charity.

Correspondence address: 447 Broadway, 2nd Floor, Suite 1012, New York, NY 10013, United States
Email: info@hummingbirdscenter.com
Phone: +1 (646) 992-3830

For purposes of the European Economic Area ("EEA"), United Kingdom, and other laws that use the concept of a controller, the Organization is the controller of Personal Information for which it determines the purposes and means of processing. A payment processor, social network, or other third party may separately act as a controller for its own purposes.

2. Scope

This Policy applies to visitors, donors, prospective donors, purchasers, prospective purchasers, subscribers, applicants, research or institutional contacts, and people who communicate with us through the Website or official channels. It does not govern the independent practices of third-party websites or services that do not act on our behalf.

3. Personal Information We May Collect

Depending on how you interact with us, we may collect the following categories of Personal Information:

· Identity and contact information, such as name, organization, title, postal address, email address, telephone number, and communication preferences.

· Donation information, such as donation amount, currency, frequency, program designation, tribute or dedication details, receipt information, transaction status, and limited payment references.

· Order and fulfillment information, such as products, quantities, order number, billing and shipping address, delivery method, tax information, shipment status, returns, refunds, and customer-support history.

· Payment-related information. When Stripe or another processor is used, the processor may collect card or bank details, billing details, authentication information, device signals, and fraud-prevention data. We generally receive transaction identifiers, payment status, amount, method type, and limited card details such as brand and last four digits. We do not intend to store full card numbers or card security codes on the Website.

· Communications and submitted materials, including messages, inquiries, feedback, photographs, reports, files, requests for support, and information submitted in connection with a product-quality, animal-welfare, research, or safety matter.

· Newsletter and outreach information, such as email address, subscription status, campaign engagement, and consent records.

· Technical and usage information, such as Internet Protocol address, browser and device type, operating system, referring page, pages viewed, approximate location derived from IP, date and time, cookie identifiers, diagnostic logs, and security events.

· Information from service providers and public sources, such as updated delivery status from a carrier, payment or fraud status from a processor, or professional and institutional information made publicly available.

Please do not send Social Security numbers, government identification numbers, health records, financial account credentials, precise nest locations, or other sensitive information unless we specifically request it through an appropriate secure process and it is necessary for a lawful purpose.

4. How We Collect Information

We collect information directly from you when you contact us, submit a form, subscribe, donate, order, request a receipt, request support, or otherwise communicate. We also collect information automatically through cookies and similar technologies and receive information from providers that help us operate the Website, process payments, prevent fraud, deliver communications, ship products, and maintain records.

5. How We Use Personal Information

We may use Personal Information to:

· operate, maintain, secure, troubleshoot, and improve the Website and related services;

· respond to questions, requests, complaints, product-safety reports, and institutional or research communications;

· process and document donations, issue acknowledgments and tax receipts, administer donor designations, and manage recurring donations;

· process orders, payments, taxes, shipment, delivery, returns, replacements, refunds, recalls, and customer support;

· communicate transactional, administrative, safety, legal, and policy notices;

· send newsletters or fundraising communications where permitted, and record subscriptions, objections, and withdrawals;

· detect and prevent fraud, card testing, unauthorized transactions, abuse, security incidents, and violations of our terms;

· maintain accounting, tax, charitable-solicitation, corporate, audit, product-traceability, and legal records;

· establish, exercise, or defend legal claims and protect the Organization, donors, customers, animals, the public, and service providers;

· analyze Website use and the effectiveness of communications, subject to applicable consent requirements; and

· comply with law, court orders, governmental requests, payment-network rules, and other binding obligations.

6. Legal Bases Where GDPR or UK GDPR Applies

Where the GDPR, UK GDPR, or a similar law requires a legal basis, we rely on one or more of the following:

· Contract and pre-contractual steps: to process an order, provide requested support, or take steps you request before a transaction.

· Consent: for optional newsletters, non-essential cookies, or another purpose where consent is requested. You may withdraw consent prospectively.

· Legal obligation: for tax, accounting, charitable, product-safety, sanctions, fraud-prevention, and other legal requirements.

· Legitimate interests: to operate and secure the Website, communicate with stakeholders, administer donations and orders, prevent misuse, improve services, maintain records, and protect rights, balanced against your rights and interests.

· Vital interests: in an exceptional situation where processing is necessary to protect a person's life or physical safety.

· Public interest: where processing is authorized or required by law for a public-interest function.

7. Payments and Stripe

When payment functionality is enabled, the Website or an official linked checkout may use Stripe. Payment details entered into a Stripe-hosted or Stripe-enabled payment interface are transmitted to Stripe and processed under Stripe's own privacy and security practices. Stripe may also process transaction, device, identity-verification, compliance, and fraud-prevention information for its independent purposes.

Stripe's privacy policy is available at https://stripe.com/privacy. We may use another processor where disclosed at checkout; that processor's policy will apply to its processing.

8. Cookies and Similar Technologies

We and our providers may use cookies, local storage, pixels, tags, scripts, or similar technologies to operate the Website, remember preferences, maintain security, prevent abuse, understand traffic, and measure communications. Some technologies are strictly necessary; others may be optional analytics or outreach technologies.

Where required by law, non-essential cookies will be used only after consent. You may manage choices through any cookie banner we provide and through browser settings. Blocking cookies may affect Website functionality. We will honor legally required browser-based opt-out signals where applicable to our practices.

9. How We Disclose Personal Information

We may disclose Personal Information only as reasonably necessary to the following recipients:

· payment processors, including Stripe when enabled;

· website, hosting, ecommerce, form, database, cloud-storage, and information-technology providers;

· shipping carriers, fulfillment providers, customs agents, and address-verification services;

· email, newsletter, communication, analytics, security, anti-spam, and fraud-prevention providers;

· accountants, auditors, lawyers, insurers, banks, and other professional advisers;

· research, veterinary, product-safety, laboratory, regulatory, or institutional partners when necessary for a specific request, investigation, or program and consistent with law;

· governmental, regulatory, law-enforcement, judicial, tax, or charitable oversight authorities when required or lawfully requested; and

· a successor or counterparty in a merger, reorganization, asset transfer, or similar transaction, subject to appropriate safeguards and the nonprofit nature of the Organization.

Service providers are permitted to process information for the services they provide and under applicable contractual and legal duties. A third party that determines its own purposes may be independently responsible for its processing.

10. Donor Privacy and Public Recognition

We do not publicly identify a donor, donation amount, tribute, or dedication without permission, except where disclosure is required by law or included in a public filing. A donor may ask to remain anonymous in public acknowledgments. Anonymous public recognition does not prevent us from retaining the donor information required to process the gift, issue a receipt, prevent fraud, or comply with law.

11. Sale, Sharing, and Targeted Advertising

We do not sell Personal Information for money. We do not knowingly share Personal Information for cross-context behavioral advertising. We may disclose information to service providers and other recipients for the operational purposes described in this Policy. If our practices change in a way that creates an opt-out right under applicable law, we will update this Policy and provide the required choice.

12. Marketing and Fundraising Communications

We may send email newsletters, research updates, product availability notices, or fundraising communications where permitted by law. You may unsubscribe through the link in an email or by contacting us. We may still send non-marketing messages necessary for a donation, order, safety notice, legal notice, or support request.

13. Data Retention

We retain Personal Information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes described, including legal, accounting, tax, charitable-solicitation, product-safety, dispute, fraud-prevention, and recordkeeping requirements. Retention depends on the record and jurisdiction.

· Transaction, donation, receipt, order, refund, and accounting records are generally retained for at least seven years after the relevant fiscal period or longer if required.

· Customer, donor, research, and support communications are generally retained while the relationship or matter is active and for a reasonable period afterward, often up to three years, unless a longer period is necessary.

· Product-safety, traceability, adverse-event, recall, and legal-claim records may be retained for the applicable product life, limitation period, or legally required period.

· Newsletter information is retained until you unsubscribe or the information is no longer needed, with a limited suppression record retained to honor the request.

· Technical logs and analytics information are retained for a period appropriate to security, troubleshooting, and analysis and may be aggregated or de-identified.

When information is no longer required, we may delete, anonymize, aggregate, or securely archive it, subject to backups and legal holds.

14. Security

We use reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational safeguards designed to protect Personal Information against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, loss, and misuse. These measures may include access controls, encrypted transmission, reputable payment interfaces, security monitoring, backups, and provider review. No Internet transmission or storage system is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

Do not send payment card numbers or sensitive credentials by ordinary email. If you believe information or an account has been compromised, contact us promptly.

15. International Data Transfers

The Organization is based in the United States, and providers may process information in the United States and other countries. Those countries may have different privacy laws. Where required for a restricted international transfer, we rely on an applicable adequacy decision, contractual clauses, consent, or another lawful transfer mechanism.

16. Your Privacy Rights

Depending on your residence and applicable law, you may have rights to request access, correction, deletion, restriction, objection, portability, or information about categories of data and recipients; to withdraw consent; to opt out of certain uses; and to appeal a denied request. These rights are subject to verification and legal exceptions, including records we must retain.

To exercise a right, email info@hummingbirdscenter.com with the subject "Privacy Request" or write to the address above. Describe the request and the relationship or transaction involved. We may ask for information reasonably necessary to verify identity and authority. Authorized agents must provide legally sufficient authorization.

EEA and UK individuals may also lodge a complaint with the supervisory authority in their place of residence, work, or the alleged infringement. United States residents may have additional state-law rights. We will not unlawfully discriminate against a person for exercising a privacy right.

17. Children

The Website is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect Personal Information online from a child under 13 without legally sufficient parental consent. Purchases and recurring donations must be made by an adult or authorized entity representative. If you believe a child has provided Personal Information, contact us so we can evaluate and delete it as required.

18. De-Identified and Aggregated Information

We may create and use information that has been reasonably de-identified or aggregated so that it is not reasonably linked to an individual, including for research, reporting, security, and service improvement. We will maintain de-identified information in de-identified form and not attempt to re-identify it except as permitted by law to test our de-identification processes.

19. Third-Party Links and Social Media

The Website may link to scientific publications, social networks, maps, partner institutions, payment pages, or other third-party services. Those services control their own processing. Review their privacy policies before providing information. Interaction with social media buttons or embedded content may allow the relevant provider to collect data even if you do not submit a form to us.

20. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Policy to reflect changes in law, technology, providers, transactions, or programs. The revised version will be posted with a new Last Updated date. Where required, we will provide additional notice or request consent before a material change applies.

21. Contact Us

Hummingbirds Center Research Institute - Centro Colibri, Inc.
447 Broadway, 2nd Floor, Suite 1012, New York, NY 10013, United States
Email: info@hummingbirdscenter.com
Phone: +1 (646) 992-3830
Website: https://hummingbirdscenter.org