Privacy & Cookie Policy
Vanguard Voices respects your privacy and is committed to handling personal data carefully, transparently and securely.
This Privacy and Cookie Policy explains how Vanguard Voices collects, uses, stores and shares personal data when you visit our website, subscribe to our communications, complete a form, apply to participate in our work, take the Vanguard Voices pledge, make an enquiry or otherwise interact with us.
Simply visiting our website does not mean that you consent to all processing described in this policy. Where consent is required, for example for newsletters, non-essential analytics cookies or the public display of your pledge, we ask for it separately.
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1. Who is responsible for your personal data?
The controller responsible for the processing described in this policy is:
Vanguard Voices
Swiss not-for-profit association
Reinach, BL
Switzerland
Email: jessica@vanguardvoices.com
In this policy, “Vanguard Voices”, “VV”, “we”, “us” and “our” refer to Vanguard Voices.
You can contact us at the email address above if you have questions about this policy or wish to exercise your data-protection rights.
2. Applicable data-protection law
Vanguard Voices is based in Switzerland. We process personal data in accordance with the Swiss Federal Act on Data Protection (FADP) and its implementing legislation.
Where the European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the UK GDPR or another applicable data-protection law applies to a particular activity, we also process personal data in accordance with that law.
3. What personal data do we collect?
The information we collect depends on how you interact with Vanguard Voices.
3.1 Information you provide directly
When you subscribe to The Vanguard Voice, we may collect:
• first name;
• company or organization; and
• email address.
When you volunteer or otherwise offer your expertise, we may collect:
• first and last name;
• telephone number;
• email address;
• location;
• professional background or expertise; and
• information you voluntarily provide about how you would like to contribute.
When you apply to the Vanguard Voices working group, we may collect:
• first and last name;
• professional role;
• organization;
• LinkedIn profile;
• areas of expertise;
• your responses to application questions; and
• other information you voluntarily include in your application.
When you take the Vanguard Voices pledge, we may collect:
• first and last name;
• email address;
• location;
• your pledge or reason for pledging;
• information about how you heard about Vanguard Voices; and
• your consent regarding publication of your name and pledge.
When you submit a speaking or event enquiry, we may collect:
• first and last name;
• telephone number;
• email address;
• event date;
• organization or event information; and
• other information you provide in connection with the enquiry.
We may also collect information that you voluntarily provide through surveys, research activities, correspondence, feedback, testimonials, events or other interactions with us.
Please do not submit confidential company information, health information, allegations about identifiable individuals or other sensitive personal data through ordinary website forms unless we have specifically asked you to provide it and an appropriate process is in place.
3.2 Information collected automatically
When you visit our website, we or our technology providers may process technical information such as:
• IP address;
• browser type and version;
• device type and operating system;
• language settings;
• approximate location;
• date and time of access;
• pages visited;
• referring website or source;
• website interactions;
• cookie identifiers;
• session information; and
• technical, performance and security information.
Some of this information is required to operate and secure the website.
Analytics information is collected in accordance with your cookie choices as described below.
3.3 Information received from other sources
We may receive limited personal data from other sources where appropriate, including:
• a person or organization that introduces or refers you to Vanguard Voices;
• event organizers or professional collaborators;
• publicly available professional information, such as an organization website or LinkedIn profile, where relevant to a professional enquiry or application; and
• technology providers that support our website, newsletter, events, donations or other activities.
We use such information only where it is relevant and proportionate to the purpose for which it was obtained.
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4. Why do we process personal data?
We may process personal data to:
• operate, maintain and secure our website;
• respond to enquiries and correspondence;
• send newsletters and other communications you have requested;
• manage subscriptions, preferences and unsubscribes;
• understand engagement with our newsletter and website;
• manage volunteer applications and participation;
• manage working-group applications and participation;
• respond to speaking and event enquiries;
• administer the Vanguard Voices pledge;
• issue digital badges;
• display names, pledges, testimonials or other contributions where permission has been given;
• organize meetings, workshops, events and research activities;
• develop and test the Vanguard Voices standard;
• manage applications from organizations interested in pilots or future certification;
• process and record donations or payments where applicable;
• prevent fraud, misuse, spam and security incidents;
• maintain appropriate organizational and governance records;
• comply with legal, accounting, tax and regulatory obligations;
• establish, exercise or defend legal claims; and
• improve our website, communications and activities.
We do not sell or rent personal data.
5. Legal grounds for processing
Under Swiss data-protection law, we process personal data in accordance with the applicable principles and requirements of the FADP.
Where the GDPR, UK GDPR or another law requiring a specific legal basis applies, the legal basis depends on the activity.
We may rely on consent for activities including:
• newsletter and marketing subscriptions;
• non-essential analytics cookies;
• publication of your name or pledge;
• use of a testimonial, photograph, recording or quotation where consent is required; and
• other activities for which we specifically ask for your permission.
We may process personal data where necessary to take steps at your request or perform an agreement, including in connection with:
• a speaking or event enquiry;
• participation in a working group or project;
• a donation or transaction; or
• another service or arrangement requested by you.
Where applicable, we may rely on legitimate interests for activities such as:
• operating and securing the website;
• responding to professional enquiries;
• managing applications and participation;
• maintaining organizational records;
• preventing misuse;
• improving our activities and communications; and
• developing Vanguard Voices and its proposed standard.
We may also process personal data where necessary to comply with a legal obligation.
You may withdraw consent at any time. Withdrawal does not affect processing that lawfully occurred before consent was withdrawn.
6. Wix website hosting and forms
Our website is built and hosted using Wix.
Wix provides services including website hosting, forms, databases, contact management, security, cookie-consent tools and other website functionality.
Information submitted through forms on our website may therefore be processed and stored within Wix systems.
Wix and its service providers may process personal data outside Switzerland.
Where required by law, international transfers are protected through legally recognized safeguards.
7. Newsletter and email communications
We use Kit to manage subscriptions and send The Vanguard Voice and other email communications.
When you subscribe, information transferred to Kit may include:
• your name;
• email address;
• company or organization;
• subscription source;
• subscription and consent status;
• tags or subscriber categories; and
• engagement information.
Where email tracking is enabled, Kit may record information such as whether an email was delivered or opened and whether a link was selected.
We use this information to understand whether our communications are useful, manage subscriptions and improve email delivery.
Open-tracking information is not always accurate because some email applications automatically load or block tracking technology.
Kit may process subscriber information outside Switzerland, including in the United States. Appropriate international data-transfer safeguards are used where required.
Every marketing newsletter contains an unsubscribe link.
You can unsubscribe at any time.
After you unsubscribe, we may retain a limited suppression record, such as your email address and unsubscribe status, so that we can respect your request and avoid unintentionally adding you back to the mailing list.
8. Working-group, volunteer and other applications
We use information submitted through working-group, volunteer and similar forms to:
• assess the application or expression of interest;
• contact you;
• understand your experience and potential contribution;
• organize participation;
• maintain appropriate project and governance records; and
• administer the relevant activity.
Submission of an application or expression of interest does not guarantee selection or participation.
If you are selected for a working group or another formal activity, additional terms or privacy information may apply.
Where working-group members are publicly credited, we will use the name, role, affiliation or other attribution agreed with the individual.
Where anonymous attribution is agreed, we will respect that choice.
9. The Vanguard Voices pledge and VirtualBadge
When you take the Vanguard Voices pledge, we collect the information requested on the pledge form.
We display your name or share your pledge publicly only where you have consented to this.
Where you give permission, your name, pledge or related contribution may be displayed on the Vanguard Voices website or used in Vanguard Voices communications.
We use VirtualBadge, operated by FutureNext GmbH in Germany, to issue digital badges.
To provide a badge, relevant information may be transferred to VirtualBadge, such as:
• your name;
• email address;
• badge information; and
• information necessary to issue or claim the badge.
VirtualBadge may also process information generated when a badge is claimed or shared.
Sharing your badge on LinkedIn or another social-media platform is optional.
If you choose to share it, the relevant platform will process your information according to its own privacy terms.
You may withdraw permission for future public display of your name or pledge by contacting Vanguard Voices.
We will remove information under our control where reasonably possible.
We cannot guarantee deletion of copies that have already been independently shared, downloaded, indexed or republished by others.
10. Speaking enquiries, events and meetings
If you contact us about a speaking engagement, workshop, event or meeting, we use the information you provide to:
• respond to the enquiry;
• assess availability and suitability;
• organize the engagement;
• communicate with you or the relevant organization; and
• maintain appropriate administrative records.
If an online meeting or event is hosted through a third-party platform, that provider may also process technical and participation information under its own privacy terms.
We will inform participants where a meeting or event is being recorded and obtain any consent required for publication or promotional use.
11. Donations and payments
Where Vanguard Voices accepts donations or other payments, transactions may be handled by an external payment provider.
The payment provider may process information such as:
• your name;
• billing information;
• transaction amount;
• payment method;
• transaction identifiers; and
• fraud-prevention information.
Vanguard Voices does not normally receive or store your complete payment-card or banking credentials.
We may retain transaction information required for accounting, tax, fraud-prevention and legal purposes.
The payment provider identified when you make the transaction may process certain information as an independent controller under its own privacy policy.
12. Cookies and similar technologies
Our website uses cookies and similar technologies.
Cookies are small files or identifiers stored on or accessed from your browser or device.
They may be used for different purposes.
12.1 Essential cookies
Essential cookies and storage are used where necessary to:
• operate the website;
• maintain website security;
• manage basic functionality;
• remember essential settings; and
• record your cookie preferences.
These technologies may operate even if you decline non-essential cookies because the website cannot function correctly or securely without them.
12.2 Functional cookies
Functional technologies may be used to provide particular website features or remember choices.
12.3 Analytics cookies
Analytics technologies help us understand how visitors use the website, which pages are visited and how the website performs.
We use analytics technologies only in accordance with your consent choice.
12.4 Marketing and other non-essential cookies
Where marketing or similar technologies are present, they are subject to the choices available through our cookie-consent system where consent is required.
13. Your cookie choices
We use the Wix cookie-consent banner to manage cookie choices.
When you first visit the website, you can:
• accept cookies;
• decline non-essential cookies; or
• manage your preferences.
You can change your decision later by reopening Cookie settings using the cookie-settings control available on the website.
Declining non-essential cookies does not prevent essential security and website-functionality technologies from operating.
Changing your cookie choice applies going forward.
You may also delete existing cookies through your browser settings.
Details about cookies used on the website, including their categories and purposes, are available through the website’s Cookie settings.
14. Google Analytics
We use Google Analytics 4, provided by Google, to understand how our website is used.
Google Analytics may process information such as:
• pages viewed;
• session and interaction information;
• browser and device information;
• approximate location;
• referring source;
• website events; and
• cookie or device identifiers where permitted.
We do not intentionally send names, email addresses or the contents of website forms to Google Analytics.
14.1 Analytics consent
Google Analytics is configured through our Wix cookie-consent system.
Analytics data is sent to Google Analytics only after you give the relevant consent through our cookie banner.
If you decline non-essential cookies or withdraw analytics consent, analytics storage is denied and Google Analytics does not collect analytics data from your visit in the same way as when consent has been granted.
You can change your choice at any time through the Cookie settings control on the website.
14.2 Google Analytics retention
We have configured Google Analytics so that:
• event-level data retention is 14 months;
• user-level data retention is 14 months; and
• the retention period is not reset when a user becomes active again.
At the end of the applicable retention period, affected user-level and event-level data is deleted by Google Analytics in accordance with Google’s retention process.
The Google Analytics retention setting does not necessarily remove aggregated statistical reports that no longer depend on retained user-level or event-level data.
Google may process Analytics data outside Switzerland, including in the United States.
Where required, international transfers are subject to applicable legal safeguards.
15. External websites and social media
Our website contains links to external services and websites, including professional and social-media platforms such as LinkedIn.
When you select an external link, you leave the Vanguard Voices website.
The external provider may then collect information about you according to its own privacy policy.
If you share a Vanguard Voices badge, article, pledge or other content through a social-media service, that platform is responsible for its own processing of your personal data.
We are not responsible for the privacy practices of independent external websites.
16. Public information and contributions
Certain Vanguard Voices activities are deliberately public.
For example, with your permission we may publish:
• your name in connection with the Vanguard Voices pledge;
• your pledge statement;
• your name, professional role or affiliation as a working-group contributor;
• a testimonial;
• an attributed quotation; or
• other material you have agreed may be public.
Before submitting information intended for publication, please consider that publicly available information may be copied, indexed by search engines, shared or archived by third parties outside Vanguard Voices’ control.
Where publication is based on consent, you may contact us to withdraw that consent for future use.
We will remove information under our control where reasonably possible, subject to applicable legal and record-keeping requirements.
17. Who receives personal data?
Depending on how you interact with us, personal data may be disclosed to or processed by:
• Wix, for website hosting, forms and website functionality;
• Kit, for newsletters and subscriber management;
• Google, for analytics where you have consented;
• FutureNext GmbH / VirtualBadge, for digital badges;
• payment providers where a donation or payment is made;
• event, meeting or collaboration platforms where relevant;
• professional advisers such as accounting, legal or technical advisers;
• contractors or volunteers who require the information for an authorized Vanguard Voices activity;
• organizations participating in a project where disclosure is necessary and appropriately governed; and
• public authorities, courts or regulators where disclosure is legally required.
We disclose only the information reasonably necessary for the relevant purpose.
We do not sell personal data.
18. International data transfers
Because Vanguard Voices uses international technology providers, personal data may be processed outside Switzerland.
Depending on the service involved, information may be processed in Switzerland, the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, the United States or other countries in which our service providers operate.
Where personal data is transferred to a country that does not provide an adequate level of data protection under applicable law, we use or rely on legally recognized safeguards where required.
These may include:
• recognized adequacy decisions;
• applicable data-protection frameworks;
• standard contractual clauses;
• contractual and technical safeguards; or
• another transfer mechanism permitted by law.
You may contact us if you would like further information about the safeguards applicable to a particular transfer.
19. How long do we keep personal data?
We keep personal data only for as long as reasonably necessary for the relevant purpose and for applicable legal, accounting, governance and documentation requirements.
Our general retention approach is as follows:
Newsletter subscribers
We retain subscription information while you remain subscribed.
After you unsubscribe, we may retain a limited suppression record so that your unsubscribe request continues to be respected.
Google Analytics
User-level and event-level data is configured for a maximum retention period of 14 months, as described above.
General enquiries and speaking enquiries
We normally retain correspondence for up to 24 months after the last meaningful interaction, unless a longer period is required because an engagement proceeds, a legal issue arises or another legitimate reason applies.
Volunteer and unsuccessful application information
We normally retain this information for up to 24 months after the relevant application or interaction, unless you participate in an ongoing activity or agree to remain in contact regarding future opportunities.
Working-group participants
Information needed to administer participation is retained for the duration of the activity and for a reasonable period afterwards.
Records necessary to document authorship, governance, decisions or public attribution may be retained for longer.
Pledge information
Public pledge information may remain displayed for as long as the pledge initiative continues or until you withdraw the relevant permission.
Administrative records may be retained for a reasonable period after removal.
Donations, payments and accounting records
Records may be retained for up to 10 years where required under applicable Swiss accounting, tax or other legal obligations.
Legal matters
Information relevant to a dispute, investigation or legal claim may be retained for as long as reasonably necessary to establish, exercise or defend legal rights.
Information that has been irreversibly anonymized may be retained for statistical or research purposes because it no longer identifies an individual.
20. Data security
We use reasonable technical and organizational measures intended to protect personal data against:
• unauthorized access;
• accidental loss;
• misuse;
• alteration;
• unlawful disclosure; and
• destruction.
These measures include appropriate access restrictions, account controls, secure technology providers and encrypted transmission where supported.
No website, email service or electronic storage system can guarantee absolute security.
21. Your data-protection rights
Depending on the law that applies and the circumstances of the processing, you may have rights including the right to:
• ask whether we process personal data about you;
• obtain information about that processing;
• request access to your personal data;
• request correction of inaccurate information;
• request deletion of personal data;
• object to certain processing;
• request restriction of processing where applicable;
• withdraw consent;
• request data portability where applicable; and
• obtain information about relevant international data transfers.
These rights are subject to legal limitations.
For example, we may need to retain information where required by law or where necessary to establish, exercise or defend legal claims.
To exercise your rights, contact: jessica@vanguardvoices.com
Please explain what you are requesting and provide enough information for us to identify the relevant records.
We may ask for additional information to verify your identity where reasonably necessary.
We will not normally request a copy of an identity document unless less intrusive verification is insufficient.
You may also raise a concern with the Swiss Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner.
Where EU, UK or other applicable data-protection law applies, you may also have the right to complain to the competent data-protection supervisory authority.
22. Marketing choices
You can stop receiving The Vanguard Voice or other marketing emails at any time by selecting the unsubscribe link in the email or contacting us directly.
Unsubscribing from marketing does not prevent us from sending necessary administrative communications relating to an application, request, transaction, working-group participation or other existing relationship.
23. Automated processing
We may use basic automation to:
• deliver requested emails;
• manage newsletter subscriber tags or categories;
• route website forms;
• prevent spam;
• support website security; and
• manage routine communications.
We do not currently use personal data collected through this website to make decisions based solely on automated processing that produce legal or similarly significant effects for individuals.
24. Children
The Vanguard Voices website and its activities are primarily intended for professionals, organizations and adults.
We do not knowingly seek to collect personal data directly from children through our general website forms.
If you believe that a child has provided personal data to us inappropriately, please contact us so that we can review the information and take appropriate action.
25. Certification, pilots and research involving organizational data
This Privacy and Cookie Policy primarily covers Vanguard Voices’ website, communications and public participation activities.
As Vanguard Voices develops and pilots its proposed certification standard, some projects may involve additional organizational, employee, research or assessment data.
Where a pilot, assessment, research project or future certification activity requires additional processing of personal data, particularly sensitive or employee-level information, Vanguard Voices may provide a separate privacy notice, agreement or research information sheet describing that processing before the relevant data is collected.
26. Changes to this policy
We may update this Privacy and Cookie Policy when our activities, website, technology providers or legal obligations change.
The current version will be published on this page together with the date of the latest update.
Where a change materially affects how we use personal data, we will provide additional notice where reasonably appropriate.
27. Contact
For questions, concerns or requests relating to privacy or personal data, contact:
Vanguard Voices
Swiss not-for-profit association
Reinach, BL
Switzerland
Email: jessica@vanguardvoices.com
Last updated: 7 August 2026