Research Canada
Privacy Notice
Last Updated: August 2026
Who are we?
Research Canada is a national alliance dedicated to advancing health research and innovation. We bring together the health research and innovation ecosystem to create a healthier, more prosperous future for all Canadians. This interconnected network of institutions, leaders, and innovators works collaboratively to translate scientific discoveries into improved health outcomes and economic growth for Canadians.
This Privacy Notice (“Notice”) outlines how we collect, use, share, and protect the information used in our work and through our website. The protection and security of your personal information is a responsibility we take very seriously.
What is Personal Information?
Personal Information is information that on its own or combined with other data, can be used to identify you as a person. Personal information includes information collected from you directly, or from a third party.
Privacy laws vary across Canada, and they do not always count business contact information, like your name, title, or work email, as Personal Information. As a national organization, we treat and protect it as Personal Information for everyone.
What Personal Information do we collect and how do we use it?
We make every effort to limit the amount of Personal Information we collect, relying where possible on your work contact details rather than personal ones. We may collect and use your personal information to:
Provide you with our services: We need this information to maintain a business relationship with you. Information collected is used to help us administer our services.
Communicate with you: We need this information to be able to answer your questions and to communicate with you about our services.
Host you at our events: We need event registration information to make sure we can welcome you to our events, send you information about the event and account for special dietary or accessibility needs.
Monitor website performance and traffic: Our website only uses cookies to help ensure the site works as intended. The cookies do not collect personally identifiable information.
Comply with legal obligations: Information collected may be used to comply with legal obligations.
Children’s Privacy
Research Canada’s services are not directed towards children or minors. We therefore do not knowingly collect personal information from individuals under the age of 18.
Automated Decision-Making
We do not use automated decision-making or profiling processes that produce legal or other significant effects on individuals.
Who do we share your Personal Information with?
We do not share or sell your Personal Information to third parties.
Your information may be shared with service providers contracted by us to help with our administrative functions, including document management and finances. These service providers are bound by confidentiality and are limited in the way in which they can process, access, or store Personal Information based on our instructions.
Your Personal Information may be stored or processed outside of your province or Canada, including by service providers. In such cases, the information may be subject to the laws of those jurisdictions. Before this happens, we check that the destination offers a comparable level of protection.
We may also share Personal Information (to the extent that we have it) if we are required to do so by law. Any other sharing of your Personal information will only be done with your express consent.
How is the information you collect protected?
We protect your Personal Information with technical, organizational, and physical safeguards appropriate to the sensitivity of your Personal Information. These safeguards include undertaking Privacy Impact Assessments to evaluate Privacy risks, data needs, and designing activities to incorporate the protection of Personal Information wherever possible and regular review of our safeguards and those of our service providers.
It is important to understand that no online platform is perfectly secure. We encourage you to also play a role in protecting your Personal Information by limiting what is sent to Research Canada via email or other means.
What happens if there is a privacy breach?
If a breach puts you at real risk of harm, we will notify the appropriate authorities and let you know, and take steps to reduce that risk. We also keep an internal record of every breach, even if it does not meet this threshold.
How long do we keep your Personal Information?
We keep your Personal Information as long as it is needed to fulfill the requirement(s) listed above. Once it is no longer needed, we delete or anonymize it in line with our retention practices
What are your rights and choices?
You are entitled to the following rights and choices, regarding your Personal Information:
Accessing and/or correcting your information: If you wish to access and/or correct your Personal Information, you may do so by contacting us at info@researchcanada.org. If there are legal reasons why we cannot fulfill your request, we will inform you in our response. We aim to respond within 30 days.
Requesting a copy of your information: You can ask us for a copy of your Personal Information in a commonly used format, or ask us to send it to another organization on your behalf, by contacting us at info@researchcanada.org .
Withdraw consent: We rely on your consent to collect and use your Personal Information. You are free to withdraw your consent at any time by emailing us at info@researchcanada.org. Please note that if you withdraw your consent, we may no longer be able to provide you with our services.
Reporting Concern: If you have concerns about the way your Personal Information has been handled by us, please let us know at info@researchcanada.org so that we may address it.
If you do not feel your concern has been addressed, you have the right to notify the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada. If you are located in Quebec, you may also contact the Commission d’accès à l’information du Québec.
Contact Us
For any questions or concerns, please contact us at info@researchcanada.org.
Alison Evans, CEO, is responsible for the protection of personal information at Research Canada.