VOC Terms & Privacy Policy

1. Scope and Acceptance

These Terms & Privacy Policy govern the Voices of Change (VOC) website at voicesofchange.education, VOC accounts, membership and related online activities. VOC is based in Poland and is responsible for decisions about the processing of personal data collected through these services. For a legally precise identification of the controller, including its registered name and address, contact quoc@voicesofchange.education.

By using the website you agree to follow the applicable terms. Where a particular activity, publication, event or purchase has additional terms, those terms also apply. Acceptance of website terms is not a substitute for any separate consent required for optional communications or cookies.

VOC offers services to an international education community. Services and benefits can vary depending on location, availability and applicable law.

2. Individual Membership and Accounts

VOC Individual Membership is free forever: there is no registration fee or recurring membership renewal charge. Any future paid membership options will be separate and voluntary. Institutional Membership is coming soon and is not yet open for enrollment.

To apply, provide accurate registration details and verify the email address associated with your account. You are responsible for safeguarding your password, keeping account details current and notifying VOC of suspected unauthorized use. A single VOC account may also be used to access supported purchases and services through My Account.

VOC does not apply a general membership age limit. However, additional legal requirements may apply to persons under the age legally permitted to provide valid consent independently. Where required, VOC may need parental or guardian authorization before completing or continuing registration. Additional restrictions may apply to purchases or particular activities.

Members may request closure of membership by contacting quoc@voicesofchange.education. Closing membership does not automatically cancel outstanding purchases or erase records that must be retained for legal or legitimate purposes.

3. Respectful Participation and Content

VOC is a community for respectful, inclusive exchange among educators, leaders, researchers and contributors. Members must not harass or discriminate against others, impersonate people, misuse accounts, violate intellectual property, submit unlawful content or disclose personal details about learners or colleagues without appropriate authority.

Members retain responsibility for material they submit and for obtaining relevant rights and permissions. Submitting an article, speaking proposal or publishing idea does not guarantee publication or acceptance. Separate editorial, event or publishing terms may apply.

VOC may restrict, suspend or terminate participation for a breach of these terms, fraud, security concerns or other lawful reasons. VOC will provide notice and an explanation where practicable and lawful. Affected members may appeal by emailing quoc@voicesofchange.education. VOC aims to respond to appeals within 30 days of receipt; more complex cases may require additional time, with notice where appropriate.

4. Membership Benefits, Purchases, and Prices

Individual Members may access selected community activities, educational updates, resources and contribution opportunities, subject to selection, availability and activity-specific conditions. VOC may update particular benefits while maintaining free Individual Membership.

Eligible VOC products, events and services receive a 10% Individual Member discount for signed-in members. Not every offering is eligible. Eligibility and final prices are displayed at the relevant offering or checkout.

Where applicable, prices are calculated using the following sequence: base product or variation price; regional pricing based on World Bank country income classifications; eligible membership discount; percentage voucher or coupon; applicable currency conversion; then taxes and shipping. The World Bank classification used for regional pricing may be updated periodically. Separate rules apply to any other promotions expressly stated at checkout.

Purchases, cancellations, returns, and refunds across VOC are governed by Section 5 below, together with product-specific information provided before checkout. Mandatory consumer rights always apply.

5. Purchases, Cancellations, Returns, and Refunds

Scope and information before payment. These terms apply to purchases made through VOC, including printed books, ebooks and other downloadable content, paid pre-orders, event registrations, and professional development courses. Before placing an order, customers will be provided with the applicable price, currency, main features, delivery or access arrangements, relevant cancellation conditions, and any taxes or additional charges. Product-specific terms supplement this Policy but cannot override mandatory consumer protections.

Prices and payment. The amount charged is the amount confirmed at checkout after applicable regional pricing, eligible membership discounts and coupons, with any taxes and delivery charges presented as required. VOC may display prices in EUR or USD according to the customer’s region. The currency and payment method confirmed at checkout govern the transaction. Any authorized refund is calculated from the amount actually paid for the refunded items and applicable delivery charges, not from the undiscounted list price.

Statutory withdrawal for distance purchases. Where EU/Polish consumer withdrawal rules apply, a consumer generally has 14 days to withdraw without giving a reason: for goods, normally from receipt of the goods; for services, normally from conclusion of the contract. For orders with separately delivered goods, the relevant statutory calculation applies. The consumer may exercise this right by sending an unambiguous withdrawal statement to quoc@voicesofchange.education before the deadline. A model withdrawal form may be offered but is not compulsory. Product and transaction-specific exceptions apply only where legally available.

Printed books and physical products. Following a valid withdrawal, the consumer normally sends goods back within 14 days of notifying VOC. Direct return-shipping costs may be borne by the consumer only where this was communicated before purchase and the law permits it. VOC will communicate the appropriate return address or authorized return channel; an international order may use a designated fulfillment partner. The consumer may be responsible for diminished value caused by handling beyond what is necessary to establish the nature, characteristics, and functioning of the goods, as permitted by law. Defective or non-conforming goods remain subject to separate statutory remedies.

Ebooks and immediate digital downloads. The 14-day withdrawal right is not automatically excluded merely because a product is digital. For paid digital content not supplied on a tangible medium, VOC may rely on a statutory exception after supply begins only when the required prior express consent, acknowledgement of the resulting loss of the withdrawal right, and contract confirmation have all been obtained as applicable. These choices must be captured separately and clearly at checkout when the exception is used. Where the legal conditions are not met, applicable withdrawal rights remain available. Statutory remedies for faulty or non-conforming digital content are unaffected.

Paid pre-orders. Pre-orders are paid orders for products that are not yet available for immediate delivery. VOC will provide an expected availability or delivery timeframe and any material changes. Where customers have a statutory right to withdraw or other remedies because of non-delivery, delay, or non-conformity, those rights apply. VOC may additionally allow cancellation before dispatch or digital delivery under the applicable product conditions. Pre-orders are not treated as delivered merely because payment has been collected.

Events and professional development. Cancellation conditions will be identified for each event, webinar, workshop, or course before checkout. Certain leisure services scheduled for a specific date or period can fall within a statutory withdrawal exception; this is not assumed for every educational event. For services beginning within a statutory withdrawal period, VOC will obtain any legally required express request and provide information about possible proportionate charges or loss of withdrawal rights when applicable. If VOC cancels an offering, customers will receive the remedies required by law and the relevant booking conditions.

Refund handling. VOC distinguishes legally required refunds from voluntary goodwill requests. Statutory refunds are not conditional on providing a ‘valid reason’ when the law grants an unconditional withdrawal right. For a valid withdrawal, reimbursement is normally made without undue delay and no later than 14 days after VOC is informed, subject to any lawful right to withhold reimbursement for returned goods until receipt or proof of return. Reimbursement includes the original standard delivery cost where required by law, but not extra charges for a more expensive delivery method chosen by the customer. It is made using the original payment method unless the customer expressly agrees otherwise without incurring a fee. VOC may consider additional goodwill refunds for reasonable circumstances without reducing statutory rights.

Requests and disputes. Please contact quoc@voicesofchange.education with the order number and the requested action. Customers may also use any available WooCommerce My Account functionality. VAT adjustments, gateway processing, refund records, and any partial refunds are handled in accordance with applicable tax and accounting requirements. Nothing in this Policy limits mandatory rights under applicable consumer law, including rights relating to goods, services, or digital content that do not conform to the contract.

6. Personal Information We Collect

For membership, VOC may collect your name, email address, account credentials (stored using the website’s password-security mechanisms rather than in readable form), country, professional role, organization if provided, newsletter preference, email verification status and account activity.

For orders, events or courses, VOC may process order records, billing or delivery information, purchased items, payment and transaction references, customer messages and information necessary to deliver the relevant service. Payment card details may be handled by payment service providers rather than stored directly by VOC.

When you submit articles, publishing proposals or institutional interest forms, VOC processes the content and contact details you provide. Website operation may also generate technical data such as IP address, approximate location derived from IP, browser information, security records and cookie identifiers.

Please avoid sharing sensitive personal information or personal details of students and other third parties unless necessary, lawful and specifically requested.

7. How We Use Information

VOC uses information to register and verify accounts, deliver membership and purchased services, respond to requests, operate its education community, administer events and editorial submissions, apply relevant member and regional pricing, maintain security, prevent misuse and meet legal accounting obligations.

Depending on the processing activity, the legal basis under the GDPR may be performance of a contract or steps requested before entering a contract, compliance with a legal obligation, VOC’s legitimate interests in secure and effective operation, or consent where required. VOC will not rely on consent for activities for which a different lawful basis is appropriate.

Optional VOC news and marketing updates are sent on the basis of the appropriate permission. Members can unsubscribe using the link provided in marketing emails or contact quoc@voicesofchange.education. Withdrawal of marketing consent does not affect essential account or transactional messages.

VOC does not sell members’ personal information to advertisers. If an activity involves separate profiling or automated decision-making with legal or similarly significant effects, VOC will provide relevant additional information where required.

8. Service Providers, International Processing, and Security

VOC uses third-party technology and service providers where needed to operate its WordPress website, account and store functions, email delivery, payment processing and other services. These may include hosting and infrastructure providers, WordPress/WooCommerce-related services, payment processors and other contracted suppliers.

Because VOC serves an international community and uses online service providers, personal information may be processed in or accessed from countries outside the European Economic Area. Where a transfer is subject to GDPR international-transfer rules, appropriate legal safeguards are used as required, such as applicable adequacy decisions or approved contractual protections.

VOC uses administrative and technical precautions appropriate to the information processed, including access controls and email verification for membership. No internet-based service can guarantee absolute security. Users should choose strong passwords and report suspected account misuse promptly to quoc@voicesofchange.education.

9. Your Privacy Choices and Rights

Where the GDPR applies, individuals may request access to their personal information, correction of inaccurate data, erasure, restriction, data portability or object to processing in circumstances provided by law. Where processing is based on consent, consent may be withdrawn at any time without affecting earlier lawful processing.

Send privacy requests to quoc@voicesofchange.education. VOC may request reasonable verification before disclosing or altering account information. Requests will be handled within the time limits required by law; under the GDPR this is normally one month, subject to lawful extensions.

You may also lodge a complaint with the Polish supervisory authority for data protection (UODO), or another competent supervisory authority where applicable. More information: https://uodo.gov.pl/en.

Account information and communication preferences may also be managed through available My Account functions, but these functions do not replace the right to submit a privacy request.

10. Cookies, Retention, and Young Users

The VOC website uses cookies and similar technologies to support website functionality, account access, security, browsing preferences, regional pricing, currency display, and purchases. Cookies may include:

• Essential and functional cookies: Cookies used for caching, account sessions, shopping functions, regional settings, and currency display, including technologies associated with LiteSpeed, WooCommerce, and currency services.
• Attribution and analytics cookies: Sourcebuster and similar technologies may record how visitors reach the website and support order-source reporting. Where these technologies are not strictly necessary, VOC obtains consent before using them when required by applicable law.

Visitors can manage cookies through their browser settings and, where available, the website’s consent controls. Disabling certain functional cookies may affect website services. VOC will provide required information and consent choices for non-essential analytics or marketing technologies before using them.

Data retention. VOC retains personal information for no longer than necessary for the purposes described in this Policy, subject to applicable legal obligations:

• Membership information: Necessary account information is retained while membership is active. After closure, limited information may be retained for up to three years where justified for administration, legal claims, or dispute resolution; data no longer needed is deleted or anonymized sooner.
• Form submissions: Retention depends on the purpose of the form and applicable obligations. Membership applications, inquiries, event registrations, publication proposals, and institutional interest forms may have different retention periods.
• Financial and transaction records: Accounting, payment, and transaction documentation is kept for the periods required by Polish accounting and tax laws, generally at least five years from the relevant statutory starting date.
• Claims and disputes: Relevant information may be kept longer where necessary to establish, exercise, or defend legal claims or comply with applicable law.

When the lawful basis for retention no longer applies, VOC deletes or anonymizes the information, subject to any continuing legal duty to preserve records.

Young users. VOC does not impose a general age limit for membership. Where the law requires a parent or guardian’s authorization or other safeguards for particular processing activities involving minors, VOC applies those requirements.

11. Updates and Contact

VOC may revise these Terms & Privacy Policy to reflect changes in its services, legal requirements or technology. A revised version will show its effective date. VOC will take reasonable steps to notify members of significant changes when appropriate. Continued use is subject to applicable legal rights, and any new consent legally required will be obtained separately.

To ask about your membership, appeal a suspension, exercise privacy rights or request account closure, contact quoc@voicesofchange.education. VOC is based in Poland. For the registered entity details and postal correspondence address, please contact quoc@voicesofchange.education.

Links: My Account — https://voicesofchange.education/my-account/ ; Membership — https://voicesofchange.education/members/ .

Nothing in these terms removes rights or consumer protections that cannot be excluded under applicable law.