Privacy Policy & Legal Notice

1. General Information

This website is the official informative platform for the research and Citizen Science project "Through Citizens' Eyes: watching over wetlands and sharing science" (Project ID: 0000000059). The initiative is funded under the CIVIS seed-funding for African-European research collaborations and is co-funded by the European Union.

2. Data Controller and Scientific Coordination

The Data Controller for the processing activities related to this website and the project is Sapienza University of Rome.

The scientific coordination of the project is led by Professor Maria Letizia Costantini at the Department of Environmental Biology.

Contact Email: marialetizia.costantini@uniroma1.it
Data Protection Officer (DPO): rpd@uniroma1.it

3. International Consortium

The project is a collaborative effort between: Sapienza University of Rome (Italy), National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (Greece), Stockholm University (Sweden), University of Bucharest (Romania), University of Glasgow (UK), Université Hassan II de Casablanca (Morocco), University of the Witwatersrand (South Africa).

4. Data Processing and GDPR Compliance

In accordance with Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (GDPR), users are informed that:

• Nature of the website: This website is purely informative and intended for scientific communication and dissemination activities.

• No active data collection: The website does not collect personal data through forms, registrations, or user input.

• Technical data: Limited technical data (such as IP address and browser information) may be processed automatically by the hosting provider as part of the normal operation, security, and maintenance of the service.

• Legal basis for processing:
  Article 6(1)(e) GDPR – processing necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest in the context of scientific research and academic dissemination.

• External platform (LifeWatch Italy):
  This website may contain links to the LifeWatch Italy Citizen Science platform. LifeWatch Italy acts as an independent Data Controller. Users are invited to consult its Privacy Policy and Data Policy, before using the external service.

• Scientific data:
  Any research data processed through external platforms are used exclusively for scientific purposes in the public interest and are anonymised or pseudonymised where applicable.

5. Cookies, Hosting and Third-Party Services

This website is hosted on the Google Sites platform (Google Workspace provided by Google LLC).

• Hosting and technical infrastructure:
  The hosting provider may process limited technical data (including IP address and device information) strictly for security, functionality, and service delivery purposes.

• Cookies:
  This website only uses strictly necessary technical cookies required for its proper functioning. No profiling, behavioural tracking, or marketing cookies are used.

• No tracking:
  The project does not perform user profiling, behavioural tracking, or analytics-based monitoring.

• Third-party provider:
  Google LLC provides hosting and infrastructure services and processes certain technical data in accordance with its Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy

• International data transfers:
  The use of Google services may involve the transfer of data outside the European Economic Area, including the United States, in compliance with applicable data protection law and appropriate safeguards.

. Data Subject Rights

Users may exercise the rights provided under Articles 15–21 of the GDPR, including:

• access to personal data

• rectification of inaccurate data

• erasure of data, where applicable

• restriction of processing

• objection to processing, where applicable

Requests may be addressed to the Data Controller or the DPO using the contact details provided above.

7. Disclaimer

The project team makes reasonable efforts to ensure the accuracy of the information provided. However:

• no responsibility is assumed for the content or privacy practices of external websites;

• external links are provided for informational purposes only;

• use of the information contained in this website is at the user’s own responsibility.

8. Funding Acknowledgment

Co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are those of the authors only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.

Last Updated: April 16, 2026