The treecloud.earth website and the treecloud.earth-App (collectively, the "Services") are operated by an individual based in San Francisco de Borja, Napo, Ecuador. We can be reached at info@treecloud.earth.
For the purposes of applicable data protection law, this individual is the data controller responsible for your personal data.
The Services consist of two integrated components that share a single user account:
When we create an account for you, we store your name and email address. Optional you can give us your phone number. Account registration is a manual process carried out by us — accounts are not created automatically and are not available to persons under 18 years of age.
When you actively choose to record data (for seeds, bags or planted trees) in the treecloud.earth-App, we collect:
This data is collected only when you deliberately trigger it. It is never collected passively or in the background.
We collect information about how you use the Services, such as actions taken in your account (for example, uploading or downloading data). We use this to provide and improve the Services.
We collect information from the devices you use to access the Services, including IP addresses, browser type, device type, and device identifiers. This information helps us detect abuse and troubleshoot issues.
We use cookies and similar technologies to operate the Services — for example, to remember your login session. You can configure your browser to refuse cookies, though this may limit your ability to use some features.
Map cookies are treated as a separate category. Interactive maps on our website (powered by Leaflet.js) are only loaded after you explicitly consent to map cookies. When maps load, your IP address is transmitted to third-party tile providers (see Third-Party Services below). You can update your cookie preferences at any time using the preferences panel on our website.
We process your personal data on the following legal bases:
Tree observation data (GPS locations, elevation, photos, and tree records) is shared publicly and with research institutions as a core feature of the Services. This sharing is subject to the following important condition:
Tree data is never shared in combination with your name or email address. Once data is published, it is decoupled from your identity for all public and research purposes.
We share data with:
If you delete your account, your account credentials (name and email address) will be removed within 30 days. However, data you have submitted (including photos and GPS records) will be retained in anonymized form. This data becomes permanently decoupled from your identity and continues to form part of the public and research dataset.
We retain personal data for as long as your account exists or as long as we need it to provide the Services. There may be some latency in deleting data from servers and backups. We may also retain data where required to comply with legal obligations, resolve disputes, or enforce agreements.
If you are the organizing contact for a tree planting, we may send you a transactional email containing a link to a page showing the results of that planting. This is not an automated or marketing communication — it is sent manually and only to registered users in connection with a specific planting event you are associated with.
We use the following trusted third-party providers to operate the Services. Each receives limited data necessary to perform their function:
| Provider | Purpose | Data Involved |
|---|---|---|
| MonsterASP | Web hosting and primary data storage | Account data, tree records |
| DigitalOcean | Photo storage | Uploaded photos |
| Esri / ArcGIS | Satellite map tiles (when map cookies accepted) | IP address |
| OpenTopoMap | Topographic map tiles (when map cookies accepted) | IP address |
| unpkg.com (CDN) | Delivery of Leaflet.js map library | IP address |
We do not sell your data to advertisers or other third parties.
Our Services are operated from Ecuador. Data may be stored and processed in the United States (via MonsterASP and DigitalOcean) and other locations.
For users in the European Union, European Economic Area, United Kingdom, and Switzerland, we rely on appropriate legal mechanisms for data transfers, including Standard Contractual Clauses and applicable adequacy decisions, where required.
As an operator based in Ecuador, we are subject to Ecuador's Ley Orgánica de Protección de Datos Personales (LOPDP). We also respect the following international frameworks for users in those jurisdictions:
Because these frameworks share significant common ground, our practices are designed to satisfy all of them.
Depending on your jurisdiction, you may have the right to:
To exercise any of these rights, log in to your account settings or contact us at info@treecloud.earth. We will respond within 30 days. For data breach notifications, we comply with the 72-hour reporting requirement under applicable law.
We may disclose your information to third parties if we determine it is reasonably necessary to:
When responding to government requests, we commit to being transparent, fighting blanket requests, protecting all users, and providing trusted services.
We take reasonable technical and organizational measures to keep your data secure, including encryption of data at rest, two-factor authentication support, and regular testing for vulnerabilities.
We do not have a designated DPO; contact us directly at info@treecloud.earth
The Services are not directed at or available to persons under 18 years of age. We do not knowingly collect data from minors. Account creation is a manual process and we will not create accounts for children.
We may revise this Privacy Policy from time to time. The most current version will always be posted on our website. If a revision meaningfully reduces your rights, we will notify you via the email address associated with your account.
In the event of a reorganization, merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, your data may be transferred as part of that transaction and you will be notified accordingly.
For questions, concerns, or privacy requests:
| Name | Category | Purpose | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
tc_consent |
Necessary | Stores your cookie preferences | 365 days |
Language |
Necessary | Stores your language selection (en-US / es / de) | 1 year when explicitly set |
.AspNetCore.* |
Necessary | ASP.NET Core authentication session | Session |
| Third-party (Leaflet / OSM / Esri) | Maps | Map tile requests — IP address is transmitted to third-party CDN | Only loaded when maps are consented |
You can update your preferences at any time via the cookie preferences panel.
Manage your preferences below. Strictly necessary cookies cannot be disabled — they keep the site working. No advertising or tracking.
Read our privacy policy