Privacy Policy

Who we are and scope

Sustainable Living Simple (sustainablelivingsimple.com) is an independent, editorial website that publishes practical guides on sustainable everyday living. This policy applies to all pages served at that domain and explains how data is processed when you visit.

We are not a large organisation with a dedicated data-protection team, so we keep data practices as simple as possible: we do not run a membership system, we do not sell anything directly, and we do not ask you to create an account or hand over personal details to read our content.

Data we collect directly

We do not operate user accounts, subscription forms, or e-commerce, so we do not knowingly collect personal data directly from visitors for our own purposes. If you choose to email us at [email protected], any information you include in that message is used solely to reply to your enquiry and is not stored in a marketing database.

Our web server may log standard technical data (IP address, browser type, pages visited, timestamp) for security and uptime monitoring purposes. These logs are not used for profiling individual users and are rotated regularly.

Cookies and analytics (Google Analytics 4)

We use Google Analytics 4 (GA4) to understand how visitors use the site in aggregate — for example, which guides are most popular or where readers come from. GA4 works by placing cookies and/or similar identifiers in your browser. The data it collects is sent to Google's servers and processed under Google's own privacy policy.

Key points:

• GA4 does not tell us who you are personally; we see aggregate trends, not individual profiles.
• Google may use the data it collects to improve its own services, subject to its privacy commitments.
• IP addresses are anonymised (truncated) before storage by default in GA4.
• You can opt out of GA4 tracking by installing the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on, or by blocking analytics cookies through your browser settings or an ad blocker.

Advertising (Google AdSense)

We display advertisements served by Google AdSense. Google and its advertising partners use cookies, device identifiers, and similar technologies to show ads, to measure how ads perform, and to personalise ads based on your browsing activity across websites. This is standard practice for ad-supported websites and is governed by Google's own policies, not ours.

What this means in practice:

• Ads you see on this site may be selected partly based on your inferred interests, your general location, or your previous browsing activity.
• Google may share this data with its advertising partners as described in the Google privacy policy for partner sites.
• We receive a share of revenue when ads are displayed or clicked, but we do not receive any personal data from Google about individual users.

Your choices and rights

Browser cookie controls

All major browsers allow you to view, block, or delete cookies. Blocking cookies may affect some site functionality and will prevent analytics and ad-personalisation cookies from working. Refer to your browser's help pages for instructions.

Ad personalisation

As noted above, you can opt out of personalised advertising at adssettings.google.com. You can also use the Digital Advertising Alliance opt-out tool or equivalent tools in your country.

GDPR rights (EU and UK visitors)

If you are located in the European Union or the United Kingdom, you have rights under the GDPR (or UK GDPR) including the right to access, correct, or request erasure of personal data we hold about you. Because we hold very little personal data directly — essentially only email correspondence if you have contacted us — the most relevant way to exercise these rights is to email us at [email protected]. For data held by Google (analytics and advertising), you should contact Google directly or use the tools linked above.

CCPA rights (California residents)

If you are a California resident, you have rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) including the right to know what personal information is collected, the right to delete personal information, and the right to opt out of the "sale" of personal information. We do not sell personal information in the traditional sense. The data practices of Google AdSense may involve data sharing that could be characterised as a "sale" under CCPA; you can opt out of that via adssettings.google.com. For direct enquiries, contact us at [email protected].

Third-party links

Our articles and guides link to external websites for further reading. Once you leave this site, this privacy policy no longer applies. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of third-party websites and encourage you to read their policies before providing any personal information.

Children's privacy

This site is intended for a general adult audience and is not directed at children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone under 13. If you believe that a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us and we will take steps to delete it.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time, for example if we add new features or if laws change. When we do, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. We encourage you to check back periodically. Continued use of the site after a change constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.

Contact

If you have any questions about this privacy policy or about how your data is handled, please email us at [email protected]. We aim to respond within five business days.