Frequently Asked Questions

Questions about Donations

My credit card used for monthly donations is about to expire. How do I update my payment information?

At this time we can't update payment info online, but here are a few ways to update your donation information:

The best way to update your payment information is to create a new monthly gift with your updated payment information by clicking here and notify us at [email protected] so we can cancel your old gift.
Or, you can email us with a current phone number and we'll be happy to call you at your convenience. OpenMedia does not recommend emailing sensitive credit card information.

Do you accept e-transfers?

Yes! Please send etransfers to [email protected], and send us an email with your name to let us know who it's from. We also accept payments by Credit Card (Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover), PayPal, cryptocurrency, and cheque(/check!). You can donate via Credit Card, PayPal, or cryptocurrency by clicking here. Our mailing address for cheques is:

OpenMedia
1424 Commercial Drive
PO Box #21674
Vancouver, BC
CANADA V5L 5G3

If you are a corporate donor hoping to make a major gift ($500 and up) and want to pay by wire transfer, please get in touch with [email protected] so we can send you the invoice and wire transfer details.

Is OpenMedia a charity or a 501©3? Is my donation tax-deductible?

OpenMedia is a registered non-profit, not a charity, so we can't issue personal tax receipts. Our non-profit status ensures that we can advocate freely for government policy changes, which would be impossible if we were a charity or a 501©3. We also cannot be a recipient of a Donor Advised Charity Fund (otherwise known as a DAF) for this reason.

However, if your contribution is being written off under a Canadian business then you may be eligible for input tax credits and we can issue you a receipt that includes HST or GST (dependent on your province or territory). If this is the case, please send the name and address of the business to [email protected].

How do I increase or decrease my monthly donation amount?

If you are already a monthly donor, just email [email protected] and let us know what amount you want to change your monthly gift to. Every little bit counts and we are grateful for your generosity.

Why do you ask for monthly donations?

Monthly donations are by far the best way to build long-term sustainable change. Solid month-to-month support helps us commit to deeper, quieter, long-term focused campaign actions that may take years of setup but can change the fundamental rules of the game, not simply make things uncomfortable for politicians for a few weeks until the news cycle moves on.

What does OpenMedia do with donations?

Head over to the Our Supporters page to learn more about our funding model, who we get donations from, and what we do with them!

Why does your website auto-fill my personal information on the donation form?

Sorry about the confusion, but that's not us! Your personal information is likely autofilling from your web browser, since our website doesn't save your information. Basically, the software that you use to browse the internet (like Chrome, Mozilla, Internet Explorer, Firefox, etc.) may fill in the boxes for you to try and help you. We recommend examining your internet browser settings if you want it to stop.

Questions about our Organization and our Campaigns

I found a glitch on your website or in one of your petitions or actions!

Please let us know by emailing [email protected].

If you can also tell us what device you are on (computer or mobile device), what browser you are using (chrome, firefox, safari etc), and if you are getting a specific error message, that will be extremely helpful in troubleshooting the issue!

Are you affiliated with any political party?

Nope! We’re strictly non-partisan. We support ideas that line up with our mandate and our goals, no matter who they’re from. In Canada, we’ve supported (and strongly opposed) ideas and policies from every major party.

Non-partisan does not mean we avoid politicians— we often talk to political leaders and their staff to let them know what our community thinks. It means we're not trying to get anyone in or out of office, we're trying to get everyone to embrace Internet policies that ordinary people want and will benefit from.

Do your emails use tracking links?

Our email software uses basic, industry-standard analytics to let us know what’s working when we communicate with you. For example, we can see aggregate numbers for an email to answer questions like, did people opening the message actually click a link to an action? Did people open the email at all? We use these results to inform future communications and make sure we’re talking about what matters to our community. Read our privacy policy to see how we take your privacy very seriously.

Do you use generative artificial intelligence in your campaigns?

Yes! We believe in embracing new technologies that allow us to produce more and better advocacy tools to serve you. That’s why we’re testing several AI tools that help produce building blocks and first drafts for our work. However, we follow two key principles while testing:

Human-driven, human accountable: all final outputs we release are thoroughly reviewed, edited and fact checked by human OpenMedia staff who are accountable for that product.
Your privacy prevails: we never provide any personal information of anyone in the OpenMedia community to a generative AI system.

Do you ever work with other advocacy groups?

All the time! OpenMedia collaborates frequently with other groups when our collective voices will have a bigger impact, whether by signing joint letters, or having joint advocacy meetings with leaders together when our concerns are broadly aligned.

If we’re partnering with another group on an action that might keep you informed via email after, we’ll always make sure to let you know right on the action page.

Why don't you just put all the issues in one easy email to my political representatives so that I don't have to send multiple messages to them?

We don't want any of our supporters' voices to go to waste and that often means sending a pointed message specific to each issue. The more streamlined and clear we can make it each email, the harder it is to miss the point.

Additionally, we're a diverse community with differences of opinion within our mandate and issues. You do not have to agree with every OpenMedia campaign to be welcome here, and you may want to sign on to some campaigns but not others - that works for us!