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Privacy and Data Sovereignty Policy

Purpose

To outline how Pēpi Penapena T/A Tūpuna Parenting collects, stores, uses, and protects personal information. This policy aligns with Māori Data Sovereignty principles, ensuring that data is treated as a taonga and managed with integrity, transparency, and accountability.

Scope

This policy applies to all personal information collected, processed, and stored through the following platforms:

  • Tūpuna Parenting Website: http://tupunaparenting.maori.nz (http://tupunaparenting.maori.nz/)
  • Tūpuna Parenting LearnWorlds: https://tupunaparenting.getlearnworlds.com/ (https://tupunaparenting.getlearnworlds.com/)

It covers all kaimahi, whānau, and individuals who interact with these platforms, including those who submit personal data through forms, comments, training enrollments, or pūrākau submissions.

Policy

  1. Introduction

This Privacy Policy outlines the commitment of Pēpi Penapena T/A Tūpuna Parenting to Māori Data Sovereignty and the protection of personal information collected through our digital platforms. We recognise Māori data as a taonga and uphold the principles of tino rangatiratanga over data.

This policy applies to all data collected through the following websites:

  • Tūpuna Parenting: http://tupunaparenting.maori.nz (http://tupunaparenting.maori.nz/)
  • Tūpuna Parenting LearnWorlds: https://tupunaparenting.getlearnworlds.com/ (https://tupunaparenting.getlearnworlds.com/)

The Tūpuna Parenting website is built and hosted using Sanity as a Content Management System (CMS) and Vercel for deployment and hosting.

LearnWorlds, our online learning platform, is a cloud-based system operated by LearnWorlds (CY) Ltd, based in Cyprus. LearnWorlds manages data processing and storage through its infrastructure, which includes built-in video hosting and integrations with third-party services for secure data handling. For more details on how LearnWorlds manages data, please refer to their Data Processing Agreement (https://www.learnworlds.com/dpa/).

  1. Principles of Māori Data Sovereignty

We adhere to the following principles:

  • Whānau retain control – Māori data is governed by Māori, for Māori.
  • Transparent storage – While our data is not stored in Aotearoa, we ensure it is managed in secure and ethical environments.
  • Kaitiakitanga – We act as guardians of whānau data to protect it for future generations.
  • No exploitation – Data collection and usage should uplift, not stereotype or stigmatize Māori whānau.

  1. Data Collection

We collect personal data through various means, including:

  1. Comments

When visitors leave comments, we collect:

  • Information entered in the comment form
  • IP address and browser details (for spam detection)
  • An anonymized hash of email addresses (for Gravatar profile matching)
  1. Media Uploads

If you upload images to our websites, please remove embedded location data (EXIF GPS) as visitors can extract this information.

  1. Cookies

Cookies enhance user experience by storing preferences:

  • Commenting: Saves your name/email/website (valid for one year).
  • Login session: Stores login status and display settings (valid for two days to one year).
  • Editing/publishing: Stores post ID of edited articles (valid for one day).
  1. Training Data Collection

For those registering in Tūpuna Parenting training, we collect:

  • Name, email address, and contact details
  • Course preferences and participation records
  • Responses submitted in training exercises or feedback forms

Training data is securely stored in LearnWorlds and accessed only by Tūpuna Parenting administrators.

  1. Pūrākau (Story) Submissions

Whānau can submit pūrākau (stories) to our platform. We collect:

  • Name and contact details (if provided)
  • Submitted text, images, and media
  • Context and intent of the pūrākau

By submitting a pūrākau, contributors grant Tūpuna Parenting the right to share it while maintaining their mana and authorship. Snippets of pūrākau may be shared on social media.

Contributors must complete a Consent Form for Photo, Video, and Personal Information Publication.

  1. Compliance with New Zealand Laws

We comply with the New Zealand Privacy Act 2020 and the Harmful Digital Communications Act 2015 by:

  • Ensuring all personal information is securely stored and not misused.
  • Allowing individuals to request access to or removal of their data.
  • Establishing a clear process for reporting and removing harmful content.

  1. Data Governance and Protection
    1. Control
  • Māori have the right to own, manage, and govern their own data.
  • While data is stored offshore, we commit to transparent governance that aligns with tikanga Māori.
  • Third parties cannot use the data without explicit consent.
  1. Transparency
  • All data collected has a clear whakapapa, ensuring transparency around its origin and use.
  • Data will not be collected or stored without explicit consent.
  1. Security and Protection
  • We act as kaitiaki (guardians) of Māori data to prevent misuse or exploitation.
  • No data will be sold or accessed by external parties unless necessary for whānau benefit and with informed consent.

  1. Data Sharing

We share personal data only with trusted platforms required for our services:

  • MailChimp (for mailing lists and waitlists, managed by Pēpi Penapena)
  • Google Workspace (for email communication, document storage, and collaboration)
  • LearnWorlds (for online training and education management)
  • Sanity CMS (for content-related data storage and website management)
  • Vercel (for website hosting and deployment)

We do not sell or share data with third-party advertisers.

  1. Your Rights Over Your Data

Under the New Zealand Privacy Act 2020, you have the right to:

  • Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
  • Request correction or deletion of your data.
  • Withdraw consent for data use at any time.
  • Report harmful or unwanted content.

  1. Contact Information

For any questions regarding this Privacy Policy, or to exercise your data rights, contact us at: kiaora@tupunaparenting.maori.nz

We remain committed to ensuring that Māori Data Sovereignty is upheld even when data is stored outside Aotearoa.