Privacy Policy
Last updated: 5 October 2026
Sowmate (sowmate.earth) is a free community service that connects people who want to grow food with neighbours who have unused garden space. This policy explains what personal information we collect, why we collect it, who we share it with, and the choices you have. We have tried to write it in plain language.
Sowmate is operated from Argentina by its independent founder. You can reach us at hello@sowmate.earth for anything related to this policy or your data.
1. Information we collect
Information you give us when you create a profile:
- Your name and email address.
- Your postal code and country, from which we work out your city or neighbourhood and approximate map coordinates.
- Your role (gardener, landowner, or both) and details about your garden or growing interests: experience, availability, space size, schedule, crops, and a short bio.
- Optional extras: up to three photos and a social media link.
Messages you send to other members through Sowmate, and basic details about each conversation (who took part, timestamps).
Information from Google Sign-In (only if you choose “Continue with Google”): your email address, your name, and a Google account identifier, delivered to us as a signed token. See section 3 for exactly how we use it.
Usage and device information: we use PostHog analytics to understand how people use the site (pages visited, buttons clicked, whether the sign-up form is completed, country-level location, browser and device type). Your IP address is processed by our hosting and analytics providers as part of delivering the site and measuring usage. Our analytics store data in your browser’s local storage rather than in cookies.
Stored in your browser: a sign-in session token and a small amount of display information so you stay signed in, plus your push notification subscription if you turn notifications on.
2. How we use your information
- To create and show your profile so nearby members can find you.
- To suggest nearby members who may be a good match, and to email you those suggestions.
- To let members message each other, and to email or push-notify you when you receive a message.
- To sign you in and keep your account secure, including emailing you a sign-in link when you ask for one.
- To keep the service safe, prevent abuse, and fix problems.
- To understand, in aggregate, how the site is used so we can improve it.
We do not sell your personal information, and we do not use it for advertising.
3. Google user data
Sowmate’s use and transfer of information received from Google APIs adheres to the Google API Services User Data Policy, including the Limited Use requirements.
If you sign in with Google, we request only the basic openid, email and profile information. We do not request access to your Gmail, Google Drive, contacts, calendar, or any other Google service, and we never post to or modify anything in your Google account.
- What we receive: your verified email address, your name, and a unique Google account identifier.
- What we use it for: solely to recognise you, match you to your existing Sowmate profile by email address, and sign you in. If you have no profile yet, we pre-fill your name and email into the sign-up form to save you typing.
- What we do not do: we do not sell Google user data, share it with third parties for advertising or data-broker purposes, use it for advertising, or allow humans to read it except where needed for security, to comply with law, or with your consent.
- Storage: we do not keep Google tokens. We verify the sign-in token when you sign in and then discard it. Your email and name are stored only if you create a Sowmate profile, under the same terms as everything else in this policy.
You can stop using Google sign-in at any time and use the emailed sign-in link instead. You can also revoke Sowmate’s access from your Google Account at myaccount.google.com/permissions.
4. What other members can see
| Visible to other members and visitors | Never shown publicly |
|---|---|
| Your first name, role, city or neighbourhood, an approximate map pin (deliberately offset from your exact postcode), photos, bio, and garden details. | Your email address, full name, exact postal code, and social media link. |
Messages are visible only to the people in that conversation. Conversations take place inside Sowmate: when a member messages you, you are notified by email and can reply on the site, and we do not show your email address to other members. Anything you write in a message, or choose to put in your bio or photos, is shared with the people you choose to share it with, so please do not include sensitive details.
Sowmate connects strangers who live near each other. Please use sensible caution when meeting someone in person and arrange a first meeting in a public place or with a friend. We are an introduction service and are not responsible for what happens between members.
5. Who we share information with
We use a small number of service providers who process data on our behalf, only to run Sowmate:
- Supabase – database hosting for profiles, messages, and notification subscriptions.
- Vercel – website hosting and serverless functions (processes requests and IP addresses).
- Resend – sends our emails (sign-in links, match suggestions, message notifications).
- Cloudinary – stores and serves the photos you upload.
- PostHog – product analytics.
- Google – sign-in, if you choose it.
- Postcode lookup services (postcodes.io, Zippopotam.us and OpenStreetMap Nominatim) – we send them the postal code and country you enter to turn it into a place name and coordinates. We do not send your name or email.
- Browser push services (such as those run by Google, Apple or Mozilla) – deliver notifications if you enable them. Notifications contain no message text.
We may also disclose information if required by law or to protect the safety of our members. We do not sell personal information.
Some of these providers are located in the United States and elsewhere, so your information may be processed outside your own country.
6. How long we keep your information
We keep your profile and messages for as long as your account exists. If you ask us to delete your account, we delete your profile, your photos, your push subscriptions and your messages from our database. Backups and logs maintained by our providers may keep copies for a limited period before they are overwritten. Aggregated analytics that no longer identify you may be kept.
7. Your choices and rights
You can ask us at any time to:
- show you the personal information we hold about you;
- correct it or update it;
- delete your profile and associated data entirely; or
- stop emailing you (every suggestion and notification email can also be ignored; tell us and we will turn them off).
Email hello@sowmate.earth from the address registered on your profile and we will action your request, normally within 30 days. You can remove photos yourself while editing your profile, turn off push notifications in your browser settings, and sign out at any time from the site menu.
Because Sowmate is operated from Argentina, your data is handled in line with Argentina’s Personal Data Protection Law (Law No. 25.326), which gives you the right to access, correct and delete your data and to complain to the Agencia de Acceso a la Información Pública (AAIP). Depending on where you live, you may also have rights under laws such as the Australian Privacy Act, the New Zealand Privacy Act, the UK and EU GDPR, or US state privacy laws, including the right to complain to your local privacy regulator. We will honour those rights wherever they apply.
8. Security
All traffic to Sowmate is encrypted with HTTPS. Sign-in sessions use signed, expiring tokens, database access is restricted to our server-side code, and emailed sign-in links expire. No online service can be completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security, but we take reasonable steps to protect your information and will notify affected people if a serious breach occurs.
9. Children
Sowmate is intended for adults aged 18 and over. We do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 18. If you believe a child has created a profile, please contact us and we will delete it.
10. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy as Sowmate evolves. When we make a significant change, we will update the date at the top of this page and, where appropriate, let members know by email.
11. Contact
Questions, requests or concerns about your privacy: hello@sowmate.earth.