Your privacy

Please read this Privacy Policy carefully to understand our practices regarding your personal data and how we will collect, use and store your personal data. We may update this policy from time to time so please check it regularly. If there are significant updates, we will inform those people with whom we are in regular contact.

1. Who we are

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew ("RBGK")

RBGK's full name is "The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew". RBGK is a non-departmental public body with exempt charitable status and is a global resource for plant and fungal knowledge and manages Kew Gardens in west London and Wakehurst in West Sussex.

RBGK is the data controller of your personal data.

RBGK's address is Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, The Herbarium, Kew Green, Richmond TW9 3AE.

2. What personal data we collect and the purpose for which we use it

When you create an account with us to register and release nomenclatural novelties, we collect your name and email address. We will use your personal data to manage your account and to send you service emails relating to your registration. We justify this processing for the performance of a contract.

Where you (or someone on your behalf) has registered a plant in your name, we collect your name, year of birth and historical publication references. We will use your personal data to validate your details and to register you as the author of your plant name(s) as part of maintaining the IPNI database for scientific research purposes. We justify this processing for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest.

3. How we collect personal data

We collect information about you:

3.1 When you give it to us directly

You may give us your personal data to register an IPNI account or to register a plant in the author's name.

3.2 When a third party provides us with your personal data

Your personal data may be shared with us by a third party registering a plant in your name.

3.3 When a third party provides us with your personal data

We may combine personal data you (or a third party) provided us with personal data available from external publicly available sources such as published articles and papers.

4. How we keep your personal data safe and who has access to it

We are committed to ensuring that there are appropriate technical controls in place to protect your personal data including protection from misuse and unauthorised access. For example, our network is protected and routinely tested.

Your information is accessible by IPNI staff at RBGK and IPNI editing personnel at Harvard University who will use your personal data for the activities we have described in this policy.

Transmission outside of Europe or via the Internet. The personal data we collect from you may be transferred to, shared and/or otherwise processed by organisations or companies outside the UK and European Economic Area ("EEA”). Where your personal data is transferred outside the EEA, we will take reasonable steps to ensure that the recipient implements appropriate measures to protect your personal data (for example, by entering into EU Commission approved standard contractual clauses).

Unfortunately, the transmission of personal data via the internet is not completely secure. Although we will do our best to protect your personal data, we cannot guarantee the security of your personal data transmitted to or via our websites and digital products; any transmission is at your own risk. If you have any questions about the international data transfer of your personal data, please contact us using the details below.

5. Data retention

We keep personal data for as long as there is a need to keep it in connection with the purposes for which it was collected. We will retain plant name author data indefinitely for scientific research purposes. Where you have created an account with us to register and release nomenclatural novelties, your information will be kept until you close your account.

6. Your rights

Please note that you may only use/ benefit from some of the following rights in limited circumstances.

6.1 Right to restrict processing

In certain circumstances, you have a right to require us to stop processing your personal data in a particular way.

6.2 Right to erasure

You have the right to request that your personal data is erased from our records in certain circumstances.

6.3 Right of access

You have a right to ask for a copy of the personal data we hold about you. If you want to access your personal data, please send a description of the personal data you want to see to privacy@kew.org or by post to The Data Protection Officer, The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, TW9 3AE.

6.4 Right to rectification

We also want to make sure that your personal data is accurate and up to date. Please let us know if your details change. You may also ask us to correct or remove personal data which is inaccurate.

6.5 Right to object

You have the right to request that we stop processing personal data about you for certain purposes at any time by contacting us using the details below.

6.6 Right to data portability

In certain circumstances you have a right to data portability which means we will provide you (or a third party you nominate) with your personal data in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format.

6.7 Right to complain

Please let us know if you have any queries or concerns about the way that your personal data is being processed by us by contacting us on the details below. You are also entitled to make a complaint to the Information Commissioner's Office. For further information see the Information Commissioner's guidance here https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/.

7. Contact

For all enquiries in respect of this Privacy Policy, please contact privacy@kew.org or The Data Protection Officer, The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, TW9 3AE.

8. Changes to this privacy policy

We keep our privacy policy under regular review. This Privacy Policy was last updated in January 2022.