Principles

1. Data with representation
   • Everyone should have the opportunity to direct how data about them is used
   • The best way to guarantee this is an organisation owned and democratically controlled by its users
   • In disagreement, don't rush. Give people time to migrate if necessary.
   • If you leave, reasonable steps should be taken to remove your data.
2. Promote the dignity of data ownership
   • We value privacy, your control over who you share with and how
   • We reject mass surveilance by companies and government alike
   • We do not guarantee secrecy, and cannot protect against targeted investigation
3. Provide the freedom to host some or all services yourself
   • It must always be possible to migrate your data, preferably in widely used formats
   • The software we run must be Free/Open-Source, so you can always run it yourself
   • Services should be separable to reduce the barrier to individually hosting a service
4. Federate and interoperate where possible
   • We should use open standards wherever possible
   • We prefer decentralised protocols and federation over centralised services
   • This reinforces and protects your ability to individually host services
   • This allows other groups to adopt these principles and work together

To support these principles we are a member of Co-operatives UK and uphold the Co-operative principles.