The Emergent Self

Privacy Policy

Last updated: September 15, 2026

About this policy

The Emergent Self is the website and publication of Robert K. Green, Ph.D., at theemergentself.com. It offers essays, the Experience–Interpretation–Response (EIR) Framework, and resources for reflection and learning. In this policy, “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to The Emergent Self.

This policy explains how information is handled when you visit the site, comment on an article, contact us, request the EIR Guide, subscribe to reader updates, or use a website account. For questions or privacy requests, please use our Contact page and enter “Privacy request” as the subject.

Information you provide

  • Contact messages: We receive the name, email address, subject, and message you enter so that we can read and respond to your inquiry.
  • EIR Guide requests: We collect your first name and email address to email you the guide and maintain your reader subscription. As explained beside the request form, requesting the guide also starts a subscription to The Emergent Self Readers list for occasional essays, reflections, and updates. New subscribers receive a separate email to confirm their subscription.
  • Email subscriptions: The subscription form collects your email address so that you can receive new essays and reflections.
  • Comments: We collect the details you enter in the comment form, including your name, email address, comment, and any optional website address.
  • Accounts: If you have a website account, we store its username, email address, and the profile information you provide to administer your access and account communications.

Guide requests are saved in the website’s submission records and used to send the requested email. These records also include technical details such as the submission date, the page used, your IP address, and browser information. Contact and subscription information may also be retained in website submission records or email correspondence.

Comments and public information

Comments are reviewed before publication. Once approved, your comment, display name, and any associated public website link or avatar may be visible to other visitors. Your email address is not displayed as part of the comment. Please share only information you are comfortable making public.

WordPress records the IP address and browser information associated with a comment to support moderation and help identify abuse or spam. If an avatar is supplied through Gravatar, a hashed version of your email address may be sent to that service to locate the image. See Automattic’s privacy policy for information about Gravatar.

Email choices and the EIR Guide

We use MailPoet to manage The Emergent Self Readers list and send confirmation emails and reader updates. New subscribers are asked to confirm their email address before receiving reader updates. The requested EIR Guide is sent separately through the website’s email system.

Reader update emails include Unsubscribe and Manage your subscription links. To stop reader emails, click Unsubscribe and confirm on the page that opens. You can also ask us to unsubscribe you through our Contact page; use the subject “Unsubscribe” and provide the email address you subscribed with.

Stopping reader updates does not prevent messages needed to respond to a request you make or administer an existing account, such as a guide you request or a password-reset email. You do not need a reader subscription to browse the public articles.

Cookies and login

Cookies are small files stored by your browser. This WordPress site uses cookies for functions such as logging in, keeping a session active, and remembering preferences.

If you choose to save your details when commenting, cookies can remember your name, email address, and website for a later comment. These comment cookies last for one year. A temporary cookie on the login page checks whether your browser accepts cookies and is removed when you close the browser.

Login cookies normally last for two days, or two weeks if you select “Remember Me.” Logging out removes the login cookies. Display-preference cookies can last for a year. An additional cookie associated with editing or publishing an article lasts for one day and identifies the article.

You can manage or delete cookies in your browser settings. Blocking cookies may affect login and other site functions.

Website operation and service providers

The site uses WordPress and Elementor to operate its pages and forms, and hosting and email services to store information and deliver messages. Information needed to provide those functions is processed through those services and is accessible to authorized website administrators. Technical information, such as IP addresses, requested pages, browser details, and request times, may also appear in hosting or security logs.

We use LiteSpeed Cache to improve page loading. This creates temporary cached copies of website pages, which can include information already displayed publicly, such as an approved comment.

We use the MailPoet plugin and MailPoet Sending Service for reader subscriptions and email delivery. Subscriber details and subscription status are stored with the website; recipient email addresses and information needed to deliver messages are processed by MailPoet. Delivery and subscription records help us manage confirmations, unsubscribes, and sending problems. See MailPoet’s privacy policy, provided by Automattic.

We have disabled MailPoet’s email open, link-click, and cookie-based engagement tracking. Operational delivery and subscription records are still kept. We do not currently use a separate third-party visitor analytics service or advertising service. We may disclose information when required by law or when necessary to investigate abuse, protect the website, or address a security issue.

Links, embedded content, and uploaded media

Articles and resources may link to other websites or include externally hosted content, such as images or videos. Following an external link takes you to a service governed by its own privacy policy. When external content loads within a page, its provider may receive your IP address and browser information, set cookies, or recognize you if you are signed in to that service.

If you provide an image for publication, remove any location information you do not want to share. Visitors may be able to download a published image and read information embedded in the file.

How long information is kept

Comments and their associated records may remain indefinitely unless removed, so that discussions and moderation history remain available. Account information is retained while the account is maintained. Form submissions, guide requests, subscription records, and correspondence may remain in website or email records until removed as part of site administration or in response to a request.

You can ask us to delete information associated with you. Some records may need to be retained for legal, administrative, or security reasons, and copies in backups may remain until those backups are replaced or expire.

Your information and privacy requests

You can contact us to ask what personal information we hold about you, request a copy, correct inaccurate information, request deletion, or stop reader emails. Where an account provides profile access, you can also review and update the available profile fields. A username may require administrator assistance to change.

Send requests through the Contact page with the subject “Privacy request.” Please identify the email address or username involved. We may need to verify that the request comes from the person concerned before providing or changing personal information. Any rights provided by applicable privacy law continue to apply.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy as the site’s features or information practices change. The date at the top identifies the latest revision. You can contact us through the Contact page if you have questions about a change or about how your information is handled.