Terms, privacy & booking

These Terms and Conditions govern your access to and use of sharonkihara.com (the "Site"), operated by Sharon Kihara, a Tribal Fusion belly dance artist and teacher based in Portland, Oregon, USA. By accessing or using the Site you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you do not agree, please do not use the Site.

Use of the Site

This Site is provided for informational and booking-inquiry purposes. You may access and use the Site for lawful personal or business purposes. You may not use the Site to:

• Distribute spam, malware, or unsolicited commercial communications
• Scrape, harvest, or aggregate content or data without prior written consent
• Attempt to gain unauthorized access to any portion of the Site or related systems
• Violate any applicable local, national, or international law or regulation

Intellectual Property

All content on this Site (text, images, graphics, logos, and design) is the intellectual property of Sharon Kihara unless otherwise noted and is protected by applicable copyright and trademark laws. You may not reproduce, distribute, modify, or create derivative works without express written permission.

No Professional Advice

Nothing on this Site constitutes medical, health, yoga therapy, legal, financial, or other professional advice. Class and workshop information is provided for general information only. Consult a qualified professional before beginning any physical practice.

Third-Party Links

This Site contains links to third-party websites including Gift Horse Gems, Instagram, and Facebook, and may link to third-party booking services. I am not responsible for the content, privacy practices, or accuracy of any third-party site. Links do not imply endorsement.

Disclaimers & Limitation of Liability

The Site is provided "as is" and "as available" without warranties of any kind, express or implied. To the fullest extent permitted by law, Sharon Kihara shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising from your use of the Site.

Changes to These Terms

I may update these Terms at any time. Continued use of the Site after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms. For questions, contact me at info [at] sharonkihara.com.

Your privacy matters to me. This Privacy Policy explains what information is handled when you visit sharonkihara.com and your rights regarding that information.

Data controller: Sharon Kihara, Portland, Oregon, USA. Contact: info [at] sharonkihara.com.

Information Collected

This Site does not use analytics, advertising or tracking cookies, and does not record your visit. It has no accounts and no forms. Information is handled only in the following ways:

• Display preference: your light or dark mode choice is saved in your browser's local storage so the Site remembers it. It stays on your device and is not sent to anyone.
• Email contact: if you contact me by email, your address and message are received directly in my inbox and used solely to respond to your inquiry.
• Mailing list: if you subscribe, your email address is collected and stored by the mailing list service and used to send updates. You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in every message.
• Bookings: booking links may take you to a third-party booking service, which collects the details you enter (such as name, email address, and appointment details) under its own privacy policy.
• Gift Horse Gems: the Merch section shows products from gifthorsegems.com. Product photos load from Shopify's image servers, so your browser makes a request to them (including your IP address) when that section loads. Clicking a product opens gifthorsegems.com, a separate site with its own privacy policy.
• Hosting: the Site is a static website. Its host may log standard server access data (IP address, browser, request time) for security and delivery purposes.

Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information (CCPA/CPRA)

I do not sell, rent, or share personal information with third parties for cross-context behavioral advertising. This applies to all visitors, including California residents. You may contact me at any time to confirm that your data has not been and will not be sold.

Legal Basis for Processing (GDPR / UK GDPR)

• Legitimate interests (Art. 6(1)(f)): hosting and security logs needed to deliver the Site.
• Consent (Art. 6(1)(a)): subscribing to the mailing list.
• Contract (Art. 6(1)(b)): processing your email when you contact me or book, to respond to your inquiry.

Data Retention

Email correspondence is retained as long as reasonably needed. Mailing list subscriptions are kept until you unsubscribe or ask me to delete them. I do not sell personal data.

International Transfers

The mailing list service, booking service, Shopify, and the Site's host may process data outside your country, including in the United States. See their privacy policies for their safeguards.

Your Rights

Depending on your jurisdiction you may have the right to access, correct, delete, restrict, or port your personal data; to object to processing; and to opt out of sale (I do not sell data). To exercise any right, contact info [at] sharonkihara.com. I will respond within 30 days (GDPR) or 45 days (CCPA). EEA and UK residents may also lodge a complaint with their local supervisory authority.

Children's Privacy

This Site is not directed at children under 13 (or under 16 in the EEA). I do not knowingly collect personal data from minors. If you believe a child has provided personal data, contact me and I will delete it promptly.

I want this website to be usable by as many people as possible, including people with disabilities. This statement describes what has been checked and what still falls short.

Conformance Status

This Site aims to conform to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 at Level AA. It does not yet fully conform, because of the known limitations listed below. It has not been tested with screen readers or reviewed by an outside auditor.

Measures Taken

• The page language is declared, and there is a skip-to-content link on every page
• One main heading per page, with section headings below it
• Menus, buttons, and links use standard HTML controls; icon-only controls (menu, light/dark toggle, product arrows, footer icons) have text labels for assistive technology
• Body and secondary text meet the WCAG AA contrast ratio of 4.5:1 in both light and dark modes
• Every image has an alt attribute: decorative photos are left empty so screen readers skip them, and product photos are named after the product
• Smooth scrolling, scroll-reveal effects, and hover animations are turned off for visitors who ask their device to reduce motion

Known Limitations

• White text on the gold accent color (Book now buttons, the year and promotion tags, and the Contact Me tile) is below the 4.5:1 ratio: about 2.1:1 in dark mode and 3.8:1 in light mode
• Gold accent text on a light background (class locations and date numbers in light mode) is about 3.6:1 to 3.8:1, below 4.5:1
• Photos of Sharon have short alt text, not full descriptions
• Third-party services linked from the Site (Gift Horse Gems and its Shopify store, booking and mailing list services, Instagram, and Facebook) are governed by their own accessibility practices and may not fully conform

Feedback & Contact

I welcome feedback on the accessibility of this Site. If you experience any barriers or need information in an alternative format, contact me at info [at] sharonkihara.com.