[Chapter-delegates] [ISOC] By-Laws Update

Tue Apr 10 19:14:45 PDT 2012

Dear Mr. Burger,

Would be nice to see the new by-laws in its own form highlighting the
amendments being proposed by the board. From there we may be able
to discuss and provide our comments further.

Based on the text provided in this email, it might be good to include in
the proposed by-laws what kind of entity these Chapters will be with ISOC
(HQ), the former's requirement on its formation prior to being accepted as
ISOC Chapter. Its overall function to the overall objective / mission of
ISOC. It is more important and flexible to write what must be the ultimate
character of the Chapter rather than providing the proponents or
officers what must be their activities.
It may also be good to note that all Chapters have its own by-laws and some
have incorporated themselves as a legal organization in their country.
Considering the texts that ISOC wanted to be included in Chapter's by-laws
what provision must be added in proposed by-laws that make them coherent
and sound to the overall structure of ISOC?

Thank you.

Kindest regards,
-Rodel

On Tue, Apr 10, 2012 at 5:02 PM, Eric Burger <eburger at standardstrack.com>wrote:

> Due to a technology issue, this message did not get distributed last week.
> Please accept my sincerest apologies -- we are looking forward to a
> broad-based discussion on this important update.
> - Eric
>
>
>  On Apr 6, 2012, at 8:43 AM, Eric Burger wrote:
>
>  ** **
>                                                     6 April 2012
>
> ****
>
> Dear Colleagues,****
>
> The Board of Trustees of the Internet Society has undertaken to update the
> Society’s by-laws.  This is necessary to bring our by-laws in line with
> changes to the statutes under which the Internet Society was incorporated.
> These statutes specifically apply to not-for-profit cause driven
> organizations like the Internet Society. We have also taken the opportunity
> to ensure that the provisions of the by-laws keep pace with the Society’s
> operational environment, now and into the future.
>
> ****
>
> To accomplish its task, the Board formed a By-Laws Committee comprised of
> members of the Board, the Board Secretary, and ISOC staff. The Committee
> embraced this opportunity to produce much needed clarity and organizational
> flexibility in two phases. Phase one, completed in 2011, dealt with a
> variety of organizational and legal issues. Phase two, the current phase,
> addresses the Society's members and chapters. The Board wishes to share its
> phase two proposals with all of you so that you can understand precisely
> what the suggested changes are, have the opportunity to consider their
> implications in the context of the Society’s legal framework, and provide
> feedback to the Board about the proposals.  The best practice for by-laws
> is to keep the language to the minimum necessary to meet legal requirements
> and provide clarity.  This will ensure that the Society will have the
> flexibility to adapt to its evolving needs.
>
> ****
>
> In your review of the Board’s proposal, it will be important to understand
> their legal context. According to the law of incorporation under which the
> Internet Society operates, the Society is a mission, or cause, driven
> organization. The Society has chosen to have members and chapters that
> share the Society’s mission. The Society values their contributions highly,
> and therefore proposes to formally recognize members and, for the first
> time, chapters in the by-laws. Likewise, we also wish to ensure that the
> Advisory Council of Organization Members continues to have the
> inclusiveness and flexibility that characterize its growing value for both
> Organization members and the Board and Society. Therefore, we removed the
> confusing reference to “Advisory Council” in the by-laws. That “Advisory
> Council” in the bylaws is not active. The bylaws give it no role.
> Furthermore, it is not the existing, operative Advisory Council.
>
> ****
>
> The by-laws now designate the number of Trustees each community selects.
> Note that we recommend aligning the number of Trustees selected by each of
> these communities to four Trustees each. The Frequently Asked Questions
> goes into further detail on this point.
>
> ****
>
> Three new and revised articles, Articles III, IV, and V, define the roles
> of these communities. Most notably, the articles for all three communities
> briefly describe their relationship with Society.
>
> ****
>
> The format of the Article concerning Chapters, Article IV, is similar to
> proposed Articles covering Organizational Members and individual members.
> Do note that Chapters are not members but rather groupings of members.  In
> the case of the Chapters, the Committee proposes the following:
>
> ****
>
> ** **
> “Internet Society Chapters are groups organized by ISOC individual members
> who share an interest and belief in the Society’s principles and mission,
> acting according to the Society’s standards of performance.  Chapters are
> formed for the expressed purpose of aggregating individual member
> interests, expertise and creativity in order to pursue the ISOC mission.
> Chapters form a community that takes on a variety of programmes and
> activities. These programmes and activities may include one or more of the
> following: educational events, community programmes, public policy
> programmes, networking events and others consistent with the mission and
> principles of the Society.”****
>
> We invite you to let us know if you have suggestions for improvement, have
> concerns or questions, or if you simply support the proposed revisions.
>
> ****
>
> To facilitate the discussion, we have set up a separate list for each
> community - individual members, Organization Members and Chapters - to
> discuss the by-laws. This will keep the Chapter Delegate’s list clear for
> Chapter administrative business and the Advisory Committee list clear for
> AC administrative business. These lists are indiv-bylaws at isoc.org,
> org-bylaws at isoc.org, and chapter-bylaws at isoc.org, respectively. These
> lists are moderated to keep the discussion on topic and ensure proper
> community membership on the list. List moderators have committed to
> releasing messages in a timely manner during work-days and will do their
> best efforts to release messages on non-work days.
> Please subscribe to the discussion list by following the link:
> https://elists.isoc.org/mailman/listinfo/individual-members-by-laws-discussions
>
> ****
>
> The bylaws discussion has generated a lot of issues not directly related
> to the bylaws, yet do relate to membership. Therefore, there is a fourth
> list for Other Membership Topics, where you can discuss membership issues
> that do not relate directly to the by-laws but that can be considered in
> future Board or Society actions. This list is located at
> other-topics at isoc.org. In addition, there is a wiki with all of the
> relevant materials at https://wiki.tools.isoc.org/By-Laws_Review_2011.
>
> ****
>
> The By-Laws Committee will review all comments as we have discussions of
> bylaw amendments at upcoming Board of Trustees meetings.
>
> ****
>
> The Board of Trustees wishes to thank all of you for your dedication, your
> continuous efforts on behalf of Internet access for all, and your spirit of
> cooperation as we continue to extend the benefits of the Internet across
> and around the globe.
>
> ****
>
> ** **
>
> With sincere regards,
>
> Eric Burger, Chair
>
> ****
>
> By-Laws Committee of the Board of Trustees
>
>
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