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Current Bylaws

Revised May 2006

ARTICLE I. ASSOCIATION

A. Name
This organization shall be known as the International Association for the Study of the Commons.

B. Purpose
The Association is devoted to bringing together interdisciplinary researchers, practitioners, and policymakers for the purpose of fostering better understandings, improvements, and sustainable solutions for environmental, electronic, and any other type of shared resource that is a commons or a commons-pool resource.

C. Means
Toward these ends, the Association will sponsor publications, hold general meetings of members to share research results and field experiences, foster various mechanisms for dissemination of findings, and sponsor other workshops and symposia on specific topics. The Association will not take or endorse positions on public policy issues except in extraordinary situations and only if consistent with the purpose of the Association.

ARTICLE II. MEMBERSHIP

A. Eligibility
Membership is open to all persons and organizations interested in the study of the commons and who pay dues to the Association. Membership shall not be divided into classes except for the purposes of determining dues (see Article VI C 1). Subject to the approval of the Secretariat, in-kind services may be substituted for monetary payment of dues.

B. Membership Year
The membership year for the Association shall be July 1 to June 30.

C. Rights
Both individual and organizational members shall have the right to participate, subject to rules established by the Executive Council and the Bylaws, in programs and activities of the Association. In addition, individual members shall have the right to:

1. hold office in the Association;
2. vote for elective officers;
3. vote on matters referred by the Council; and,
4. seek to petition the Council.

ARTICLE III. OFFICIAL MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL

A. Composition
The Executive Council of the Association shall consist of the President, President-Elect, immediate Past-President, and six Councilors.

B. Terms of Office

1. Regular terms of office begin at the end of the General Meeting that follows a general election.
2. The President-Elect will automatically succeed to the office of President upon completion of the President's term.
3. The President and President-Elect will serve from the end of the General Meeting at which they assume office until the end of the next General Meeting.
4. Councilors will serve staggered terms, each to last through three successive general meetings. A councilor may not be re-elected to a successive term as Councilor.

C. Duties of the Council

1. The Council shall be responsible for the administration of Association affairs. The Council shall have authority to execute on behalf of the Association all powers and functions of the Association consonant with the Bylaws.
2. The Council shall meet at least once every year. The Council is responsible for enabling full participation of its members.
3. The Council shall supervise the use of Association funds, including accepting the Treasurer's Report and approving an annual budget.
4. The Council shall select the site and theme for the General Meeting every second year, taking logistical, financial and equitable considerations into account. The Council shall also appoint the General Meeting Program Chair two years in advance of the next General Meeting.
5. The President shall be the presiding officer of the Association and Chairperson of the Council. The President shall exercise the duties and responsibilities commonly associated with the office.
6. The Council appoints and instructs the Executive Director and/or Secretary-Treasurer, Information Officers, and Editors.
7. Program Chairs of Special Meetings may be appointed as needed. Program Chairs serve according to contract. The contract shall include the mission statement of the Association and stipulate open calls for participation.

D. Decision making

1. Valid decisions require that a quorum of at least four councilors and one president are present and voting, except when there is an urgent need to make an immediate decision at which time email voting is permissible but must include votes by a majority of the elected Council.
2. Decisions by the Council shall be made by a simple majority of those voting, except for decisions that change the schedule of dues which shall require a two-thirds majority (at least 6 votes).
3. Voting in absentia by proxy given to a Council member who is present is permitted.

E. Attendance

1. Each elected officer has the duty to attend council meetings.
2. In the event of legitimate reasons making participation impossible, the officer has a duty to report the non-attendance and the reasons for it to the rest of the council. The rest of the council would determine if the non-attendance is acceptable.
3. In the event of a non-acceptable absence the council may ask the officer to resign.
4. In the event of more than one non-acceptable absence the council may decide to terminate the officer's membership on the council.

F. Vacancies

1. In the event of death, resignation, or incapacity (as determined by two-thirds of the Council) of the President, the President-Elect shall assume the duties of the President and hold the title of Acting President until succeeding to the office of President after the end of the next General Meeting.
2. The Council can by appointment fill a vacancy in a Councilor office during the period between General Meetings and such appointment will be effective until the next general election. A special concurrent election will then be held for the remainder, if any, of the Councilor term vacated.
3. Should the immediate Past-President be unable to serve, the position will remain vacant.

ARTICLE IV. EX-OFFICIO MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL

A. Composition
The Executive Director, Secretary-Treasurer, Information Officers, Editors, Program Chairs, and members of the Committee on Science and Governance, will, for the duration of their appointments, serve as ex- officio members of the Executive Council without voting privileges.

B. Executive Director
The Executive Director shall be responsible for implementing directives of the Council and for day-to-day administration of the Association. The Executive Director may serve concurrently as the Secretary-Treasurer.

C. Secretary-Treasurer
The Secretary-Treasurer shall have charge of Association records and general correspondence, shall keep membership and subscriber lists, shall collect dues and subscriptions, shall manage accounts, and shall prepare and present the annual Budget and Treasurer's Report at annual meetings of the Council. Each year a roll of members with voting rights valid at the end of January shall be prepared and presented to the Council. The Secretary-Treasurer shall also perform other duties as may be specified in the Bylaws or are assigned by the Council.

D. Committee on science and governance
Past members of the council have the right to become members of the Committee. The executive director keeps a roster of its members. The committee conducts its business by way of e-mail and if necessary at meetings during the general conferences. The committee members have a right, individually or as a committee, to advise the council on matters concerning the governance of the association and the sciences it encompasses. The council has a right to ask the committee for advice on its business.

ARTICLE V. ELECTIONS

A. Eligibility
All IASCP members in good standing as of four months before the General Meeting of the election year may vote for the election of officers.

B. Nominating Committee

1. The immediate past President shall chair the Nominating Committee, which shall consist of the two first term councilors and two persons appointed by the General Meeting.
2. The Nominating Committee will prepare a slate of candidates with one nominee for President-elect and at least two nominees for each upcoming Councilor vacancy. The Committee shall strive to promote balanced representation in regards to age, gender, citizenship, professional background, locations of residence, and geographical and disciplinary areas of specialization, but shall not be bound by any particular formula. The committee cannot put any of its members on the slate.
3. The Committee shall ascertain, with respect to each person nominated, that the candidate is a member of the Association in good standing, and that the candidate has given the Committee written consent to be nominated.
4. The slate of nominees shall be given to the President and Council no later than the mid-term council meeting.

C. Other Nominations
Candidates may be nominated for elected offices upon written petition from one percent of the membership. Candidates must be eligible for office, members in good standing, and have given written consent to the nomination to the President. The President must receive such nominations no later than four months before the General Meeting.

D. Ballots

1. Ballots containing the Nominating Committee's slate and any other valid nominations shall be mailed to the membership no later than three months before the General Meeting.
2. Ballots shall be returned to the Chair of the Nominating Committee no later than six weeks before the General Meeting. The Chair of the Nominating Committee shall tabulate the results and announce them at the General Membership Meeting.

E. Voting

1. The procedure for voting shall strive to ensure secret voting and only by members in good standing.
2. Voting by ordinary mail shall use the following procedure: the vote is put in an unmarked envelope and sealed, the unmarked envelope is put within another envelope signed and marked to identify the person voting, this envelope is sent to the executive director for control of voter identity against the roll of members in good standing. The executive director removes the unmarked envelopes and sends them to the nominations committee for tabulation. The signed envelopes are kept in the archive.
3. Voting by electronic media can occur if the Association has access to an approved service ensuring that point 1 will obtain.

ARTICLE VI. FINANCIAL OPERATIONS

A. Fiscal Year
The fiscal year for the Association shall be July 1 to June 30.

B. Funding
The Association shall endeavor to raise funds from donor institutions and membership dues. The Council may approve additional fund raising activities.

C. Membership Dues

1. Dues shall be set by the Council, which may create various categories and durations of membership. Motions to alter the schedules of dues shall require a two-thirds majority of elected members of the Council.
2. Dues are delinquent after 1 October of the membership year.
3. Dues shall not be pro-rated.

ARTICLE VII. GENERAL MEETING

A. The General Meeting shall consist of a Membership Meeting and a planned program of papers and discussions organized by the Program Chair and committees. The Council shall hold its annual meeting in conjunction with the General Meeting during years in which the General Meeting is held.

B. The Membership Meeting shall be open to all members and guests of the Association. Reports shall be presented by the Secretary-Treasurer, the active Program Chairs, the Editors, and the Nominating Committee chair. Other committees and individuals as appropriate may also give reports.

C. Elections for the Executive Council and amendments to the Bylaws will not be conducted at the General Meeting, but conducted according to Article V E.

ARTICLE VIII. AMENDMENTS

A. Amendments to these Bylaws may be proposed by the Executive Council or by written petition to the Executive Council signed by one percent of the voting membership.

B. Proposed amendments will be submitted to the membership for ratification according to Article V E. Proposed amendments will usually appear on the ballot for election of officers but may, at the discretion of the Executive Council, be submitted to the membership at other times.

C. Amendments will pass with a simple majority of those voting.