By-laws

8 July 2022

In order to achieve its objectives, the European Geosciences Union (hereinafter called the Union) shall

1.1

organise annual General Assemblies, with the help of a Programme Committee (see By-laws 7.6, 8.1 and 8.3), at which a full range of scientific sessions shall be held;

1.2

organise, sponsor or co-sponsor appropriate workshops, scientific meetings, topical conferences, short courses, summer schools, etc. outside General Assemblies, including those organised by other bodies;

1.3

publish a Newsletter, under the auspices of an Editor, which shall be distributed to all members;

1.4

publish appropriate scientific journals and books through all media;

1.5

undertake outreach activities, which should include: identifying and drawing attention to social problems which could be addressed by the scientific work of its members and communication with the non-scientific public;

1.6

establish links which would allow influence to be brought to bear on decision-makers, primarily but not exclusively, in Europe;

1.7

establish liaisons with other scientific organisations, both within and outside Europe, to mutual benefit;

1.8

encourage participation of young scientists in the affairs of the Union through concessionary fees and a limited number of travel awards to assist attendance at General Assemblies.

2.1

Applications for Individual Membership are handled by the Executive Secretary (or Secretaries).

2.2

Honorary Membership shall be conferred by the Council on recommendation of the Awards Committee.

2.3

The membership fees shall be determined by the Council, on the proposal of the Finance Committee.

2.4

All members are entitled to

• receive the Union's Newsletter;
• receive a reduction of registration fee for a General Assembly and for scientific meetings organised by the Union;
• purchase the Union's publications at concessionary rates;
• affiliate with one or more Divisions;
• nominate candidates for service on the Council;
• stand for election to the Council;
• vote in the elections of the Council members (see By-law 3);
• attend and vote at the Plenary Session.

3.1

Candidate lists for the election of Council members shall be prepared by the Nomination Committee. Each list should, wherever possible, contain at least two names for each vacancy. Possible candidates may be discussed during the relevant Division meetings. Candidates are sought through an open call and are reviewed by the Nomination Committee before approval by Council.

3.2

The Chair of the Nominations Committee must ascertain the willingness of each candidate to stand for election.

3.3

The Chair of the Nominations Committee shall present the proposed slates to the Council for approval.

3.4

Ballot forms, listing all candidates, and with provision for additional write-in candidates, shall be distributed to all members of the Union by the Executive Secretary (Secretaries).

3.5

Members may only vote for one candidate for each Union vacancy. Members may only vote for one candidate for a Division President vacancy and can participate in the Division President elections of up to three Divisions. The elections are conducted electronically and are overviewed by the Executive Secretary (Secretaries) following delegation by the Nomination Committee. The results are announced on the website and during the next Plenary.

3.6

The names of the elected candidates shall be announced at the Council meeting and the Plenary Session of the Union held during the next General Assembly, in the Newsletter and on the EGU website.

4.1

The President shall be elected to serve for a term of two years. He/she shall be elected one year before the beginning of the term of office, and in that period serve as President-Elect, and shall continue as a member of the Council for one year after the term of office, as Past-President. The President shall not be eligible for immediate re-election.

4.2

The President-Elect or the Past-President is the Vice-President of the Union.

4.3

The General Secretary shall be elected to serve for a term of two years, and shall be eligible for immediate re-election.

4.4

The Treasurer shall be elected to serve for a term of two years, and shall be eligible for immediate re-election.

4.5

The Executive Secretary (Secretaries) shall be appointed by the Council to serve for a term of five years, and shall be eligible for re-appointment for subsequent terms.

4.6

The President of each Division shall be elected (according to the rules stated in By-laws 3.1. and 3.5.) for a term of two years, and shall be eligible for immediate re-election once only. The newly elected Division President (Division President-elect) serves as Deputy President for one year before the beginning of the first term as Division President.

5.1

The President is the chief elected officer of the Union, and as such shall:

• Represent the Union as a whole in all internal and external matters;
• Preside at all meetings of the Council, the Plenary Session, the Executive Board and the Nominations Committee;
• Be a member of all committees defined in the By-laws (unless otherwise specified in the By-laws);
• Nominate all chairs and other members of Union committees to Council in consultation with the respective committees, unless otherwise specified in the By-laws;
• Oversee and provide strategic guidance to all activities of the Union, in particular those of the committees and the EGU Office.

The president may delegate responsibilities to other members of the Union.

5.2

The Vice-President assists the President in representing the Union as a whole in all internal and external matters. If the President is unable to act, for whatever reason, the Vice-President shall deputy for him/her.

5.3

The General Secretary is responsible for supporting the Council activities, including preparation of the agenda (in discussion with the President) and the minutes of the Council meetings and the Plenary Sessions.

5.4

The Treasurer is responsible for overseeing the finances of the Union. He/she shall chair the Finance Committee.

5.5

The Executive Secretary (or Secretaries) is responsible for the day-to-day running of the Union supported by the Union Office(s). He/she shall be an ex-officio member of the Council and of all Committees (unless otherwise specified in the By-laws).

5.6

The President, Vice-President, General Secretary, Treasurer and Executive Secretary form the EGU Executive Board. It assists the President in overseeing and providing strategic guidance to all activities of the Union, in particular those of the committees and the EGU Office(s).

5.7

Authorities and duties of the Division Presidents are given in By-law 7.

6.1

The Council shall meet at least once every year. A quorum of the Council shall consist of fifty percent of its membership.

6.2

Any member of the Council who is unable to attend a meeting may designate an alternate who must be a member of the Union, provided that the prior agreement of the President has been obtained. Such alternates shall have voting rights and shall be counted in determining a quorum.

6.3

An agenda appropriate to the nature of the business to be discussed shall be prepared by the General Secretary in discussion with the President for each meeting of the Council, and should be communicated to all members of the Council at least two weeks prior to the meeting.

6.4

Minutes of all meetings of the Council shall be prepared by the General Secretary and communicated to all members of the Council.

7.1

The scientific activities of the Union shall be organised through Divisions. The names of the Divisions shall be published on the EGU website.

7.2

Divisions may be established, modified, or discontinued at any time by the Council.

7.3

Each Division may create Sub-Divisions to identify particular areas of interest.

7.4

Each Division shall have a President which shall be elected as stated in By-laws 3.1 and 3.5, and shall be a member of the Council.

7.5

Each Division shall have at least one Deputy President and may have additional Division officers.

7.6

The President of each Division shall be a member of the Programme Committee. He/she may designate one of the Deputy Presidents of the respective Division as an alternate.

7.7

Each Division shall hold a Division meeting during the course of the General Assembly of the Union. The Division meeting appoints the Division officers, as well as the Deputy President when there is no Division President-elect.

7.8

The management and administration of each Division are the collective responsibility of the Division President, the Division Deputy President(s) and the other Division officers. It is their responsibility to:

• ensure that all subjects within the ambit of each Division are well represented by appropriate Sub-Divisions, and in particular, by appropriate liaison, to be aware of all possible mutual interests with other Divisions, and thereby to provide the core for attractive and timely sessions and especially joint sessions at each General Assembly of the Union with minimal duplication;
• solicit conveners and co-conveners to organise sessions during the General Assembly;
• propose to the Publications Committee candidates for editorship of the publications of the Union, as required;
• solicit nominations for candidates for elections to vacancies on the Council;
• solicit nominations for candidates for the various awards and medals of the Union;
• arrange for reports on the activities of their Division to be presented to the Council as required.

8.1

The administrative activities of the Union shall be carried out through the following Committees:

• Programme Committee (co-ordinates the General Assembly programme);
• Publications Committee (co-ordinates EGU journals and other publications);
• Finance Committee (co-ordinates EGU finances and proposes budget to the Council);
• Awards Committee (co-ordinates EGU medal committees and proposes medal recipients to the Council);
• Nominations Committee (co-ordinates the nomination process for elections to the Council);
• Committee for Outreach Activities (co-ordinates outreach activities as stipulated by By-laws 1.5 and 1.6);
• Committee on Education (co-ordinates activities related to secondary and tertiary education);
• Committee for Topical Events (co-ordinates activities related to topical meetings, conference series, workshops and training schools).
• Committee for Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion - EDI (to provide advice and support the scientific mission of the EGU by promoting and supporting equality, diversity, and inclusion of opportunities in the Earth, planetary, and space sciences).

8.2

Committees may be established, modified, or discontinued by the Council subject to the approval of the Plenary Session.

8.3

Each Committee shall have a Chair and members as follows:

• Programme Committee: a chair appointed by the Council, one member representing each Programme Group as appointed by the Council, and the meeting organisers;
• Publications Committee: a chair appointed by the Council, one member representing each EGU journal, and the publisher as ex-officio member. The term of the chair is three years, renewable once. The terms of the other members are defined by their editorial duties;
• Finance Committee: the Treasurer as the chair;
• Awards Committee: a chair appointed by the Council;
• Nominations Committee: the President as the chair, the Vice-President as a member;
• Committee for Outreach Activities: a chair appointed by the Council, members appointed by the Council;
• Committee on Education: a chair appointed by the Council, members appointed by the Council. The term of the chair is two years, renewable once. The terms of the other members are two years, renewable by Council;
• Committee for Topical Events: a chair appointed by the Council, members appointed by the Council.
• Committee for Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion: a chair appointed by the Council, members appointed by the Council.

8.4

In addition to By-laws 8.3, the members of the EGU Executive Board shall be members of all committees, with the exception of the Nomination Committee.

8.5

The term of the chairs and the other committee members appointed by the Council shall be two years and renewable once, unless otherwise specified in the By-laws.

8.6

Each committee shall meet during the course of the General Assembly of the Union, and shall present a report on their activities to the Council, as required.

9.1

For each journal under the direct control of the Union, the Council shall appoint all managing/executive editors. They shall be assisted by topical editors who form the editorial board. The terms of reference of the managing/executive editors and editorial board shall be agreed by the Council on a case-by-case basis. The managing/executive editor shall chair the editorial board and report on the activities of the board to Council through the Publications Committee.

9.2

For each journal under the shared control of the Union and other bodies, the Council shall appoint editorial representatives as laid down in the appropriate agreements with those bodies. One of the Union's representatives shall be designated as a chief representative with responsibility to report to the Council on the activities undertaken by the editorial representatives.

9.3

It is the task of the managing/executive editors to appoint topical editors of their respective journals. They shall consult the other members of the editorial board and, where appropriate, other members of the scientific community served by the journal.

10.1

A Plenary Session of the Union, consists of its members (of all categories) meeting together in a formal session convened during a General Assembly of the Union.

10.2

At a Plenary Session, reports of the President on behalf of the Council and of the Treasurer on behalf of the Finance Committee shall be considered and, if approved and adopted, the liabilities of the Treasurer and of the other Members of Council shall be discharged.

10.3

The results of the ballots for the election of new members of the Council shall be announced at the Plenary Session.

10.4

Proposals for amendments to the Constitution, and proposals for changes or additions to the By-laws shall be presented to, and approved by, the Plenary Session.

10.5

Any matters of general concern to the Union may be raised at a Plenary Session, and discussed.

10.6

The General Secretary shall keep a record of the Plenary Session.

11.1

The EGU Union office(s) is (are) responsible for the day-to-day running of the Union under the direction of an Executive Secretary (Secretaries) and the general guidance of the President.

11.2

The office(s) provide(s) administrative assistance to the Council members and Union committees for their activities related to EGU. The office activities include:

• Administration of the EGU membership;
• Maintenance of the EGU website;
• Administration of the EGU elections;
• Assistance in the organisation of the General Assembly, Council meetings and committee meetings;
• Accounting of the Union and assistance to the Treasurer;
• Liaising with other scientific organisations.

11.3

The Executive Secretary (Secretaries) shall report each year on the activities of the office(s) to the Council.