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Statutes and bye-laws
of the
Societas Europaea Lepidopterologica (SEL)
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Statutes of the Societas Europaea Lepidopterologica (SEL)
in the altered version of 09 April 1986 (Budapest)
§ 1 Name, registered office
1. The name of the Society shall be “Societas Europaea Lepidopterologica — SEL” (hereafter called “the Society”). The Society’s registered office shall be at Karlsruhe in the Federal Republic of Germany. The Society has been registered at the district court at Karlsruhe.
2. The financial year shall be the calendar-year.
§ 2 Aims and objectives
1. The Society shall be concerned exclusively with scientific work, research and conservation of nature in the field of lepidopterology.
2. The activities of the Society shall be related especially to the Western Palaearctic region (Europe, Western Asia, and North Africa).
3. The aims and objectives of the Society shall be as follows:
3.1. To further closer collaboration among the Lepidopterists of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa.
3.1.1. This collaboration shall be by means of exchanging information; contacting scientific institutes, university departments, museums, and entomological societies; listing specialist; giving guidance on the literature on Lepidoptera; giving assistance in the solution of scientific problems;: and providing help with equipment and material needed for investigations.
3.1.2. This co-operation shall be furthered by a biennial Congress and General Meeting which shall be held at a different venue on each occasion, and the production of appropriate publications.
3.2. To support all efforts directed towards the conservation of Lepidoptera and their habitats.
3.2.1. The Society shall co-operate with all bodies concerned with the conservation of nature, and in the co-ordination of such measures at regional and higher levels, especially those measures being taken for the protection of endangered species of Lepidoptera and their biotopes.
3.2.2. The Society shall give professional advice to any organisation active in the field of ecological research, nature conservation and landscape management, as well as giving publicity to work concerned with endangered species of Lepidoptera and their habitats.
4. The Society shall act impartially. It shall not take part in any commercial activities on its own account.
5. The monies of the Society shall be used only for the aims as set out in these Statutes. Members shall not receive any payment from the monies of the Society.
6. No person shall receive expenses except in accordance with the Bye-Laws of the Society. Such expenses shall be limited to the amount actually expended.
§ 3 Membership
1. Any individual person or corporate body may join the Society as a member.
2. Membership shall be applied for by written application to the Council. Membership shall begin when confirmed by the Council.
3. Membership shall expire on notice of resignation, by deletion or exclusion or on death.
3.1. Notice of resignation, to take effect at the end of a calendar-year, can be given subject to one month’s notice in writing.
3.2. Any member whose subscription is more than two years in arrears may have his/her membership terminated.
3.3. Council shall have the right, by majority vote, to terminate the membership of any person who repeatedly acts contrary to the aims of the Society. Any such members hall have the right to appeal to a General Meeting provided such an appeal is made within one month. The decision of such a General Meeting shall be final and shall take effect thirty days after the date of posting of the written notification to the member. A members so excluded shall have no right of refund of subscription.
4. The annual membership fee shall be fixed by the General Meeting.
§ 4 General Meeting
1. An Ordinary General Meeting shall be convened by the Council at least biennially at the time of a Congress. The agenda, location and date of the General meeting shall be announced in an invitation which shall be published in the Society’s “NEWS-NOUVELLES-NACHRICHTEN” at least three months before the meeting. An Extraordinary General Meeting shall be convened if requested in writing by a majority of the Council or one quarter of the members. The reasons for such a request must be stated.
2. Amendments to the agenda may be made by the General Meeting.
3. The General meeting shall be empowered to take decisions, irrespective of the number of members present. Members, not present at the meeting, may vote by post. This postal vote must be presented at the General Meeting in a clear and definite form. Unless the Statutes state otherwise (§ 8 and 9.1) the meeting shall decide by simple majority. An equal number of votes shall mean rejection of the motion.
4. The General Meeting shall be chaired by the President or Vice-President. The meeting may also if necessary elect another Chairman.
5. Minutes of each General Meeting shall be taken and signed by the Chairman of the meeting and the Secretary who kept the minutes.
§ 5 Council
1. The Council shall consist of the
President
Vice-President
General Secretary
Membership Secretary
Treasurer
Editor
and a maximum of five Ordinary Council Members.
2. The members of the Council shall be elected for a maximum of four years by the General Meeting. Re-election shall be permitted, with the exception of the Ordinary Council Members, who may not be immediately re-elected as Ordinary Council Members. In the case of the premature resignation of a member of the Council, the Council shall co-opt a substitute member to serve until the next General Meeting.
3. According to article 26 of the Civil Code of the Federal Republic of Germany, the President, the General Secretary and Treasurer shall form the Executive Committee which shall be responsible in law for the affairs of the Society. In all cases two members of this Executive Committee may, together, legally represent the Society.
4. The Executive Committee shall be bound by the resolutions of the Council. The Council is bound by the resolutions of the General Meeting.
5. Four members, two of whom must be members of the Executive Committee, constitute a quorum. The Council decisions shall be by simple majority of votes.
6. Minutes of every Council meeting shall be taken and signed by the Chairman of the meeting and the Secretary.
§ 6 Bye-Laws
The Council shall establish Bye-Laws regulating the affairs of the Society. These Bye-Laws shall be approved by a General Meeting.
§ 7 Financial control
The General Meeting shall elect two Auditors for a period of four years. They shall examine the accounts and balance sheet of the Society. They shall not be members of the Council and shall present a written report at each general meeting, which shall be read out to the meeting and duly recorded.
§ 8 Changes to the Statutes
Changes to the statutes shall be agreed by at least a two-thirds majority at a General Meeting, provided these proposed changes have been notified to members at least two months beforehand.
§ 9 Dissolution of the Society
1. The Society shall only be dissolved upon a decision taken at a General meeting called for the purpose, by a three-quarters majority.
2. On dissolution, the Executive Committee shall be obliged to carry out the winding up of the Society according to article 48 of the Civil Code of the Federal Republic of Germany, and to conclude any outstanding matters. The General Meeting shall be entitled to appoint other Liquidators.
3. In case of dissolution the property of the Society shall go to the international foundation “World Wildlife Fund — WWF”, which shall be bound to use and employ the property according to the Statutes of the Society.
Accepted by the General Meeting of 9th April 1986 in Budapest.
Minutes
signed Hansjürg Geiger
Minutes Chairman
signed Rienk de Jong
Bye-Laws
in the version adopted at the General Meeting on 07 April 1988 (San Remo)
To fulfil the aims of the Societas Europaea Lepidopterologica (SEL) as defined in paragraph 2 of the Statutes and for the realisation of its objectives and functions the Council and General Meeting of the Society have passed the following Bye-Laws:
§ 1 Statutes and registration
1. In any country in which a large number of members of the Society reside it is open to these members to adapt the Statutes to comply with the current regulations of the respective country and to apply for registration and tax relief. Before taking effect, the Statutes so adapted must be submitted to the Council for approval.
2. In legal and other matters, however, as well as for any financial transactions, the only regulations in force to be binding on the General Meeting and the Council are the statutory provisions and tax regulations of the Federal Republic of Germany (so long as the registered office remains in the Federal Republic of Germany).
§ 2 Membership
1. The Society consists of ordinary members, corporate members, sponsoring members and honorary members.
2. A sponsoring member may be any ordinary or corporate member who supports the objectives and activities of the Society by an annual payment of not less than five times the amount of the annual membership fee for the year concerned or by a single payment of 1,000.- DM.
3. Members who have rendered special services to the Society or to Lepidopterology may be made honorary members by the General Meeting on recommendation of the Council.
§ 3 Rights and obligations of members
1. All members shall have equal rights and obligations.
2. Members shall be entitled to:
2.1. participate in the General Meeting and at Congress;
2.2. receive the publications of the Society to the extent that they are covered by the membership fee;
2.3. fully explore all possibilities defined in paragraph 2.3 of the Statutes;
2.4. attend and vote at all General Meetings. In case of non-attendance, members may exercise their voting rights in writing;
2.5. submit proposals and applications to the Council.
3. The members shall:
3.1. further the objectives of the Society and observe the Statutes;
3.2. conduct themselves in accordance with the recommendations of the “Code of Ethics” (Appendix A of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature) and shall not exploit any information they may obtain through their membership of the Society in such a way as to cause damage to any other members;
3.3. behave in a responsible way towards wildlife, and especially to refrain from collecting Lepidoptera in large quantities or for purely commercial purposes, such activities being incompatible with the aims of the Society;
3.4. pay the annual membership fee, without a reminder, at the beginning of each calendar-year; only honorary members shall be exempt from this obligatory payment. Members who pay their membership fee for that year before 31st March shall receive, as confirmation of payment, a membership card for that year from the Treasurer. Members who pay after the 31st March shall only be sent a membership card if it is expressly requested and then only on receipt of an appropriate additional payment. Expenses for reminders shall be charged.
§ 4 General Meeting and Congress
1. The General Meeting represents the legislative authority of the Society.
2. Important matters which shall be voted on by the General Meeting must be brought to the notice of all members by the Council in writing at least two months before the meeting takes place. Such proposals must be expressed in such a way that non-attending members can vote “yes” or “no” in writing by post. The postal votes of the non-attending members must be included when votes are counted at the meeting.
3. The responsibilities of the General Meeting shall include the following:
1. passing of a resolution on the Statutes and Bye-Laws;
2. passing of a resolution on amendments to the Statutes and Bye-Laws;
3. passing resolutions on all motions put to the vote;
4. election of a Chairman of the meeting;
5. election of Council members;
6. election of Chairmen of the various Committees;
7. election of Auditors;
8. presenting the Council’s report;
9. presenting the Treasurer’s report;
10. presenting the Auditor’s report and adopting the accounts;
11. presenting the reports of the Chairmen of the various Committees;
12. approving the reports of the Council and of the different Committees;
13. agreeing the amount of the annual membership fee;
14. arranging the next meeting place and nomination of the person responsible for the local organisation of the next Congress (Congress Secretary);
15. the nomination of honorary members;
16. the passing of resolutions on the dissolution of the Society according to § 9.1 of the Statutes.
4. The Council shall nominate a Returning Officer for the elections who must be confirmed as such by the attending members. Postal votes must be made available to the Returning Officer before the election is held, to ensure their inclusion when counting the votes.
5. The results of the elections and the resolutions of the General Meeting shall be recorded and the Minutes signed by the Chairman of the Meeting and the Minute Secretary.
6. Members attending the Congress shall be charged an appropriate fee to contribute to the expenses of the Congress. Non-member’s fees shall be higher. All fees shall be determined by the Congress Secretary and must be endorsed by the Executive Committee. Honoraria must not be paid.
§ 5 Council
1. The Council shall receive its authority from the General Meeting, and shall be bound by its resolutions, thus being the executive body of the Society.
2. The rules for the election of the Council members shall be as follows:
2.1. The members shall be elected by secret ballot, if so demanded by one quarter of the members attending the meeting or if more than one members has been nominated to be a candidate for the same office.
2.2. Any members of the acting Council who is no longer prepared to remain in office must inform the President and the General Secretary of his intention to resign at least six months before the next General Meeting is to be held. All other members of the Council, with the exception of the Ordinary Council Members, shall be considered as proposed for re-election.
2.3. Members may nominate eligible candidates for the various offices on the Council. Such nominations must be made in writing to the General Secretary not less than two months before a General Meeting. Such nominations shall be considered valid only if accompanied by a written declaration by the candidate that he/she will accept the office if elected.
2.4. The Council can be asked to resign by a written resolution to this effect signed by not less than 20 members after the Council has been in office for a minimum of two years. Such a resolution must be sent to the General Secretary at least six months before a General Meeting and must be accompanied by a list of eligible candidates to fill the vacant offices.
3. The duties of the Council shall include: the issuing of the serial publications and the organisation of the General Meetings and Congresses.
4. The Council shall inform the members of all important matters so that they may play an active part in the activities of the Society.
5. Every two years the Council must give an account of its activities during its term of office to the General Meeting.
6. The Council shall propose to the General Meeting a Congress Secretary and an appropriate venue for the Congresses and General Meetings. The Congress Secretary shall be responsible for the local organisation of the Congress and the General Meeting, and for the publication of the Proceedings. He/She shall only act in these matters in consultation with the Executive Committee.
7. The President or Vice-President must convene a Council Meeting, if so requested by a majority of the Council members and give the reasons in writing for calling such a meeting. The Council shall meet at least once a year in order to discuss all matters at issue. The General Secretary must record all resolutions of the Council in an adequate way and records them in the Minutes of the Council Meeting.
§ 6 Distribution of offices among the council members
1. The President, General Secretary and Treasurer constitute the Executive Committee. The President convenes and presides at the Council Meetings as well as the General Meeting, unless otherwise provided for by the Statutes and Bye-Laws. In consultation with the General Secretary he fixes the Agenda of the Council Meeting and the General Meeting. He has the casting vote in the case of an equality of votes at Council Meetings.
2. The Vice-President shall act for the President in his absence and shall have all rights and duties. However, he shall be authorised to undertake legally binding acts only if, for example in case of the President’s death, he shall take the latter’s place on the Executive Committee and shall have been registered in his capacity at the County Court of Karlsruhe. If necessary, he shall also deputize for the General Secretary.
3. The General Secretary shall maintain official contact with the legal authorities at the place of registration of the Society. He shall be obliged to notify the authorities immediately of any changes on the Executive Committee. He shall attend to the official correspondence of the Society, except when it shall fall within the direct jurisdiction of other Council members. Together with the President, he shall prepare the Council Meetings and General Meetings, fix the Agenda and send out the letters of invitation for Council Meetings. He shall inform every absent Council members of the decisions taken at the meeting. He shall convene and preside at Council Meetings if both the President and the Vice-President are prevented from doing so. He shall keep the records and take down the Minutes during Council Meetings. He shall give Council’s report to the General Meeting.
4. The Treasurer shall receive applications for membership and shall normally confirm membership in the name of the Council. In doubtful cases he shall ask for a majority resolution of the Council, and its outcome shall be recorded by the General Secretary. The Treasurer shall open suitable petty cash and bank accounts in the name of the Society. He shall be obliged to maintain proper books and keep all vouchers for incomings and outgoings. He shall be authorised to sign solely for all normal expenses, but in the case of exceptional expenses of more than 500.- Deutschmarks, the signature of another member of the Executive Committee shall also be required. [Exceptional expenses of more than 500.- DM require the consent of the majority of the Council members.] He shall confirm receipt of membership fees and contributions and shall issue reminders to members who are in arrears with their subscriptions. The Treasurer shall conduct all financial matters of the Society as concerns the finance authorities at the place of registration of the Society. If necessary, he shall deputize for the Membership Secretary.
5. The Editor shall be responsible for the publications of Nota lepidopterologica, in close collaboration with the members of the Executive Committee. The Editor shall obtain the written approval of the Executive Committee for any necessary change of the conditions of publications as agreed upon by the Council (copyright, print layout, nature and length, binding and mailing). The Editor shall submit his publication programme to the Executive Committee at the beginning of each year. The Executive Committee shall fix the length of the publications for that financial year accordingly. The Editor may only increase the number of pages during that financial year with the written approval of the Treasurer. The Editor shall decide whether to accept or to refuse a manuscript for publication in Nota lepidopterologica, if necessary after consultation with his Editorial Committee. For the editing of Nota lepidopterologica, the Editor shall appoint three to five experienced editors who, together with himself, shall constitute the Editorial Committee. This body shall establish the instructions for the authors, to which manuscripts must comply. The Editor shall propose to the Council one members of the Editorial Committee as a permanent deputy, which appointment must be endorsed by the Council.
6. The Membership Secretary shall be responsible for maintaining the good contact between the Council and the members. To this aim, he shall issue “NEWS-NOUVELLES-NACHRICHTEN”. He shall keep the list and card-index of the members in consultation with the Treasurer and shall inform the members of changes in the membership list. He shall be in charge of advertising campaigns and give information about SEL, except where this shall fall within the responsibilities of other Council members. If necessary, he shall deputize for the Treasurer.
7. The maximum of five Ordinary Council members shall, if possible, be chosen from countries or regions that are otherwise not represented on the Council. They shall primarily therefore incorporate the thoughts and ideas from their region into the work and deliberations of the Council and in this way reinforce the international, European character of the Society.
§ 7 Publications
1. Depending on the financial resources of the Society the following serial publications shall be issued:
1.1. Nota lepidopterologica: This shall be the house journal of the Society and four parts shall be issued each year. It is intended for the publication of short papers on the systematics, taxonomy, faunistics, biology, ecology, behaviour and habitat and species protection of Palaearctic Lepidoptera, and short reports on research techniques, current and proposed research projects, congresses and book reviews.
1.2. News-Nouvelles-Nachrichten: This shall be the organ of communication within the Society and serve for the publication of invitations to and programmes of Congresses, invitations to and Agenda of General Meetings, current event communications from the Council and the Committees to the members, enquiries of members and requests for co-operation in specific projects, references to new entomological equipment, forthcoming meetings etc.
1.3. Bibliographia Europaea Lepidopterologica: This shall inform members of recently published papers in the field of Lepidopterology in Europe and shall appear one a year.
2. The cost to members of Nota, News and Bibliographia shall be included in the membership fee. Other SEL publications shall be offered to members at a special price.
3. Twenty-five separates of each paper published in Nota shall be supplied free of charge. Honoraria will not be paid.
4. All publications in Nota shall be copyright. Unpublished manuscripts shall be returned to the authors with all associated rights. The content and form of original contributions shall be the sole responsibility of the author.
5. Papers shall be in English, German or French. Any other European language shall be admissible, provided that a detailed summary in one of the above languages is added.
6. Profits from publications must be credited to the bank accounts of the Society and shall be used only for the purpose specified in § 2 of the Statutes.
§ 8 Committees
1. The Council is authorised to set up Committees for special purposes. Committees which shall be constituted permanently, require the consent of the General Meeting or at least subsequent approval. The General Meeting is then authorised to elect the Chairman of the Committee on the recommendation of the Council. The procedure for electing Committee Chairman shall be identical to that for electing Council members (§ 5.2 of these Bye-Laws).
2. The Chairman of the different Committees shall advise and support the Council in specific fields of activity. Committee members shall be appointed by the Chairmen. Their number shall not be limited.
3. Literature Committee: It shall be the responsibility of the Committee to prepare abstracts of all new publications in the field of Lepidopterology, for publication in Bibliographia, in such a way that they are drawn to the attention of members of the Society as quickly as possible. The Chairman of the Committee shall work out the procedure to be followed by the Committee members, who shall represent as many different countries as possible, in compiling the abstracts. He shall co-ordinate the contributions and decide on the form of their publication in consultation with the Executive Committee of the Council.
4. The Committee for Habitat and Species Protection. It shall be the responsibility of the Chairman of this Committee to play an active part at the European level and in the name of the Society, in all matters and questions concerning the conservation of endangered Lepidoptera and their habitats. The Committee shall offer its advice on questions of habitat protection to the authorities and support all measures taken in connection with the survey of European Invertebrates and the compilation of lists of endangered Lepidoptera for inclusion in Red Data Books.
§ 9 Audit
1. The General Meeting shall appoint two Auditors in the same way as Council members are elected. However, the Auditors shall not be re-elected immediately after a four year’s term of office. They must be appointed to the office in such a way that the term of office of one of them overlaps with that of the other by two years, so that only one new Auditor need be elected at each General Meeting.
2. It shall be the task of the Auditors to examine all receipts and payments by the Society and to check whether or not any monies have been spent in excess of the limits set by the Bye-Laws or by a General Meeting or by the Council. The Auditors shall be authorised to inspect all relevant files and minutes which the General Secretary and Treasurer shall have in their possession.
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