our constitution

 

 

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This version was adopted at the AGM, held on 23rd August 2005 at Sagamihara, Japan. 3-Feb

 

 

CONSTITUTION OF THE ISAE
 

1. The Name of the Society.

 

The name of the Society shall be: "The International Society for Applied Ethology" (ISAE).

 

2. The Aims of the Society.

 

These are: -

 

a. to encourage and support basic and applied research into the behaviour of animals as related to the use of animals by humans.  This includes domestic, laboratory, zoo, companion, pest and captive animals or managed wild animals;

 

b. to provide an international forum in which scientists can communicate and discuss the results of the above research.  This can be achieved by organising or encouraging scientific meetings and by encouraging scientific publications;

 

c. to encourage, where appropriate, links between applied animal behaviour science and other disciplines.  This can be realised by encouraging presentations, discussions and publications and by maintaining contacts with appropriate scientific societies;

 

d. to encourage and support the teaching of animal behaviour in research and academic institutions, especially veterinary schools, departments of animal science and animal production, and departments concerned with laboratory or companion animals or captive wildlife:

 

e. to provide a pool of expertise to national governments, international bodies, industry and to those animal welfare organizations which deal with problems involving animal behaviour.  To encourage, where possible and appropriate, the assimilation of scientific knowledge so as to facilitate its use in relation to practical problems concerning the way animals are kept and cared for.

 

3. Administration

 

a. The affairs of the society shall be vested in a Council consisting of the Honorary President, the Honorary (Hon.) Senior Vice-President, the Hon. Junior Vice-President, the Hon. Secretary, the Hon. Assistant Secretary, the Hon. Membership Secretary, the Hon. Treasurer, the Hon. Communications Officer the Hon. Senior Editor, the Hon. Junior Editor, the Hon. Education Officer, the Hon. Ethics officer and the Hon. Procedural Advisor. Council shall have powers to co-opt other officers as deemed necessary, who shall then be non-voting members. All officers and members of Council shall be members in good standing of ISAE.

 

 

b. Each year the Society will hold an Annual General Meeting (AGM) at which all members of ISAE in good standing are entitled to have due notice, to be present, and to vote. At the AGM the Hon. President, the Hon. Junior Vice-President, the Hon. Senior Vice-President and the other office-bearing members of Council shall be elected. The Hon. President, the Hon. Junior Vice-President, the Hon. Senior Vice-President, the Hon. Senior Editor and the Hon. Junior Editor shall serve for a maximum of two years. Other office-bearing members shall normally serve for a maximum of four years.

 

c. Any elected Council member who, for any reason, takes over the unexpired term of an elected council member shall only serve the unexpired period of that term, but will be eligible for immediate election following the expiration of the unexpired term which was taken over.

 

d. The Council shall meet at least once a year immediately prior to the AGM.  A quorum shall consist of not less than 5 members of Council, one of whom should be one of the three Presidents.

 

e. The Council shall appoint Regional Secretaries.  The Council shall take suitable steps towards satisfying itself that the Regional Secretaries are persons who will be likely to express the views of ISAE members in their region.  Regional Secretaries will be eligible to attend meetings of ISAE Council but shall not have a vote on Council. Regional Secretaries should maintain good contacts between the members in their regions and other members of the Society.

 

f. One or more honorary auditors will be elected annually to audit the ISAE accounts prior to presentation of such accounts at the AGM.

 

g. A vacancy in any office other than that of Hon. President shall be filled by a person appointed by the Hon. President. If for any reason the office of Hon. President becomes vacant, the Hon. Junior Vice-President shall serve for the remainder of the Presidential term and shall be eligible for election as Hon. President for a period immediately following the expiration of the remainder of that term.  

 

4. Membership

 

a. All persons holding scientific or other qualifications deemed satisfactory to ISAE Council are eligible for membership of the Society.

 

b. The names of candidates should normally be submitted on the special form provided for the purpose.  Alternatively, candidates can apply by electronic mail message to the Hon. Membership Secretary. A proposer and a seconder, one of whom must have personal knowledge of the candidate, must endorse all applications.  The candidates must declare that they agree to abide by the ISAE Constitution.  Election shall be by approval of the Council.

 

c. Newly elected members shall not be entitled to any of the privileges of the ISAE until they have paid the due subscription.  If such payment has not been made before 1 June next following their election, such election shall be deemed null and void.

 

d.  When subscriptions of any member ISAE remain unpaid for two consecutive years, the member's name is to be placed before the Council and if the Council so agrees the member's name shall be deleted from the Register of Members ISAE.

 

5. Corporate Membership

 

Corporate membership entitles an approved organisation to receive information normally distributed to members and to send two representatives to ISAE meetings under the same terms as ordinary members. Such Corporate Member Representatives shall have no power to vote and may not hold any position on Council.

 

6. Honorary Fellows

 

a. Persons of eminence in the field of the aims of the Society shall be eligible for election as Honorary Fellows by Council.

 

b. Proposals for an Honorary Fellowship shall be submitted in writing to the Hon. Secretary stating the reasons why the candidate is considered eligible for election together with a short description of the candidate.

 

c. Honorary Fellows shall not be required to pay an annual subscription.

 

 

7. Subscriptions

 

The minimum annual subscription shall be such sum as is decided from time to time by the Council and ratified at the next AGM following the Council decision.  Such sum shall be payable on election and thereafter annually and in advance on 1 June each year. Subscriptions are non-refundable and non-transferable.

 

8. Meetings

 

An International Congress shall be held at least once a year.  The Council shall also encourage the organisation of regional and other meetings.  The Council shall decide on rules for the conduct of all meetings.

 

9. Electronic ‘Meetings’

 

Electronic discussions (meetings) between members of Council are permitted. Such ‘meetings’ rank pari passu with ‘meetings’ at which the persons are physically present. Such ‘meetings’ may be held using email. The Hon. Secretary must ensure that all persons entitled to take part are informed in good time of the agenda. A Council member is deemed to be taking part once the Hon. Secretary has received an email reply from the member. The quorum shall be as in paragraph 3 d. above.

 

If the Hon. President decides that a vote be taken, members must register their vote by email direct to the Hon. Secretary in such a way that their vote is not revealed to other members of ISAE Council. Once the Hon. Secretary forms the opinion that all those entitled to vote have voted, and has allowed for differences in time-zones, the result of the vote may be revealed.

 

Standing committees and any special committees of ISAE can similarly hold electronic ‘meetings’ provided such are held under similar terms as the electronic meetings of Council.

 

10. Amendments to the Constitution

 

The Hon. Secretary must receive any Notice(s) of Motion to amend the Constitution not less than 3 weeks before the date of the Annual General Meeting (AGM).  Details of the Motion to be proposed shall be made available in writing to members attending the AGM.

 

11. Dissolution

 

In the event that ISAE for whatever reason becomes unable to continue its activities, notice of intent to dissolve shall be sent to all members. Once such notice has been received the dissolution may be ratified by a majority decision of those entitled to vote. Any funds held by ISAE at that time may be transferred to an organisation having similar aims to ISAE under the CY-PRÈS equitable rule. That is the funds may be used as near as may be practical or reasonable in accordance with the aims of ISAE as outlined in paragraph 2 above.

 

 

 

 

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