Bylaws amendments: Please vote by July 29, 2024
Ryan Stock
Dear EESG Members,
Hope you are all doing well, despite these anxious and unprecedented times in the warm/wet/whatever weather you're in.
Over the past two months, the EESG Executive Committee and Board of Advisors has been working on editing and updating our Bylaws, which haven't been updated in a few years. Two Executive Committee members motioned to edit the Bylaws, so we undertook an inclusive, transparent and democratic process of amending the Bylaws. I am proud to declare that we had unanimous approval from all Executive Committee members as well as unanimous approval from all Board of Advisors members! We now have a final draft ready to share with you.
To ensure transparency, inclusion and afford due respect to all EESG members, we commit to following the rules established in our Bylaws and include you in this process! As per both the older and newer versions of the Bylaws:
Amendments to the Bylaws may be proposed by two or more members of the Executive Officers, or by a written petition signed by at least 10% of EESG members.
Ratification of an amendment to the EESG Bylaws requires: (1) a vote held by members of the Executive Officers and Board of Advisors and (2) approval by quorum of those EESG members participating in an electronic vote.
We kindly request that you vote on this draft (attached and below) of the amended Bylaws. Please use this EESG Bylaws Amendment Ballot 2024 to vote on whether or not you approve of the amended bylaws of our AAG specialty group. Voting will close on Sunday, July 28th at 11:59pm ET (USA).
Beyond fixing minor spelling and grammatical errors and formatting issues, here is a short summary of changes made. We have aligned the timelines of all our Awards, so that they will be announced, opened for application and selected at the same time every year. At the suggestion of current Executive Committee members, we have split the position of Secretary/Treasurer into two positions (Secretary, Treasurer). We have also clarified duties and term limits and updated our Mission and Vision statements.
Thank you for taking the time to vote on these amended Bylaws. The Executive Committee of EESG deeply appreciates your support, engagement, insights and expertise. You all are what make our group so vibrant, dynamic and productive! It is truly an honor to Chair this group. Such a smooth collaboration between our Executive Committee and Board of Advisors in editing these Bylaws has reassured me that our group is rock solid and kicking ass!
Empowerment and peace,
Ryan Stock
EESG Chair
Northern Michigan University
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Bylaws of the Energy and Environment Specialty Group
Last edited: July 12, 2024. All Executive Committee members have reviewed this draft and suggested edits. All Board of Advisors members have reviewed this draft and suggested edits. All comments and concerns have been adequately addressed, all edits have been incorporated and/or considered. Ratification status of amendments: Approved by unanimous quorum of Executive Committee on 7/2/24. Approved by unanimous quorum of Board of Advisors on 7/19/24. Not yet voted on by EESG members.
Article I: Name
The name of this organization is the Energy and Environment Specialty Group of the American Association of Geographers. Hereafter, the specialty group will be referred to as the 'EESG' and the American Association of Geographers will be referred to as the 'AAG'.
Article II: Vision and Mission statements
EESG Vision:
The Energy and Environment Specialty Group aims to be an inclusive, accessible and diverse community of scholars, educators, practitioners and activists who engage in energy and environmental issues and scholarship.
Mission Statement
The Energy and Environment Specialty Group enhances energy and environmental geography scholarship, practice and education by inviting and supporting contributions from diverse scholars, practitioners, educators and activists. Our community highlights the critical importance of context-specific perspectives to advance understandings of energy and environmental scholarship.
Article III: Membership
EESG membership is open to all members of the AAG in good standing who have notified the AAG of their desire to be EESG members, subject to the rules of the AAG regarding specialty group membership. Membership is on an annual basis. Dues are $10 for regular members and $1 for student members.
Article IV: Executive Officers
The EESG Executive Committee consists of Executive Officers serving in the positions of Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary, and Treasurer, and two to four Grad Reps/Outreach Coordinators. These positions are elected positions. The votes are generally held at the EESG Business Meeting at the AAG Annual Meeting or could be facilitated online.
The Executive Officers may appoint additional roles or subcommittees at their discretion. The Vice-Chair position will serve a two-year term and then may transition into the position of Chair, while the Secretary and Treasurer will serve a two-year term and then it is anticipated one will transition into the Vice-Chair role. These transitions are contingent upon a vote of support by EESG members present at the EESG Business Meeting. The rationale for upward mobility and transitioning Executive Committee members is to ensure a degree of continuity and retention of institutional knowledge.
Article V: Duties of Executive Officers
Chair responsibilities:
- Oversee AAG meeting activities (e.g., plenaries, panels, workshops, EESG Business Meeting, AAG Chairs meeting)
- Convene and lead meetings with the Executive Officers and Board of Advisors
- Actively manage communication of EESG initiatives and projects to all stakeholders
- Prepare annual report with information provided from other Executive Officers
- Oversee the promotion, selection and offering of EESG awards
- Review and approve AAG session sponsorship requests
- Manage budget in conjunction with the Treasurer
- Lead outreach efforts to expand reach of the EESG
- Develop list of EESG-related jobs for distribution
- Maintain relationships with other AAG specialty groups and non-AAG entities (e.g. Royal Geographical Society - Energy Geographies Research Group)
- Other duties as required
Vice-Chair responsibilities
- Stand in for Chair duties when Chair is unavailable
- Oversee award process (e.g., collecting applications, distributing for review, announcing winners)
- Assist Chair with other duties as required
- Serve two-year term and then assume responsibilities of Chair (desired)
- Mentor and train Secretary and/or Treasurer who may, if desired, assume position of Vice-Chair-Elect at end of term
- Other duties as required
Secretary
- Keep minutes at all EESG meetings
- Communicate specialty group news to the listservs
- Manage the EESG Google Group (in conjunction with Grad Reps/Outreach Coordinators)
- Other duties as required
Treasurer
- Manage the budget in conjunction with the Chair
- Manage award fund distribution (including relations with AAG)
- Obtain budget information (fund balance statement) from AAG prior to Annual Meeting
- Responsible for managing funds for EESG sponsored events
- Other duties as required
Graduate Student/Postdoc Representative/Outreach Coordinator
- Run the social media accounts (e.g., X/Twitter)
- Send items of interest to the EESG community, including items sent through listservs (e.g., Knowledge Communities, Google Groups), EESG related jobs and opportunities, and AAG related CFPs, sponsored sessions and activities
- Update the website
- Update EESG Jobs page on the website (busiest during Fall job season) based on the jobs list developed by the Chair
- Update the website with AAG CFPs pre-AAG, then highlighted/sponsored sessions immediately prior to the AAG Annual Meeting
- Organize EESG Speaker Series
- Brainstorm list of potential speakers (~4, split between fall and spring) in coordination with Executive Officers and potential external sponsors or co-hosts (e.g., other speciality groups)
- Invite speakers and schedule virtual or live events
- Advertise on social media, listservs, EESG website, etc.
- With permission of speaker, record and post talk to EESG website, Youtube, etc.
- Assist Executive Officers with EESG activity planning and implementation
- Other duties as required
Article VI: Board of Advisors (At-large)
The Board of Advisors consists of four to six members who are either nominated by the Executive Officers or self-nominated. Advisors are reputable and active members of the energy geography subdiscipline with considerable expertise in the field. Advisors will generally hold a PhD, terminal degree and a professional position in the field (e.g., assistant professor, adjunct professor, associate professor, or other professional positions such as government or private sector roles, provided they contribute to the field of energy geography).
Article VII: Duties of Board Members
The purpose of the Board of Advisors is to consult on and contribute to decisions concerning EESG activities. Board members are required to participate in at least two EESG Officer meetings per year. If board members do not attend at least two meetings per year or are otherwise unreachable, they will be removed from the board. Board members will also be requested to review materials related to EESG awards within reason.
Article VIII: Terms of Office
Each Executive Officer shall serve a term of two years. No Executive Officer shall serve more than two consecutive terms of office in the same position. But Executive Officers may serve more than two terms in total in different positions.
Each member of the Board of Advisors will serve a term of two years. No Board of Advisors member shall serve more than two consecutive terms of office, not contingent upon or cumulative with history of service in the Executive Committee. All new Executive Officers and Advisory Board members shall be installed at the conclusion of the AAG Annual Meeting. If Executive Officers or Board members do not fulfill the duties and responsibilities of their role, the Board and Executive Officers may come together and decide on a course of action which may result in a vote of no confidence and subsequent removal of that member from their position.
Article IX: Nominations and Elections
Nominations (and self-nominations) for open positions for Executive Officers will be solicited via the AAG Knowledge Community, EESG listserv, and social media. Voting will occur during the EESG Business Meeting (or through an online election if the Executive Officers choose this option). Both the nominators and those nominated must be a registered member of EESG. If more than one individual is nominated for a position, an election may occur either at the EESG Business Meeting or subsequently through electronic voting.
Article X: Vacancies
In the event that either the Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary, or Treasurer is unable to complete a term of office, the Executive Officers will choose one of its members to fill the vacancy until the next election is held, or circulate a call for nominations through our communication networks and media platforms.
Article XI: Activities
EESG activities vary by year and are driven by the Executive Officers. Activities may include, but are not limited to: organized sessions, symposia, workshops, field trips, networking events, themed panels, plenaries, research projects and publications. Any member may organize an EESG activity. However, the organization of any activity under the auspices of the EESG requires prior approval by the Executive Officers. Procedures for organizing formal EESG activities will be determined in conjunction with the Board of Advisors. The Executive Officers will ensure that at least one EESG activity is included as part of the AAG Annual Meeting program each year.
Article XII: Business Meeting
The Business Meeting will be held annually at the AAG Annual Meeting. The presence of all Executive Officers is strongly encouraged and the presence of the Board of Advisors is strongly recommended. If an Executive Officer or Board of Advisors member is unable to attend the Business Meeting in person, that individual may opt to attend via virtual methods where available. The Business Meeting will involve the presentation of an update on the state of the group (including membership, financial status, award winners). If possible, the merits of the award winners should be briefly described.
Article XIII: Annual Report
The Annual Report is provided in document and presentation format and will include the following information: dues and membership information, Executive Officers and Board of Advisors, EESG sponsored sessions, notable EESG activities or special events, award winners (may also include runners up) and budget. It is the responsibility of the Chair to collect material for the report, present the report at the annual Business Meeting and to submit the report to the AAG.
Article XIV: Awards
There are several awards. Generally one person is awarded per category. However, if there are multiple high-quality submissions, the budget allows and the Executive Officers are in agreement, more than one award may be given. If there are no suitable candidates, then no award will be given. If applicants for awards are not EESG members at the time of submission, they must join the EESG upon acceptance of the award. The awards are as follows:
In the event a reviewer in the Awards Committee has a conflict of interest (broadly construed to mean that the reviewer has a close enough relationship that it might affect the outcome of their decision), the reviewer will contact the Award Coordinator. The Award Coordinator will have the opportunity to disqualify the reviewer and seek an alternate reviewer if needed.
If possible, feedback should be given to the student awardees of the Dissertation Award and Best Student Paper. Awardees may be notified in the run up to the EESG Annual Meeting and strongly encouraged to attend the EESG Business Meeting. The Chair may request a brief presentation by the award winners.
Article XVI: Amendments
Amendments to the Bylaws may be proposed by two or more members of the Executive Officers, or by a written petition signed by at least 10% of EESG members.
Ratification of an amendment to the EESG Bylaws requires: (1) a vote held by members of the Executive Officers and Board of Advisors and (2) approval by quorum of those EESG members participating in an electronic vote.
Article XVII: Raising/Passing Motions, Voting through the Quorum-Based System
Any member of the Executive Committee or Board of Advisors is able to bring forward a motion during a meeting. If the motion is seconded, then it will proceed to a vote.
The passing or rejection of the motion will be determined by the vote based on the quorum system, whereby more than 50% of Executive Committee members must be in attendance in order for the vote to proceed. If the matter is urgent, then the Chair may hold a vote by email, with a majority of the Executive Officers responding in order for the vote to be valid. Any motion or matter being voted on does not need to be unanimous, only a simple majority in order for it to pass or be ratified.
-END OF BYLAWS-
Ryan Stock, PhD
(pronouns: he/they)
Director, Illume Lab
Faculty Profile | Research Profile
-Dinos Christianopoulos
Northern Michigan University is located on the ancestral homelands of the Three Fires Confederacy of the Anishinaabe, an honored alliance of the Ojibwe, Odawa and Bodewadmik (Potowatomi) peoples. Before this land was called Marquette, it was known as Gichi-namebini Ziibing
Ryan Stock
Ryan Stock, PhD
(pronouns: he/they)
Director, Illume Lab
Faculty Profile | Research Profile