Kantara News

[Kantara Initiative]

Dear Kantara Member/Participant:

On behalf of the Board of Trustees, I am writing to share significant news about the evolution and maturity of Kantara Initiative. Our mission is unchanged -- to take the lead in discovering strategic issues at the intersection of identity, IoT, and usability, and to develop real-world innovative solutions to these challenges – but the framework for how we operate is changing in some important ways.

First, Kantara Initiative changed its entity type by filing Articles of Conversion.  As of January 2016, Kantara Initiative is now an autonomous entity, Kantara Initiative, Inc., a non-profit corporation registered in Delaware. IRS non-profit 501(c)(6) recognition is being pursued.  Updated corporate bylaws are now posted on our website for your reference. Related to this, the Board of Trustees is now known as the Board of Directors.

We took the step to become an independent corporation because it made sense given the size and activity levels we have reached, the industry recognition we have attained, and the need to have more operational flexibility. This new autonomy publicly signifies that the organization has achieved sufficient strength and momentum to stand on its own and continue to grow and evolve. We are very proud of the work – by all of you -- that has enabled Kantara Initiative to reach this critical point.

Second, we are pleased to announce that Kantara Initiative will now be supported by Virtual, Inc., a full-service association management company with a technology focus, whose clients include a number of organizations in related areas. Our choice of Virtual, last year, was the result of a great deal of discussion and fact-finding, and we have already developed a very positive working relationship with the team there. Virtual has been helping us manage the transition, and as of this week, has taken over responsibility for the activities previously handled by IEEE-ISTO on Kantara’s behalf.

What action is needed from you? As part of the transition away from ISTO, each Kantara member will be asked to sign a simple consent form regarding the transition of membership dues into our new corporate structure. This is a formality, but it is critical to Kantara’s ability to keep continuity of its finances so please respond to these consent requests as promptly as possible. All members will be receiving these consent forms from the ISTO within a week’s time. If you don’t receive your form in that time frame, please alert Shannon or Colin per the contact details below.  

If you have questions…

• About Kantara Initiative strategic priorities and direction – please contact Colin Wallis, Kantara Initiative Executive Director, co...@kantarainitiative.org.
  
• For membership, administration or operations inquiries – please contact Shannon Taylor, Operations Director at Virtual, sha...@kantarainitiative.org or +1 781 876 6223.
  
• And of course you can always contact me, at pres...@kantarainitiative.org.
  

Again, thank you for being part of the journey to reach this milestone for Kantara Initiative, and we look forward to approaching our new opportunities together, bolstered by our new structure.

Sincerely,

Allan Foster, President, Board of Directors, Kantara Initiative, Inc.