Dear ISE members,

Historically, ISE business has been discussed and decided by members during the General Assemblies at the biennial congresses. In this forum board members are elected, the venue for the next congress is decided (4 years out), recommendations from the Board are heard and voted on, changes to the ISE constitution are considered, and motions are raised from the floor for consideration. Additionally, ISE members are asked to approve (or amend) the minutes from the previous General Assembly and to ratify appointed Board members.

Developing the option for online voting was discussed during the 2nd General Assembly at the 2010 Congress (Tofino, BC, Canada) and approved by ISE members with an amendment to Article 9.8 of the ISE Constitution.  The reasoning behind changing our voting system is that as the ISE membership grows, (potentially) a smaller percentage of ISE members may actually end up attending the congresses.  The idea is to enfranchise all of our members by allowing everyone to actively participate in Society business, regardless of whether they are able to attend an ISE congress.

Towards this end, the ISE Board has contracted with VoteNet to bring this new service to our members. Information and material will be circulated and open for discussion in advance of the voting period. The system also allows for documents, including audio and video file, to be linked to the ballot, providing easy reference and further opportunity for members to familiarize themselves with the issues raised.

The Board is recommending that all voting be done electronically.  E-voting will begin 2-3 weeks prior to the 2012 congress and will remain open right through the day before the 2nd General Assembly.  For those members attending the Congress, the Coordinator will be able to facilitate e-voting if needed; additionally, the 2012 congress venues have wifi and computers will be available at the main congress building for participants to use. The results will be announced during 2nd General Assembly and subsequently posted on the ISE website and member forum. A presentation from the winning congress bid will also be made during this General Assembly.

If there are too few (or no) nominees for a given Board position, we will seek qualified nominees from the floor of the General Assemblies, according to the process outlined in the ISE constitution. For these cases, ISE members present at the 2ndGeneral Assembly will vote and these decisions will stand. Similarly, any motions raised from the floor of the General Assemblies will be taken up and decided by the members present.

Suggested Timeline

  • January – April 2012: Explanatory material about recommended constitutional amendments, congress bids, and other recommendations from the Board (etc.) will be circulated to ISE members beginning in early 2012, and no later than the first week in April 2012.
  • 23 April 2012: Information about Board nominees will be circulated once the Call for Nominees is closed 1 month prior to the Congress, per the ISE Constitution.
  • 11 May 2012: e-Voting opens
  • 24 May 2012: Voting closes
  • 25 May 2012: Any business needs not addressed in the online voting process will be decided on and results from the e-Voting will be announced.

If you have any comments, questions or concerns about this proposed voting system – or if you have experience with online voting and have suggestions for how to help us make this process run smoothly – please contact the ISE Managing Director, Natasha Duarte, or any of member of the ISE Board.

Warm regards,

Natasha

On behalf of the ISE Board