Bylaws

Article 1. Name and Status

The name of this organization shall be “IAVS-Asian Section”. It shall be an autonomous regional Working Group of the International Association for Vegetation Science” (hereafter IAVS), and consequently these bylaws below are subsidiary to the Statutes and Bylaws of IAVS.

Article 2. Objectives and Activities

The main objectives of the IAVS-Asian Section include:

a) Developing and advancing research on any aspect of Asian vegetation;

b) Encouraging vegetation scientists of all specialties and levels of seniority who are working/resident in Asia to join IAVS and Asian Section to become involved in its activities;

c) Supporting and nurturing young vegetation researchers in Asia, particularly in low-income developing countries;

d) Encouraging and aiding communication among its members;

e) Fostering communication and collaboration between Asian vegetation scientists and those in other parts of the world;

f) Promoting collaborative research on Asian vegetation and supporting activities such as symposia and field trips of interest to vegetation scientists that focus in Asia, particularly in data-poor regions and countries;

g) Creating a platform for uploading and sharing data for the common academic uses among vegetation scientists who are working/resident in Asia.

Article 3. Membership

Membership in the Asian Section is open to all persons free of charge, and membership in the IAVS is optional. Membership in IAVS-Asian Section is obtained by:

(a) Written application (electronic or hardcopy) to the IAVS-Asian Section Membership Administrator

(b) Specification when joining or renewing membership of IAVS.

Membership can be discontinued at any time by a written statement (electronic or hardcopy) sent to the IAVS-Asian Section Membership Administrator that the member no longer wishes to be a member of the Asian Section.

It is the responsibility of members to provide the Membership Administrator with a functioning e-mail address. Membership will be discontinued when no functioning e-mail address is available to the Membership Administrator or the IAVS Secretary.

Article 4. Business Meeting

At least one business meeting of IAVS-A shall be held annually in conjunction with a meeting of the Working Group. All members attending may vote at the business meeting. A member may assign a proxy vote for the business meeting to another member by notifying both the holder of the proxy and the Membership Administrator of Asian Section. Any one participant may carry up to one proxy votes. The business meetings can be held in-person or virtually.

Article 5. Steering Committee

The Section shall have a Steering Committee (SC) with up to seven elected members, to consist of a Chair, a Vice-chair, two Secretaries, one Social Media Officer/webmaster, a Treasurer, and an Event Organizer. All SC members shall be members of IAVS. Each SC member shall be elected for a period of four years renewable for another term. Elections shall take place at least two months prior to the annual business meeting at which the regular four-year term of the SC is ending, or following a vacancy. At least one month prior to the start of an election, it shall be announced to the members of IAVS-A via e-mail by the Secretary, who then shall receive nominations made by any member by e-mail or in person. Elections take place by means of an electronic ballot over a period of one month. Members may be re-elected for a maximum of one additional term. In the event of a tie, a re-vote will take place for that specific position.

All decisions on behalf of the Asian Section except those explicitly assigned otherwise are made by the SC with majority.

Article 6. Duties of the Steering Committee members

(a) The SC members promote the interests of the Asian Section, and supervise Working Group operations and scientific activities;

(b) The SC may call upon members of the Section or appoint committees to assist with the Section affairs;

(c) The Chair presides at the SC and Asian Section business meetings and supplies an annual report to IAVS;

(d) The Vice-Chair will support the Chair and perform those duties in the Chair’s absence. The Vice-Chair will also be responsible for financial accounting in consultation with the China of the Asian Section where applicable;

(e) The Secretaries keep the records of Asian Section and its members, conduct elections and ballots, and distribute the minutes of the annual meeting to all members.

(f) The Social Media Officer/Webmasters will manage and moderate all social media handles approved by the Steering Committee of the Asian Section.

(g) The Event organizer will organize meetings/ short presentations/webinars/workshops of the Asian Section. He/she will also share relevant events and information from other sources that be interesting to members of the IAVS-Asian Section.

(h) The Treasure will be in charge of the issues relevant with but not limited with duration, financial cost, and reimbursements of expense of the Asian Section events.

Article 7. Finances

The IAVS-A financial assets shall be held by and managed through the accounts of IAVS. The vice-Chair and treasure will be responsible for the financial issues of the Asian Section in consultation with IAVS.

Article 8. Amendments

These Bylaws may be amended by a 4/7 vote of the members participating in the annual business meeting of IAVS-A. Proposed amendments must be circulated to the membership by e-mail at least two weeks in advance of the business meeting at which they are voted on.

Changes in the bylaws are contingent on approval by the IAVS Council.