[HOT] Congratulations to our new voting members!

Thu Jan 3 11:32:10 GMT 2013

Excellent Kate. I had similar thought but was not sure how to word it. Last
thing you want volunteer to feel is less important.

On Wed, Jan 2, 2013 at 8:47 PM, Kate Chapman <kate at maploser.com> wrote:

> Hi All,
>
> I would like to echo Schuyler's comment that we wouldn't be able to do
> anything this without the help of volunteers. That said I would hope
> at some point we could make the membership mean something (other than
> just voting on the board).
>
> When HOT was originally incorporated I envisioned issues of importance
> to the organization to be brought to the voting membership for
> discussion and decision making. This wouldn't be for everyday items,
> aimed more at the long term goals and strategy of the organization.
> One thing that I think lays in the way of this right now are the
> structural documents actually defining what membership is and a fair
> process to ensure those that desire and volunteer for HOT have the
> opportunity to become members.
>
> What I mean by that is that currently we only nominate members once
> year. So far the main reason for this has been twofold. One the
> administrative burden of performing the nomination process, two having
> the membership be engaged in the nomination and voting process.
> Perhaps this is because most people are not clear on the process or
> they are happy with the ways things are with HOT and don't feel the
> need to vote. Or maybe there are other reasons.
>
> To be clear though I would like the HOT community to discuss and
> attempt to come to decisions about the organization. This can only
> happen through clear dialogue.
>
> Best,
>
> -Kate
>
> On Thu, Jan 3, 2013 at 4:57 AM, Schuyler Erle <schuyler at nocat.net> wrote:
> > TL;DR: Everyone reading this is a member of HOT. Some of the people who
> aren't voting members are actually more "members" of HOT than those who are
> nominally entitled to vote in the organization. You are all doing work that
> has the amazing potential to make the world a better place. Thank you.
> >
> > On Jan 2, 2013, at 12:17 PM, Schuyler Erle wrote:
> >
> >>
> >> If you have any comments or questions about this process, or thoughts
> you'd like to share on the Team and on the responsibilities of voting
> membership within the Team, I wholeheartedly invite you to reply to this
> message and kick off the discussion forthwith.
> >
> > Actually, speaking in an unofficial capacity, I'd like to start the
> discussion myself. First, I hope you will note that in my announcement I
> took great pains to emphasize that the election that we held last month was
> specifically to induct new _voting_ members.
> >
> > I want everyone to note that the only reason we make any distinction at
> all between voting membership and any other form of participation in HOT is
> that, as a formally incorporated non-profit organization, our bylaws
> legally oblige us to maintain a set list of voting members who have certain
> duties. We do this because formal non-profit status makes it possible for
> us to obtain donations that vastly increase our ability to fulfill our
> mission.
> >
> > The duties of voting members merely include electing the Board of
> Directors, altering the voting membership, and for approving changes to the
> bylaws themselves. Voting membership holds no other responsibilities, and
> no other distinction, beyond this.
> >
> > In a real sense, if you are reading this message, you are truly a member
> of the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team. Everyone who has ever edited the
> OSM database, or written a line of code, in the service of humanitarian
> relief and preparedness is a member of our team. It's your volunteer
> efforts that enable us collectively to make the world a better place, and
> to support the work of those who ease the suffering of people in need.
> >
> > Without you, there would be no "Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team" worthy
> of the name. I think I can speak for the Board certainly, and perhaps
> everyone else, when I say that, voting member or otherwise, we appreciate
> all of the work that you selflessly put in on behalf of the team to help us
> achieve our goals and live up to our ideals of enabling humanitarian
> efforts through our maps and our software.
> >
> > That said, I would like to note that many of our voting members barely
> fail to live up to the responsibilities that are expected of them by virtue
> of having been elected to such duties by their peers. I won't name names,
> but the fact is that getting some of you to vote in elections, and even
> getting you to fill out a simple form indicating your continued interest in
> the organization, feels like pulling teeth. I feel that voting membership
> in HOT begin the implicit responsibility of setting a positive example of
> activism, volunteerism, and engagement for the rest of the team. I will
> tell you honestly that I think some of you are terrible at this. If you
> think I am trying to shame you into being more involved, you are absolutely
> correct.
> >
> > I will also admit that I am being pretty hypocritical in leveling this
> criticism at my friends and compatriots. But I think it has to be said.
> >
> > What is the reward for all this work for which we are not paid and
> rarely thanked? It is simply the ability to go to sleep at night knowing
> that you have rendered a service to your fellow human beings, that you have
> made some contribution, however large, to improving the world for everyone.
> The maps that we make, and the work that we do to make them, have an impact
> on the world. They have saved lives, and helped communities in need. They
> will continue to do so, as long as we remain committed to the the idea that
> geographic information, freely made and freely shared, can transform our
> world for the better.
> >
> > In this brief life that we share, I can think of no greater achievement
> than this to claim for ourselves, and I say that you claim it for yourself
> every time you exert yourself through the labors of our team. I hope that
> you will all take heart in this thought, and redouble your efforts in 2013,
> that we may see the world a year hence a more hospitable and more
> charitable place for everyone.
> >
> > SDE
> >
> >
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > HOT mailing list
> > HOT at openstreetmap.org
> > http://lists.openstreetmap.org/listinfo/hot
>
> _______________________________________________
> HOT mailing list
> HOT at openstreetmap.org
> http://lists.openstreetmap.org/listinfo/hot
>

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