It feels like yesterday that many of us were together in Prague or online for EuroPython 2023. Each year, the current board of the EuroPython Society (EPS) holds a General Assembly (GA). It is a precious opportunity for all our members to get together annually, and reflect on the learnings of the past and direction for the future the Society holds.
This year’s GA will be held online again to allow as many members as possible to engage with us. We have tentatively reserved the date 1 October for the GA. But official confirmation will be sent out as soon as we receive the go-ahead from our auditor on the finance side.
As an EPS member, you are welcome and encouraged to join us to discuss Society matters and vote at the meeting, including the next Society Board. A Zoom meeting link will be sent out to you with the formal General Assembly Invitation.
Calling for Board Candidates
Every year at the GA, we call for and vote in a new EPS Board of Directors. This is also our main theme of this post: we are calling for the next Board candidates.
This year, we have at least 4 members from the current board standing down, including myself who will be stepping down as chair and from the board. While transition always poses challenges, it is a chance to take in new experience, fresh perspectives and more diversity. With most, if not all, female board members from the current board stepping down, we are especially worried about the diversity of our next board and welcome all suggestions and nominations from our members to help make our next board diverse.
If you are interested in stepping up, or if you know someone who might be, please get in touch with us! You can reach the current board at board@europython.eu. We also have set up a private discord thread for you to get to know all interested candidates and ask any questions you might have. Get in touch with us if you would like an invite!
What does the EPS Board do?
As per our bylaws, the EPS board is made up of up to 9 directors (including 1 chair and 1 vice chair). The duties and responsibilities of the board are substantial: the board collectively takes up the fiscal and legal responsibility of the Society. At the moment, running the annual EuroPython conference is a major task for the EPS. As such, the board members are expected to invest significant time and effort towards overseeing the smooth execution of the conference, ranging from venue selection, contract negotiations, and budgeting, to volunteer management. Every board member has the duty to support one or more EuroPython teams to facilitate decision-making and knowledge transfer. In addition, the Society prioritises building a close relationship with local Python communities in Europe. Board members should be passionate about the Python community, and ideally also have a high-level vision and plan for how the EPS could best serve the community.
Time commitment for the board: as the Society currently comprises entirely volunteers, serving on the board does come with a significant time commitment. This is particularly important to keep in mind, due to the changes EPS will undergo this year. However, everyone has been very understanding of differing schedules. Other than the 1.5 hour board call we expect all board members to attend every two weeks, we have managed to primarily work async.
The Nomination Process
All EPS members are eligible to stand for election to the board of directors . And everyone who wishes to stand or nominate others need to send in your nomination notice, along with a biography of yours.
Though the formal deadline for sending in your nomination is at the time of the GA, we would appreciate it if you could return it to us by emailing board@europython.eu by Friday 15 September 2023. We will publish all the candidates and their nomination statements on a separate blog post for our members to read in advance.
Then at the General Assembly, each candidate will usually be given a minute to introduce themselves before the members cast their anonymous votes. You can find out refer to our previous GAs if you want to find out more details: https://www.europython-society.org/records/
If you have any questions or concerns, you are also very welcome to reach out to me directly at raquel@europython.eu.
Raquel Dou