European Society for the History of Science

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The Society

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Statement

In a number of scientific fields, European Societies or Federations have been created. Moreover, within the ICSU, the proposal to coordinate structures on the European scale is currently gaining momentum.

However, there are fields in which a European organization is still missing. Regarding the history of science, recommendations have been issued by Allea and the European Union in 1998 in order to foster the intellectual cooperation in Europe. Time has come now to try to implement these recommendations.

It is proposed to create a Society of individual and institutional members. A Committee has been established to promote the initiative and to take the first steps.

The Founding Committee has discussed a number of initiatives. These include: establishing relationships with European funding bodies; establishing relationships with relevant national Academies and societies; organizing scientific congresses at regular intervals; publishing a newsletter; mounting a website; integrating available bibliographies in History of Science to pay more attention to the variety of national traditions active in Europe, and initiating enquiries into the state of History of Science in Europe, and further consolidating attempts to integrate the History of Science in education in Europe.

Constitution

• Article I. Name and Seat
• Article II. Purpose of the society
• Article III. Membership
• Article IV. Officers
• Article V. The Council
• Article VI. The Scientific Board
• Article VII. The General Assembly
• Article VIII. Dues
• Article IX. Amendments to the Constitution and By-laws
• Article X. Dissolution of the Society
• Article XI. By-Laws

Article 1. Name and Seat

1. The name of the organisation shall be the "European Society for the History of Science".
2. The constitution of the society shall be in accordance with the requirements of the national law of the country of its seat.
3. The first seat of the society shall be the École Pratique des Hautes Études (Section des Sciences Historiques et Philologiques) (Paris, France). Accordingly, the society shall be a non-profit making organisation governed by the French Law of July 1st, 1901 and the Decree of August 16, 1901.

Article II. Purpose of the society

The purpose of the society shall be to promote European cooperation in the field of the History of Science understood in the broadest sense. In particular, the society shall, in the European context, aim at:

1. Providing a high-level interdisciplinary European forum for research in the History of Science;
2. Promoting cooperation between its members;
3. Promoting the preservation of and access to scientific heritage;
4. Promoting, assisting, and advising on the teaching of the History of Science;
5. Advancing the education of the general public in the historical, cultural, and social aspects of science.

Article III. Membership

1. The society shall consist of individual members, institutional members, and supporting members.
2. Individual members : The society shall be open to all individuals who share the purposes of the society. Residence or work in Europe shall not be a precondition for membership.
3. Institutional members : Corporate bodies may join the society by application to the Council (q.v.). In particular, societies of history of science or related academic disciplines in natural or human sciences shall be eligible for institutional membership, as well as academies and other academic institutions.
4. Supporting Members : All natural or juridical persons wishing to support the purposes of the society and justifiably expressing this intent by personal application to the Council shall be eligible to be admitted as supporting members. They shall have no voting rights, but may attend and be consulted in the meetings of the General Assembly.
5. Individuals wishing to be admitted as members should submit their application to the Secretary. The application shall be subject to approval by the Council. The same procedure shall apply to applicants for institutional and supporting members.
6. Individual Members shall pay annual dues of an amount to be determined by the General Assembly (q.v.), on the recommendation of the Council. Institutional and Supporting Members shall pay, at least, a minimum due to be determined by the General Assembly, on the recommendation of the Council.
7. Members may terminate their membership by giving notice of resignation in writing to the Council or to the President.
8. A member may be expelled for good cause from the society following the vote of three-quarters of those present and voting at the meeting of the General Assembly.
9. Members who fall behind in payment of dues shall, until such dues are paid, forfeit their right to vote and to receive the societys communications.

Article IV. Officers

1. The officers of the society shall be:The President, the Past-President, the President-elect, the Secretary, and the Treasurer. Holders of these offices must be individual members.
2. The President : the President shall be the executive head and legal representative of the society and shall act as the Chairperson of the Council and of the General Assembly. The President, together with the Council, shall organize the next regular scientific congress. The President shall be elected to serve until the next General Assembly and shall not be eligible for re-election. The President shall then serve on the Council for one period as Vice-President (Past President). Should the President be prevented from completing the term of office, the President-elect (q.v.) shall act as deputy until the next meeting of the General Assembly.
3. The President-elect : the President-elect shall be chosen from a different country from that of the President. The President-elect shall serve until the next General Assembly concurrently with the President, and shall succeed the President in office.
4. The Secretary : the Secretary shall conduct the day-to-day affairs of the society. The Secretary may be re-elected once, and shall be responsible for keeping the archives in good order.
5. The Treasurer : the Treasurer shall assume the customary duties and responsibilities of this office. The Treasurer may be re-elected on an unlimited number of occasions.
6. Nominations for officers are made by the Scientific Board (q.v.) for election at the General Assembly, according to the rules established in the By-laws. In addition, individual and institutional members may submit nominations for officers.

Article V. The Council

1. The Council shall comprise the officers of the society. In addition, a representative of the body hosting the seat of the society shall be an ex officio member of the Council. The Council shall be convened at least once a year by the President. Chairpersons of sub-committees (q.v.) and persons important for the Societys business may be invited by the President to attend the meetings of the Council, without having the right to vote. The Council shall be, so far as possible, composed of members from different countries. For a meeting to be quorate, at least three members of the Council must be present, including the President, or, in his/her absence, the Vice-President.
2. The Council shall be the executive body of The Society. It shall conduct the administrative and scientific business of The Society in accordance with Article II.
3. The Council shall be responsible for submitting to the General Assembly nominations for the Scientific Board. Nominations may also be submitted by any member of the General Assembly.

Article VI. The Scientific Board

1. The Scientific Board shall comprise the members of the Council ex officio, four individual and four institutional members. The President or his/her delegated representative shall act as Chairperson of the Scientific Board. The individual and institutional members shall be elected by the General Assembly, to serve until the next General Assembly, and shall be eligible once for re-election. The Scientific Board shall be composed, so far as possible, of members from different countries. The President shall convene the meeting of the Scientific Board. Five members, including the chairperson or his/her nominated representative, must be present.
2. The Scientific Board shall be responsible for :

a. the organisation of the scientific congresses, normally every two years,
b. the publication of the proceedings of the congresses, when so decided,
c. such research initiatives as the society may decide to promote,
d. the promotion of other activities furthering the purposes of the society.
3. Sub-committees may be established by the Scientific Board.
4. The President and the Vice-President shall be ex officio members of all sub-committees.

Article VII. The General Assembly

1. The President shall call the members of the society to meet in General Assembly during each regular scientific congress. The members present at a meeting of the General Assembly shall constitute a quorum.
2. The General Assembly shall have the following functions :

a. to receive a report of the President,
b. to determine the date and place of the next scientific congress,
c. to decide on the topic of the next scientific congress,
d. to elect the President, the President-elect, the Secretary, and the Treasurer,
e. to elect the eight individual and institutional members for the Scientific Board (see Article VI, 1),
f. to elect three members as auditors (see By-laws)
g. to approve the Treasurers report,
h. to deal with any other items of business proposed by the Council or by members. The items must be submitted, in writing, in advance of the meeting of the General Assembly.

Article VIII. Dues

1. Individual members, institutional members, and supporting members shall pay subscriptions at levels to be determined by the General Assembly, on the recommendation of the Council. Payment of such subscriptions entitles members to receive the societys communications and to purchase the proceedings of the scientific congresses at a reduced price.

Article IX. Amendments to the Constitution and By-laws

1. Amendments to the Constitution may be proposed by the Council or by one tenth of the members. Such amendments shall be submitted to all members in writing at least three months before the meeting of the General Assembly at which they are to be considered, and shall require the votes of two-thirds of those present and voting at a meeting of the General Assembly for approval. An individual member also has the right to vote as the representative of an institutional member. The right to vote may be exercised only by members attending the meeting of the General Assembly
2. Amendments to the By-laws may be considered at any meeting of the General Assembly, and shall require for approval the votes of two-thirds of members attending the meeting of the General Assembly.

Article X. Dissolution of the Society

1. In the event that the General Assembly, on the proposal of the Council or of one tenth of the members, shall decide by the votes of three quarters of those present and voting that the society is unable to fulfil its purposes as specified in Article II, it shall be dissolved.
2. Upon dissolution of the society, its assets remaining after payment or provision for payment of all debts and liabilities of the society, shall be distributed to an international non profit-making fund or foundation, preferably concerned with the history of science.

Article XI. By-Laws

1. Quorum and Decisions : the quora of the Council, the Scientific Board, and General Assembly are fixed in Articles V (1), VI (1), VII (1) respectively. Provided these are reached and unless otherwise specified, decisions shall be made by a majority of those present and voting. In the event of a tie, the President shall cast the deciding vote.
2. Should a vacancy occur among the Officers of the society or members of its Committees, each body shall have the power to coopt until the next General Assembly, unless otherwise specified.
3. The business year of the society shall be the calendar-year.
4. Dues. There shall initially be an annual subscription of twenty Euros for individual members, of one hundred Euros for institutional members, and a minimum of two hundred Euros for supporting members. These sums may be altered from time to time by a decision of the General Assembly.
5. Audit of Accounts. The Council shall submit the societys financial report for audit to the regular General Assembly. The audit shall be the responsibility of three members appointed by the General Assembly. These members shall be eligible for re-election.

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