2019-07-30 Board meeting

DRAFT

Special board meeting 30 July 2019.

Logo Wikimedia Belgium
Logo Wikimedia Belgium

Venue: 10:00 via conference call.

Agenda:

  1. Step down of Romaine
  2. Review the announcement document
  3. Take further actions

Attached documents:

  1. Announcement from the Board of Wikimedia Belgium (WMBE)[1]

Meeting minutes

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Present: .Anja., Geert, Mike, Romaine

Excused: Lionel

The Board agreed with Romaine on the content of the announcement and further actions:

Romaine has decided to step down as Board member of Wikimedia Belgium (WMBE). Following an international escalating conflict and an unauthorized email, he has been feeling stressed and prefers to live in a safe environment, and give priority to his own health.[2]

It is important to provide a safe environment for all volunteers. As such the board of Wikimedia Belgium, based on a proposal of the General Assembly, has requested the Affiliate Chairs to vote to request an Internal audit (based on international best practices/standards/norms) of major WMF procedures.[3]

WMBE sincerely thanks Romaine for co-founding Wikimedia Belgium and for his valued work during his years as Board member. WMBE regrets having lost one of her most active Board members. It is a loss for the association, our partners in Belgium and abroad, and for the Wikimedia community as a whole.[4]

The WMBE Board temporarily assigns the Treasurer function to the Chair until a new candidate is found. The WMBE statutes allow the Board to assign technical functions outside of the Board. We would welcome candidates.[5]

We hope we can return to a safe environment, and that the focus goes back to where WMBE was founded for: activities to get more free knowledge.

Take further actions

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As decided above:

  • Send the message to wikimedia-l (as a new message) and to all our members (effective + associate)
  • Adapt the be, meta, and www web site presenting the Board
  • No further communication will be done
  • Handover of documents, and ledger
  • Adapt email distributionlists
  • Geert assumes the role of interim treasurer until another candidate is approved

End of the meeting

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Meeting finished shortly after 11:20

References

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  1. Announcement from the Board of Wikimedia Belgium (WMBE)
  2. Some goodbye to all
  3. m:Request for WMF Internal audits and appeal procedures
  4. New board for Wikimedia Belgium + evaluation behaviour WMF
  5. Satutes Staatsblad