Bylaws

ARTICLE 1. NAME. The official name of the Section shall be “The Traditional Ecological Knowledge Section of the Ecological Society of America”.

ARTICLE 2. PURPOSE. The purpose of this Section is to 1) promote the understanding, dissemination and respectful use of traditional ecological knowledge in ecological research, application and education, 2) to encourage education in traditional ecological knowledge 3) to stimulate research which incorporates the traditional knowledge and participation of indigenous people and 4) to increase participation by indigenous people in the Ecological Society of America.

ARTICLE 3. ORGANIZATION. The Traditional Ecological Knowledge Section shall be a subdivision of the Ecological Society of America and shall be governed by the Constitution and Bylaws of that Society.

ARTICLE 4. MEMBERS. Any member of the Ecological Society may become a member of the Traditional Ecological Knowledge Section upon payment of the designated dues.

ARTICLE 5. OFFICERS. The Officers of the Section shall be a Chair, Vice-Chair, Past-Chair and Secretary. The Officers comprise the Coordinating Committee and may act on behalf of the Section during intervals between annual meetings. Election of Officers shall be by majority vote with a written or email ballot that is distributed to members each year.

ARTICLE 6. CHAIR. The Chair shall preside at the business meetings of the section, authorize expenditures of Section funds and shall work with the Coordinating Committee to promote the interests of the Section. The Chair will appoint a Webmaster and committees as necessary for specific tasks. The Chair and Vice-Chair will prepare a slate of candidates from nominations received from the membership, that must be elected for the following year (yearly for the Vice-Chair, alternate years for the Secretary). Nominations must be received by the Chair sixty days before election. The Chair will serve a term of two years and represent the Section on the Council of the Society.

ARTICLE 7. PAST CHAIR. Upon completion of the term as Chair, this person shall serve as past chair and will serve as a member of the Coordinating Committee to promote the interests of the Section. The term of office shall be two years.

ARTICLE 8. VICE-CHAIR. The Vice-Chair shall be responsible for arranging the scientific program for all meetings and symposia of the section and shall assume the duties of the Chair whenever that person is unable to act. The term of office shall be two years.

ARTICLE 9. SECRETARY. The Secretary shall keep the records, accounts and files of the Section, keep the minutes of the annual meeting, maintain an up to date membership and mailing list and work with the Coordinating Committee to promote the interests of the Section. The Secretary shall serve a term of two years.

ARTICLE 10. WEBMASTER. The Webmaster shall promote the section’s interests through maintaining and updating the section’s web page including notices of meetings, minutes of past meetings, the purpose of the section and the five year goals, as well as other topics that arise.

ARTICLE 11. FINANCES. The necessary expenses of the Section shall be paid from the treasury of the Society, but in no year shall the total expenses of the Section exceed the sum of the amount allotted for this purpose in the annual budget of the Society plus the amount received as donations or as dues collected by the Society on behalf of the Section. No officer of member of the Section shall have authority to incur any expenses in the name of the Society, except as specified above.

ARTICLE 12. MEETINGS. The Section shall meet with the Society at its annual meeting and may organize special meetings and symposia at other times and places on the call of the Chair or when requested by ten members of the section. A business meeting of the Section shall be held at the annual meeting, and the members present shall constitute a quorum. Notice shall be sent to each member of the Section at least sixty days in advance of each meeting. It is understood that publication of a notice of the meeting published in the Bulletin of The Ecological Society of America shall constitute adequate notice. Notice shall also be posted on the section web page.

ARTICLE 13. PUBLICATION. The annual report of the Section and its official notices shall be eligible for publication in the Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America and shall be posted on the section’s web page.

ARTICLE 14. AMENDMENTS. These bylaws may be amended by two thirds vote of the membership attending any annual meeting of the Section, provided that notice of the proposed amendment has been supplied to the members of the Section at least 60 days prior to the annual meeting date.