WCHS Organizational Implementation Material

WCHS

Guidelines to form a Centre of Humanist Studies (CHS)

A CHS starts with an initial or promoter group, located in a local geographic ambit: city, neighborhood, university, etc.(1) The members of this team can contact the World Coordination Team (WCT) for specific inquiries in order to launch and develop it, and can also participate with an already functioning CHS (Centre of Humanist Studies), until it achieves the solidity to constitute an independent CHS, fulfilling its requirements.

The subjects of study and research of the CHS are multiple, being the limitation to these, contrary to the spirit of the WCHS. The increasing number of member is as well unlimited. According to its development, groups, commissions, work areas or other useful forms can be generated in order to approach specific matters.

This promotion team prepares a working plan (e.g. to establish the necessary functions for a particular moment; choose one or more study or research objects) based on the referential materials, setting a tentative calendar.

Marks regular meeting dates, for the implementation of the working schedule and at the same time achieves permanence in its activities.

Carries out contacting actions and seeks to increase the number of its members to a number of 10 (e.g. Informative lectures on the CHS, workshops, and events.)

Schedules the personal formation of its members, basing itself on the Manual of Personal Development of the Humanist Movement.

Creates a mailing list, web, blog, etc. to assure the contact between members and to spread and divulge its points of view.

Tends, as well, to obtain legal personality, as a nonprofit organization (or similar legal figure, according to the legal normative of each country).

Collects the annual fee, and chooses, per direct voting, the functions of local coordinator and the candidate to assume functions in the WCHS.

When this CHS reaches 10 full members, and has permanence in the study, spreading, divulgation and forming activities, it can raise a report and present it to the WCHS, for being considered as a constituted CHS.

Elections

The basis of this organism are the local CHS, from which there can exist more than one in each place (city, neighborhood, university, etc). At a worldwide level the WCHS is constituted by the entire existing and constituted CHS. The WCT coordinates the common activities at worldwide level, in this organism there are no intermediate levels between the base and the worldwide organism.

Regardless of this, it is possible to organize common activities between different CHS, for this specific coordination functions will be necessary.

The local constituted CHS, carry out elections, to choose the members of the Local Coordination Team (LCT) as well as the candidate who will assume functions in the WCT, the third Saturday of March of the corresponding year. Only the full member of the CHS will be entitled to vote.

The elections to choose the members of the WCT of the WCHS will be the first Saturday and Sunday of April, of the corresponding year. The constituted CHS will be able to present their candidate, until the preceding Sunday. In this election, only the full members of the CHS (constituted and in process of constitution) will be entitled to vote.

The elected members for the WCT will fulfill a term of office of two years, after which new elections will be called. A person can be reelected only once, consecutively or not (no person will be entitled to carry out more than two terms of office). It is recommendable that the local CHS follow a similar alignments regarding reelection, in the means of the possibilities.

If a CHS is reelected for the WCT for 2 consecutive periods, it shall wait one period before presenting a candidate again to the WCT (thus, a same CHS will not carry out a function in the WCT during 3 consecutive periods).

Functions of the World Coordinating Team (2)

The work of the WCT is collegiated with members in parity.

The functions will be distributed among the members of the team according to needs, that only as an example may be:

  • Growth (promotion and collaboration in the formation of CHS, growth of active members, of their productions, increas in relations and exchanges, etc.)
  • Formation (in the Universalist Humanism, methodology, ellaboration of seminars, workshops, etc.)
  • Spreading information and disclosure (performing world events, participation in conferences, forums, publications, newsletters, press, etc.)
  • Administration (translations, minutes, economy, legal, web, lists, etc.)

The CHS will also be able to use this basic scheme of functions for their development.

Fee

The CHS collects a personal annual fee from all its full members, the collection can be split along the year according to the criterion of each CHS, and between March 1st. and 7th. of each year they will deliver a percentage of what has been collected to the world fund.

The organisms of each country set up by agreement the annual amount of said fee. This amount will be fixed within a layer limited by the 10% of the basic monthly salary on one hand and the 10% of the medium monthly salary of each country on the other.

The amount of the fee is distributed as follows: seventy five percent (75%) to the own local CHS and twenty five percent (25%) to the World Coordinating Team (WCT).

Logo

The elected WCT will decide whether the present symbol (spiral) is maintained or whether it will be changed. In that regard, an invitation will be made to present projects of alternative symbols to the present one.

Present ways of information and contact with the WCHS

Calendar

  • March 2010: 1st to 7th: Delivery of 25% of the annual fee to the World Promoting Team
  • March 2010: 20th: Elections to choose the members of the Local Coordinating Teams and the candidate to perform functions in the WCT
  • March 2010: 28th: Deadline for the presentation of candidates to perform functions in the WCT.
  • April 2010: 3rd and 4th: Elections to choose the members of the World Coordinating Team of the WCHS

October 7th 2009 - World Promoting Team

1 A promoter group may consist of three or four interested people. Or it may come from an existing group or association, which decides to reorganize within the general frame of the WCHS. This is for example the case of Laura Rodriguez Foundation and Tokarev Institute in Santiago, which were included in the WCHS. It could also be the case of entrenched grassroots who want to pursue WCHS activities in their neighbourhood.

2 Until the election of the first WCT these functions will be carried by the World Promoting Team (WPT).