Hi all,
I want to express my concerns regarding this proposal to amend the WMF bylaws at this moment.
It is a clear attempt to change the structure of our movement, and it seems to be a logic step after the endorsement of the Movement Direction (“Structure follows strategy”). However this proposal interferes with our common commitment to the second step of the Movement Strategy.
After the endorsement of the Movement Direction 9 working groups have been installed. Their basic assignment is: “[...] map the present situation of their respective Thematic Areas, including the obstacles and opportunities, as well as changes needed for the movement to advance in our Strategic Direction. They will identify possible strategies for making these changes and develop concrete recommendations for the movement on how to *ratify and implement* [italics mine] them.
This wording is in accordance with the email of Maria Sefidari of July 19, 2018 in which she expressed the commitment of the Board of Trustees to this process. I quote from her email: “Now our task as a movement is to apply the Strategic Direction to our own work. We need to answer questions that define our path forward: What kind of *structures* [again, the italics are mine] are ideal for achieving our strategic direction?”
Issuing a proposal to change the bylaws clearly trespasses the work of all those involved in the Wikimedia 2030 Movement Strategy Process. I urge the Board of Trustees to postpone a decision about this matter and I suggest to hand over the recommendations of the Affcom to the appropriate working groups.
Finally: Of course I do not want the Board of Trustees to act passively during the Movement Strategy Process. But this proposal is only a part of the bigger problem that we have to solve: the organization of the affiliates (chapters, user groups, new forms of affiliation) and the whole decision making process that goes with this, and as such it concerns the very heart of the international community. It needs a more careful consideration than the one-time consultation that has now been started. Let's not undermine this process, let's stick to the process that we have committed ourselves to.
Frans Grijzenhout (chair WMNL, moderator Affiliate Chairpersons meetings)
*Frans Grijzenhout*, voorzitter / chair +31 6 5333 9499