CONSTITUTION OF CIPSH
(amended by the General Assembly of the CIPSH, Beijing, December 8th, 2015)
ARTICLE I – DENOMINATION, SCOPE AND PURPOSES
1) The International Council for Philosophy and Human Sciences is a non-governmental and non-profit-making organization. The International Council for Philosophy and Human Sciences, founded in French as Conseil International de la Philosophie et des Sciences Humaines[1] was founded in January 1949 in Brussels, at the request of UNESCO and under its auspices, following a meeting organized by the Union Académique Internationale to bring together representatives of nongovernmental organizations.
a. The council adopts CIPSH as its acronym, for all languages.
2) The CIPSH is comprised of scholarly organizations that conduct and encourage research in the fields of philosophy and other disciplines belonging to the humanities in the broadest sense of the term.
3) The goals of the CIPSH were very clearly defined in a statement drawn up by the founders at the time of its creation. This statement is appended to the present statutes[2], and it continues to incorporate the goals of the Council. However, it has to be revised at the present time, in light of the changes that have occurred within human societies, increasingly complex relationships among cultural groups and changes in the framing of multidisciplinary research. In, addressing the needs and concerns of people worldwide, the CIPSH identifies as its principal goals:
a. Cooperation among the institutions and non-governmental organizations that bring together scholarly communities specializing in the fields of philosophy and other human sciences and in their interfaces with social and natural sciences, the arts, and other endeavours that attempt to contribute to the understanding of humans and their cultural expressions.
b. Promotion of the development of the relevant disciplines throughout the world, in order to enhance mutual understanding between scholars, and recognition of their different methods, and to share the most significant findings from their newest work. In this sense, the aim is to contribute to defining a path that might be useful and valid for all involved researchers, in order to benefit the advance and dissemination of knowledge. This should contribute to the reconciliation between actual and past cultural differences in all their diversity and specificity, and to answering the need for a genuinely equitable sharing of knowledge.
c. Advocacy for and promotion of the totality of research, whether concerned with cultural production, or with the variety of organizational and functional patterns manifested by different societies, and envisaged in the broadest possible spatial and temporal frame. This goal cannot be achieved without dialogue among the disciplines, especially to bring the “human sciences” and the “social and natural sciences” closer together. Their common concern is with human individuals, groups, and corresponding contextual conditions, and encompasses the ways in which real human societies organize their thoughts, actions, lives, and value systems.
d. Communication of the results of research on civil society and governance in ways that make it broadly visible. At the present time, human societies are in fact more than ever in need of better understanding, both in and of themselves and by others, to assist them in meeting the challenges of the contemporary world and the many problems confronting all of them.
e. Efforts to disseminate the relevance of mid and long term conclusions that are informed by knowledge resulting from studies in the humanities, to mitigate the daily concerns of people and for their foresight and flourishing.
4) In order to achieve these goals, CIPSH undertakes:
a. To support the development of research programs and the strengthening of communities of scholars involved in research, especially wherever support appears indispensable.
b. To support the development of international initiatives and cooperative efforts which converge with this common aspiration.
c. To identify and suggest projects that might inspire scholars from different disciplines, different countries, and the different regions of the world to address themes of common interest.
d. To encourage the cultivation of interconnectedness between all the disciplines (human, social, and natural sciences), since it is indispensable for the analysis and understanding of the complexities inherent in the phenomena under study.
e. To take every action that could conceivably reduce, and in the long run eliminate, the many inequalities which structure the production, validation, and circulation, as well as international recognition and the acquisition of knowledge, in the fields of study concerned.
ARTICLE II - COMPOSITION
1) The Council is a Federation of scholarly national, regional and international bodies. These bodies are classified into three groups:
a. International Organizations, including:
i. The International Academic Union;
ii. International Federations.
b. Regional bodies.
c. Scholarly organizations, including Research Councils supporting research in any field of the humanities.
2) The International Academic Union, among the Federations, will have a status in relation to its historical role in the activities of CIPSH.
3) A scholarly body may only be elected as a member or remain a member on condition that it enjoys well-established authority, that it plays a significant scholarly role on a regional or national scale or, in the case of an International Federation, that it is fully representative of one or more independent branches of study, that it has permanent governing, executive bodies and authorized representatives elected according to standard practices of transparency and fairness, and, finally, that it engages solely in work supervised by a general assembly of its members.
4) National universities and research units may be admitted as associate members.
5) New members are admitted to the Council by decision of the General Assembly by a majority of two-thirds of the delegates present and voting.
6) The General Assembly may also designate individual Honorary Members of the CIPSH, for relevant contributions to knowledge in the Humanities and for relevant services to the CIPSH. These individual members will have no voting rights in the Council.
ARTICLE III - HEADQUARTERS AND LEGAL REGISTRATION
1) The headquarters of the Council are in Paris. The General Assembly of the CIPSH may change the headquarters upon approval of two thirds of its members.
2) The Council is registered as an International Association 1901, as defined by the French Law.
a. Whenever needed, the structure and phrasing of the statutes of the CIPSH may be adapted to national legal requirements, providing this does not contradict their contents and is approved by two thirds of the Executive Committee.
ARTICLE IV - RESOURCES OF THE COUNCIL
1) Each member shall contribute each year to the Council according to a graded scale of membership fees determined by General Assembly. This graded scale of membership fees shall be public and included in the By-Laws of the Council.
2) A member organization that fails to pay its membership fee may attend and intervene in the General Assembly, without voting rights.
3) Failure to pay the membership fee for three successive years may entail loss of membership, by a vote of a simple majority of those voting at the General Assembly.
4) The Council budget is composed by:
a. Members’ fees.
b. Donations.
c. Research and projects grants.
d. Funds resulting from the distribution of publications, organization of scientific events or delivery of services.
e. Contributions for the activities of CIPSH in the framework of program-contracts.
f. Grants-in-aid.
g. Other contributions intended for support of the activities of CIPSH, based on a clear record of their legal source.
ARTICLE V - ORGANS
The organs of the Council shall be:
1) The General Assembly.
2) The Executive Committee.
3) The Board.
ARTICLE VI – GENERAL ASSEMBLY
1) The members of the Council form its General Assembly.
2) The General Assembly is chaired by the President of the CIPSH.
3) The General Assembly:
a. Approves the strategy and global budget of the CIPSH.
b. Decides on structural options concerning the scientific, editorial and other outreach policies of the CIPSH.
c. Elects the Executive Committee.
d. Admits new member organizations, having the right to delegate this competence, until the next General Assembly, to the Executive Committee.
e. Has the power of decision on all matters concerning the functioning of the Council and the accomplishment of its mission.
f. Approves the creation of special projects and designates the scholars responsible for them, namely:
i. The Director of the journal Diogenes.
ii. Other special scientific or outreach global projects.
g. It alone can decide on the exclusion of any member.
4) The General Assembly shall meet in ordinary session as defined in the By-Laws. It may meet in extraordinary session upon the call of the Board or at the request of member organizations representing at least one third of the votes of the members of the Council.
5) The provisional agenda for ordinary sessions shall be drawn up by the Board and communicated to the member organizations of the CIPSH not less than one month before the opening of the session.
6) The functioning of the General Assembly, the admitted number of votes and delegates are fixed by the dispositions of the By-Laws.
7) The dispositions regulating proxies are included in the By-Laws.
8) The rules defined in the By-Laws shall establish a fair balance between the rights and duties of the International Federations and the rights and duties of the other members of the CIPSH, and secure an appropriate status to the International Academic Union.
9) Decisions shall be taken by a simple majority of votes cast, except in the cases stipulated in Articles II.4, IX, X and XII of the present Constitution.
ARTICLE VII – EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
1) The Executive Committee is the main decision-making body in between sessions of the General Assembly.
2) The Executive Committee is composed of:
a. The elected board;
b. Three scholars proposed by the International Academic Union;
c. One scholar proposed by each International Federation;
d. One to three scholars elected by the General Assembly and proposed by the other member organizations, not included in VII.1.b or in VII.1.c.
3) The Executive Committee may not include more than two members of the same nationality and should reflect a fair gender balance. Its composition shall also provide a fair representation of the different regions of the world.
4) The former Presidents of CIPSH become Honorary individual members of the CIPSH and have the right to attend the General Assemblies and the Executive Committee sessions, without voting rights.
5) The Executive Committee will have an advisory board, formed by up to 5 members selected among past members of the previous boards.
6) The terms of office of each member of the Executive Committee shall begin at the conclusion of the General Assembly during which he or she was elected, and shall expire at the conclusion of the following regular Assembly.
7) The designated scholars responsible for special projects of the CIPSH will attend ex officio the Executive Committee meetings
8) The Executive Committee meets at least one a year, for:
a. Approval of the yearly report of activities.
b. Approval of the plan of activities for the following year.
c. Approval of the related budgets.
d. Approval of the reports, plans and budget of special projects.
e. Appointment of special and temporary committees.
f. Approval of the agenda prepared by the Board for the meetings of the General Assembly.
g. Certification of the reports of the Treasurer and of the Secretary-General, for presentation to the General Assembly.
h. Endorsement of major projects in the field of the Humanities and award of grants for them.
i. Approval of any other issues that may be considered relevant.
9) At the end of each year, the Executive Committee shall communicate a report on its work to all the member organizations, to be prepared by the board with the collaboration of all the committee members.
10)The Secretary-General shall circulate the minutes of such meetings to all the member organizations of the CIPSH.
11)The Executive Committee will make its decisions within the framework of the directives formulated by the General Assembly, especially where financial matters are concerned.
12)In case of justified need and upon approval of a majority of two thirds, the Executive Committee may meet via video-conference.
13)The Executive Committee may opt for an electronic ballot for the vote on:
a. The approval of new members, in case this has been delegated by the General Assembly;
b. Any other issues of its competence, except when stated otherwise in the Constitution, in the By-Laws or in deliberations of the Executive Committee itself.
ARTICLE VIII - BOARD
1) The board shall exercise the functions of the governing body of the Council between sessions of the Executive Committee.
2) The board is elected by the General Assembly and consists of one President, who is also President of the CIPSH, the Secretary-General, the Treasurer and the immediate Past President.
3) The board may designate up to two Vice-Presidents and one deputy Secretary-General, to assist in the respective functions.
4) The Board shall meet at least twice a year for the transaction of such necessary business as may arise between sessions of the Executive Committee. It will also meet when the Secretary-General faces the need to make decisions related to activities unforeseen in the plan of activities, or whenever the President or any of its members identifies such a need.
5) The Board shall determine the names of three persons to serve as Nominating Committee for the election of the new Board.
6) The board may meet via video-conference, but should meet at least once a year in a face-to-face session.
7) The Secretary-General shall circulate the minutes of such meetings to all members of the Executive Committee and to all the member organizations of the CIPSH.
8) The President, the Secretary-General and the Treasurer of the Board are re-eligible to the same offices only once, thus serving for a maximum of two mandates, of three years each. At each election of a new President, the immediate past President continues as a member of the Board until his or her successor remains in charge.
9) A member of the board may be elected to a different category, providing that the maximum number of years serving as an elected member is twelve years, all kinds of elected mandates considered.
10)In electing and re-electing members of the Board, the Assembly shall try to ensure both continuity and renewal, which are equally indispensable, and strive for fair representation of fields, gender and regions.
11)The President of the board:
a. Is the President of the CIPSH.
b. Presides over the sessions of the Executive Committee.
c. Represents CIPSH in all diplomatic relations with other institutions.
d. Coordinates with the Secretary-General the activities and agenda of the Board.
e. May delegate its competences to the Secretary-General or other members of the Executive Committee.
12)The Secretary-General, acting under the authority of the Board:
f. Directs the central Secretariat.
g. Represents the Council in all ordinary circumstances, with the assent of the President.
h. Dispatches correspondence, organizes meetings, prepares and distributes the publications authorized by the Board, and administers the revenue of the Council and the expenditure of funds.
i. May delegate its authority to the Secretary-General or another member of the Executive Committee.
13)The Treasurer:
j. Shall make the payments ordered by the Secretary-General and shall have the accounts of the Council audited by an expert accountant.
k. Shall monitor the accounts of member organizations showing the use made of subsidies granted on recommendation of the Council.
l. Maintain a regular correspondence with the Treasurers (or equivalent officers) of the member organizations of the CIPSH.
m. Shall draw up an annual financial report, which shall be submitted to the Executive Committee.
ARTICLE IX - RELATIONS WITH OTHER ORGANISATIONS
1) The Council may conclude agreements with other organizations. Such agreements shall be drawn up under the authority of the Board, and shall come into force when approved by the Executive Committee.
2) Such agreements may be amended or rejected by the General Assembly upon a decision adopted by a majority of the two-thirds of the members of the Council.
ARTICLE X - DISSOLUTION
1) A decision to dissolve the Council must be taken by a specifically summoned General Assembly and upon a resolution approved by a majority of two-thirds of the members of the Council.
2) In case of dissolution, the Assembly shall appoint three liquidators of different nationalities.
3) Diogenes and the other assets of the Council will, under such circumstances, be given to scientific associations chosen by the General Assembly.
ARTICLE XI – BY-LAWS
1) The detailed application of the present Constitution shall be governed by the By-Laws.
2) The By-Laws shall be drawn up by the Board and submitted to the General Assembly for approval.
3) Decisions as to matters not covered by these Statutes are left to the Executive Committee, who will inform the members of the CIPSH of any decision concerning the functioning of the Council.
ARTICLE XII - IMPLEMENTATION AND AMENDMENT OF THE CONSTITUTION
1) The Constitution shall be drawn up in two languages: English and French.
a. After the approval of amendments to the statutes in one of the languages, a complete version in the other language shall be prepared within one month.
2) This constitution shall be implemented from the moment of its approval by the first session of the General Assembly.
3) It shall not be amended except by a decision of the General Assembly taken by a two thirds majority of its members. Proposals for amendments shall be submitted to the constituencies two months before the meeting of the General Assembly.
BY-LAWS
On the offices of the CIPSH
1) The CIPSH main office and general secretariat are based at UNESCO, 1 rue Miollis, Paris.
2) The board of CIPSH may establish offices elsewhere, which will be dependent from the main office. A specific regulatory document will be approved by the board concerning the dependent offices rights and obligations.
3) The General Assembly may change the location of the main office and confirm or cancel any of the other offices.
On the General Assembly constitution
1) The ordinary session of the General Assembly of the CIPSH shall meet every three years.
2) Besides its members designated in the statutes, the General Assembly may welcome other scholars or representatives of other institutions, invited by the board as observers without voting rights.
3) The votes in the General Assembly will be distributed as follows:
a. The International Organizations will have a minimum of 60% of the votes.
b. Within these limits:
i. The International Academic Union shall have a number of votes as follows:
1. If the total number of the votes of International Federations is less than 15, it shall have 8 votes.
2. If the total number of the votes of International Federations is comprised between 15 and 25, it shall have 10 votes.
3. If the total number of the votes of International Federations is comprised between 25 and 40, it shall have 18 votes.
ii. Each International Federation shall have two votes.
1. The number votes of the International Federations will be augmented to three or more, if this will be required to secure the proportion defined in 7.a).
[3]
iii. Each other regional or national scholarly organization shall have one vote.
4) The delegates to General Assemblies will be designated as follows:
a. The International Federations may send up to two delegates.
b. The International Academic Union may send a delegation made up of as many delegates as the number of votes it has, as defined in art. 16 of these By-Laws.
c. Member societies from a single country shall not deploy more than a total of 2 votes. Although they shall have the right to send to the General Assembly as many delegates as the number of votes resulting from the above table, they shall devise an agreement among themselves about the distribution of the votes actually available to them.
5) Each delegate may be accompanied by an alternate and by one or more observers serving as technical advisers. The alternate may not vote except when he or she replaces the official delegate. However, an alternate or observer may have the floor upon permission of the President of the Assembly.
a. Proxies are allowed among delegates. No delegate to the General Assembly can receive proxies from more than two other members
b. Members of the Board may not serve as delegates. They shall have the right to speak, but not the right to vote, on any matter.
On the Assembly and Executive Committee discussions and procedure
6) The President of the CIPSH shall be the President of the General Assembly. In case of absence, he or she shall be replaced by one Vice-President, to be named by the Board. In case of absence of both Vice-Presidents, the Assembly shall designate an acting President of the General Assembly.
7) The working languages of the Assembly shall be English and French.
8) The agenda and working papers of the General Assembly shall be sent to the participants a month before the opening of the session, unless stated otherwise in the statutes.
9) The Secretary-General may report to the Assembly on any question submitted to it for discussion.
10)Draft resolutions, motions and amendments shall be submitted in writing to the Secretary-General.
a. After the discussion, and before the question is put to vote, the President shall read or have read aloud the text of the motion or resolution.
b. The President shall announce the result of all votes at the Assembly.
c. The delegate who presents a motion shall have the right to speak first and last in the discussion concerning this resolution or motion. He or she may withdraw his or her motion with the permission of the Assembly.
11)If several amendments to the same proposal are submitted, the President shall call first for a vote on the amendments that differ most from the original proposal.
12) The General Assembly may appoint any committee expedient for the work of the Council. It may delegate to the Board the responsibility for appointing a Committee.
13)The election of the Board by the General Assembly will be prepared by the Nominating Committee.
14)All candidates to the Board, including the re-eligible members of the outgoing Board, shall leave the Assembly room during the presentation of the Nominating Committee’s report and until the vote is achieved.
15)The Secretariat of the CIPSH shall be responsible for organizing the Assembly. It shall prepare the working papers, carry out the administrative work during the Assembly, draw up the minutes after the Assembly and send them to the members of the Assembly for correction.
16)The minutes, as approved by the members of the General Assembly, shall be made public by the Secretariat.
On the Voting procedure
17)Voting shall normally be by a show of hands.
18)A roll-call vote is obligatory when it is requested by at least one fifth of the delegates or decided upon by the President.
19)At the request of the board or of at least one fifth of the delegates, voting may take place at secret ballot.
a. The vote concerning the elections of the Board shall always be taken by secret ballot.
20)Votes are assigned as follows:
b. Decisions are normally made by a majority of the delegates present and voting, except for the case where a qualified majority is requested by the Constitution.
c. Abstention is considered as a vote.
d. Abstentions are not accepted in case of election of the Board members or of special projects responsible scholars.
21)If a motion receives a number of votes equal to the half of the voters, that motion shall be considered rejected.
On the Election of the Board
22) The Board shall determine the names of three persons to serve as Nominating Committee for the election of the new Board. The rules regulating the work of the Nominating Committee are annexed to these By-Laws.
23)All candidates to the Board, including the re-eligible members of the outgoing Board, shall leave the Assembly room during the presentation of the Nominating Committee’s report and until the vote is achieved.
On the Budget
24)A Budget Committee shall be formed at the time of the General Assembly in order to draw-up a draft budget for the three following years, to be submitted to the General Assembly.
a. This committee shall consist of the Secretary-General, the Treasurer and two delegates, one of whom shall be designated as Chairperson, appointed by the Board.
b. The Deputy Secretary-General may attend the meetings of the Budget Committee ex-officio and in an advisory capacity.
c. The Committee may consult delegates where the budgets of member organizations are concerned.
25)The fees structure for CIPSH member organizations is the following:
a. International Academic Union: 4.000,00 €.
b. International Federations: 700,00 €.
a. International Federations that do not charge fees to their own members will pay a fee corresponding to 7% of their yearly income.
c. Regional bodies: 3.000,00 €.
d. Scholarly organizations, including Research Councils supporting research in any field of the humanities: 2.000,00 €
26)The fees will be revised at each General Assembly, taking into account the evolution of the conditions of the affiliates and the contextual needs of the Council.
Amendments of the By-Laws
27)A revision of the By-Laws may be adopted by the majority of the votes of the delegates at the beginning of the General Assembly. Proposals for amendments shall be submitted two months before the meeting of the General Assembly.
[1] Originally, and until the 1st of January 2011, designated International Council for Philosophy and Humanistic Studies,
[2] « Expressing the belief that it is necessary to promote, with a view to a comparison of the results obtained, as an interpenetration of the various branches of research which constitute philosophy, humanistic studies and kindred branches of knowledge; Considering that a detailed comparative study of civilisations will show the wealth and dignity of each national culture and in consequence, its right to universal respect; Convinced that a better knowledge of man, of his instincts, his manners and customs, and of his behaviour, individual or collective, is indispensable to a closer understanding between the peoples, since it brings to light the accord of man’s essential aspirations, while at the same time it absolutely condemns racial prejudice; Bearing in mind the desirability of furthering wherever possible, the moral and spiritual unity of mankind; Wishing to develop the co-operation, on an international scale, of philosophy, humanistic studies and kindred branches of knowledge, and to encourage research by means of an appropriate body; The representatives of the international non-governmental organisations signatories of the present document, having met in Brussels on January 18, 1949, do hereby set up an International Council for Philosophy and Humanistic Studies. As amended in Paris on September 28, 1955, in Mexico on September 21, 1963, in Rio de Janeiro on September 14, 1973, in Dubrovnik on September 23, 1975, in Montreal on September 15, 1977 and in Cairo on November 21, 1986, the constitution on the International Council for Philosophy and Humanistic Studies makes the following stipulations »
[3] Example: If 15 Federations are present, they will have 30 votes and the IAU will have 18 votes, i.e., a total of 48 votes, corresponding to International Organizations. Therefore, this corresponds to the total number of votes of International Federations. As the maximum number of votes for the other organizations cannot be more than 40% (in this case corresponding to 32), as since each of them is entitled 1 vote, then the relative weight of the International Organizations will be augmented, to keep the proportions.
June 11, 2016
