Dear ISIE members,
Let me give you a quick update on what is happening at the ISIE.
We are preparing for our second board meeting scheduled for 13 May 2019 on which we will discuss and review all the standing ISIE committees and the composition and leadership of committees. Our committees do important groundwork and support the decision making process of the board. We need to make sure that all committees are functional and have the support they need to operate smoothly. The way we schedule and organise conferences will be a topic given special attention since our conferences are the most tangible expression of the ISIE’s activity and an important meeting point of our community. Please also be aware that regular board meetings are scheduled four times per year and are the main forum for operational decisions. The board meeting minutes are available to all members at the ISIE member space on the ISIE website.
We are also aiming to formalise an institutional ISIE membership to make the global ISIE partnership visible to our members, partners and stakeholders. We have a very impressive network of research institutes and universities globally and we need to use our global footprint to our advantage. Becoming a member of the global Industrial Ecology partnership will also allow participating institutes to make a small donation to the ISIE to improve our budget.
We also want to take stock of all the academic and practitioner networks that work in the industrial economy domain globally and to explore to formalise the ISIE’s relationships with those communities and networks. This is important to ensure we maintain our global reach and for the ISIE to remain to be an important voice for Industrial Ecology.
Most importantly, the ISIE biannual conference in Beijing is only is only about two months away. Please make sure that you have registered if you are planning to attend. We will also organise our first Annual General Meeting (AGM) back-to-back with the conference. Our new structure gives a greater voice to our membership to express where you want to see the ISIE going in the future. There will be a dedicated space on the ISIE website for the planning of the AGM where you will find the annual report and financial report ahead of time for your assessment. Members will also be able to lodge resolutions they want to see discussed at the AGM. There is now an important role for the membership to guide the strategic orientation of the ISIE and help develop the resulting work program of the board to best serve our membership. More information will be provided by our executive director, Paul Hoekman, by the middle of May.
Please make sure you can be engaged in the AGM process either in person or through online participation.
Regards,
Heinz Schandl
ISIE President
