Statutes | nhf-hydrology

The statutes of NHF

Last updated 2020. The statutes with alterations to §§ 2,6,7,8,10 and 11 were approved by the General Assembly in Riga in 2010, and finally by the General Assembly in Oulu in 2012. The statutes with alternations to § 6 were approved by the General Assembly in Bergen in 2018, and finally by the General Assembly in MS Teams in 2020.

§ 1 - Name and domicile

The name of the Association is: Nordisk Hydrologisk Forening - Nordic Association for Hydrology.

Changes of domicile of the Association shall be confirmed at the following General Assembly.

§ 2 - Purpose

The Association shall promote Hydrology as a science, strive for improved understanding of Hydrology and the practical application of hydrological methods within applied science and national planning in the Nordic countries. The Association shall also support international co-operation within Hydrology.

§ 3 - Activities

The activities of the Association include, among other things, arrangement of meetings and symposia and publishing. Publishing activities should cover requirements for hydrologic information on progress in research in addition to informative summaries and newsletters.

§ 4 - Membership

The Association could have following categories of members:

individual members
institutional members

Eligible members are individuals and institutions with interests that are consistent with the Purpose of the Association.

§ 5 - Membership fee

The annual membership fee for individual and institutional members will be decided by the General Assembly of the Association.

§ 6 - Board of the Association

The Board of the Association has 8 ordinary members. The General Assembly elects the Chairman and other ordinary members and a necessary number of deputy members. The Board elects its own Vice Chairman. Each Nordic and Baltic country which has members in the Association shall be represented by an ordinary member on the Board.

If the election committee has not suggested suitable candidates from each of the countries, not all countries need to be represented, as long as it is ensured that all board members are residents in any of the 8 member countries.

Minimum six of eight of the member countries should be represented in the board.

The Chairman is elected for a period of 4 years at the time and an ordinary member or deputy for 4 years. No member shall hold a seat as ordinary member on the Board for more than 8 consecutive years.

Quorum:

The Board constitutes a quorum with 8 members, whereof half or more of the ordinary members are to be present. An ordinary member who is absent has the right to appoint a deputy at his/her own choice amongst those elected.

If the voting is tied, the Chairman has the casting vote.

§ 7 - Management of the Association

Meetings of the Association and the Board of the Association are conducted by the Chairman of the Board. The Association is legally committed by the Chairman and one other member of the Board of the Association together. The Association has a Secretary and a Treasurer appointed by the board. The secretary and the treasurer do not need to be members of the board. Their tasks are defined by the board and include:

Keeping an archive of documents related to the Association
Administration of the membership register
Conducting the financial transactions of the Association
Keeping the annual accounts

The General Assembly man decide on remuneration for the work done by the Board.

§ 8 - Publicity Committee

The Publicity Committee consists of a chair who should be a board member, the NHF editor of the Association's journal and the web-editor. The Publicity Committee shall actively promote the dissemination of the Association's journal and other information. Relevant dissemination channels are the Association web-site, flyers and e-mail. The biennial report of the Publicity Committee includes information about the Association's journal and the web-site.

The General Assembly elects the chair of the Publicity Committee for a period of 4 years. The Publicity Committee shall be composed in a manner that gives reasonable consideration of the nationalities of Association members.

§ 9 - Meetings

The Association convenes in meetings and symposia as directed by the Board of the Association. The Association can also arrange or participate in educational programmes and seminars on hydrology.

§ 10 - Election Committee

The General Assembly appoints an Election Committee that provides suggestions on new members for the Board of the Association, auditors, vacant posts, such as the chair of the Publicity Committee and, as may be the case, Election Committee members. Suggestions shall be made known to the members of the Association not later than 10 days

before the General Assembly.

§ 11 - General Assembly

The members of the Association are called by the Board of the Association to a General Assembly every 2 years with an advance notice of 60 days. The General Assembly should preferably be gathered in conjunction with a conference on a wide professional base within Nordic and Baltic Hydrology. Matters to be included on the agenda of the General Assembly shall be sent to the Board of the Association at the latest, 30 days before the Assembly. An extra-ordinary General Assembly can be called, with an advance notice of 60 days, at the request from at least, 1/10 of the members.

The following issues shall be attended to by the General Assembly:

A biennial Report from the Chairman of the Board of the Association
A biennial Report from the chair of the Publicity Committee
The Accounts and the Budget
Election of members and deputies of the Board of the Association, two auditors, members of the Election Committee with deputies and, if vacant, appointment of the position as chair of the Publicity Committee
Annual Membership Fee and, as the case may be, remuneration to Board members
Any other business, if applicable

Decisions of the General Assembly, except those which concern §12 and § 13, require the support of a single majority. If the voting is tied, the Chairman has the casting vote.

§ 12 - Alterations to the Statutes

Proposals concerning alterations to the Statutes shall be presented in writing, 30 days before the General Assembly and shall have been sent out to the members not later than 10 days before the General Assembly. The Proposals will be presented at the General Assembly together with commentary from the Board of the Association. Proposals concerning alterations require 3/4 majority support for approval. Final adoption shall require approval also, with 3/4 majority support, at the following General Assembly.

§ 13 - Liquidation of the Association

A proposal to liquidate the Association must be presented in writing 30 days before the General Assembly and shall be forwarded by the Board to the members of the Association not later than 10 days before the General Assembly. The proposal shall be presented to the General Assembly together with comments from the Board. A proposal on liquidation requires ¾ majority support for approval. Final adoption shall also require approval, with ¾ majority support, at the following General Assembly. In case of liquidation of the Association, its assets shall be used for promotion of the Purpose of the Association as will be decided by the General Assembly.

Decided by the General Assembly of the Association in Sandefjord on 1972-09-07 and in Aalborg on 1974-07-24.

Alteration of § 1 decided by the General Assemblies 1978 and 1980.

Statutes with alterations to §§ 1, 6, 8, 10, 11, 12 and 13 were unanimously approved by the General Assembly in Akureyri 1996.