(Adopted by the General Assembly of the Association in Grenoble, 1975, and amended by the Assemblies in Melbourne, 2011, Prague, 2015, Kobe, 2017 and Berlin 2023.)
Statutes
I. Objectives of the Association
The International Association of Seismology and Physics of the Earth's Interior (IASPEI) is a non-governmental and non-profit organisation with the purposes:
a. To facilitate: research on theoretical, observational and applied seismology, such as the propagation of seismic waves; the discussion, design and adoption of standards for observatory practice and data storage; and generally all matters related to seismology.
b. To promote multidisciplinary research related to earthquake science, internal structure, properties and processes of the Earth
c. To initiate and coordinate the conduct and communication of related research which depends on co-operation between different countries.
d. To organise and support international conferences and meetings focusing on the above-mentioned topics and to support, including financially if the budget allows, the participation in such meetings of young researchers and of scientists from developing countries.
II. Members of the Association
Each country having adhered to the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG) is a member.
Each scientist participating in IASPEI activities and in the Scientific Assemblies is an individual IASPEI member. Any member attending the General Assemblies or participating in other activities of the Association at least once in the past ten years is considered to be an active individual member.
III. National Committees
Each National Committee for the IUGG (or national organisation adhering to IUGG) where possible should nominate a section, or sub-committee, for Seismology and Physics of the Earth's Interior. The functions of this section or sub-committee are to facilitate and co-ordinate in their respective countries the study and practice of Seismology and Physics of the Earth's Interior, in accordance with the objects of the Association. Each National Committee and the Section or Sub-Committee shall be empowered to refer to the Association matters for discussion falling within the competence of the Association.
The National Committee (or adhering organisation) names in each country a correspondent (hereafter National Correspondent), whose duty is to provide liaison between IASPEI and the Section in each country.
The National Committee, on the recommendation of the Section or Sub-Committee, nominates the delegate or delegates who shall represent it at the General Meeting of the Association. One of these delegates shall be designated as the principal delegate of the country and shall cast the vote of that country whenever a "national vote" is required (refer section VIII.2). If a National Committee does not formally appoint a delegate, the (older in age in case of two) National Correspondent(s) present at the General Meeting is the principal delegate.
Official communications sent by the International Association of Seismology and Physics of the Earth's Interior to an adhering country shall be addressed to that country's IASPEI National Correspondent or, in default, to its National Committee for the IUGG.
IV. Administration of the Association
The work of the Association shall be directed by the Association Plenary Meeting of the delegates of the Member countries of IUGG, and of the individual IASPEI members.
The Plenary Meeting of the Association shall elect the following: a President, a First and Second Vice-President, a Secretary General, a Treasurer and four additional persons. These, plus the immediate past President shall constitute the voting members of the Executive Committee of the Association.
A single person may, with the approval of the Executive Committee, be elected both Secretary General and Treasurer.
The President, the Vice-Presidents, the Secretary General and the Treasurer shall constitute the Bureau of the Association.
Elections shall be held at an Association Plenary Meeting held in conjunction with the quadrennial General Assembly of the IUGG. The President may not be re-elected to the same office, and no person may hold any one office for more than 12 consecutive years.
Should a vacancy occur among the elected offices, the Bureau shall fill the position provisionally by nomination, and an election shall be held for this office at the next General Meeting of the Association.
The transfer of duties takes place at the close of the Association Plenary Meeting at which the election occurs. The interval between successive elections (normally 4 years) is called a period.
The President, in consultation with the Executive Committee, may appoint individuals to committees as may be needed, and may approve the terms of reference of such committees.
Urgent matters arising in the interval between Association Assemblies shall be referred by the Bureau to the Executive Committee.
The Executive Committee may appoint an Associate Secretary who will be an ex-officio member of the Executive Committee, but without vote.
The Executive Committee may appoint an Association Webmaster who will be responsible for maintaining the website of the Association.
V. Secretariat
A Secretariat placed under the direction of the Secretary General shall conduct the correspondence, preserve the administrative archives, maintain a register of the National Correspondents, delegates and active membership, arrange the Association Assemblies and other meetings, and ensure the records of the Assemblies and Commission reports are preserved in an accessible web location.
VI. Budget and Finance
The financial resources of the Association are derived from: The allocation by the IUGG; The sales of publications, subscriptions, advertisements, etc.; A quota of the registration to the Association Assemblies; Grants; Contracts; Donations.
The Treasurer shall administer and disburse these resources under the direction of the Executive Committee. The administration of resources shall include the permanent delegation of authority to manage any bank accounts or investments held in the name of the Association.
The Treasurer shall alone retain responsibility toward the Association for all banking operations. As a precaution, however, the right to sign as an authorized agent for any account opened in the name of the Association shall be extended to at least one other Member of the Executive Committee.
The Treasurer shall provide annual financial reports as required by IUGG.
The Treasurer shall arrange for independent external audit of, and prepare and submit to the Association Plenary, the Accounts of Receipts and Expenditures for the preceding period, together with an estimated budget for the following financial year.
An audit committee, authorised by the Plenary Meeting shall examine the accounts prepared by the Treasurer and submitted to the Plenary Meeting for the preceding period, and give discharge to the Treasurer for those accounts.
In the event of the dissolution of the Association, its assets shall be ceded to the IUGG.
VII. General Meetings of the Association
Scientific Assemblies of the Association shall be held in conjunction with General Assemblies of the IUGG, and normally at least once between successive IUGG meetings. At least one Plenary Meeting of the Association shall be held at each Scientific Assembly.
In the intervals between the Scientific Assemblies the Association may, either separately or jointly with other Associations, hold or sponsor additional scientific meetings.
The Bureau of the Association, on the request of the majority of the members of the Executive Committee may conduct an extraordinary meeting of the National Correspondents using e-mail or web-based tools, in order to resolve an urgent question. National Correspondents shall have at least one week notice of any resolution that requires a national vote.
The agenda to be transacted at an Association Plenary Meeting held in conjunction with a Scientific Assembly is to be prepared by the Bureau and posted at least two working days before the Plenary Meeting.
The agenda may only be modified with the consent of the majority of the IASPEI members present at the Plenary Meeting.
The Executive Committee approves a Local Organising Committee for the Scientific Assemblies conducted between the General Assemblies of IUGG, on the basis of a proposal submitted by the approved hosting country.
The Scientific Programme for a Scientific Assembly is the responsibility of the Secretary-General, who will approve symposia and appoint convenors, in consultation with the Executive Committee and the Commission chairs.
Registration and abstract submission to the Scientific Assembly are open to all members of the international scientific community.
VIII. Voting
In a Plenary Meeting of the Association, two types of resolution may be put to the meeting: A. Procedural, and B. Scientific
Elections of the President and Procedural resolutions shall be decided on the basis of one vote per country present at the Association Plenary. That vote is to be exercised by the principal delegate of each country (refer paragraph III.2) or his proxy and is referred to here as a "national vote". In any vote a delegate may represent only one country.
A country that is not represented at the Association Plenary Meeting may appoint a proxy, or forward its vote, by notifying the Secretary-General in writing before the election.
Scientific resolutions and the election of the members of the Bureau and Executive Committee, apart from the President, shall be decided by a majority of the votes cast by all IASPEI members present at the Association Plenary.
The Resolutions Committee will decide which category any specific resolution falls into, before it is presented to the Association Plenary. If any principal national delegate objects to that classification, the delegate may request that a national vote be used to decide which category a specific resolution falls into, before the resolution is voted on.
When there is an equal division of votes, the President shall have a deciding vote.
The election of the President will be conducted by open ballot and requires the approval by the majority of the principal national delegates or their proxies present at the Plenary Meeting. If requested by one principal national delegate the election has to be conducted by written ballot.
The election of all other Association Offices and of the Executive Committee members will be conducted by open ballot and requires the approval by the majority of the IASPEI members present at the Plenary Meeting.
IX. Validity of Statutes
These statutes may be revised by a two-thirds majority vote of the member countries represented by principal national delegates at an Association Plenary Meeting.
The proposed revision must be posted at least one month in advance of the vote.
The English text shall be used exclusively in interpreting these statutes.
X. Commissions and Working Groups
The Association, on the recommendation of the Executive Committee, may establish Commissions to study scientific topics and to stimulate and coordinate research on specific topics or research related to a specific region.
The Association may also establish joint Commissions or Working Groups with other organisations.
Commission chairs (or co-chairs) will be nominated by the President.
Working Groups may be established or disbanded by the Commission chair, who will appoint the chair of the Working Group.
Commission and Working Group members will be invited to participate by the respective chair.
Commission or Working Group chairs shall not hold the same office for more than two periods.
Commission chairs will provide annual reports to the Secretary General (including reports on their Working Groups) prior to the Annual Bureau Meeting.
A Commission may be disbanded by decision of the Executive Committee if in the view of that Committee the Commission is no longer needed.
By-Laws
The following by-laws are established in order to provide for continuing guidance in conducting the affairs of the Association. The by-laws may be amended by majority decision of the Executive Committee.
XI. Definitions
In the context of the Statutes and By-laws, the term "posted" will be taken to indicate an e-mail sent to a prepared list of the Association National Correspondents and posted on the IASPEI web site. The term "mail" will be taken to include e-mail. The term "period" indicates the period between elections of the Association Officers, normally four years.
XII. Resolutions
Before the General Assembly, the President shall appoint a Resolutions Committee consisting of one officer of the Association and two other persons.
All resolutions to be presented at the Plenary Meeting of the Association must be transmitted in writing to the Resolutions Committee at least the day before the said meeting. It is the responsibility of the Resolutions Committee to word the resolutions consistently with the terminology of the Association and of the IUGG.
XIII. Nominations
At least two years before an election, the President shall appoint a Nominating Committee whose charge is to bring before the Plenary Meeting of the Association at the quadrennial General Assembly a slate of candidates for election to the Association Offices and the Executive Committee. The candidates for election shall be announced at least four days in advance of the Plenary Meeting.
The Nominating Committee should keep in mind the need for persons of executive ability, comprehensive scientific interests, and broad geographical representation and should consult, where possible, with former Presidents of the Association.
At the Plenary Meeting, additional nominations for each office may be made from the floor but they should reflect the same criteria that the Nominating Committee has to abide, in particular, the broad geographical representation.
XIV. Meetings of the Bureau and of the Executive Committee
The Bureau of the Association should meet at least every year. The Executive Committee should meet as often as necessary and at least once during each Association Assembly. If necessary and practicable, such meetings may be held using web-based communications, recognising that face-to-face meetings are preferable for most purposes.
The Association will normally cover Bureau travel expenses incurred for such meetings.
The president of each Regional Commission or their designee shall be invited to participate in Executive Committee meetings with consultative capacity without vote.
XV. Conduct of Meetings
Except if otherwise provided in the Statutes and By-laws, meetings shall be conducted according to Robert's Rules of Order.
