Update on Board of Directors Election

AGWA held its Annual Members Meeting on 19 August at World Water Week in Stockholm. In previous years, participants in the meeting have taken part in voting for openings on the Board of Directors. After lengthy discussion in the preceding Board Meeting, a proposed change in the voting process was put forward. Members approved the following motion during the Annual Meeting:

“Voting on any openings on the Board of Directors shall take place virtually instead of in real-time during the Annual Members Meeting. This will take place only after any necessary information on candidates has been shared with AGWA membership to allow for a more informed voting process. Votes are still cast by general AGWA members, but participation in the Annual Members Meeting is no longer a requirement.”

Following some discussion, the motion was passed with no objections. We felt this change was needed for a number of reasons:

• This year we received an unprecedented amount of interest and nominations (23) for only two open positions.

• AGWA’s Charter was non-specific on the process of voting. This represented an opportunity to provide more structure that fits a growing organization as the needs and responsibilities of the Board evolve.

• Attendance in the Annual Members Meeting is quite small compared to the size of AGWA membership. Online voting is a more democratic process that allows for more membership engagement.

• This year the timing was such that we were unable to compile and share background material on candidates with members ahead of the planned vote at the Annual Meeting, potentially resulting in uninformed voting.

We aim to conduct the vote in the middle of September and announce results by the end of the month. A special announcement with details and instructions on voting will be shared with members in the very near future.