Best practices for EGU committees, groups, and Early Career Scientists

10 February 2023

4. Best practices for EGU committees, groups, and Early Career Scientists
   1. Publications Committee
      • Objectives
      • Membership and terms of office
      • Authorities and duties
      • Practices and procedures
      • Editorial boards
   2. Outreach Committee
      • Target groups
      • Membership and nomination
      • Terms of office
      • Authority and duties of the committee and its members
      • Meetings
      • Reporting
   3. Topical Events Committee
      • Objectives
      • Target groups
      • Membership and nomination
      • Terms of office
      • Authority and duties of the committee and its members
      • Meetings
      • Reporting
   4. Education Committee
      • Objectives
      • Target groups
      • Membership and nomination
      • Terms of office
      • Authority and duties of the committee and its members
      • Meetings
      • Reporting
   5. Programme Committee
      • Objectives
      • Membership and terms of office
      • Meetings
   6. Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee
      • Objectives
      • Authority and duties of the group and its members
      • Meetings
      • Reporting
   7. Finance Committee
      • Objectives
      • Membership and nominations
      • Terms of office
      • Authorities and duties
      • Requirements and assets for the Treasurer
      • Meetings
      • Reporting
      • Auditors
   8. Early Career Scientists network
      • Objectives
      • Membership and target group
      • Terms of office
      • Attributes
      • Authority and duties of the ECS network and its members
      • Meetings
      • Reporting

Objectives

The main objective of the Publications Committee is to support the scientific mission of the Union by facilitating timely scientific publications according to the highest scientific and ethical standards. Specific objectives include ensuring the efficient operation of existing EGU journals and other scientific publishing outlets of the EGU (book series, web servers, etc.) and co-ordinating the proposal of new journals and other publication outlets.

Membership and terms of office

The Publications Committee consists of a chair and the chief/executive editors of the EGU journals. Representatives of the EGU Executive Board (president, vice-president, treasurer, general secretary, executive secretary) and of the publisher(s) (one per company) are ex-officio members.

The chair is suggested by the Publications Committee to the EGU President for approval by the Council. The Council appoints the Publications Committee Chair for a term of three years. Re-appointments are possible, but the number of consecutive terms is limited to two. The EGU executive secretary notifies the appointed chair on behalf of the EGU.

Members of the Publications Committee are the journal executive committee members, who are appointed by the Council. Nominations of new committee members are made by the current journal executive committees to the Publications Committee.

Nomination proposals should demonstrate that the candidate

• is an established scientist in the field of the journal and
• has strong links to the journal-relevant science community.

In addition, nomination criteria include

• knowledge of and prior engagement with the relevant EGU community
• familiarity with and support of the EGU open-access interactive publishing model and
• prior editorial experience, ideally in an EGU journal.

The Publications Committee evaluates the nominations and proposes suitable candidates to the Council for final approval for a term of five years. Re-appointments as well as shortenings of terms are possible subject to publication performance, re-evaluation by the Publications Committee, and approval by the Council. The EGU executive secretary notifies the appointed/dismissed journal executive committee member on behalf of the EGU.

Authorities and duties

The tasks and responsibilities of the Publications Committee comprise the co-ordination of existing and new publications, the nomination of chief/executive editors for approval by the Council, and the discussion of publication budgets and service charges. Adjustment of service charges and the provision of financial support for individual publications are proposed by the Publications Committee for approval by the Council.

Practices and procedures

The Publications Committee typically conducts in-person meetings at least twice a year. During these meetings, the chief/executive editors report on the status of each EGU journal, exchange information and best practices related to journal management, and discuss any issues that have arisen. The publisher reports on the financial health of the journals and technical aspects related to the editorial system. In addition to the in-person meetings, the Publications Committee interacts frequently via its dedicated EGU forum.

To address specific tasks or issues raised during the Committee’s meetings, task teams consisting of a subset of the committee can be formed. These task teams typically produce a detailed proposal to address the issue at hand, which is then presented to the entire committee for discussion.

The Publications Committee reports, via its chair, to the Council. This includes written reports after in-person meetings of the committee and more informal reports during meetings and teleconferences.

Editorial boards

Each EGU journal is governed by an editorial board, which is responsible for the efficient operation of the journal and for maintaining high scientific and ethical standards. Each editorial board consists of two or more chief/executive editors and a much larger number of topical/associate editors who are appointed by the chief/executive editors for a term of three years. Re-appointments as well as shortenings of terms are possible subject to publication and editor performance. The chief/executive editors inform the EGU executive secretary and publisher of changes in editorial board membership. Any member of the scientific community can be nominated or self-nominate for membership on an editorial board.

The Outreach Committee co-ordinates the outreach activities of the EGU. The scope of these activities includes, but is not limited to, those stated in by-laws 1.5 and 1.6 of the Union, and is defined as follows:

• To identify and highlight societal challenges that can be addressed by the scientific work of the EGU membership and to harness the expertise of the EGU membership to address societal needs.
• To increase public awareness of the scientific work of the EGU membership and to facilitate the broad dissemination of information beyond the geoscience community.
• To establish and strengthen links between the EGU membership and policy- and decision-makers, primarily but not exclusively in Europe, for the mutual benefit of both parties.
• To facilitate interactions and the transfer of information within the geoscience community by means other than scientific meetings and publications, such as newsletters, websites, data portals, bulletins, blogs, and social media.
• To encourage interaction with other parties interested in the Union and its activities.
• To promote the geosciences beyond the scope set by the statutes and by-laws of the Union.

Target groups

• The membership of the Union and its component groups
• Geoscientists who are not Union members
• National or international geoscience societies, agencies, and enterprises, both within and outside Europe
• People, institutions, organisations, or scientific unions engaged in fields other than the geosciences, both within and outside Europe
• Decision-makers, the working media, and the non-scientific public, primarily but not exclusively in Europe

Membership and nomination

The Outreach Committee is constituted as follows:

• A chair, appointed by the Council.
• A minimum of five, and a maximum of ten, expert members appointed by the Council to cover the key domains of outreach activities pursued by the Union. Of these, two should be active members of the Council and one must be an ECS according to the Union’s definition.
• The members of the EGU Executive Board are ex-officio members of the Committee.
• The relevant EGU office staff members are ex-officio members of the Committee.
• The chairs of the Education and Topical Events committees are ex-officio members.

Terms of office

The Outreach Committee Chair has a two-year term, renewable once. The terms of voting committee members are two years, renewable once. Past chairs of the committee can serve one two-year term as a committee member after their final term as chair.

Authority and duties of the committee and its members

The Outreach Committee monitors, co-ordinates, and facilitates the outreach activities of the Union. It takes instructions from, and reports to, the Council. The objectives and activities of the committee are defined by the committee in dialogue with Council and are to be approved by Council before relevant action is undertaken. To help the committee achieve its objectives, it can avail itself of a working budget, to be approved annually by the Council.

The committee chair is responsible for the proper and efficient management and functioning of the committee and its activities, providing support and supervision to the members of the committee, and representing the committee elsewhere. To help discharge these duties, the chair may appoint a deputy and a committee secretary and delegate responsibilities.

Appointed committee members have the responsibility to support the committee chair in their tasks. They may be charged with individual tasks and responsibilities, especially when these fall within their field of competence or expertise. They report to the committee.

Ex-officio committee members may advise and inform committee activities but are not normally expected to take on tasks other than those that fall within the remit of their principal office within the Union.

Committee decisions require a simple majority vote of the appointed members who are present. When the votes on each side of a decision are equally balanced, the vote of the chair prevails. A quorum of 50% of appointed membership votes is required for any committee decision to be valid. Voting is by show of hands, when the committee is in session, and by forum at other times. Ex-officio committee members do not have the right to vote on committee decisions. However, it is customary that the chair allows the ex-officio members to indicate their position on a decision in the same way as voting members of the committee.

Meetings

The EGU Outreach Committee meets at least twice per year, typically before the autumn session of the Council and during the General Assembly of the Union. The objective of these meetings is to monitor, co-ordinate, and facilitate ongoing outreach activities of the Union and to define and realise future outreach activities and initiatives. Further meetings of the committee or its task groups can be called as the need arises. Where possible, these additional meetings may be conducted using remote communication tools.

Reporting

The committee submits a written report to the EGU Council at least once per year. This report must contain an essential summary of the outreach activities undertaken in the current annual cycle and their outcomes, and a proposal for activities in the next annual cycle with the required financial, logistic, and administrative support. The report is to be submitted to the EGU general secretary in time for inclusion in the agenda of the autumn session of the EGU Council. In addition, oral reports are given at each Council meeting and a short, written report may be given if required.

Objectives

In addition to the General Assembly, EGU can organise and/or support conferences and training schools. The EGU meetings programme is dedicated to the pursuit of progress in all areas of the Earth, planetary, and space sciences through the co-sponsoring of meetings. The Topical Events Committee oversees the meetings programme of the EGU apart from the General Assembly.

These events may receive support from the EGU, but the financial risk and responsibility lies with the main organiser of the conference, with the exception of the Galileo Conferences.

The portfolio of EGU meeting programme includes:

• EGU Galileo Conferences
• EGU Conference Series
• EGU Training Schools Series
• Co-sponsored Training Schools

Proposals for financial support of events are sought by open calls. The deadlines for applications are at the end of February and 15 August for the Galileo Conferences and the Training Schools/Conference Series, respectively.

The Topical Events Committee reviews the proposals and presents them to the Council at the autumn Council meeting.

The Topical Events Committee approves the events within its budget approved by the Council.

Target groups

The EGU topical events are open to members of the Union as well as to other geoscientists who are not Union members. The applicants must be EGU members.

Membership and nomination

The Topical Events Committee is constituted as follows:

• A chair, appointed by the Council.
• A minimum of four, and a maximum of six, Council members appointed by the EGU Council to cover the key scientific domains of the Union.
• One member appointed by the EGU Council who is responsible for co-ordinating the Galileo Conferences.
• The members of the EGU Executive Board are ex-officio members of the Committee.
• The relevant EGU office staff members are ex-officio members of the Committee.
• The chairs of the Education and Outreach committees are ex-officio members.

Terms of office

The committee chair has a two-year term, renewable once. The terms of voting committee members are two years, renewable once. Past chairs of the committee can serve one two-year term as a committee member after their final term as chair.

Authority and duties of the committee and its members

The Topical Events Committee co-ordinates the meetings programme of the EGU apart from the General Assembly. The committee reviews the events in the Conference series and the Training schools series every four years. It suggests removing existing events in the series and including new ones based on proposals from the EGU membership.

Galileo Conferences, co-sponsored training schools, and new conferences and Training schools series are selected based on an open call on the EGU website. Proposals are then assigned to committee members who seek at least two reviews for each proposal. Based on the reviews, the committee members rank the proposals assigned to them. Based on the rankings, the committee chair then prepares a list of the proposals to be funded and circulates it for consultation to the committee members. The number of funded proposals depends on the budget approved annually by Council in autumn. After possible consolidation by the committee, the committee chair forwards the final list of proposals to be funded to the EGU office for implementation. The Committee can co-ordinate other meetings when instructed by the EGU Council.

The Topical Events Committee takes instructions from, and reports to, the EGU Council. The objectives and activities of the committee are defined by the committee, in dialogue with Council, and are to be approved by Council before relevant action is undertaken.

The committee chair is responsible for the proper and efficient management and functioning of the committee and its activities, providing support and supervision to the members of the committee, and representing the committee elsewhere. To help discharge these duties, the chair appoints a deputy and may appoint a Committee secretary and delegate responsibilities.

Appointed committee members have the responsibility to support the committee chair in their tasks. They may be charged with individual tasks and responsibilities, especially when these fall within their field of competence or expertise. They report to the committee.

Ex-officio committee members may advise and inform committee activities but are not normally expected to take on tasks other than those that fall within the remit of their principal office within the Union.

Committee decisions require a simple majority vote of the present appointed members. When the votes on each side of a decision are equally balanced, the vote of the chair prevails. A quorum of 50% of appointed membership votes is required for any committee decision to be valid. Voting is by show of hands, when the Committee is in session, and by forum at other times. Ex-officio committee members do not have the right to vote on committee decisions. However, it is customary that the chair allows the ex-officio members to indicate their position on a decision in the same way as voting members of the committee.

Meetings

The Committee meets at least twice per year. The objective of these meetings is to monitor, co-ordinate, and facilitate events in the EGU meetings programme. Further meetings of the committee or its working parties can be called as the need arises. If feasible, these additional meetings may be conducted by remote communication tools.

Reporting

The committee submits a written report to the EGU Council at least once per year. This report must contain an essential summary of the meeting programme and other activities undertaken in the current annual cycle and their outcomes, and a proposal for the meeting programme and other activities in the next annual cycle with the required financial (budget), logistic, and administrative support. The report is to be submitted to the EGU general secretary in time for inclusion in the agenda of the autumn session of the EGU Council. In addition, oral reports are given at each Council meeting, and a short, written report may be given if required.

Objectives

The Education Committee organises the educational activities of the EGU. The scope of these activities includes, but is not limited to, those stated in by-laws 1.5 and 1.6 of the Union, and is defined as follows:

• To promote and support geoscience education at all levels across Europe and beyond
• To raise the profile of education within the EGU, its Council, committees, divisions, and membership
• To publicise the educational activities of the EGU

Target groups

Educators across Europe and beyond, particularly:

• Teachers of geoscience in schools and colleges with strong geoscience backgrounds;
• Teachers of science or geography with some geoscience in their teaching, but who have weak geoscience backgrounds;
• Teachers of geoscience in Higher Education (HE);
• Providers of informal geoscience education (in collaboration with the EGU Outreach Committee);
• Researchers into geoscience education;
• The membership of the Union.

Membership and nomination

The Education Committee is to be constituted as follows:

• A chair, appointed by the EGU Council.
• A vice-chair
• A secretary
• A minimum of five voting members after general calls to the EGU membership; co-opted members as appropriate
• The members of the EGU Executive Board are ex-officio members of the Committee.
• The relevant EGU office staff members are ex-officio members of the Committee.
• The chairs of the Outreach and Topical Events committees are ex-officio members.

Terms of office

The committee chair has a two-year term, renewable twice. The term of committee members is two years.

Authority and duties of the committee and its members

The Education Committee monitors, organises, and facilitates the educational activities of the Union. It takes instructions from, and reports to, the EGU Council. The objectives and activities of the committee are defined by the committee, in dialogue with Council, and are approved by Council before relevant action is undertaken. To help the committee achieve its objectives, it can avail itself of a working budget, to be approved annually by the EGU Council.

The committee chair is responsible for the proper and efficient management and functioning of the committee and its activities, providing support and supervision to the members of the committee, and representing the committee elsewhere. To help discharge these duties, the chair may appoint a deputy and a committee secretary and delegate responsibilities.

Appointed and co-opted committee members have the responsibility to support the committee chair in their tasks. They may be charged with individual tasks and responsibilities, especially when these fall within their field of competence or expertise. They report to the committee.

Committee decisions require a simple majority vote of the appointed members who are present. When the votes on each side of a decision are equally balanced, the vote of the chair prevails. Voting is by show of hands or by secret ballot, when the group meets either in-person or virtually, and by forum at other times. Ex-officio members do not have the right to vote on committee decisions. However, it is customary that the chair allows the ex-officio members to indicate their position on a decision in the same way as voting members of the committee.

Ex-officio committee members may advise and inform committee activities but are not normally expected to take on tasks other than those that fall within the remit of their principal office within the Union.

The committee maintains the education pages of the EGU website with the support of EGU office staff. It uploads information relating to each GIFT workshop to make this available widely. Further relevant information is uploaded as appropriate.

Meetings

The Committee normally meets at least twice per year, usually before the autumn session of the EGU Council and during the General Assembly of the Union. The objective of these meetings is to monitor, co-ordinate, and facilitate the ongoing educational activities of the Union and to define and realise future educational activities and initiatives. Further meetings of the committee or its working parties can be called as the need arises. Where possible, these additional meetings may be conducted remotely.

Reporting

The Committee submits a written report to the EGU Council annually. This report contains a summary of the ongoing educational proposals for future activities with the required financial, logistic, and administrative support. The report is submitted to the EGU general secretary for inclusion in the agenda of the autumn session of the EGU Council. In addition, oral reports are given at each Council meeting, and a short, written report may be given if required.

Objectives

The Programme Committee co-ordinates the annual EGU General Assembly according to EGU’s by-laws. In doing so, the committee aims to:

• Provide a forum where scientists can present their work and discuss their ideas with experts in all fields of the Earth, planetary, and space sciences;
• Provide a safe, open, accessible, and respectful environment for participants;
• In cooperation with the Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee, foster diversity among conveners, attendees, and presenters with respect to, among others, career stage, gender (identity), geography, and scientific approaches; and
• Minimise the environmental impact of the General Assembly.

The logistical aspects of the organisation of the General Assembly are handled by the meeting organiser. The Programme Committee takes care of the scientific organisation of the General Assembly, including:

• Building a session programme that covers all disciplines in the Earth, planetary, and space sciences, ensuring cooperation, minimising similarity, and achieving the best schedule; and
• Assisting conveners at all stages of session organisation.

The Programme Committee Chair ensures close communication on all matters relevant to the General Assembly with the meeting organiser, pertinent EGU officers, and EGU office staff.

Membership and terms of office

The Programme Committee has the following composition:

• A chair, appointed by the EGU Council. Appointment is for a term of two years, renewable once.
• The EGU Executive Board.
• The Programme Group Chair of each EGU division.
• A secretary, appointed by the Programme Committee from among its members.
• The following Programme Committee Officers, appointed by Council:
  • The EGU ECS Union Representative, who is also the Short Course Programme Group Co-chair.
  • Short Course Programme Group Chair.
  • Inter- and Transdisciplinary Sessions Programme Group Chair.
  • Education and Outreach Programme Group Chairs (the chairs of the Education and Outreach committees).
  • Travel Support Officer, for co-ordination of the Roland Schlich travel support scheme for participation in the General Assembly.
  • Head of Communications.
  • Media Relations Manager.
  • Outstanding Student and PhD candidate Presentation Awards Co-ordinator.

Programme Committee Officer positions can be created or discontinued by Council decision.

The Copernicus Managing Director and the Copernicus Meetings Conference Manager are invited to Programme Committee meetings.

Meetings

The committee meets in autumn (session programme building), in late winter (session scheduling), and at the feedback meeting typically held on the last afternoon at in-person General Assemblies. During the remainder of the year, the committee communicates through the EGU Programme Committee forum. Voting in the committee is by show of hands or secret ballot during in-person or virtual meetings, and by forum voting during the rest of the year.

Objectives

The main objective of the Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee (EDI Committee) is to support and advise on the scientific mission of the EGU by promoting and supporting equality, diversity, and inclusion of opportunities in the Earth, planetary, and space sciences. The EDI Committee works with particular focus on EGU activities.

The scope of these activities includes, but is not limited to, those stated in the by-laws of the Union.

The tasks and responsibilities of the EDI Committee comprise the co-ordination of existing and new activities defined as follows:

• Promote the EGU vision to pursue equality, diversity, and inclusion of opportunities with an integrated, co-ordinated, constructive, and exciting approach.
• Raise the awareness of the scientific community on the inspiring value of diversity.
• Organise sessions and meetings dedicated to equality and diversity issues during the EGU General Assembly, as well as at other conferences and meetings organised by EGU and its sibling organisations.
• After delegation, represent EGU on relevant initiatives focusing on diversity, inclusivity and equality in science.
• Provide constructive suggestions and ideas to the EGU Council to promote equality, diversity, and inclusion.
• Work closely and constructively with EGU structures (board/committees) to find solutions and/or optimise processes and procedures to fully integrate EDI considerations in a fully transparent approach.

The EDI Committee works with the EGU Council as an advisory entity. It is responsible for providing suggestions, recommendations, and reviews to EGU Council.

Membership and terms of office

The EDI Committee is constituted as follows:

• A chair or co-Chairs, appointed by the EGU Council for a term of two years, renewable once.
• A minimum of five, and a maximum of fifteen, members are appointed by the EGU Council to cover the key domains pursued by the Union. Members are appointed for a term of two years by the EGU Council. Three of the members should be members of the EGU Council, and two must be ECS, according to the Union definition of ECS (Union-level ECS Representative is a default, but delegation is possible). Their term is two years and renewable once.
• The members of the EGU Executive Board are ex-officio members of the EDI Committee.
• The relevant EGU office staff members are ex-officio members of the EDI Committee.
• The chairs of equivalent working groups at sibling organisations are ex-officio members of the EDI Committee (by invitation).

The EDI Committee membership should reflect diverse backgrounds to ensure wide range of views.

Members of the EDI Committee are either nominated or self-nominated through a motivation letter sent to the EDI Committee Chair or co-Chairs. The EDI Committee evaluates the nominations and proposes suitable candidates to the Council for final approval. Re-appointments, as well as shortenings of terms, are possible, subject to approval by the Council.

Authority and duties of the Committee and its members

The EDI Committee monitors, co-ordinates, and facilitates equality, diversity, and inclusion activities of the Union. It follows guidance from, and reports to, the EGU Council. The objectives and activities of the EDI Committee are defined in dialogue with Council and are to be approved by Council before new actions are undertaken.

The EDI Committee Chair or co-Chairs are responsible for the proper and efficient management and functioning of the Committee and its activities, providing support and supervision to the members, and representing the Committee elsewhere. To help discharge these duties, the chairs may suggest to Council to appoint a deputy or deputies and a Committee secretary and delegate responsibilities.

Appointed Committee members have the responsibility to support the EDI Committee Chair or co-Chairs in their tasks. They may be charged with individual tasks and responsibilities, especially when these fall within their field of competence and interest. They report to the EDI Committee.

Ex-officio members may advise and inform activities but are not normally expected to take on tasks other than those that fall within the remit of their responsibilities.

EDI Committee decisions require a simple majority vote of the appointed members who are present. When the votes on each side of a decision are equally balanced, the vote of the chair or co-Chairs prevail. Voting is by show of hands or anonymous ballot, when the Committee is meeting in person, and by email at other times. Ex-officio members do not have the right to vote on Committee decisions. However, it is customary that the chairs allows the ex-officio members to indicate their position on a decision in the same way as voting members of the Committee.

Meetings

The EDI Committee typically conducts in-person meetings at least once a year, generally during the General Assembly. The objective of these meetings is to monitor, co-ordinate, and facilitate the ongoing activities and to define and realise future activities and initiatives. Further meetings of the EDI Committee or its task forces can be called as the need arises. Where possible, these additional meetings may be conducted using remote communication tools.

Reporting

The EDI Committee submits a written report to the EGU Council at least twice a year. This report must contain an essential summary of the activities undertaken in the current annual cycle and their outcomes. A proposal for activities in the next annual cycle is also included, with special details regarding any activity that may entail financial, logistic, and administrative support. In addition, oral reports are given by the chair or co-Chairs at Council meetings when invited and a short, written report may be given if required.

Objectives

The Finance Committee outlines the financial and fiscal strategy and policy of EGU in agreement and compliance with the philosophy and ethical principles of the EGU as a bottom-up organisation.

The Finance Committee oversees the daily financial situation of the Union with the assistance of the relevant staff members of the EGU Office. It is responsible for tax declarations of the Union and for the organisation of the annual audit of the accounts of the Union, including its reporting to the Plenary at the General Assembly of the Union and the discharge of the Executive Board.

The Finance Committee is responsible for collecting the budget requests of the EGU, its committees and groups and for advising the Council on all budget-related items within the overall financial framework and strategy of the Union. With the assistance of the relevant staff members of the EGU Office, the Finance Committee monitors the incomes and the expenses of the Union to safeguard the financial stability and resilience of the Union.

The Finance Committee oversees the evolution of the finances of the Union and its internal and external financial flows within the framework of the financial strategy of the Union. In order to fully exert its duties in the interest of the financial robustness of the Union, the Finance Committee can seek advice from independent financial experts external to the Union and from Union members with acknowledged financial expertise.

Membership and nominations

The Finance Committee is constituted as follows:

• The Treasurer as Chair
• A Deputy Chair appointed by the Council
• The members of the EGU Executive Board are members of the Committee
• The chairs of the Programme Committee and the Publications Committee are members of the Committee
• The relevant EGU office staff members are ex-officio members of the Committee

Terms of office

The terms of office of the Chair and of the members of the EGU Executive Board shall coincide with their term of office as an elected officer of the Union. The Deputy Chair has a two-year term, renewable once. The term of office of the chairs of the Programme Committee and the Publications Committee shall coincide with their term of office as appointed committee chairs.

Authorities and duties

The Finance Committee Chair is responsible for the proper and efficient management and functioning of the committee and its activities, providing support and supervision to the members of the committee, and representing the committee elsewhere. On proposal of the Finance Committee Chair, the Council can appoint a Deputy Chair to help discharge these duties. The Chair can appoint a Committee Secretary and delegate responsibilities.

Committee members have the responsibility to support the Committee Chair in their tasks. They may be charged with individual tasks and responsibilities, especially when these fall within their field of competence or expertise. They report to the Committee.

The Chair of the Finance Committee is allowed to invite third parties as ex-officio members to attend the meetings of the committee if their field of competence or expertise is relevant to the activities of the committee and their contribution is deemed essential to the functioning of the committee and the achievement of its goals.

Given the delicate nature and special character of the subjects under discussion, the Finance Committee members should observe a strict rule of confidentiality and avoid conflicts of interest as to safeguard the Union's interests.

Requirements and assets for the Treasurer

Tasks

The Treasurer chairs the Finance Committee and is, together with the members of the committee, responsible for overseeing the finances of the Union and for proposing the Union's annual budget to the Council.

Requirements

• Have a thorough knowledge about the Union's structure and its functioning
• Show corporate memory and sense
• Follow-up closely the financial status and operations of the Union's entities
• Practice an equitable and transparent but strict financial discipline
• Communicate transparently with all the Union's entities
• Cooperate closely with the Union's Office staff, EGU tax adviser and lawyer and with the Union's service provider Copernicus GmbH
• Adhere to the ethical and philosophical principles of the Union
• Integrity and discretion are of paramount importance.

Assets

• Have experience in the management of a similar organization or appropriate equivalent
• Possess good knowledge about the general principles of NPOs and their functioning
• Show general knowledge about the financial market and its functioning
• Be aware of the basic principles about investments and their ethical aspects
• Be acquainted with the financial and fiscal rules as well as corporates in Germany and Bavaria
• Willing to follow or having followed (basic) financial management courses.

Meetings

The Finance Committee meets at least twice per year:

• the Spring meeting of the Committee will be dedicated to the analysis and reporting of all accounts of the previous year of all entities of the Union with inclusion of the results of the Audit of the Union's finances by the Auditors as well as to the tax declaration imposed by the Authorities
• the Fall meeting of the Committee will be dedicated to the analysis of and advice on all budget proposals of the entire Union.

Further meetings of the committee or its working parties can be called as the need arises.

All meetings may be conducted by remote communication tools.

Reporting

The Finance Committee submits a written report to the EGU Council at least once a year. This report must contain an essential summary of the activities undertaken in the current annual cycle and their outcomes as well as a proposal for the activities in the next annual cycle with the required financial, logistic and administrative support. In addition, oral reports are given at each Council meeting and a short written report may be given if required.

Auditors

Two auditors are appointed by the Plenary for a term of two years. Auditors must verify the properly-maintained accounting for factual and legal accuracy, but they do not need to conduct a suitability check with respect to specific items.

Terms of Reference

Function

• The function of the cash auditors is restricted to an examination and commentary on the EGU accounts and financial flows.
• Their role is incompatible with any governance function within EGU.
• The candidacy of the cash auditors is approved by the EGU Council.
• The cash auditors are appointed by the Plenary for a renewable period of two years.

Requirements

• The cash auditors should comply with the highest ethical standards.
• The function requires an understanding of management and financial practices.
• The cash auditors should have a general knowledge about the financial market and its functioning, and should show good knowledge about the general principles of NPOs and their functioning.
• The cash auditors report back to the Plenary.

Objectives

To foster collaboration and participation in the EGU Early Career Scientists (ECS) network in order to create a broad, open, and inclusive ECS community.

Membership and target group

ECS members are represented within the EGU by ECS representatives, both at the division and at the Union levels. While the division ECS representatives gather feedback from early career researchers in their divisions, the Union-level ECS Representative and their deputy gather information from ECS division representatives and take it to the Programme Committee and Council, ensuring the needs of ECS are met at the General Assembly and throughout the year.

The Union-level ECS representative is a voting member of the EGU Council and is elected by the members during the EGU elections. The Union-level ECS Representative is also a member of the EGU Programme Committee, Outreach Committee and the EDI Committee and serves as the Programme Group Co-chair for EGU Short Courses.

ECS representatives (i) serve as the voices of the ECS membership within EGU; (ii) connect ECS online and offline; and (iii) stimulate active participation of ECS within the EGU.

Terms of office

The ECS representatives at the division level serve a two-year term, and are able to serve for a maximum of two terms. ECS representatives can operate in pairs, alternating a 1-year term as an ECS representative and vice-ECS representative.

The Union-level ECS Representative is elected for a two-year period where they first serve for one year as the Union-level ECS vice-Representative and then serve a following one-year term as the Union-level ECS Representative.

Candidates for Union-level ECS Representative are selected according to the following criteria:

• The candidate must be an early career scientist at the start of their term as Union-level ECS Representative, as per the EGU definition of early career scientist.
• The candidate has previous experience in community service for early career scientists.

Community service for early career scientists could include, but is not limited to:

• Volunteering for geoscience-related outreach, education, and public engagement activities.
• Active participation or leadership roles in geoscience-focused groups, societies, or committees.
• Contributions to geoscience communication efforts, such as writing for community blogs, participating in science communication platforms, or organizing public science events.

Attributes

Anyone that applies for, or is nominated to be, an ECS representative must be both an ECS (according to the official definition) and an EGU member. The Union-level ECS Representative is elected each year by the division ECS representatives.

Authority and duties of the ECS network and its members

ECS representatives should be aware of the EGU’s activities and how the Union functions as well as work to promote and develop the values and vision of the Union.

ECS representatives are the vital link between the Union and its ECS members. Their volunteer activities are geared toward creating and highlighting helpful resources and opportunities for ECS, as well as ensuring their needs are met both at the General Assembly and throughout the year. They can transfer relevant information and share their resources with the larger ECS community. They also organise events, commonly targeted at ECS, and report feedback to the EGU divisions and Council. They are responsible for co-ordinating and promoting ECS-related activities within each division, which can include, but are not limited to: organising events for ECS at the General Assembly; outreach to the ECS community and the wider public through social media or a division blog; sustaining and creating ECS-related events and resources and highlighting them on EGU ECS media; and establishing a mentoring programme for other ECS.

All ECS representatives help make the group’s long-term goals a reality, and many ECS representatives join task forces to implement strategic priorities, as outlined in their vision and strategy. These task forces provide a platform for increasing engagement and interaction between ECS representatives and give more transparency to ECS activities, with the goal of creating a more inclusive community.

Meetings

The ECS representatives typically meet quarterly online via remote communication tools and in-person twice per year: once during the planner workshop the weekend prior to the EGU General Assembly and once during summer for an organisational workshop. The Union-level ECS Representative is responsible for organising these meetings with the division ECS representatives so they are kept abreast of developments within EGU and can then report back to the ECS community in their respective divisions. All ECS representatives commit to preparing for, and attending, these meetings.

These meetings serve as a way to give important updates on EGU ECS-related news and activities, as well as to discuss how the representatives can best serve their community. ECS representatives also actively engage in discussion and project planning with each other through online EGU-hosted forums to sustain communication with ECS members of their division. Additionally, it is desirable that ECS representatives are able to participate in ECS-related events at the EGU General Assembly.

Reporting

The Union-level ECS Representative and their deputy submit, on the behalf of all ECS division representatives a written report to the EGU Council at least once per year. This report must contain a summary of the activities undertaken in the current annual cycle and their outcomes, and a proposal for activities in the next annual cycle with details of the necessary associated financial, logistic, and administrative support. The report is to be submitted to the EGU general secretary in time for inclusion in the agenda of the autumn session of the EGU Council. In addition, oral reports are given at each Council meeting.