Hello Developers,
I am recycling Aaron Spike's email from the last time we went through this.
As many of you know, Inkscape is a member organization of the Software Freedom Conservancy ( http://sfconservancy.org/ ) and that we have a board. The board/committee consists of Josh Andler, Jon Cruz, Ted Gould, Bryce Harrington, Nathan Hurst, MenTaLguY and Aaron Spike. Bryce Harrington currently serves as the Representative (the official board representative on behalf of Inkscape to the SFC). Dr. Hurst had previously resigned his position on the board and Aaron has done so more recently. Therefore we must elect new committee members to fill the open spots. I will be collecting nominations through the weekend (ending Sunday, September 16th unless there is great desire for an extension to the nomination period). Anyone listed in the AUTHORS file (as of September 10, 2012) may make a nomination. Anyone listed in the AUTHORS file (as of September 10, 2012) may be nominated. Nominees are free to refuse nomination. Just as a heads up, if you use a pseudonym, you will have to sign the agreement with your legal name (not that this information gets released to the public). Note: The dates related to the AUTHORS file are to avoid anyone trying to get in at the last second, and they will always adjust with future nomination periods.
Typically the board votes on things such as project fund expenditures (travel, conferences, marketing materials for events, etc), trademark related issues (a topic currently be worked on), other legal issues that arise, etc. Our hope is that by refreshing the board, that we'll be better suited to give better guidance on items and hopefully be more effective at supporting the Inkscape project and our community as a result.
As specified in Section 6 or our charter we maintain a committee of seven project members. Section 6 reads as follows:
"6. Representation of the Project in the Conservancy. The Developers, each a signatory hereto, shall represent the Project in its official communication with the Conservancy. There shall be seven Developers (together, the "Committee"), elected by the community members of the Project listed in the Project's AUTHORS file (the "Community Members"). Each Developer shall continue to serve until he or she resigns from the position. The Developers may be removed from the position at any time by a majority vote of the Community Members. Upon the resignation or removal of a Developer, the Community Members shall elect a replacement Developer to serve on the Committee. The Committee will elect a single individual to communicate with the Conservancy (the "Representative") and shall notify the Conservancy promptly following the election of a new Representative. The Representative will have the authority to instruct the Conservancy on the Project's behalf on all matters. This section may be modified by a vote of at least 3/4 of the Community Members, with the consent of the Conservancy, such consent not to be unreasonably withheld."
The election itself will take place from the 17th through the 23rd. The process will be voting for your top two choices (all votes carry equal weight) and the two names with the most votes will be elected. Thank you to everyone for your participation.
Cheers, Josh
P.S. I have uploaded a redacted copy of the full Charter at: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/21152971/InkscapeSponsorshipAgreement-redacted.pdf (modified only for privacy reasons). We will get something more official in place soon.