Articles of Association

From Rights-Centric Education

If the Rights-Centric Education Network was a conventional, formal organization it would be easy to define how it will operate (e.g. office bearers, membership criteria, voting criteria, AGMs, etc.)'

But the Founding Members who have so far expressed an opinion, do not wish to have such an organization, and many (most?) of the Founding Members who consented to join did so on the basis that it would not be a formal organization.

How do we have a Network that is non-hierarchical (i.e. all members have equal rights of participation), inclusive (allows any one to join and benefit from membership; and for any decision, allows for participation of every member who wishes to participate), yet does not become a burden on the Members and also manages to get things done without getting bogged down?

These (DRAFT) Articles of Association are the attempt to realise this, using a sociocracy-first approach (based on consent), and resorting to majority vote if it proves necessary. We hope we can collectively create a version that all Founding Members can consent to.

The Articles of Association of the Rights-Centric Education Network, as consented to by the Founding Members, are as follows:

Name

The name of the association shall be the “Rights-Centric Education Network” (hereinafter referred to as “RCE Network”).

Nature of Association

The RCE Network is a non-hierarchical, consent-based, community of practice of human rights defenders (individuals and organizations) pulling education into alignment with the evolution of Human Rights.

It was established by a Memorandum of Association signed by 75[1] Founding Members (54 individuals and 21 organizations) over the period July 24 - October 20, 2024.

It is NOT a legally incorporated association, and has NO physical location or office.

Objective

To pull education into alignment with the evolution of Human Rights by advancing the protection and realisation of international Human Rights law (especially the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child) for, in and through education in all educational environments.

Activities

Activities of the RCE Network shall comprise of

  • Declarations[2] - Public statements calling for actions aligned to the objectives of the RCE Network.
  • Programs[3] - An agreed set of activities that Members of the RCE Network who choose to participate will follow.

There is no obligation on RCE Members to support a Declaration (they may freely decide which ones to support by Signing, Promoting, etc) or participate in a Program (they may freely decide which ones to participate in)

Membership

The Membership of the RCE Network comprises the Founding Members who established the Network, and Regular Members who joined after establishment.

There shall be no difference in benefits, obligations, opportunities for participation in programs, contribution to decision making, or any other matter between Founding Members and Regular Members, save that Founding Members' contribution to establish the community shall be recognized in their title.

Benefits of Membership

All Members are entitled to indicate their membership by using statements such as "A Member[4] of the Rights-Centric Education Network", and using the Rights-Centric Education Logo[5].

However, Members may NOT claim to speak for, represent, or be an agent of, the RCE Network. The present articles do NOT have provisions to appoint a Member as a representative or agent.[6]

Only Members shall be entitled to participate in the Programs of the RCE Network[7]

Obligations of Membership

There are NO obligations or membership criteria placed on Members.

Members are invited to contribute, to the best of their capabilities, to the Objective of the RCE Network defined above.

This includes, but is not limited to,

  • Supporting Declarations - Signing (consenting to their name being included as a signatory), Promoting, etc.
  • Participation in Programs of the RCE Network relevant to the Member;
  • Collaborating with other Members within the community of practice;
  • Explicitly referencing Human Rights law in their work;
  • Supporting the administrative work of the RCE Network

There shall be NO process of rating, ranking, comparing, or evaluating the participation of members.

There shall be NO fees levied from Members under any circumstances.

Applying for Membership

Any Individual (including children) or Organization striving to pull education into alignment with the evolution of human rights may join the RCE Network as a Member by completing the application form here.[8]

There shall be NO membership criteria that applicants are required to fulfil to obtain membership. However, prospective members may be requested to provide evidence of their identity [9]

Withdrawing from Membership

Any Member may withdraw from the RCE Network by emailing network@rights-centric.education

They shall be removed from the listing of Members on the website, and from any Members-only communication platforms.

Communication

The Communication platforms of the RCE Network shall be

Finances

Members (Individuals and Organizations) of the RCE Network may solicit funds for their expenses

  • for the maintenance of the Communication platforms of the RCE Network
  • for any other activities promoting the Objectives of the RCE Network[11]

Any Members who choose to make a contribution shall do so directly with the individual concerned - the RCE Network shall NOT receive, hold, or disburse funds.

The RCE Network shall facilitate the publication of funding requests and reporting of funds received, but shall NOT evaluate the legitimacy of the funding request nor audit/monitor the use of funds received.

Decision Making

Decision making in the RCE Network aspires to be consent-based[12], striving to be as inclusive as possible of views expressed by the Members who wish to participate in the decision, with opportunities for all Members to contribute towards dialogue.

Any Member may propose (via the Discord server, or by writing to network@rights-centric.education) a decision to be taken by the RCE Network. It is recommended, but not essential, to explore the proposal on the Discord before formally proposing it. Once requested, the proposal will be sent to the Members who have subscribed to the Announcement List

There shall be a web-based platform[13] to facilitate dialogue around the proposal. Decisions will be considered as "consented to" if there are no objections / counter proposals received for

  • 240 Hours, for Major decisions, i.e. Amendments to the Articles, to add a new Program and/or a new Declaration, discussing the content of a Program or Declaration. A reminder will be sent to the Announcement List at least 60 hours prior to the expiry of the deadline soliciting objections
  • 120 Hours, for Minor decisions, i.e. all other decisions. A reminder will be sent to the Announcement List between at least 48 hours prior to the expiry of the deadline soliciting objections

If a Member who has participated in the decision making dialogue believes that a consent-based decision is not possible, they may request for a decision by majority vote, provided that at least 480 hours of dialogue has elapsed for a Major decision, and at least 240 hours for a Minor decision. This vote will be conducted on an online platform and will run for 160 hours for a Major Decision and 72 hours for a Minor Decision. The invitation to the vote be communicated via the Announcement List. The first poll requested for a decision will also include an option to return to consent-building dialogue (for a minimum of 240 hours for a major decision and 120 hours for a Minor decision)

At any time Members may also request a non-binding poll to gauge the opinion of members, especially for the purpose of enabling disagreeing groups to construct a mutually acceptable proposal. The invitation to the poll too will be communicated via the Announcement List.

The Voting / Polling platform shall NOT be anonymous (i.e. it will be visible who voted For and Against)[14]

No decision shall be binding on Members[15], however, if Members feel they interests are no longer met by the RCE Network, or that being associated with the RCE Network is detrimental to their reputation, interests, etc, and that their attempts to resolve matters have not been addressed to their satisfaction, they may withdraw from the RCE Network

IDEA: In the event of decision making by voting, should it be only Members who are participating in at least 1 Program that are eligible to vote? Even if a Member is not participating in any Declaration or Program, they should be allowed to express their opinion in a dialogue, but in a context where that has failed to reach a decision and we have to vote, should members who are not participating in any programs be able to vote?While participating in dialogue and voting shall be open to all Members, it is recommended to allow the Members who are affected by the decision to make the decision.[16]

Dissolution

The RCE Network shall cease to exist if all members withdraw their Membership

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Numbers correct as of 2024.10.10
  2. ↑ At present we are finalising the Declaration of Child Rights-Centric Education - calling for the fundamental rework of educational practice to ensure they are consistent with human rights values and principles, especially the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
  3. ↑ RCE Programs are the initial programs envisaged
  4. ↑ or, "Founding Member"
  5. ↑ Still being developed
  6. ↑ As an example, if I (Sifaan Zavahir) make a statement that "as a Citizen of Sri Lanka I say ..." it does NOT imply that I represent the views of all citizens of Sri Lanka. Likewise if I assert something as "a Founding Member of the Rights-Centric Education Network", it does NOT imply that I represent the views of the entire network
  7. ↑ The RCE Framework is the main Program we have been working on, but the work of Sifaan (Sri Lanka), Je'anna (South Africa), Alli (Luxembourg/Europe), and previously the IDEC resolution, would be part of the Advocacy program
  8. ↑ PENDING - basically a simple form collecting the information we would like to publish; we should have in that a privacy clause that we cannot guarantee confidentiality of information and so they should only provide information they are willing to be published
  9. ↑ for example, email sent from an official email address.
  10. ↑ Should it be open to non-members, as it is at present?
  11. ↑ For example, recording and producing a documentary, writing and publishing a book, costs of participating in conferences, etc.
  12. ↑ This is not the same as consensus-based, where it requires consent from everyone; in consent-based it is sufficient if no one objects
  13. ↑ e.g. Google Docs, the RCE Wiki
  14. ↑ It is technologically possible to allow for anonymous voting, and only disclose identities if consented to, but is there are reason why Members would vote without the courage of their convictions to be identified with their vote? Also secret voting makes it harder to have confidence in the voting platform
  15. ↑ e.g. they do not have to participate in any Declaration or Program unless they wish to
  16. ↑ For example, it is preferred if a member who is not part of the RCE Framework abstain from voting on decisions regarding it (unless the decision would affect whether they would join the program or not, in which case they should vote)
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