Articles of Association
Articles of Association (DRAFT)
The Articles of Association of the Rights-Centric Education Network, as consented 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) striving to align education to the evolution of Human Rights.
It was established by a Memorandum of Association signed by X1 Founding Members (X2 individuals and X3 organizations) over the period July 24 - October 20, 2024.
It is NOT a legally incorporated association, and has NO physical location or office.
Its virtual location shall be the website https://www.rights-centric.education
Objective
The objective of the RCE Network is to advance the protection and realisation of international human rights law (especially the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child) in all educational environments (prioritising institutions established for the provision of Education).
Activities
The initial activities of the RCE Network shall be
- A Declaration, the "Declaration on Child Rights in Education"[1], calling for the fundamental rework of educational practice to respect, protect and fulfil the Rights of the Child
- A Program, the Rights-Centric Education Framework, for educational environments to report on their progress in respecting, protecting and fulfilling the Rights of the Child
- A Program, the Right-Centric Education Policy Advocacy, for supporting advocacy to align local-, national- or regional-, or international-level policy to respect, protect and fulfil Human Rights to, in, and through Education.
Membership
The Membership of the RCE Network comprises the Founding Members who established the community of practice, and 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 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[2] of the Rights-Centric Education Network", and using the Rights-Centric Education Logo. However, Members may NOT claim to speak for, or represent, the RCE Network as there is no provision to appoint representatives.
Membership shall be required to participate in the Programs of the RCE Network[3]
Obligations of Membership
Members are expected to contribute, to the best of their capabilities, to the Objective of the RCE Network defined above.
This includes, but is not limited to,
- 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. However, Members are welcome to contribute towards the expenses of the RCE Network.
Applying for Membership
Any Individual (including children) or Organization striving to align education to the evolution of human rights may join the RCE Network as a Member by completing the application form here.[4]
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 [5]
Withdrawing from Membership
Any Founding Member or 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.
Decision Making
Decision making in the RCE Network shall be consent-based, striving to be as inclusive as possible of views expressed, with opportunities for all Members to contribute towards dialogue.
There shall be NO formal decision making process (e.g. decisions based on majority vote). It is presumed that views of Members who contribute more actively to the objectives of the RCE Network will organically (but without formal process) be taken more seriously.
For decisions of greater consequence (such as amendments to these Articles of Association), there shall be additional efforts to support inclusion (such as polls to gauge opinions).
As all Members benefit when the RCE Network is stronger (more Members, more active participation) the "checks-and-balance" mechanism will be that non-inclusive decisions will lead to Members withdrawing their membership and the disintegration of the Network.
Dissolution
The RCE Network shall cease to exist if all members withdraw their Membership
Footnotes
- ↑ We may have other declarations in the future, e.g. on environmental rights
- ↑ or, "Founding Member"
- ↑ 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
- ↑ 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
- ↑ for example, email sent from an official email address.
