ALARA Management Committee Meeting

ALARA Management Committee Minutes

6pm AEST 22 June 2011

Skype connection

Attendees:Colin Bradley, Pamela Kruse, Ross Colliver, Jose Ramos, John Molineaux, Robyn Lynn (Minutes)

Apologies:Claudia Gillberg, Vicki Vaarjtes

1.0Matters for Discussion / Decision

Item / Description / Action/When/Who
1. Life Membership Policy / Held over until next meeting
  1. Website Revision
/
  • Ross Colliver (RC) waiting until there is a budget to do any work to create a new website. Work to initially be done on the website is to improve the look of the homepage for the public user and along with that improving the holdings we have for action research/action learning.
  • JM suggested that we should be in a position to know the budget that is available by August. Approaches for quotes could occur after this.
  • Standing invitation from Bob Dick to move holdings on AL/AR from Griffith University to the ALARA website. This is one view of AL/AR. How do we get other members of the Action Research community to write alternative or complimentary perspectives for the site? CB suggested that we would need to catalogue the material so users could see different views on various topics. Agreed to do this as a staged approach gradually building the material. A general invitation for people to put up material would need to be vetted as this is an ALARA site.
  • Social Media
/ M’Ment C’tee members to provide RC with prospective people to approach for web development.
RC to approach various action researchers about pieces they would be prepared to provide for the website for various subjects.
Claudia Gillberg (CG) to present her ideas on ALARA’s use of Social Media to the meeting
3. Affiliation with Universit/ies /
  • Pam Kruse (PK) advised that Geoff Hill is potentially interested in going to Claudia’s University when he is in Europe in 2012. PK has sent his CV to Claudia.
/ Held over until next meeting
4. Strategic Plan /
  • There has been no feedback about the Strategic Plan. The plan has now been passed for the next three years.
/ CB to organise regular reporting on progress against the plan
5. Notification of events by fortnightly email /
  • Proposal is that RL will do fortnightly email if there is something to report. Email will be a short one with a link to the event.. In the first couple indicate that these will be fortnightly and to encourage them to advise us for the fortnightly email

  1. Privacy
/ Held over until next meeting
  1. Insurances
/
  • Paid and policy documents have been scanned. Copies available from CB. Covers us for public liability for B’ne event but won’t cover us for events outside of Australia.

2.0Regular Matters for Consideration

Item / Description / Action/When/Who
  1. Finances
-Budget 2011/12
-Business case for workshops by Jean McNiff /
  • No feedback about the budget. Budget still has the problem of losing money. Dependent on success of Australasian Conference and membership renewal
  • Jean McNiff will not be here in November as planned. She suggested that she would return in 2012. Dates are yet to be organised.
/ John Molineaux (JM) to obtain a quarterly report for the next meeting.
Colin Bradley (CB) still to have further conversations about definite dates.
  1. Publications
-Taking the Journal Online (see email from Ross) /
  • 1st choice is whether to take the journal online with no hard copy. Agreed this was the best way to go.
  • 2nd issue – should access be restricted to members only or be open access? RC recommended that the journal sit on the service provider site who maintains the software. There was discussion about what this would mean for payment arrangements. RC of the view that it would be to ALAR’s advantage to have open access. Discussion about why people would become a member without the journal. Alternative would be to have a journal subscription and no membership. Agreed on member only access.
/ RC will get a contract from the service provider for the Open Journal System.
-Australasian Conference Proceedings /
  • Transition to fully online journal –proposal is that the next edition is released online before the hard copy goes out and we advise members that it is there. For April 2012 edition we ask members if they want a hard copy and for the 2nd edition in 2012 there will be no hard copy. Agree to use this process.
  • Recommended software system and its costs. RC recommends The Open Journal System which has been going for a long time, well maintained. Requires a software expert to set it up and make adjustments on the fly. Cost to locate on their server is CAN$ 600. On our site it is $200 but it won’t have the options without paying for them and a service. Agreed to use Open Journal System as our platform and locate on outside server.
  • Working Group concerned about mixed messages as they want a participative process rather than an academic paper process. Interested in inviting people to write reflections on the conference rather than publish their presentations.C’tee would like to see draft of the invitation before it goes out.
/ CB to draft invitation and forward to organising c’tee for feedback
-World Congress Proceedings
-Journal
-Monograph / -There are 28 papers. Expect 30 or 32 to be reviewed. This is sufficient to end up with paper for publication.
  • Went out last Month
  • This was a lengthy process and is now available as No 1 of the Monograph Series. Now trying to locate a copy of Vicky Uhlmann’s Monograph done in 1995. Vicky’s and Yoland’s are No 1 and 2 of the ARCS series.
/ RC will write a note of Thanks on behalf of the C’tee to Susie
PK to locate and scan to send to CB.
  1. Australasian Conference 2011-06-
-Life Membership Proposal –
-Sponsorship
-Assistance to attend the Conference
-Promotion of Conference – Use of blogs and linked-in.com
-Australasian Conference 2012 / -PK reported that there are 6 registrations. Income is $2004. PK and colleagues have prepared an article to be published in PS news with an accompanying photo of Zhanna and Bob. A couple of the presenters have withdrawn. Still accepting late proposals. The program is being developed in streams with 45 and 90 min sessions. There will be a social gathering on Sunday night. Plenary session at beginning, mid-point and end are aimed at community building and enabling reflection.
-No response on sponsorship
-Process to get Ausaid assistance is enormous. CB Will try and find cheaper version that is less effort that could be used.
-CB suggested that PK use the ALAR group withinLinked-in. site. PK has joined the AHRI linked-in site to post advice of conference.
  • CB has spoken with NZ CARN about the 2012 conference. This is a small organization that is only 2 years old. They are offering to have a joint NZ CARN and ALARA conference in Hamilton and prepared to put up $1000 as seeding funds. Aim would be to take the work that has been done for this conference and develop the documents used into a set of tools that can be used for future conferences. Decision on this to be held over to next meeting.
/ Held over
CB to send out an email to rest of the C’tee to get their views for a decision.
11. Next World Congress / Response expected next week / Held over
12. Vacancies on MC / Need more volunteers. / JM to follow up Janet Kelly
PK to approach Elizabeth Leigh with offer from CB to talk to him.
13. Streams / Held over to next meeting
14. Membership / Nothing to report

3.0Other Matters

Item / Description / Action/When/Who
15. Date and time of next meeting / 6pm on Wednesday 27/7.

4.0Summary of Actions from meeting of 16/03/11

Item / Action / Who / When
2.Website Revision / Advise prospective people to approach for web development.
Approach to be made to various action researchers about pieces they would be prepared to provide for the website for various subjects. / From M’ment C’tee members to RC
RC / By the next meeting
4. Strategic Plan / Organise regular reporting on progress against the plan / CB / Each meeting
8. Finances / Quarterly report to be provided for the next meeting
Further conversations to be had with Jean McNiff about possible dates for 2012. / JM
CB / Next Meeting
9. Publications / Contract from the service provider for the Open Journal System to take the journal online
Invitation for contributions to Australasian Conference proceedings to be drafted and forwarded to organising c’tee for feedback
A note of thanks for the April journal to be sent to Susan Goff
Obtain and scan a copy of Vicky Uhlmann’s monograph published in 1995. PK to send to CB / RC
CB
RC
PK / ASAP
By next organising c’tee meeting
ASAP
ASAP
10.. Australasian Conference / Email to be sent to the rest of the C’tee to get their views about a joint NZ CARN and ALARA conference for 2012. / CB / ASAP
12. Vacancies on MC / Follow up with possible people / JM and PK / ASAP

Meeting closed at 7.43pm AEST

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