Ok, here's a third cut at this. It's pretty similar to the second cut
except that I added a section for group management with a brief
introduction and a place-holder pointer to a new document that can
contain processes for managing communities and projects, etc. As you'll
recall, I took out all of those processes from the current constitution
for my drafts here, but there is a desire to have the OGB offer guidance
on this issue so we are consistent across the entire community and can
properly mediate potential disputes. However, we agreed that to keep the
constitution short we'd separate the process documents. So, the
structure of this draft now looks like this:
* OpenSolaris Constitution: A brief overview of the structure of the
community and the OGB with links to three process documents:
o Group Creation Process (separate document)
o Membership Process (separate document)
o Group Management Process (separate document)
Other changes: I added back in the natural persons reference for OGB
members, I made the dissolution section consistent with the current
constitution, and I also updated the vacancy section to be more
consistent with the current constitution. Also, I put this version on
the wiki, so if anyone wants to directly edit, or if I forgot other
changes, please feel free. I haven't done any page editing/formatting
yet. It's just a copy/paste from the text below.
http://www.genunix.org/wiki/index.php/OGB_2008/010_OpenSolaris_Constitution_2009
Other references related to this discussion:
http://opensolaris.org/jive/thread.jspa?threadID=76851&tstart=0%20
http://mail.opensolaris.org/pipermail/ogb-discuss/2008-September/006066.html
http://opensolaris.org/jive/thread.jspa?threadID=77881&tstart=0
Jim
The OpenSolaris Constitution
Overview
This Constitution outlines the basic structure and operation of the
OpenSolaris community and the OpenSolaris Governing Board (OGB).
Previous versions of the Constitution can be found at the OGB's website.
http://www.opensolaris.org/os/community/ogb/governance/
Structure
Groups. The OpenSolaris community is structured as a distributed
organization of participants in which Members are given the right to
vote on community-wide issues -- the most important of which is to elect
the OGB. In turn, the OGB delegates the organization, operations, and
decision-making processes for OpenSolaris activities to participants
running their own groups. From a governance perspective, all groups are
considered equal in status, there are no hierarchal relationships
between groups, the number of groups within a given category can vary
greatly, and groups are free to create associations with other groups to
facilitate development or community building activities. There are four
categories of groups:
1. Communities: Social groups gathered around issues or technologies.
2. Projects: Development groups gathered around code repositories and
integration tools.
3. User Groups: Groups of users gathered around issues or
technologies in a specific geography.
4. Electorate: A group that holds voting Members of the overall
OpenSolaris Community.
The OGB specifies a single process for creating, changing, archiving,
and reactivating all groups. The document outlining those procedures can
be found at the OGB's website, and it may be updated as the community's
needs evolve. http://genunix2.org/wiki/index.php/OGB_2008/010_group_creation
Roles. There are three roles in the OpenSolaris community:
1. Participants: Those registered on opensolaris.org are eligible to
be participants in a Community, Project, or User Group.
2. Contributors: Those recognized as having substantially helped with
the goals of a given group. Contributors may be given the right to
edit web pages, commit code, or help moderate mailing lists, for
example.
3. Leaders: Those responsible for leading a Community, Project, or
User Group. Leaders may decide the technical direction of a given
Project, for example. Leaders may also appoint Participants to be
Contributors and Leaders.
All of the groups may have have different standards for recognizing
people as Participants, Contributors, or Leaders within their respective
groups. However, if a participate wants to become a Member of the
OpenSolaris community and be engaged in community-wide issues, then he
or she has to apply for Membership at the OGB.
Membership
Membership: Participants, Contributors, and Leaders from Communities,
Projects, and User Groups may become associated with the Electorate
group as voting Members of the OpenSolaris community. Only those who
have substantially and verifiably contributed to a group may apply for
Membership. Qualification for Membership is for life, but Memberships
must be renewed every two years. The OGB specifies a single process for
membership applications. The document outlining those procedures can be
found at the OGB's website, and it may be updated as the community's
needs evolve. http://www.genunix.org/wiki/index.php/OGB_2008/010_membership
Group Management Processes
Processes: In order to be as consistent as possible and for the purposes
mediating disputes, the OGB requests that all groups publish well
defined processes for managing their activities. These processes may
include development methodologies, voting procedures, participation
guidelines, record keeping, etc. The OGB publishes some process
documents outlining key issues that groups can use or build from. These
documents can be found at the OGB's website, and they may be updated as
the community's needs evolve
http://www.genunix.org/wiki/index.php/OGB_2008/010_Group_Management_Processes.
If there are no public process documents and if a dispute is brought to
the OGB, the board will resolve the issue at its own desertion.
Meetings of Members
Meetings. A Meeting of the Members will be held annually to elect the
OGB and ratify any proposed Constitutional changes. The OGB will notify
the community not less than ten days or more than sixty days before the
meeting with the necessary logistics. One-third of the Members,
represented in person or by proxy, constitutes a quorum, and the
affirmative vote of a majority of the Members shall be the act of the
Members. The OGB can call for Special Meetings of the Members outside
the Annual Meetings, and Members can also call for Special Meetings if
more than 10 percent of the Membership agrees.
Voting. Members are entitled to one vote on each matter submitted at a
Meeting of the Members. A Member may vote in person, by proxy, or, when
a vote is conducted by electronic ballot, by submitting a completed
ballot to the voting mechanism.
Proxies. Every Member may authorize another person to act on his or her
behalf as a Member by Proxy. Every proxy must be signed by the Member
and delivered to the Secretary. Proxies are valid for up to one year.
All proxies shall be revocable.
Minutes. Minutes of any Meeting of the Members shall be posted in a
public forum within thirty days.
Governing Board
OGB. The OGB consists of a minimum of three and a maximum of seven
natural persons who provide guidance to the OpenSolaris community,
maintain the community's Constitution, run elections, and to help
mediate disputes. The OGB values transparency, prefers delegation and
empowerment, and strives to be enablers, facilitators and
behind-the-scenes troubleshooters. OGB members, upon change of corporate
affiliation or other interests related to OpenSolaris, must notify the
Membership of their new status.
Election and Term. At the annual meeting of Members, the Members shall
elect OGB Members to hold office starting the first day of the calendar
month following the election and continuing until the first day of the
calendar month following the next annual meeting. Each OGB member shall
hold office for the term for which he or she is elected, until his or
her successor us elected, or until his or her earlier resignation,
removal, or death. OGB members can serve for up to three consecutive terms.
Candidates and Voting. Candidates for election to the OGB must be
nominated by a current Member. Nominations shall be open seven days
prior to ballot completion. An election ballot must be complete and
publicly viewable seven days prior to the start of voting. Once voting
has started, the voting shall remain open for seven days. Candidates for
election must publish a list of their commercial affiliations or other
interests related to OpenSolaris, so voting Members can understand the
context from which they would act on the OGB. Candidates who do not
publish such a statement shall not be eligible for election. The
Secretary of the OGB shall maintain a public register of OGB Members'
affiliations.
Voting. The OGB election shall use the balloting method known as Single
Transferable Vote with the Meek algorithm.
Resignations, Removals, and Vacancies. An OGB Member may resign or be
removed by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of the Members. If the
entire OGB resigns or if a majority of the community expresses no
confidence in an affirmative vote, then a special election will be held
within thirty days. In the event of a resignation or death, the OGB
shall review the ballot results of the previous election and appoint the
next available candidate to fill the vacancy. If there are no further
candidates from the prior election, or if the vacancy is due to the
removal of an OGB member, the vacancy shall not be filled until the next
OGB election.
Quorum. A majority of the OGB members in office shall constitute a
quorum. The vote of a majority of the OGB members present at a meeting
at which a quorum is present shall be the act of the OGB.
Meetings. OGB meetings should be held at least once a quarter. Meetings
may be held in person or via teleconference, IRC, or equivalent medium
for shared communication. OGB meetings are open, but occasionally the
OGB may need to discuss confidential items in a closed session. Any
decisions resulting from a closed session must be approved in an open
meeting.
Officers. The officers of the OGB shall consist of a Chair, a
Vice-Chair, and a Secretary, each of whom shall be appointed by the OGB.
The offices of Chair and Vice Chair must be held by OGB members, but the
Secretary need not be an OGB member. The officers shall have the
following duties:
* The Chair shall preside at all Meetings of the Members and of the OGB.
* The Vice Chair shall, in the absence or the Chair, perform the
duties of the Chair.
* The Secretary shall publish records of all public meetings and
maintain Membership records of the OpenSolaris community.
Board Committees. The OGB may create board committees, each consisting
of at least one OGB member and composed of participants appointed by the
OGB.
Dispute Resolution
Disputes. Disputes should be resolved within groups according to their
normal decision-making procedures. If a dispute can not be resolved in a
group or spreads into to the OpenSolaris community generally, then the
participants may ask the OGB to help mediate a reasonable solution. The
OGB will consider disputes on a case-by-case basis.
Suspensions. If outright abuse is reported to the OGB, the situation
will be reviewed in the following way:
1. The OGB will notify the individual that his or her participation
in the community is under review and that the review will be
completed within thirty days. The review should occur in a closed
session and remain private unless an action is made to suspend the
participant.
2. The OGB may temporarily remove the participant's write access to
community infrastructure until the review is complete.
3. When the review is completed, the OGB may suspend the
participant's write access to community infrastructure for up to
six months. If the participant has previously been suspended, the
OGB may recommend expulsion.
4. A suspended member may not attend or vote at Annual Meetings or
Special Meetings.
Expulsion. The OGB may expel a participant by an affirmative vote of a
two-thirds majority of the Members. Expulsion involves the removal of
all grants of Membership and the removal of the participant's write
access to community infrastructure until a subsequent act of the Members
revokes the expulsion.
Amendments
The Constitution may be changed by an affirmative vote if a majority of
the Members during Annual Meetings or Special Meetings.
Dissolution
If OGB membership is reduced to below three, custody of the OpenSolaris
community will revert to Sun Microsystems until such time as the Members
elect a new OGB.
