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Presidency Meeting 15 January 1994, Middelburg Netherlands


MINUTES of the Presidency Meeting in Middleburg

1. REPORTS:

1.1. Report President:
See the letter of Kees; for the seminary about wood chain, Kees asked each association;
Denmark, Poland, Swiss (Ing & Arch), France, UK, Greece and Netherlands have answered in a very short time.
Kees went to Rome. The report of the Congress is now printed and will be sent to each participant. Only 2 languages: Italian and English.
He had contacts with Swedish and Norwegian associations of the foresters.

1.2. Report secretary:
She has written 3 or 4 times to everybody since the last Presidency Meeting to get the address and all references of each association. Some of them never answered: Poland, Italy, Netherlands, Germany, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Austria, Belgium, and Greece.
She will try again and again! She had contacts with new potential members: Kees told her to send some information to Italian association of professors and to Spanish association.
She had contacts with Portugal, Albania and Romania.

1.3. Report vice-presidents:
* KARLHEINZ Stephan:
  BDF has worked about UEF. There will be a lot of questions about the account. He hasn’t got contact with J.P. Widmer.
* Jerzy Smykala: He prepares the congress in Poland in 1995.

1.4. Report treasurer:
See point 3: financial situation.


2. BRUSSELS OFFICE:

* 1993 was a very hard year. We have now paid our debts to Mr. Van Hasselt. The price is 10.000 BF/month.
*The contract stopped in the end of 1993. Kees had signed a new contract for the first 3 months of 1994. The Governing Council in April will decide if we continue or not!
*The office has moved (because the join “Public Affair Consultancy”). The new address is now:
UEF EC Office
49 Square Marie Louise
B-1040 Brussels
Tel. 322 230 22 59
Fax 322 231 18 43

*The FECOF (Federation European of Community Forest) had an office in Strasbourg for 3 years. They’d like to have one Brussels. EEC asked Kees if we could do something together. They could pay the same to our office and get the same facility as us. So, the
bureau of Brussels could do more than being a postal box like now. For example, room facility for meetings, more information. The Governing Council will have to decide.

3. FINANCIAL SITUATION:

3.1. Subscription 1993
The financial situation in 1993 was very bad because some associations didn’t pay for 1992. John sent the invoices in September asking everybody to pay as soon as possible because our debts with Mr. Van Hasselt were terrible!
Netherlands, France, Finland, Denmark, UK and Luxembourg have paid what we decided during the last presidency meeting. Cyprus paid for 34 members (not 55).
Poland didn’t pay because of the next congress. They will not pay for 1993, 1994 and 1995 to organize the congress: it will be the participations of UEF for the Congress. We forgot Austria!
So, John could pay our debts with our Brussels’s office and now it works. He pays now every three months.

*Haven’t paid:

  1992 1993

Hungary

Italy (forest guard)

Germany

Austria

Swiss (foresters)

Swiss (Ing&Arch)

Belgium

Greece (forest guard) 89,90,91,92

Greece (technologist) 90,91,92

-

755 GBP

6000 DM

-

175 ECU

140 ECU

-

1164 GBP

726 GBP

500 ECU

1880 ECU

4750 ECU

200 ECU

350 ECU

280 ECU

52 ECU

650 ECU

600 ECU

Total

2645 GBP

6000 DM

315 ECU

9262 ECU

Liechtenstein is a little association and John proposed to them to pay 100 ECU for 1993 to 1998… No answers.
We have some problems with the Greeks who did not paid for a long period. So we’ll keep them as sleeping members and don’t do any costs for them. When they want to come again in UEF, they will ask!
Since the last Presidency Meeting, few expenses: presidency meeting expenses and 1000 FF to Sylvie for stamps.
We have now in account GBP 2280.
We should have GBP 10000 more from 1993.

3.2. Subscription 1994:
*According to the statutes of UEF:
- the associations have to send to the secretary a statement of the year membership not later than the 31st of January;
- the subscription shall be payable by the 1st of March of the year in question.
We propose to send with the budget and before the Governing Council (in February) a board with the number of member and the subscription. If the association agrees, it could pay as soon as possible; if it doesn’t agree, we could discuss in Grenoble.
Karlheinz said that BDF might gave some payment in due time.
We hope so!

3.3.Problems with account: BDF had a look at UEF’s account. Mr. Klink made a lot of remarks and Karlheinz and John had a look at all of them.
*We decide to do:
- to send every member of UEF how we calculate the subscription for all members (Board of point 3.2.)
- to make a financial plan (budget):
- for the 3 years between 2 Congresses, every year to send it to the members.
To have a look at UEF’s account every year:
- at Congress
- or at Governing Council,
- or by the presidency.
For the first time in Grenoble, John will take the account from:
- 01.04.1986 to 01.11.1992
- 01.11.1992 to 31.12.1993 to be approved.
John should have a paper (voucher) if there are transfers to another account (to make interests for example).
So we have only to apply the rules of UEF!!!

Informed BDF that no account of congress may be in UEF’s account. One can find only presidency expenses, the other costs are in the account of the associations who organize the congress.

*John told us it will be easier to manage with accounts if every association pays!

4. MINUTES OF THE LAST PRESIDENCY MEETING

* We have forgotten Austria in the subscription!
* Sylvie didn’t make the letter paper because of the financial situation. Kees will do because he could have very low prices.
* All what we have to do is done except letter paper and call with J.P. Widmer. Some other things are very difficult but we tried: to get the address of each member, to have some contacts with eastern countries.
* We approved them.

5. CONGRESS IN POLAND IN 1995

* See the report of Jerzy.
* It will be from 21st to 27th of May in Gdansk. You can arrive on the 20th in the evening if necessary.
* Their will be approximate 100 persons.
* The first information told the members of UEF will be done in Grenoble during the Gouverning Council.
* The budget is the worst: if it is there is no sponsor.
We could ask:
- EEC: there is money for exchange with eastern countries (perhaps they could pay translation). Kees will ask.
- Private companies?
- Polish government?
Nether mind, is would be a very cheap and good congress.

Financial contribution of UEF may be paid by SITLID with the subscription of 1993, 1994 and 1995.
We should have 2 prices: one for delegates (lower because of the financial contribution of UEF) and one for other participants.
We think that the benefit we will do with the other participants should increase the income of UEF.
*Translation: only German and English. It must be written on the invitation.
We use support of translation for the other languages by foresters (we hope).

*The journey to Bielowieja is too long in 1 day, we won’t go.

*We will have the next presidency meeting after Grenoble in Poland: arriving on the 8th and leaving on the 11th in the evening (or 12th) of October 1994.

6. GOUVERNING COUNCIL IN GRENOBLE

* We decided to have the next governing council in Grenoble in April this year.
People must arrive on Thursday the 7th. We could start in the evening and continue on
Friday the 8th in the morning. Everybody could get back after lunch.
* Sylvie has send the invitation and the agenda at least the last week of January (according to the rules).
We will send later (by Brussels’ office, documents sent by John and Kees (or Erick) the budget (and subscription 1994) and summary of the document about UEF’s policy. They must be sent as soon as possible for the associations to have a look at them before the Gouverning Council.
* If some people want to have an excursion on Friday afternoon or assist at the seminar about “mountain forests” it could be possible.
Sylvie will send too the associations all the necessary information.
* It would be important to discuss about the follow up of the congress in Rome: forestry education. J.K. Keller made a questionnaire but it is in French and very hard to understand (even for French). We will put the question in agenda. Perhaps Pekka Salminen (Finland) could be the chairman of this working group because Finland is very interested.

7. QUESTIONARY ABOUT UEF WORK:

Erick Buijinck joins us.
* Only 10 associations have answered: Finland, 2 from Swiss (foresters-Ing&Arch), UK, France, Denmark, Netherlands, Germany, Hungary and Poland.
* The report is written in Dutch. Erick will make an English summary that will be send to the members of UEF before the Governing Council.
* It appears that UEF hasn’t policy for the next 10 years!

We should take care of the projects for long time.
1. Organization of the UEF: few people are working for UEF (presidency)
2. These people don’t know (or badly) what the association want.
3. There is always money-problem.
Maybe we could do a newspaper or a year-book that will be sending to the members and perhaps sponsors will be interested.

8. MISCELLANEOUS:

* When Erick Buijink works for UEF, the presidency will have a look at his expenses and pay them.
He is in charge with: - the questionnaire about UEF work;
- how to increase money for UEF;
- Project of policy for UEF.

* Sylvie asked Kees to send her a copy of the contract with Van Hasselt. To know what she has done and what is to do by Brussels’ office.

* Mr. Ed Pepke “Forestry Officer-Marketing Timer Section – ECE/FAO – Agriculture and Timer division (O.N.U.) is interesting in having contacts with UEF.
It is not a priority for us but it could be interesting.

* Wood chain committee: the DGIII (Industry) and the DGVI (Agriculture) have to choose their members for the working group (half and half). Kees thinks it would be better to make 2 working groups and to meet one time a year. We agree with him.

Nothing left. So we closed the Presidency meeting.
Special thanks to Mieke for all dinners, lunches, and breakfast she did.

 

Le Vigan le 30 janvier 1994
The general Secretary,
S. Grimal.


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