Becoming a Board Member

The International Biogeography Society’s governing board (=board members) are a group of very dedicated volunteers, familiar with the society, that help guide day-to-day and long-term decisions.  Selection of future board members is a combination of a search by the Elections Committee for interested and appropriate individuals, followed by an election by society members in September of even-numbered years.  Check out the job descriptions below to find out more about each position.

A list of past Board Members can be found here.

  • Objective: Oversee all aspects of TIBS activities while maintaining a positive public image of the organization among members and the general public
  • List Of Duties: 1) Interact with the leaders of other learned societies, government officials, and the general public on behalf of TIBS; 2) Supervise, hire, and terminate any employees of TIBS with approval of the Board; 3) Appoint ad hoc (called “special” in the bylaws) committee chairs and members; 4) Attend and Chair all meetings of the Board; 5) Develop, with the assistance of the Secretary, agendas for all meetings of the Board; 6) Develop Annual Tactical Plans with the assistance of other Board Members
  • Key Functional and Relational Responsibilities: 1) Maintain good working relations with and among Board Members; 2) Create an effective Board; 3) Maintain good relations with TIBS employees; 4) Be the “face” of TIBS.

  • Objective: Assists the President in managing the Board by identifying and addressing emerging issues that the success of TIBS
  • List Of Duties: 1) Develop, with the assistance of the President and others, annual revisions to the Strategic Plan; 2) Serve as a Vice-Chair of all meetings of the Board, stepping in for the President when the President is temporarily unable to serve; 3) Attend all meetings of the TIBS Board
  • Key Functional and Relational Responsibilities: 1) Serve as the chief problem-solver for the President; 2) Serve on multiple committees and subcommittees of the Board.

  • Objective: Support the President by serving as a consultant on issues as requested by the President
  • List Of Duties: 1) Chair the Nominations and Elections Special Committee and produce a Slate of Officers for approval by the membership by June 1 of odd digit years; 2) Review performance of Board Members annually; 3) Deliver a major scholarly address to TIBS members; 4) Serve on various committees and subcommittees as needed
  • Key Functional and Relational Responsibilities: 1) Provide assistance to Chairs of various committees and sub-committees, especially those executing on plans developed and fine-tuned under previous Presidents (including their own presidency).

  • Objective: Oversees all aspects of the planning and execution of TIBS meetings
  • List Of Duties: 1) Chairs and nominates appointees to the Conference Standing Committee; 2) Oversee the activities of, and approve nominees to, the standing committees of the Society; 3) Recommends, for Board approval, the content and activities of TIBS Conferences; 4) Develop, recommend for approval, and adhere to a written budget for each TIBS Conference; 5) Oversees the production of the written

conference program

  • Key Functional and Relational Responsibilities: 1) Ensure profitability and excellence in TIBS produced conferences; 2) Work closely with Vice President of Public Relations and Communication to promote TIBS conferences; 3) Works closely with the Vice President of Development and Awards to identify, solicit, and satisfy conference sponsors; 4) Works with the Vice President of Development and Awards to conduct pre- and post-conference surveys to measure member satisfaction.

  • Objective: Manages all aspects of outreach and communications while maintaining the standing and positive regard for TIBS among members and the general public
    ● List Of Duties: 1) Supervises and helps up-date the content of the TIBS website and other web-based communication tools; 2) Organizes and oversees the Funk Lecture Series
    ● Key Functional and Relational Responsibilities: 1) Maintain positive image of TIBS; 2) Maintain high quality outreach and communications; 3) Work closely with the Vice President of Development and Awards to create and advertise grant proposals and award nominations.

  • Objective: Manages all aspects of membership, fundraising, and granting of scholarships, awards, and other TIBS honors
  • List Of Duties: 1) Chairs and nominates appointees to the Standing Development and Awards Committee; 2) Nominates Chair and appointees to the Awards Subcommittee(s); 3) Oversee the activities of, and approve nominees to, the standing committees of the Society; 4) Conducts and interprets any Membership Surveys
  • Key Functional and Relational Responsibilities: 1) Develop and execute fundraising tactics to increase revenues for TIBS; 2) Develop and execute membership recruitment and retention efforts to increase revenues for TIBS; 3) Work with Board to create long-range business plan for TIBS.

  • Objective: Maintains and creates the archives of TIBS to provide a written record of decisions made and financial transactions conducted on behalf of TIBS members by the Board
  • List Of Duties: 1) Receives and accepts Slate of Officers from Nominating Committee headed by Past President; 2) Manages Election of Board and Officers in October of each odd digit year; 3) Maintains records of the proceedings of TIBS including actions taken by the Board or its representatives, Board approved policies, and TIBS procedures; 4) Reports annually to the membership on TIBS activities over the previous year; 5) Prepares the agenda for all meetings of the TIBS Board; 6) Serve as an advisor to the

Board and members on issues related to TIBS bylaws and constitution; 7) Oversee the

activities of, and approve nominees to, the standing committees of the Society

  • Key Functional and Relational Responsibilities: 1) Ensure the timely and accurate flow of information to members of the Board and the Executive; 2) Create an accurate archive of all activities of TIBS by gathering key information to tell the story of the activities of each member of the Board and all committees and subcommittees.

  • Objective: Maintains financial records, reports financial activities to the Board and TIBS Members quarterly, and imposes fiscal controls to protect TIBS
  • List Of Duties: 1) Develops and presents the Annual Budget for approval of the Board by June of each year; 2) Prepares for and works with independent CPA to annually audit the financial transactions of TIBS with the written audit presented to the Board in June of each year; 3) Maintains records of all financial transactions; 4) Processes all financial transactions of TIBS; 5) Oversee the activities of, and approve nominees to, the standing committees of the Society
  • Key Functional and Relational Responsibilities: 1) Develop and execute internal fiscal controls to maintain the trust of members; 2) Work closely with TIBS Executive to create timely and accurate reports on financial activities; 3) Work closely with Vice President of Development and Awards to create and conduct a viable business plan for TIBS.

  • Objective: Represents the membership in decision-making by the TIBS Board
  • List Of Duties: 1) Attend telephonic and face-to-face meetings of the Board; 2) Maintain awareness of issues of concern to members; 3) Serve as members of the Nominations and Elections Special Committee; 4) Oversee the activities of, and approve nominees to, the standing committees of the Society;
  • Key Functional and Relational Responsibilities: 1) Advocate on behalf of the membership; 2) Gather information on members with the assistance of the Vice President of Development and Awards; 3) Encourage and support regional coordinators to further the globalization of TIBS.

  • Objective: Oversees the execution of all activities associated with meetings of TIBS members
  • List Of Duties: 1) Organize local volunteers to create a successful local conference; 2) Develop a written plan, including a timeline of deadlines for various pre-conference activities, and win approval of the plan from the Board; 3) Engage Board to assist in the solicitation of sponsorships, recruitment of volunteers, and problem solving for the local conference; 4) oversee the activities of, and nominate appointments to, the local committees related to conference activities
  • Key Functional and Relational Responsibilities: 1) Work with all members of the Board to communicate opportunities for, and threats to, the local conference; 2) Adhere to the written and approved budget for the local conference; 3) Create a profitable conference with high levels of member satisfaction.

  • Objective: Represents the Student members of TIBS in decision-making by the TIBS Board
  • List Of Duties: 1) Chairs the Student Travel Award Ad Hoc Committee under the supervision of the Vice President for Development and Awards; 2) Chairs the Early Career Biogeographers Committee under the supervision of the Vice President for Conferences and in that role organizes the poster competition and Student Discussion Groups; 3) Serves as a member of the Advertising and Outreach Ad Hoc Committee Chaired by the Vice President of Public Affairs and Communication
  • Key Functional and Relational Responsibilities: 1) Represents Graduate Student Members in all decision-making; 2) Works closely with the Vice President of Development and Awards to increase Graduate Student Membership in TIBS; 3) Works closely with the Vice President of Public Affairs and Communication to promote TIBS activities.

Interested in being considered by the Elections Committee?  Send us an expression of interest at any time using the contact form.