Anyone can become a council member if they are interested in being actively involved in the organization. The steps to approval to a Council position are the same for Organizational and Individual members (new procedure updated 18 November 2010). To see the duties and responsibilities of a Council Member, click here.

0. Pre-Application Process

Some applicants will have been solicited by Council/ExCom members while others will be new to APECS. In either case, the potential applicant is encouraged to have a chat with the Council Chair before applying. All applicants should have a good idea of what they are getting into beforehand! The Council Chair will invite other ExCom members to participate in the call and will pass along impressions/questions/etc for those not able to attend.

1. Application

Applications should be sent to after which the President coordinates the voting. If the President is unable to do so, the Council Chair takes charge of this responsibility.

Send the following:

a.    Current contact information and career level 
b.    Brief Bio (200 words)
c.    Recent Picture of Yourself
d.    Name and email address of two references
e.    Expression of Interest Letter (around 500 words) explaining the following:

i.    Why you are interested in APECS and sitting on the Council? This includes any ideas you have for projects or activities the organization could undertake, a desire to become more connected to the larger polar community, ways to improve APECS and the role of young researchers in polar research, general interest in the process of the organization, and many others. 
ii.    Which subcommittee(s) are you interested in sitting on? See RAC and ODC.
iii.   Any major periods of extended absence, such as field work, long vacations, intense exam periods or any other long period of absence.
iv.   It is also quite helpful to know a little about your experiences and why you are interested in the Polar Regions.

2. Response to Applicant

The Council Chair (or President if need be) emails the applicant with the result of their selection. If the application has been unsuccessful (this email should be sent by the President in any case), then the email should explain why and hope for future involvement. If the applicant is approved, then the email (from the CC) should also ensure that they are up to date on the charter, website, list-servs, have an ExCom contact (and know about it), etc. The Council Chair should also take this opportunity to make sure that any relevant news updates are sent to the new Council member.

3. If you are approved to the Council, your term of service begins on the date you are notified. You will be added to the Council email list, introduced to the membership and advisory committee using the information you provided, and your interests and the projects you are working on will be available on the APECS website.

To view the new new council member procedure click here