Reorganisation of the APSN

The current structure of the APSN was decided more than 10 years ago and has served the region well. However, it has been difficult to communicate with the members, as the membership lists belonged to a range of societies in the region, and the society has struggled to find a sound financial footing based on the small fees collected from the member societies. The officers of the Society have also been preoccupied with the running of the next meeting and there was inadequate continuity between the officers from meeting to meeting

At the council meeting of the APSN during the HK meeting it was unanimously decided that restructuring of the APSN was now necessary. A restructuring committee was formed. The committee prepared draft proposals and then met in Japan in July at a meeting hosted by the chairman of the restructuring committee, Kazuhiro Ikenaka. Substantial progress was made at this meeting and in September a final proposal was sent to the council members. The proposal was unanimously accepted. The main issues raised by the restructuring committee are listed below.

Membership
The APSN shall consist of those qualified individuals wishing to become members who were approved by the membership committee and pay annual dues. There will no longer be automatic membership by virtue of membership of a constituent society or group. Membership is not restricted to residents of the Asian-Pacific region. Companies can become corporate members.

Annual fees
The World Bank Economic Categories for countries average income will be used to determine the appropriate level of payment for the annual dues. The following fees have been recommended: Category I(US$40), II(US$30), III(US$20), VI(US$15), Student (US$10).
Previously, each constituent society paid to the APSN a small amount of annual fees and nothing was collected from the individual members.

Council
Eleven council members will be appointed through direct election by the members. The council will be able to co-opt up to two further council members if required to ensure appropriate regional balance of representation in council. The term for the council members will be 4 years. Elections will be held every 2 years for half of the council members.
Previously the council had been formed by those representing each constituent society who was chosen by each society.

Executive committee
There will be 3 executive officers of the Society: President, Secretary and Treasurer. The President will be voted for by the members using a preferential voting system. The term of the President is 2 years and the President will be able to serve a maximum of two terms. Secretary and Treasurer will be elected by the council from among the council members. The term of the Secretary and Treasurer is 4 years, with a review to be conducted by council after the first two years before approval to serve two more years is granted. The Secretary and Treasurer elections will be offset by 2 years.

Previously the president was the chair of the local organizing committee for the next APSN meeting, serving only two years.

The new structure will be in place by the time of the next APSN Meeting in Singapore.

How can you help?
We believe that the new organization of the APSN will be of great benefit to the region and to the new members of the society. They will be able to have reduced subscriptions at the meetings, access to direct mailing from the council and from the ISN, and they will be able to access the Journal of Neurochemistry at a substantially reduced rate. By being able to identify members we will be able to establish a society that is more open to individuals and will help us to organize more vivid meeting attended by anyone wishing to exchange data not only within the Asian-Pacific region but more globally.

We want to emphasize that the success of the restructuring and the future development of APSN depends on the number of members who join the Society. We urge you to join us as a member of the new APSN, and in the future development of Neurochemistry in the Asian-Pacific region. For further information, please contact APSN President, Dr. Alfreda Stadlin (astadlin@cuhk.edu.hk).