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The Statutes

The Statutes of the Swiss Philosophical Society

I. Name, Registered Office and Purpose

Art. 1
Under the name Swiss Philosophical Society (SPG), Société Suisse de Philosophie, Società Svizzera di Filosofia, an association exists within the meaning of Art. 60 et seq. of the Swiss Civil Code.

Its registered office is located at the place of residence of the respective President.

Art. 2
The Swiss Philosophical Society aims to cultivate and promote the exchange of philosophical knowledge as well as the association of local philosophical societies. It organizes philosophical conferences and promotes philosophical life in Switzerland through its publication series: Studia Philosophica.

It maintains relations with organizations pursuing related objectives, in particular with the Swiss Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences and the Fédération Internationale des Sociétés de Philosophie (FISP).

II. Membership

Art. 3
The Swiss Philosophical Society consists of the members of the societies recognized by it and of individual members. The recognized societies are the Philosophical Societies of Geneva, Lausanne (Vaud), and Neuchâtel, which together form the Société Romande de Philosophie; the Philosophical Societies of Basel, Bern, Fribourg, Central Switzerland, Italian-speaking Switzerland, Eastern Switzerland, Zurich, as well as the Swiss Association of Philosophy Teachers at Upper Secondary Schools, the Society for Women in Philosophy Switzerland, CaféPhilo Solothurn, and the online platform philosophie.ch.

The General Assembly decides on the recognition of other societies and the withdrawal of recognition, upon proposal of the Board of Directors, by means of a partial revision of the Statutes.

Individual members are admitted by the Board of Directors; their exclusion takes place upon proposal of the Board of Directors by decision of the General Assembly.

Art. 4
The amount of membership fees is determined by the General Assembly. The local member societies pay an annual fee of CHF 2 per member to the Swiss Philosophical Society.

The internet platform philosophie.ch is exempt from this provision. Instead, it provides services to the Swiss Philosophical Society by maintaining a publicly accessible events calendar.

The recognized societies pay the annual membership fee for their members to the Treasurer.

III. Bodies

Art. 5
The bodies of the Swiss Philosophical Society are:

  1. the General Assembly,
  2. the Board of Directors,
  3. the Editorial Board of Studia Philosophica,
  4. the auditors,
  5. the delegates to the Swiss Academy of Humanities,
  6. the delegate to Section 4 (Cultural Studies) of the Swiss Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences,
  7. the delegates to the Fédération Internationale des Sociétés de Philosophie.

Art. 6
The General Assembly constitutes the supreme body of the Society. It is convened as an ordinary General Assembly every two years by the Board of Directors. If at least one fifth of the members of the Society so request, the Board of Directors must convene an extraordinary General Assembly.

The ordinary General Assembly deals in particular with the following matters:

  1. election of the bodies whose appointment is not otherwise regulated by the Statutes;
  2. receipt and approval of the annual report submitted by the Board of Directors as well as the two-year accounts based on the auditors’ report;
  3. discussion and decision on the motions announced by the Board of Directors with the invitation and on individual motions by members submitted in writing to the Board of Directors no later than one week before the General Assembly;
  4. revision of the Statutes.

All members of the Society who are present have the right to vote.

Art. 7
The Board of Directors consists of the Central President or Central President, the Vice-President, the Treasurer, the Secretary, and the additional members. At least one member from each recognized society belongs to the Board.

The Board of Directors is elected by the General Assembly for a term of two years. The election is conducted as a whole unless the General Assembly requests individual elections.

The Central President is elected from among the members of the Board of Directors by the General Assembly for a term of two years, as far as possible on a rotating basis from the following groups:

  1. Geneva, Lausanne (Vaud), Neuchâtel;
  2. Basel, Bern, Zurich;
  3. Fribourg, Central Switzerland, Italian-speaking Switzerland, Eastern Switzerland, Swiss Association of Philosophy Teachers at Upper Secondary Schools.

After the end of their term of office, members of the Board of Directors may be re-elected. The Central President may be re-elected once for a second term. In the event of vacancies, the Board of Directors may complete itself until the next ordinary General Assembly.

The Board of Directors manages the affairs of the Society. It is responsible for financing Studia Philosophica. It maintains relations with the Swiss Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences, the Fédération Internationale des Sociétés de Philosophie, and related organizations.

The Board of Directors may hold consultations and adopt resolutions if more than half of its members are present. Resolutions are adopted by a majority of votes. The President has the casting vote only in the event of a tie.

Art. 8
The Editorial Board of Studia Philosophica is composed of one member of German language and one member of French language.

The editors are elected by the General Assembly for a term of four years upon proposal of the Board of Directors. They may be re-elected. In the event of their inability to serve, the Board of Directors shall appoint substitutes until the next General Assembly.

The tasks of the Editorial Board are defined in regulations issued by the Board of Directors.

Art. 9
The two auditors are elected by the General Assembly for a term of four years. They may be re-elected.

Art. 10
The Central President is, by virtue of office, a delegate to the Swiss Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences. A second delegate is elected by the General Assembly for a term of four years. He or she may be re-elected.

Art. 11
The two delegates to the Fédération Internationale des Sociétés de Philosophie, one of German language and one of French language, are appointed by the Board of Directors for a term of four years. They keep the Central President informed of their activities. They may be re-elected.

The Central President is the delegate to Section 4 (Cultural Studies) of the Swiss Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences (SAHS); the Treasurer represents him or her.

The above Statutes of 3 March 1957 contain the amendments adopted at the General Assemblies of 8 June 1985, 13 June 1987, 17 May 2003, 30 November 2013, and 29 September 2019.

The President: Guenda Bernegger
The Treasurer: Friedemann Bieber