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Oxford, February 24, 2005 

At the invitation of Professor Jürgen Kocka, President of the ICHS, the Bureau restreint met on Thursday, February 24, at St. Antony's College in Oxford. The purpose of the meeting was to review ICHS operations between the regular meetings of the Bureau in Berlin (August 2004) and Sydney (July 2005).

Present: Jürgen Kocka, President, Pierre Ducrey, Treasurer, Jean-Claude Robert, Secretary General.

Agenda:
1. President’s remarks
2. ICHS operations
3. Treasurer's financial report
4. Nominating Committee
5. 2005 Congress
6. ICHS / UNESCO relations
7. Miscellaneous
 
1. President's remarks
 
The President opened the meeting by welcoming members to St. Antony's College.

2. ICHS operations

Bulletin, Vol. 30 and web site

Seven hundred copies of the Bulletin were published. This edition contains the complete Congress program (updated to November 15), in addition to the regular features. The section on the history of ICHS contains a full list of all the Bureau members from 1926 to 2005. The Bulletin was mailed to ICHS members in mid-December. The printing and postage cost 20% more due to the inclusion of the program, which increased the size of the mailing. As for the web site, the update has been delayed but now that a new secretary has been hired, this task will be integrated into the secretariat’s routine.

Meetings

The next meetings of the Bureau and the General Assembly will be held in Sydney in July 2005. The agenda is determined by the statutes of the ICHS. Here are the highlights:

  1. Report of the Secretary General for the 2000-2005 quinquennium
  2. Treasurer's financial report
  3. Presentation of the Nominating Committee's report to the Bureau
  4. Amendments to the statutes
  5. New membership requests
  6. Selection of the venue for the next Congress

2010 Congress: The Secretary General received a few statements of intent. To facilitate the application process and guide the work of the new organizing committee, he prepared a list of specifications, which was sent to all the interested parties.

Contacts have been made regarding the General Assembly of 2007, and proposals should be forthcoming.

Secretariat and miscellaneous

The reorganization of the Secretariat is complete. The office now has a new part-time secretary. Although the Secretariat can function with its current budget, the situation is still uncertain because of the ICHS’s modest resources.

3. Treasurer's Report

The treasurer presented the profit and loss account and the balance sheet for the 2004 fiscal year. The profit and loss account closed with a significant increase as compared with 2003 (from CHF 64,036.80 to CHF 111,122.91). This is due primarily to the funding of the ICHS's Beijing conference held in the spring of 2004, and the partial advance payment of the July 2005 Sydney Congress, which was approved by the Bureau in Berlin in August 2004.

Inflows increased to CHF 119,325.29, due to a subsidy granted by the Volkswagen Foundation for the Beijing Conference, and a provision that had been set aside for the Sydney Congress. As a result, there was a slight surplus of CHF 8,202.38 for the fiscal year.

The balance is CHF 143,425.15, as compared with last year's total of CHF 144,659.09.

The treasurer presented a statement of membership dues. Some members are late with their payments. The situation should be corrected before the General Assembly in Sydney; otherwise those members will lose their voting privileges, in accordance with article 7 of the Constitution.

4. Nominating Committee

The Nominating Committee was unable to finish its work during the meeting in Berlin in August 2004. The Secretary General was assigned to pursue the discussions and encourage candidates to come forward from some areas. The Committee should be able to submit its final proposal in March 2005. In response to a request made in Oslo, the Committee will send its report to the National Committees and Affiliated International Organizations before the first General Assembly in Sydney.

5. 2005 Congress

The work of the Organizing Committee is progressing well. The Secretary General is in constant communication with Martyn Lyons, President of the Sydney Organizing Committee. A special session is planned for the end of the day on Wednesday, July 6, for the launch of Karl Dietrich Erdmann’ book on the history of the International Congresses and the ICHS, augmented by the late Wolfgang Mommsen. (Towards a Global Community of Historians. The International Historical Congresses and the International Committee of Historical Sciences 1898-2000, by Karl Dietrich Erdmann, edited by Jürgen Kocka and Wolfgang Mommsen†, in collaboration with Agnes Blänsdorf, translated by Alan Nothnagle. Published by Berghahn Books, New York and Oxford, 2005). A copy of the book will be distributed to each National Committee and International Affiliated Organization as the powers of the delegates are reviewed during the first General Assembly on July 3. Absentees will receive a copy by mail at a later date.

6. ICHS/UNESCO relations

International Council for Philosophy and Humanistic Studies

At the invitation of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), the ICPHS held its statutory general assembly in Beijing from November 16 to 20, 2004, at the same time the International Social Science Council held its own general assembly. Unfortunately, the ICPHS is faced with serious financial problems because its budget was slashed by two-thirds over the last four years. The Council is feeling the effects of UNESCO’s shift in priorities to programs that concentrate on basic cultural needs such as literacy and the diffusion and simplification of basic learning. In view of this fact, the ICPHS appears to be losing relevance in the eyes of UNESCO. The Council has made some deep cuts. The Diogène journal lost its regular copy editor, who will be replaced by Maurice Aymard and Luca Scarantino. In view of the possibility of more budget cuts, it was suggested that stronger collaborative ties be fostered with the International Social Science Council. No doubt it will be necessary to turn to other councils or organizations for future projects.

Joint Committee: report of the meeting of December 6, 2004

The joint UNESCO-ICHS committee held a meeting in Paris on December 6, 2004. The funding prospects over the medium term are not encouraging, in view of UNESCO’s dwindling budget in 2006-2007. However, the budget seems to be in place for the Sydney Congress workshops, and the ICHS will be signing a contract with UNESCO giving the Committee power to manage the allocated sums. If the Joint Committee is able to pursue its activities during the next biennium it will have to restructure the way it operates because most of the work now falls to the Secretary General of the ICHS.

7. Miscellaneous

Nothing to report.
 
   

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