User:Peter Schmitt/Charter

Draft as of end Dec. 3 http://en.citizendium.org/wiki?title=CZ:Charter_drafting&oldid=100607761

• Comments marked like this, some part marked like this.
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Mission statement

• I still prefer:

The Citizendium is a collaborative effort to compile an online encyclopaedia that presents human knowledge organized and structured in a way to serve as a convenient, reliable, and well-written source of information.

• (plus public domain / editorial guided?)

The project is guided by a board of editors (and put into the public domain?).

Fundamental policies

?Professionalism

• Etiquette (I do not like "professionalism" - its main meanings all have to do with "gaining" something

All contributors to the project — henceforth Citizens — are required to behave professionally. This includes the obligation to remain civil and constructive even in cases of dispute.

A set of persons of mature judgment — hereafter the Constables — shall be specially empowered to enforce Citizendium's rules concerning behavior whilst encouraging collaboration in accordance with the principles laid down in this Charter.er

• This - or a similar sentence - is enough. Even better, since this does not define behaviour,
  I would suggest to move it to a section of "Governance".

Exceptionally, in questions of disputes concerning content, Citizens in persistent breach of the spirit or letter of the Citizendium's rules can be expelled from the project by joint decision of the Editor-in-Chief and the Ombudsman, subject to appeal under the Final Arbitration procedure.

• A statement such as
  "As a last resort, Citizens can be expelled from the project."
  is sufficient (best under Gouvernance).

Real names

Change to: Registration

All Citizens must register using their real names, which will define their user name.

• add:

User pages of Citizens who leave (includes: or are banned) the project are retained.

Expertise

Expertise will be respected. It shall be recognized on the basis of guidelines established by the Editorial Council.

Collaboration

The Citizendium is a collaborative project, open to constructive contributions by any Citizen to any of its content at any time.

?Accessibility

While the basic content provided at the Citizendium is intended for an audience with completed secondary education, more specialized content is welcome if placed in context.

• I still don't like mentioning a level explicitly, moreover, it is too detailed, I think:

"Citizendium shall be useful for a broad audience and therefore shall strive to present each topic as accessible as possible."

As far as possible, special needs of visually or otherwise impaired users and of machines shall be taken into account.

?Being Bold

• This addresses collaboration and should be merged with this section:

Citizens are encouraged to be bold in contributing to the project.

External partnerships

The Citizendium invites collaboration with non-Citizen partners on any matters relevant to the project's mission, provided that the interaction does not conflict with this Charter.

Content policy

Replaces Objectivity/Neutrality

All entries at Citizendium should engage their subjects comprehensively, neutrally and objectively to the greatest degree possible. Writing comprehensively entails providing full explanations of all facets of an article's subject that experts judge significant. Furthermore, each topic should be represented as a complex whole rather than a simple conglomeration of its parts: a good Citizendium article will explain how different aspects of a topic fit together as well as applications and connections to other topics. It will also be neutral, which means the article will not align with any one position if there is controversy amongst experts concerning some aspect of the article's topic. Instead, it will remain objective, describing each relevant position without skewing the narrative toward the personal beliefs or positions of the author(s). In short, articles should present the big picture, including all relevant perspectives, and should be written carefully and without bias. Citizendium is not a place for advocacy or for advertisement.

• This is not bad, but (for me) at least half of the text is redundant.

• A brief remark about the audience (not stating a certain school level) would combine it with "Accessability".

Personnel and governance

The Citizendium is devoted to transparent and fair governance at a minimum of bureaucracy. Special roles will not be created without excellent reason.

• not mentioned: Users, guests or "Visitors" -- a method for feedback should be provided.

• not mentioned: "Technician" as special role for the technical side of software issues.

• for workgroups not concerned with content but other issues (e.g.: media, license, etc.)

using another term would be convenient.

Authors

Any Citizen can act as an Author, i.e. contribute or modify content, unless blocked from specific articles or topics by an Editor or Constable. Blocks may be appealed through the Dispute Resolution procedure.

• Why was this removed. It explains/defines what an Author is.

?Editors

Editors are Citizens who — because of their recognized expertise in specific areas — are responsible for the scope and quality of the content presented by the Citizendium.

Specifically, in their areas of expertise, they are entitled (1) to make decisions about specific questions or disputes concerning particular articles, and (2) to approve high-quality articles.

• My suggestion:

"Within the limits set by the Editorial Council they are entitled to evaluate articles and to make decisions about specific questions or disputes concerning particular articles."

Constabulary

• better section title: Constables (as "Authors", "Editors")

The members of the Constabulary are charged with the upholding of the Citizendium's rules of behavior, covering all Citizens including those with official positions (such as the Ombudsman or the Editor-in-Chief). Constable authority is restricted to matters of behavior and Constables shall not intervene in matters of content, which is under the purview of the Editorial Council and Editor-in-Chief.

• But I would prefer that it be replaced by the sentence from "Professionalism", or a variant:

"The Constables - a set of persons of mature judgment — shall be specially empowered to enforce Citizendium's rules concerning behavior whilst encouraging collaboration in accordance with the principles laid down in this Charter.

The enforcement of these rules is to be carried out with reasonable pragmatism and leniency without prejudice as to Citizen status or position and only in those situations where the applicability of existing rules is clear. Decisions of constables may be appealed through the appropriate adjudication process.

• "unless the applicability of existing rules is clear"

There should be some option for temporary measures (in case of "danger") which allows action where no clear rules exist.

Constable tools include: advice and instruction on wiki or through Citizen email, removal of offensive text, and warning and banning of users according to the Constabulary Blocking Procedures.

• This is not needed in the charter (unless to mention the ultimate option - banning - somewhere, probably not here.

• Who appoints Constables?
• How are rules approved?

Editor-in-Chief

An Editor-in-Chief shall be appointed, with a term of office of four years renewable once, by simple majority of each of the Editorial Council and Management Committee. The functions of this office shall be:

1. to ensure day-to-day smooth functioning of the Citizendium,
2. to facilitate the practical implementation of the Citizendium editorial policy as defined by its governing institutions
3. to make interim editorial decisions (in consultation with other editors) and
4. to carry out any other tasks as required by this Charter or decisions of the governing bodies

• It may be nice to have such a person -- but what if he is not available?

• 1. what does this include?
• 2. how*
• 3. Should not be necessary with a working EC.

?Ombudsman

An Ombudsman shall be appointed, charged with the task of assisting in dispute resolution, as laid down in this Charter. The role of Ombudsman shall be vested in a Citizen with substantial Citizendiu experience and widely respected judgement, who may appoint up to two other Citizens (Assistant Ombudsmen) to support his/her work; their appointment and termination of duties is at the personal discretion of the Ombudsman. The Ombudsman will be elected by simple majority vote of each of the Editorial Council and Management Council, for a term of 4 years. An Ombudsman may be recalled by a supermajority (75%) of each of the Editorial and Management Councils.

• An Ombudsman and a separate "Decider" could be too much??

Management Committee

A Management Committee shall be responsible for matters concerned with the non-editorial policies of Citizendium, such as finance, external alliances, communications, administration, and behavior. To this end, it may appoint Administrators and Task Managers whose activities it will oversee. It will also appoint Constables and oversee their activities.

• It did not occur to me before reading the discussion on it: I always thought that the MC should handle the "foreign affairs". Therefore, indeed, Constables are a different matter. Should Constables be elected?

The Management Committee shall consist of seven Citizens, who may not simultaneously serve on the Editorial Council. They may, however, be Constables or Task Managers. A quorum shall consist of four members. The members of the Management Committee shall be elected by vote of active Citizens and Authors, with two-year renewable terms. The Management Committee will appoint one of its members as the Management Lead, who will represent the Citizendium externally on all matters except content.

• What happens if members leave the project or become inactive?

The Committee, with advice from legal and audit advisers, will designate those members that can enter into contracts or expend funds on behalf of CZ. Substantial expenditures will require more than one signature.

• 13 may be too large: 7 is better -- but perhaps even better to keep it flexible

Editorial Council

An Editorial Council will be responsible for guiding content and establishing policy. It shall consist of nine active Citizens, with five seats reserved for Editors. The remaining four seats are reserved for Authors that are not Editors. A quorum shall consist of five members.

Members of the Editorial Council may not simultaneously serve on the Management Committee or be Constables. They may, however, be Task Managers. The members of the Editorial Council will be elected by vote of active Citizens, with two-year terms renewable once consecutively. The Editorial Council will appoint one of its members as the Editorial Lead, who will represent the Citizendium externally on matters of content.

• 13 may be too large -- 9 is better for the moment, but even better to keep it flexible
• How to handle leaving or inactive members?

During deliberations on a matter covered by specific workgroups, the Chief? Editor of that Workgroup, or another member, may be part of a quorum if that individual is not a Council member. If, however, the matter under discussion involves a dispute with such an Editor, that Editor may state positions to the Council but not vote on them unless already a member.

• Shall there be Chief Editors?
• An involved member should not be allowed to vote

??Workgroups

The Editorial Council may create and reorganize workgroups to arrange areas of content, and to encourage collaboration among Authors and Editors in areas of expertise. Workgroup members will build top-level articles and knowledge structures for the articles in a discipline.

• "The Editorial Council shall create workgroups in order to arrange areas of content and organize (fields of) collaboration."

The Editorial Council shall elaborate a strategy and policy on topic-specific collaboration, chiefly based on CZ:Workgroups and some accepted ontology or other knowledge categorization scheme. In addition to subject specific Workgroups, there shall be a General Workgroup with jurisdiction over general issues of style and content, and for articles of very wide scope. There may be, in addition, interdisciplinary or specialized Subgroups. In addition, there may be Area Groups, as for (e.g., Science or Science & Technology) to deal with broad issues affecting many but not all workgroups (e.g., units of measurement).

• Not needed in the charter

When there are disputes on content issues, assuming there are multiple Editors in a workgroup, they will attempt to resolve the dispute. Failing agreement, the matter will be taken to the Ombudsman, and then to the Editorial Council.

• "Disputes shall be resolved on workgroup level, if possible. Failing agreement, the matter will be taken to the Ombudsman, and then to the Editorial Council."

Administration

The Citizendium's administration handles the legal, financial and technical operations necessary for the project to fulfill its mission.

• What about hardware administration? (and software maintainance?)

Dispute resolution

Disputes will be settled at the lowest possible level, such as by bringing in peer Editors or Constables. Next, the Ombudsman will be contacted for non-binding mediation. Should that fail, the matter will go to the appropriate body — the Editorial Board/Council for content matters and the Management Council for behavioral and administrative matters. As a last resort, both Councils may appoint members to an arbitration panel, for final arbitration as defined below.

Final arbitration

In the event of a dispute that cannot be resolved at a level below that of the Editorial Council or the Management Committee, appeals boards may be constituted on an ad hoc basis. They will consist of three members nominated by the Editorial Council and three members nominated by the Management Committee, who shall not have been involved in the specific dispute. An Ombudsman will preside; that official shall direct the Board and will be non-voting other than to possess a tie-breaking vote. Should no Ombudsman be available who is not a party to the matter, the Councils shall appoint a special presider from the Citizenry.

Electorate

All Authors are entitled to vote on the adoption or modification of this charter.

License

The content of the Citizendium will always be free to use, reuse, and redistribute.

Content originating at the Citizendium is available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

• In order to stay flexible, it might be better not to mention a license explicitly, but to state the guiding principles instead.

Content that originated elsewhere may also be incorporated into the Citizendium if such reuse is permitted by the copyright owners.

• In order to avoid future discussions the charter should state (here or under "Collaboration") that its articles are the result of collaboration and therefore - when citing an article - no individual authors are listed.

Legal status

The Citizendium will be owned and controlled by a non-profit organization.

• Is "shall be owned" better style for a Charter?

Languages

The official language of the Citizendium is English. Branches in other languages require approval by the Editorial Council and have to be based on this English-language charter or an approved translation.

Final clause

Ratification

If this Charter has been ratified by two thirds or more of the votes validly cast in a referendum for this purpose, it shall be certified by the Editor-in-Chief within a week after the closing of the referendum. For future amendments, a certifying official or officials shall be agreed upon by the joint Management Committee and Editorial Council.

• Since there are 3 options (yes,no,revise) this does not say enough

Entry into force

This Charter shall enter into force on the day following ratification.

Interim guidance for the transition period

As long as the administrative prerequisites for implementing the charter are not entirely fulfilled, the rules listed in this section shall provide interim guidance to the Editorial Council, Management Council, and other bodies. Such material may be modified by those bodies by their normal procedures, without a full Charter amendment.

Editorial Council and Management Committee

For both bodies, the intention is to elect half of the members each year, so of the first group, a number corresponding to the quorum will be selected, by lot or personal agreement, to serve one-year terms.

Citizens with pseudonyms

Citizens currently registered with a pseudonym will be granted up to one year of time to re-register for a new account under their real name. One year after the entry into force of this charter, all pseudonym accounts shall be locked by the Constabulary.

Inactive Editors

CZ:Editorial Council Resolution 0012 will be extended such that newly registered Editors who have not yet contributed(how?) to the project shall be regarded as Inactive Editors.

• What are the consequences of being "inactive"?
• Does "contribute" mean any action, any editor activity, or any author activity?

External partners

The Management Council shall elaborate a strategy and policy on collaboration with external partners, paying particular attention to fostering the collaboration with instructors by way of Eduzendium, and with external experts or professional organizations for the purposes of providing or reviewing content at the Citizendium.

Future amendments

This Charter shall be open to amendment at any time subsequent to its ratification. The Management Council is hereby vested with the power to act upon proposals for amendment originating from any Citizen or Citizendium institution. The process of Amendment requires the Management Council initially to consult with Citizens (including via the Forum) and subsequently to draft an appropriate amended text. The decision to accept the amended text will be taken by popular vote of the Citizenry, and requires a two-thirds majority of votes validly cast.