To: ISP Board of Governors

From: ISP Executive Committee

Re: Recommended Actions on Members Workshop Proposals

Twelve members of ISP convened in a Workshop August 27-29, 2001 to propose future directions for the Society. They made 13 recommendations. [You will find a summary of the Workshop's report in the October issue of Panetcs.] We have examined these recommendations for their feasibility within the Society's resource constraints (both fiscal and human). The Board should decide what its final recommendations to the membership at the Annual Meeting on November 13 should be.

The Workshop proposals are enumerated below with our own comments and recommendations and an assessment of the budget implications.

1. A "That’s Not Right" Column and Video

Workshop proposal: Each quarter a "conjectural" commentary on an important infliction submitted by any author would be selected for publication in the journal, dissemination on the website, and wide distribution to the media. Any submission must describe the infliction, the inflictors, and try to suggest ways to reduce the infliction. Cynthia Overweg suggested that eventually video or film documentaries should also be produced to help reach a still wider audience and increase understanding.

Our recommendation: The Committee has already instigated the journal column in a reformatted October 2001 issue of Panetics and media/Internet distribution of the columns should begin. Cynthia Overweg should be requested to prepare a more detailed proposal for the videos, including cost estimates, before proceeding with that part of the proposal.

Budget implications: We believe that this proposal can be implemented within the budget usually provided for journal publication.

2. Annual "Call for Papers" Competition

Workshop proposal: Each year, ISP should choose a subject or theme, then issue a "call for papers" with a significant award, an opportunity to present the paper before a prestigious audience, and an opportunity to be published.

Our recommendation: That the proposal be implemented in the following way: A theme or themes for 2002 should be chosen by a special committee appointed by the Chair at the time of the Annual Meeting. A call for papers based on the theme should be issued. Submitted papers will be published in the four issues of the journal over the year. At the end of the year a jury will select a winner to be announced at the Annual ISP meeting. A special trophy or medal will be presented and the paper will be included in the book that results from that year's Siu Lecture and Symposium.

Budget implications: The budget would have to provide for the trophy/medal, the travel and lodging expenses of the winner when he/she comes to the Annual Meeting. Publication costs would be included in the expense budget associated with the Siu Lecture and Symposium. It is necessary to budget an additional $1000 to cover circularizing the "Call for Papers".

3. Siu Awards

Workshop proposal: A series of Siu Awards was proposed: one each year for the journalistic piece deemed to have contributed most to public awareness and understanding of the nature of inflicted suffering or ways to reduce it and a similar award to recognize persons who, through either leadership or civic involvement, have helped reduce inflicted suffering.

Our recommendations: This idea has been discussed in the past and rejected, based on the argument that so many awards are made that the awards of ISP might be lost in the dust of competition. That aside, there are significant logistical problems that must be resolved. Who will scan activities throughout the world to determine worthy recipients? Who and how will the field be narrowed down? What costs would be involved in such a selection process. What should the award consist of? Cash? A tropy/medal?

The Chair should appoint a committee to throughly evaluate the resources, personnel and procedures necessary to implement this proposal before the Society proceeds toward implementation.

4. Siu PhD Research Fellowship

Workshop proposal: To help attract more young scholars to help develop a science or discipline of panetics, a competitive Research Fellowship should be awarded every 1 to 2 years to support the work of a promising PhD candidate on some important panetic issue.

Our recommendation: Such a fellowship would require $15,000-$17,500 in support. At this stage in ISP's evolution, it does not seem that the benefits of such an expenditure would extend widely enough to warrant the outlay. The Fellowship might have been appropriate had the Workshop recommended publication of an "Inflictions Monitor", but the character of initiatives proposed indicates to us that the idea of a Siu Fellowship should be implemented some years hence when the Society's research programs are more advanced.

Budget implications: Moot.

5. Quantification and Monitoring of Suffering

Workshop proposals: Three Workshop proposals can be linked as the mandate of a new "Panemetric" committee within the Society:

Undertake an inventory of already existing databases that try to measure inflictions of human suffering in order to provide the first foundations for any effort by ISP to monitor suffering. A committee to begin work on the collection and interpretation of quantitative data concerning the infliction of suffering. An inventory of past efforts to define the indicators of a healthy society evaluating them critically from a panetic point of view. Our recommendation: The core of such a committee formed during the workshop consisting of Daoust, Warfield, Wulff and Widner. The Chair should appoint the committee and recruit additional members from the Society to its membership.

Budget implications: Perhaps $1000 should be provided to obtain data or other materials as the committee pursues its inquiries.

6. Committee on Small Initiatives

Workshop proposal: A committee to determine how some small initiative might begin to start a series of interventions that would "snowball" and eventually lead to large results in the reduction of inflicted suffering around the world." There is some desire to undertake an initiative that is small or local rather than international or global so that results can be seen and measured directly.

Our recommendation: That the Chair recruit a committee of members interested in pursuing such initiatives with the charge that the committee develop a proposal for a specific small initiative that can be considered by the Society for implementation. Robert Daoust and Reed Whittemore are both actively interested in such an initiative.

Budget implication: Minimal in 2002, though perhaps $1000 should be budgeted for materials and other support that the committee might require.

7. Propaganda and Perception Management

Workshop proposal: A concerted research initiative into the influence of propaganda, advertising and so-called "perception management" in either inflicting or hiding infliction.

Our recommendation: This might possibly be a theme for the "Call for Papers" in 2002.

Budget implications: Covered in recommendations 3 and 4.

8. Terminology Committee

Workshop proposal: ISP’s current terminology is a semantic impediment to credibility and ways should be found to express ISP’s concepts in more comfortable and understandable terms.

Our recommendation: That the Chair appoint a Committee of members to examine terminological problems and make recommendations.

Budget implications: Minimal.