(Amended June 2010)
Section A — Fellows
A1. The Fellowship of the Society shall be an honour conferred for distinction in research or the advancement of science or technology, or the humanities.
A2. The total number of Fellows shall be restricted by limiting the number of Fellows elected annually.
A3. The official abbreviation of the title “Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand” shall be FRSNZ.
A4. A general meeting of Fellows (known as the “Annual General Meeting”) shall be held every year.
A5. The number of Fellows elected each year should reflect the number of highly meritorious nominations in that particular year and should be reviewed annually at the Annual General Meeting.
A6. No person shall be nominated or elected as a Fellow unless he or she: i) is a citizen or permanent resident of New Zealand; and ii) has been a New Zealand resident for at least three years during his or her career; and iii) normally spends at least six months in New Zealand each year.
A7. Nominations may be made by two Fellows, or in the case of Constituent Organisations, Regional Constituent Organisations and other scientific organisations, by one Fellow and one other person who shall be a senior office-bearer of that organisation. Nominations shall stand for a period of five years, but further evidence in support of the nomination may be added from year to year. In the event of a nominee moving abroad during this term, his or her nomination will lapse and he or she will be eligible for nomination for Honorary Fellowship. If the candidate has not been elected within that period he or she shall not be re-nominated for a period of three years. The consent of the candidate must be obtained in writing when first nominated. In giving consent to nomination, each nominee shall express willingness to comply with the conditions of the Fellowship.
A8. The list of the proposed Fellows shall be reported at the Annual General Meeting. Such meetings shall have the power only to accept each name or to refer it back to the Fellowship Selection Committee. Those accepted will thereby be elected Fellows of the Royal Society of New Zealand.
A9.
- Every candidate for election as a Fellow shall, in giving consent to nomination under Bylaw A7, also undertake to pay to the Royal Society of New Zealand an annual subscription of such sum as may be approved from time to time by the Annual General Meeting of Fellows, on the recommendation of the Academy Executive Committee.
- Every Fellow elected shall pay to the Society an annual subscription.
- On application from any Fellow who has given an undertaking to pay an annual subscription to the Society, the Academy Executive Committee may for any sufficient reason remit payment of his or her annual subscription for such period as it sees fit.
- Fellows who have retired may pay a reduced annual subscription, at a level to be approved from time to time by the annual meeting of Fellows or on the recommendation of the Academy Executive Committee. The Academy Executive Committee may remit by resolution the payment of part or all of future annual subscriptions by any Fellow.
A10. The Society shall keep a register of Fellows of the Society, with the dates of their election, their degrees, honours and titles, in which shall be recorded the death of any Fellow, and the names of the deceased Fellows thus recorded shall be announced from the chair at the next succeeding Annual General Meeting.
A11. From time to time the Academy Executive Committee may consider it desirable to elect to the Fellowship an eminent person who has made an outstanding contribution to the nurture and support of science, technology, or the humanities, or the Society, been a benefactor to the Academy or to science, technology or the humanities, and whose election to the Fellowship the Academy Executive Committee believes would benefit the Academy and the advancement of science, technology, or the humanities.
The nomination will be made to the Academy Executive Committee in the form of nominating statements from at least three Fellows and supported by a curriculum vitae.
The nomination must have the unanimous approval of the Academy Executive Committee for the recommendation of election to proceed.
The Academy Executive Committee will recommend the election of the candidate to the Fellows at the Annual General Meeting.
The approval of the person nominated must be obtained before public announcement of the election.
Not more than two persons may be elected by the special election procedure in any three consecutive years.
Any Fellow elected by the special election procedure will thereafter have the same rights and privileges as Fellows elected by the normal procedure.
Section B — Honorary Fellows
B1. The Academy Executive Committee may appoint Honorary Fellows, being persons not eligible under Bylaw A6. The total number of Honorary Fellows shall be at the absolute discretion of the Academy Executive Committee.
B2. Nominations for Honorary Fellowship may be made by groups of three or more Fellows, or in the case of Constituent Organisations, Regional Constituent Organisations and other scientific organisations, by two Fellows and one other person who shall be a senior office-bearer of that organisation.
B3. The number of Honorary Fellows elected in any one year shall be decided by the Academy Executive Committee.
B4. Each nomination must be accompanied by a completed nomination form, curriculum vitae, full bibliography and a statement of up to 500 words indicating the reasons why a candidate is worthy of election, as well as indication of the appropriate Fellowship Selection Panel to consider the nomination. In exceptional circumstances and with the approval of the President the requirement for part of the above documentation may be waived.
B5. Nominations shall be referred to the appropriate Fellowship Selection Panel which shall be asked to consider the nomination and make recommendations to the Fellowship Selection Committee. Consideration shall be given to each candidate’s sustained research excellence in the scientific field and to his or her association with New Zealand.
B6. The Academy Executive Committee shall consider each highly recommended candidate and make elections to Honorary Fellowship at or after its Fellowship Selection Committee Meeting and before the Fellows’ Annual General Meeting.
B7. The names of those elected to Honorary Fellowship shall be announced at the Fellows’ Annual General Meeting.
B8. Nominations shall stand for a period of two years, but further evidence in support of the nomination may be added from year to year. If the candidate has not been elected within that period he or she shall not be re-nominated for a period of three years.
B9. The title of Honorary Fellow shall be Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand (Hon FRSNZ).
Section C — Proceedings of Academy Executive Committee
C1. The Academy Executive Committee comprises the three Discipline-based Vice-Presidents and up to three other Royal Society of New Zealand Councillors who are Fellows.
C2. The Academy Executive Committee can co-opt up to an additional 3 Fellows who do not serve concurrently on the Royal Society of New Zealand Council, to ensure representation across the Fellowship.
C3. The Academy Executive Committee is chaired (for a one-year term) by the Discipline-based Vice-President whose position is due for election in that year.
C4. The Academy Executive Committee shall normally meet at least four times a year, at least two of which should be by telephone or videoconferencing.
C5. Seven clear days before the day fixed for each Academy Executive Committee meeting, notice shall be emailed or posted to each member of the Academy Executive Committee at his/her address last notified to the Executive Officer.
C6. The quorum at each Academy Executive Committee meeting shall be 50 percent or more of the number eligible to attend.
C7. At meetings of the Academy Executive Committee each member shall be entitled to one vote, but in the case of equality of votes the Chairperson of the meeting shall have a casting as well as a deliberate vote.
C8. Upon receipt of a request signed by not less than two members of the Academy Executive Committee and stating clearly the business to be transacted, the Chairperson of the Academy Executive Committee shall, within seven days, call a special meeting of the Academy Executive Committee, and at such a meeting no business other than that set forth in the request shall be introduced.
C9. In the event of the absence or incapacity of the Chairperson of the Academy Executive Committee, the next longest-serving member of the Academy Executive Committee shall serve as its acting Chairperson.
C10. At its first meeting following each Annual General Meeting of Fellows, or as soon as possible thereafter, the Academy Executive Committee shall set up the Fellowship Selection Committee and special committees for the awards of medals and prizes as required.
C11. No member of the Academy Executive Committee and no member of any Committee shall vote or take part in discussion on any matter before the Academy Executive Committee or Panel or Committee in which he/she has either directly or indirectly any pecuniary interest.
C12. No member of the Academy Executive Committee shall hold any salaried office under the Academy Executive Committee.
C13. The members of the Academy Executive Committee and all its Committees and Panels shall be paid travelling allowances to attend meetings of the Academy Executive Committee and its Panels and Committees.
