Minutes
Monthly European Committee Teleconference Call
Saturday 5 March 2016
14:00 CET
Please notify the secretary at [email protected] with changes, additions, or motions for this meeting.
A. Call to Order: Please be sure that any background noises in your area are eliminated since the sounds make it difficult for participants to hear. When speaking, please say your name first. This will help us record your name with your input. Thank you.
1) Open with the Serenity Prayer
2) Tradition Three: The only requirement for membership in ACA is a desire to recover from the effects of growing up in an alcoholic or otherwise dysfunctional family.
B. Roll Call of European Countries: Jeffrey, Prague, Czech Republic, EU Finance and Literature
Sub-Committee Chair/WSO Board Trustee;
Majbrit, Denmark, WSO Vice Chair/European Chair;
C. Establish Quorum
D. Guests:Desiree, Netherlands
Kadri Liisa, Estonia
Denis, Russia
E. EC Members Reports: I will ask each member of the committee to introduce themselves and give us an update on what they have been working on in the past month:
Majbrit - Majbrit gave a talk in Riga on service for the WSO. The Latvian fellowship has quadrupled over the last two years. There were around 80 to 100 people there to listen to her presentation on the WSO’s effort to build up a European organization under the European Committee.
Majbrit has also been in contact with numerous countries via Skype, including Sweden, Germany, the Faroe Islands, Norway, Estonia and Latvia. Everybody stated their need for literature and how it can be provided more easily, and with less shipping costs. Efforts are underway to provide a more efficient system.
Jeffrey – In regards to the finance sub-committee, Jeffrey stated they are in the process of gathering information to put together the first budget for the European Committee. That includes the first of whatever literature groups are ordering through the web site in the US. This is important information to have as no one has ever tracked or recorded the European contribution of individual countries before. This also includes 7th Tradition contributions.
We would like to put together a website for the European committee in order to become more of a clearing house for information and to develop more of a central point of contact. In the future those looking for information about ACA could go straight to a country page or representative. He was on the phone yesterday to enquire about the costs of setting up a website.
On the literature side, they are trying to put into place literature available to be purchased in the UK. It is a slow process because when you are setting up international accounts, the company, in this case Amazon, will always request very specific legal documentation. This documentation is not normally requested in the United States so the Treasurer has had to request specific legal documentation through the IRS and various other authorities. This process takes several weeks, but should be in place later this month.
Majbrit and Jeffrey are also looking to set up a similar situation in Denmark and have ideas regards printing The Big Red Book in Russia.
F. Old Business:
Regarding the EC’s vision for affordable literature, we have to try to set up local purchases and local translated versions of literature. As far as connecting members, we have to try to create a central website for European members.
Majbrit - Majbrit states that the fellowship is exploding all over Europe at the moment. New countries to ACA include Norway, Italy and Sweden, and are sending in their translations of free literature and they will soon make it available on their webpages. As the Chair of the European Committee, Majbrit says a point of contact and central page would make it much easier for communication.
In terms of new business, members of new countries are welcome to offer their services as the representative of their country. They don’t have to be a member of the European Committee, but we would like to have contact with the people who can gather the information together in their own country and fellowship.
G. New Business: No new business
H. Guest Comments (Open Call):
Desiree states her Intergroup in the Netherlands is trying to find a way to meet once a month with the Belgium group. They are also working on a translation and the first documents have gone back to the groups for feedback.
They have problems with literature. The literature they import from America is cheaper than buying it from the Intergroup in the Netherlands. They are trying to get a 30% discount but don’t know how to approach getting it. They will discuss it at their next meeting.
On April the 9th they are organizing an ACA day in the Netherlands. They have put it on the WSO website under events.
Jeffrey: In regards literature in the Netherlands, Jeffrey states they are trying to set up local distribution and printing to make the literature more affordable. If they can translate the literature into the local language, they can print it in the local market. Jeffrey will send an email where he can be contacted on the European Committee.
Majbrit states some groups are not getting the 30% discount because they are using a private name for their email address instead of an official one. She recommends all Intergroups get an official email address.
Kadri Liisa: We are still at the same place in Tallinn. We have three Estonian meetings and one international meeting and we are translating the BRB.
Majbrit: Majbrit asked Denis if all the Russian Intergroups are speaking the same language or dialect and whether this would affect their translations.
Denis: In reply to Majbrit, Dennis stated that he plans to collect information from Russian publishing houses and to ask the Russian AA how they resolved the various legal problems surrounding publishing their literature. He can get the information to Jeffrey in one or two months. He should also have the price for shipping 500 books to Russia by then, but would like to hear the experience of the Danish and Finnish fellowships who have seemed to already resolved the literature issue?
Jeffrey: I raised the issue on the Finance Committee that printing the books in the US and sending them to Russia is not a good idea until we have all the information on the table, and for two reasons: one the Ruble has devalued immensely in the last six months and two, there are political ramifications that could result in any book being stuck in the customs dock and never entering Russia.
It’s not just the Russian fellowship that speaks Russian, but many of the fellowships in the surrounding countries such as in Belarus and in Kazakhstan. The reason I mention this is that we might be able to make a good case to the Board for printing the books in Russia.
Dennis: Dennis says he is the main contact in terms of printing and buying books but Nastia is the main contact for the translations. The translator has a coordinator and they will send the Big Red Book to Larry when it is ready. But he needs to discuss it with the translation group.
Jeffrey: I also have figures, numbers and calculations on the printing side for other foreign languages of the Big Red Book that have been printed in the States. I can provide you with that information much more clearly and easily.
Majbrit: Majbrit states that the European reports and minutes from this meeting will be transcribed and then posted on the ACA webpage.
Jeffrey: At the Annual Business Conference in Florida next month, Jeffrey says they will be presenting the first plan and budget for the European Committee. They are working hard to put into place the structure that will provide the fellowship with more service.
Thank you everyone for the call. We will be in contact via email a little later. We look forward to hearing from everybody next month.
Access number for the WSO Monthly Teleconference (held on the 2nd Saturday of each month): 712-432-0075, Pin 427266#. Press *6 to mute or un-mute.
You can also attend the Teleconference using your computer. For more information, please visit https://www.acawso.org/teleconferences/78-wso-board/162-teleconference-flash-phone
Announcements: The next EC Teleconference is scheduled for Saturday 2 April 2016 at 14:00 CET.
A motion to close the meeting was seconded, and the meeting was closed with the Serenity Prayer.
