[Ambassadors] EMEA Membership Questions

[Francesco Ugolini]

2008/5/10 Christoph Wickert <christoph.wickert at googlemail.com>:

> Sorry if I took you to literally. Also as I already told you in private
> I do not criticize you or your work. Please don't be offended just
> because you are the chair of EMEA. Thanks
>
> Maybe someone else of the people who voted for 128 EUR could explain it
> to me then? I'm not talking about 128 or 129 Euros now but the general
> height of the fee.

All the founders vote for this fee, and they all together decided that
it would the best solution, considering the number in a year ( 10.5 €
circa per month and less than 4 cent per day), so i know we are living
with an economy near the stagnation, but i don't understand why this
fee could create such criticism. Yes, i agree if you tell me that
those are money, and it's a week or two of work in a PA office, but i
think if you consider that amount in a larger view it's not so much.

>
> There are several people on this list who say the fee is very high so I
> don't understand why this hasn't been considered by the founding members
> before.

Maybe because they weren't in Bruxelles?

>I agree the fee is a statement, but do you think that on the other hand
>not being able to pay the fee also is one? People who are not willing or
>able to pay the membership may still valuable and hard working
>contributors.

There are several categories that have cost reduction to allow people
who can't afford such cost (i think one of this people with a certain
income not to pay or pay a low fee, but see the "fee document" to be
sure).

>Sorry if I did not point out my suggestion more clearly: Lower the
>member fee to enable more people to participate. Especially because the
>NPO is called EMEA but lacks ME and A at the moment.

A is not missing. In Africa there are some ambassadors who expressed
in the past their agreement for such initiative, not to have a card
with Fedora EMEA writte on it, but to be able to easily ask for
resources and be part of a easy network that could linke them. In the
last LinuxTag a Monzambique ambassador attended the event and seemes
interested in this idea.

For ME there is some work in progress, but if you consider we had just
an event in Dubay (http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/FedoraEvents/GITEX).

I think if we ask ambassadors and contributors they aren't in search
of membership, but in search of help. Fedora EMEA is something that
was created after two year of contribution, that underlines the
importance to have a center in the EMEA where we can refer to improve
our work.

>It's a fact that we already have this situation. Think of Kushal for
>example: No doubt that he is a valuable contributor and if I did not
>offer him a free place to sleep he would not have been able to come to
>Berlin at all. Two days ago he told me that he wont be able to come
>anyway because he did not find a sponsor.

I agree with Joerg and Max posts: they express what i think too.

Let me add a tought:

There is a lot of work in front of us, we have to focus our time and
passion (that you and everyone here has) in a costructive way. While
we are discussiong about this issue, we are losing a possible Fedora
user and/or contributors, and we are moving away the community.

Please, just give the time to Fedora EMEA to spring its wings and
demostrate its capacities, then you'll have all the time to criticize
its positions, but, now, let Gerold and the EMEA board to build Fedora
EMEA: they were voted by people with a publig vote (see the M-L
announce and the self-nomination wiki) and now they have the right and
the duty to work!

Regards

Francesco Ugolini