These Statutes of the Real Sociedad Geográfica replace those adopted by the Extraordinary General Board Meeting held on June 15th, 1901 and chaired by Mr. Cesáreo Fernández Duro. The amendment of the Statutes was adopted at the Extraordinary General Assembly chaired by José María Torroja Menéndez on June 22, 1987 in Madrid.
Article 1st >> Name
Article 2nd >> Type
Article 3th >> Objetives
Article 4th >> Means
Article 5th >> Membership
Article 6th >> Classes of members
Article 7th >> Rights and duties
Article 8th >> Members admission
Article 9th >> Honorary members
Article 10th >> Corresponding honorary members
Article 11th >> Corresponding members
Article 12th >> Honorary presidenrs
Article 13th >> Appointment of honorary and corresponding members
Article 14th >> The Board of Directors
Article 15th >> Secretary, Treasurer and Librarian
Article 16th >> Term of office
Article 17th >> Presidency and Secretary
Article 18th >> Sections
Article 19th >> Commissions
Article 20th >> Meetings and faculties of the Board of Director
Article 21th >> Meetings of the Sociedad
Article 22th >> Ordinary General Meeting
Article 23th >> Extraordinary General Meeting
Article 24th >> Electrions
Article 25th >> Dismissal and replacement of the Board of Director
Article 26th >> Dissolution of the Society
Statutes Amendment 1987
Article 1st
Name
The Real Sociedad Geográfica is the sucessor of Sociedad Geográfica de Madrid and of Sociedad Española de Geografía Comercial created in 1876 and 1885, respectively, in the capital city of Spain.
Article 2nd
Type
The Real Sociedad Geográfica is a scientific and autonomous entity. Under the Third Article of Order dated February 18th, 1901, it is a Public Education Institution and it will be governed by these Statutes to be forwarded to the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science and made public in the Official Gazette.
Article 3th
Objetives
Its objectives are to promote geographical knowledge progress and disemination in all its branches and applications to social, political and economic life.
Its studies will be devoted to the Spanish lands and those of the peoples linked to Spain by language and other reasons.
Article 4th
Means
The Real Sociedad Geográfica is to meet its goals by means of public meetings and conferences, drawing of the reports and consultations requested by official entities, as well as of opinions on Geography teaching plans and methods, and on the books, maps and other material employed; Geographical Congresses; public or private discussions of all kind of scientific, political or administrative geographically-related matters, and the publication of periodicals and of detailed and doctrinal works in a geographical collection. It is to keep relations with other geographical Societies and Entities devoted to similar studies, and it is to give its support and any possible scientific advise to travellers and scientists. A library will collect and keep the publications acquired and exchanged.
Article 5th
Members
The society is made up by an undetermined number of members, notwithstanding their domicile, and foreigners are to be accepted under the same conditions than Spanish nationals.
Article 6th
Classes of members
Ordinary member.- Those members that, after meeting signing-in requisites, join the Society and pay the membership as well as the yearly fees.
Life members.- Those members that, after meeting signing-in requisites, join the Society and pay the membership as well as a single fee set by the General Meeting.
Patrons and collaborating entities and members.- Those public or private entities and people who give the Society a periodic aid (over 50,000 Pta) or who donate some relevant publications to the Library.
Student members.- Those people studying in the University or College Schools or any similar centres and who can prove their condition. Fees must be set by the General Meeting..
Article 7th
Rights and duties
Members will get the the Statutes and the publications and they are entitled to attend to all the meetings and public events, and to make use of the Library.
Those members meeting the terms required by the special Rules (attached below) adopted by the Board of Directors on November 16th, 1886, can display the Medal, the Society badge.
The General Meeting, at the proposal of the Board of Directors, is to modify the fees referred to in Article 6th when the buying power of money has varied much.
Student members are to get the Statutes and the Newsletter and they are entitled to attend and to collaborate in the public events.
Article 8th
Member admission
People can join the Sociedad at their own request or at their presentation by a member; members will be admitted by the Board of Directors or by an ordinary General Meeting.
Article 9th
Honorary members
A honorary membership may be awarded to those individuals that have rendered outstanding and exceptional services to this Society or to Science.
Honorary members have voice and vote in the meetings and General Meetings they attend; they are excused of every fees and will get the Society publications.
Article 10th
Corresponding honorary members
Any Spanish or foreign person, author of useful geographical publications or who has forwarded to the Society a relation of his/her travels, may be appointed a corresponding member.
Article 11th
Corresponding members
Any Spanish or foreign person, author of useful geographical publications or who has forwarded to the Society a relation of his/her travels, may be appointed a corresponding member.
Corresponding members have voice and vote in the General Meetings and other meetings they attend to, and they will be excused of the membership fees. They must pay the annual fees, as any other member, to get the Society publications.
Article 12th
Honorary presidents
Those members who are outstanding by their merit or work for the Sociedad, and who have held for at leas six years the office of President or Vice-president may become Honorary President. They will enjoy all the rights and exemptions awarded to Honorary members in Article 9th above.
Article 13th
Appointment of honorary and corresponding members
The honour referred to in the four previous Articles will be awarded at the written proposal of at least three members by the secret vote of the Board of Directors or the ordinary General Meeting.
Article 14th
Board of Directors
The Society is managed and represented by the Board of Directors, made up by a President, four Vice-Presidents, a Secretary-General, two Deputy Secretaries, a Treasurer, a Librarian and twenty-four Directors.
All the exPresidents and the Honorary Presidents can attend the Board meetings, with voice and vote.
Born-Directors of the Board may be the Heads, Directors or Presidents of the Official Centres and Committees of the Civil Administration and of the Army, Navy and Air Force where geographical, meteorological, mapping and other similar works are carried out. Other born-directors will be those Spanish geographers who are or had been members of the Executive Committee of the International Geographical Union or of the Instituto de Cooperación Iberoamericana. Appointments will be adopted by the ordinary General Meeting, at the Board of Directors’ proposal.
Article 15th
Secretary, Treasurer and Librarian
The Secretary-General is to implement the resolutions taken by the Board of Directors. He/she is also to follow the publications, to attend to the correspondence and to deal with the inner management of the Society.
The Deputy Secretaries are to help the Secretary-General in his/her functions and will replace him/her in his absences and sick leaves.
The Treasurer is in charge of the Society’s economic management.
The Librarian is to look after the Library maintenance and catalogue.
Article 16th
Term of office
Board of Directors’ offices are for four years, and they can be re-elected. The Board is to be renewed by half every two years. The first half is to include the first and third Vice-Presidents, the Secretary and the second Deputy Secretary. the Librarian and the odd-numbered Directors. The second half is to include the President, the second and fourth Vice-Presidents, the first Deputy Secretary, the Treasurer and the even-numbered Directors.
If there is a vacancy, the Board may cover it interimly until the next General Meeting when the election will take place. In that case, the post will be held for the remaining time.
Article 17th
Presidency and Secretary
All the General Meetings and other meetings will be chaired by the Society President, if he is present, or by one of the Vice-Presidents or a Director. The chair will decide with its casting vote in those cases of tied votes.
Article 18th
Sections
The Board of Directors will set Sections to which the members may freely enter. The object of said Sections is to study certain geographical specialities and, in general, those corresponding to the Commissions, Working Groups and Study Groups set by the International Geographical Union.
Article 19th
Commissions
At the proposal of the Board of Directors, the President may create Commissions to study certain matters, made up by members and chaired by a Director.
Article 20th
Board meetings and functions
The Board of Directors is to meet whenever they think fit and is in charge of all the matters related to the direction and management and publications of the Sociedad. Another of its functions is to appoint the auxiliary and subaltern personnel. The number and salary of the employees will be set by the Board, after being informed by the Secretary and the Treasurer.
Article 21th
Meetings of the Society
The Sociedad is to hold ordinary meetings in dates previously set. From June 15th till September 15th, meetings will be suspended. The President, per himself or at the request of two Vice-Presidents or of six Directors or of twenty members, will call the extraordinary meeting.
Article 22th
The Ordinary General Meeting
An Ordinary General Meeting will take place every year in June. The Secretary-General will read aloud the Activities Report and, at the Treasurer’s proposal, the Meeting will approve the accounts for the previous year and the estimated budget for the next year.
Article 23th
The Extraordinary General Meeting
An Extraordinary General Meeting will be held when the Board of Directors so decides or at the request of, at least, twenty members. In both cases, it must be called with fifteen days of advance, and its agenda must always be published. Members attendance must be at least of fifty members in the first call; if it is not enough, the second call will take place within eight days in the same manner. Resolutions will be valid in second call when taken by the majority of attending members. Second call attendance has a minimum of 30 members.
Article 24th
Elections
Board of Directors’ offices will be elected in the Ordinary General Meeting through a secret vote and by a majority of votes. Vote by mail will be accepted under the adequate guarantees. The Secretary-General is to send to all the members the list of candidates and the corresponding ballots at least with thirty days in advance.
Board of Directors’ lists of candidates must include at least ten members and must be in the hands of the Secretary-General at least 45 days before the election date.
Article 25th
Dismissal and replacement of the Board of Directors
The elected Directors that do not attend justifiedly to five or more Board meetings in a year will be dismissed. Born-directors may delegate on a member of the represented entity when they can not attend to Board meetings.
Article 26th
Dissolution of the Society
The society can only be dissolved by an Extraordinary General Meeting, held by decision of an Ordinary General Meeting, that has decided unanimously that the society does not fulfill anymore the objectives it was created for.
Statutes Amendment 1987
Objectives of the Sociedad
The main objective of the RSG is to promote the advancement and dissemination of geographical Knowledge in all its branches and in all its applications to social, political and economic matters. The Society will encourage in the first place the study of the Spanish territories and those that are strongly related to them by means of language or other reasons. To achieve that goal, the Society is willing to
1. Promote the study of geographical problems.
2. Initiate, support and assist geographical research, both nationally and internationally, through the organization of congresses, conferences, courses and publications.
3. Promote and spread the teaching of geography at all instances, whether public or private, through academic activities, visits to places of geographical interest and fieldwork projects.
4. Facilitate the collection and dissemination of all kinds of documents and materials from geographical research and teaching initiatives.
5. Cooperate and coordinate international research projects and meetings, in particular with the International Geographical Union and its various actions.