I. Objectives
The Asociación Latinoamericana de Filosofía Analítica (ALFAn) (Latin American Association for Analytic Philosophy) has the following goals:
a) The promotion of analytic philosophy in Latin America.
b) The organization of seminars, symposia and conferences, in particular, the organization of a biennial conference.
c) The development of a network of international contacts, with a special focus on the interaction and exchanges among experts and students of analytic philosophy throughout Latin America.
d) The promotion of exchange among philosophers from Latin America and other countries where analytic philosophy research is done.
e) The promotion and dissemination of Latin American publications in analytic philosophy.
f) The cooperation with other philosophical associations in Latin America and worldwide in order to accomplish these goals.
ALFAn is open to any philosopher sharing its objectives in accordance with the categories of membership listed in section II.
The Asociación Latinoamericana de Filosofía Analítica is a non-profit organization that aims at promoting, increasing and disseminating the study and research in analytic philosophy, as well as the exchange between scholars, societies and institutions of higher education with similar interests both at the local and at the international level. Accordingly, ALFAn supports and promotes:
a) the issuing of the ALFAn bulletin in electronic format with information concerning recent publications in analytic philosophy in Latin American or authored by Latin American scholars, calls for postgraduate programs in analytic philosophy, academic events organized by members, sites of interest, etc. It will be open to all those who might be interested in promoting serious academic exchange.
b) The publication of both journals and monographic texts together with academic publishers, the organization of colloquia, seminars, meetings, conferences, and international and national academic events, the advancement and development of research in analytic philosophy by designing and carrying out the corresponding projects and contracts.
c) Cooperation with other academic associations and organizations and also with centers for higher education, study and research and with other public and private agencies and institutions that share these objectives.
II. Members
There are three classes of ALFAn membership: ordinary, associate and institutional. In all three cases, a written application must be sent to the Governing Board, which in turn approves it (once the registration fee has been paid) or rejects it.
Ordinary Membership
Anyone doing research in (and/or teaching) analytic philosophy and who has a clear commitment to the association can apply for ALFAn ordinary membership as long as he or she meets the following requirements:
i) Works at an institution for higher education or research center (or is retired from one of them),
ii) has a PhD or equivalent qualification, and
iii) has either published at least 4 articles (or a book) in analytic philosophy in the last 5 years or a long record of publications in analytic philosophy.
These members have the right to vote and to be elected to the Governing Board. Philosophers who are working outside Latin America cannot be elected to the Board. In exceptional cases, the Governing Board may exempt an applicant from only one of the requirements above as long as he or she adds two letters of recommendation from ordinary members together with her application.
Associate Membership
Anyone can apply for associate membership as long as he or she meets the following requirements:
i) Works in analytic philosophy,
ii) submits two letters of recommendation from ordinary members, and
iii) (a) is a graduate student at an institution for higher education, (b) has obtained her PhD in the last two years but still does not meet the requirements for applying for ordinary membership, or (c) teaches at an institution for higher education.
These members do not have the right to vote and cannot be elected to the Governing Board, but have the same rights as ordinary members in all other respects. The fee for associate membership will always be lower than that for ordinary membership. Associate members will be able to apply for regular membership as soon as they meet the corresponding requirements.
Institutional Membership
Any institution, association or organization carrying out research in analytic philosophy can apply for institutional membership in ALFAn. The approval of the applications for this kind of membership will be left to the discretion of the Governing Board. These members do not have the right to vote and cannot be elected to the Governing Board. The fee for institutional members will be higher than that for ordinary members.
Disciplinary sanctions, suspension or banishment will be decided by the Governing Board by a vote of two thirds of its members. Some of the possible causes of suspension or banishment are failure to pay the fees and any action affecting the exchange or good communication among members of the association. The member involved will have granted the opportunity to submit a written defense to the Governing Board.
III. Constitution
ALFAn is constituted by its Governing Board and its institutional and individual members. The Governing Board, in turn, is constituted by its president, vice president, treasurer and four additional members . Each member of the Board will be in office for two years and will have the possibility of only one consecutive reelection. The president and vice president will in all cases be from different countries. The treasurer will also act as secretary to the association and will be from the same country as the president. The four additional members must each come from a different country, but they can be of the same nationality as the president, vice president and/or treasurer. An Electoral Committee, appointed by the Governing Board, will be entrusted with organizing the elections. ALFAn regular members will be able to participate in the election for membership in the Governing Board as long as they are up to date with their membership fees, and will be able to vote in one of the following ways:
By electronic voting or
by casting a direct and secret vote in a ballot boxes or
the submission of a vote in a sealed envelope to the Electoral Committee on election day during voting hours.
Electronic votes will be cast one week previous to the association’s conference and the casting of votes in ballot boxes will take place during the first day of the conference. Candidates to the Governing Board must be up to date with their fees and must register their candidacy at least one month before the period for electronic voting. The treasurer must remind all members who are not up to date with their fees to regularize their situation at least two months before the submission of electronic votes.
Every year at the ALFAn conference, and only at this event, possible changes to the criteria for membership and to the constitution of the association will be considered. Changes will be made by the agreement of a simple majority of all regular members.