A letter from IFSR's Executive Committee, 1994

IFSR Newsletter 1994 Vol. 13 no. 2 (33) July
As the newly elected Executive Committee (EC) of IFSR, it is our privilege to offer our services to our member organizations and to the Federation. We pledge to the Federation and the international systems community our commitment to working with you in order to advance the cybernetic and systems sciences and to promote systems applications in the service of humanity. It is our hope and expectation that all member organizations will join us in developing ideas, arrangements and programs that will bring to life the purposes of the Federation.
We hold that IFSR should be more than the sum of its member organizations. lt can become more as a result of the interaction and integration of our member organizations in a joint effort to carry out tasks that serve each member, serve the Federation, and make contributions to the larger systems community. Based on:
(1) the deliberations at the meeting of the IFSR Board on the 7th of April,
(2) conversations among representatives of member organizations, and 3) discussionVcorrespondence among members of the Executive Committee; it has been concluded that the following tasks now confront us:

  • The continuation of the publication of Systems Research, the journal of the Federation. This is a primary concern of the EC, and Mike Jackson will assume the leadership in our effort to work out an effective plan of action. Ideas and recommendations of member organizations are invited and should be shared with Mike.
  • The continuing publication of the IFSR Newsletter, including: (1) annual and periodic reports on activitieVmeetings of member organizations, (2) information on meetings of the systems community, (3) brief research/program reports, and (4) reviews of systems publications. Gerhard Chroust will continue to provide leadership in the management of the Newsletter.
  • Membership. Tasks include: keeping full records of member organizations, inviting new members and considering new applications. Gerhard Chroust and Bela Banathy are attending to these tasks. Recommendations for invitations ol new members are welcomed from our member organizations.
  • The encouragement of research in the cybernetic and systems sciences. To this end Mike Jackson will gather, coordinate, and distribute information about active research groups in the field. Our aim is to increase communication between the research groups and make joint applications for research funding to bodies such as the European Union.
  • Assistance in program development for the ’96 European Meeting on Cybernetics and Systems Research. At the Board meeting we received an invitation from Robert Trappl for the development of a half-day presentation on the “State of the Federation.” This would involve reports from all the member organizations. The EC will coordinate this program.
  • The Fuschl Conversations are sponsored and supported by the IFSR. A brief report on the ’94 Conversation is presented in this Newsletter. A comprehensive report will soon be available and will be mailed out to our member organizations this fall. A special issue of Systems Research will be developed from papers selected from the proceedings of the ’94 Conversation. Bela Banathy is coordinating this program. lnvitations for the ’96 Conversation will be issued early in 1995.
  • Task-focused purposeful interaction among our member organizations could forge a “living system” out of the Federation. Task forces could be organized from representatives of our members, working on such issues as: program development, research and development, publications, electronic communication, systems education, resources development, membership development, and some other tasks. The EC will coordinate this effort. Your comments and suggestions are invited.
    In attending to the tasks described here we must all engage in intensive cooperation, carry out joint work, and share our resources. As members of the Executive Committee, we are dedicated to accomplishing these tasks and hope that all of you will accept the challenge.
    Bela H. Banathy, M.I.C. Jackson, Gerhard Chroust

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