And then the sun came out ...
The Archimedes Movement held its first annual membership conference on Saturday June 14th. Close to 170 people spent the day on the campus of Lewis and Clark College and the weather was beautiful (and yes, Oregonians have waited many weeks for some beautiful weather). Governor Kitzhaber is preparing an email to go out next week but I wanted to give you a few status updates since the conference.

Grassroots Structure

First, members of the Interim Steering Committee presented an overview of their proposed structure and it was overwhelmingly affirmed by those in attendance. Now the work has begun to form the Community Leadership Council, which Governor Kitzhaber described as a "well-thought organizational and governance structure which will allow Archimedes to become a true movement - with the energy and direction flowing from the bottom up." If you haven't had a chance to review the document that the Interim Steering Committee drafted you can do so here. Nominations began arriving on June 14th and the process will culminate with announcement of the members of the Community Leadership Council in early July.

Nominations and Voting

One-third of the Community Leadership Council will be elected as at-large members, one third will be selected by chapter leaders, one-third will be appointed. So far we have more than a dozen nominees for the six at-large positions and nominations will continue to be accepted until midnight on June 24th. That's when we'll post the nominees and a description of the voting process. Voting will take place between June 26th and July 3rd. The 2008 Community Leadership Council will take us through a very formative year of growth. If you're interested in nominating someone (including yourself) all you need to do is send an email to nominations@wecandobetter.org and include the following information: 1) why you think the nominee is a good candidate for the Community Leadership Council and 2) the best way to contact you and the nominee. If you have a photo of the nominee please attach it to the email.

There is only one catch - because our new structure puts members in the driver's seat of the Archimedes Movement, you must become a member in order to be a nominee and/or to vote.

Membership

When you become a member in the Archimedes Movement you're joining with others who are passionate about reinventing health care in America. You have the satisfaction of knowing you are helping to support a uniquely American solution to the health care crisis, one that guarantees all families affordable, quality health care - a solution that invests in our country's health while challenging us to take responsibility for our wellness. There is power in numbers. We need to have organized communities who understand the problem we are facing. Then we'll be ready to demand change from public policy and political decision makers. In order to drive fundamental change, we need everyday people to step up and learn to be extraordinary leaders in their own communities, networks and associations. Your membership helps us to accomplish that goal. If you haven't already done so please become a member today.

Thank You

Thanks to those who signed up for future training conferences, suggested new ways to organize online group discussions and identified ways that they could help with outreach for the Archimedes Movement. More than 40 people signed up for one of the four proposed committees of the Community Leadership Council! That's incredible and will allow the committees to hit the ground running when they begin meeting in late summer. If you would like to get involved in any of these activities, send an email to Matt (matt@wecandobetter.org) and let him know what you are interested in.

The conference would not have happened without an amazing group of staff and volunteers. Thanks to all for making the day such a success.

Liz

Liz Baxter, Director
The Archimedes Movement