§1 Name

1. The association is named “European Youth Press – network of young media makers” (short: EYP)
2. The association has its residence in Berlin.
3. The financial year is the calendar year.

§2 Aims and objectives of the association

1. The association is an international association of national, reginal and transnational youth media organisations in Europe. The objectives of the Association are as follows:
   • Providing support and service for national or regional youth media organisations in Europe and media organisations working on a transnational or European level (networking and cooperation)
   • Youth information by young people for young people
   • Exchange of knowledge
   • Cooperation between young journalists in Europe
   • Education of young people to democraticc, consciously acting humans
   • Education of multipliers and strengthening the role of youth media in Europe
   • Education for media competence among young people in Europe
   • The participation of young people
   • The support of intercultural and inter-religious understanding, in particular the thoughts about human rights, peace and tolerance
   • The realisation of the objectives of the European Charta of human rights, especially the freedom of speech and press
   • Cooperation with various partners
   • The representation of the needs of national youth press organisations and transnational or European media organisations towards public and political institutions
2. The objectives will be realized through:
   • The organisation of educational seminars or congresses for multipliers
   • The organisation of meetings to exchange knowledge
   • The establishment of knowledge exchange through new media
   • The production of service and working material for the national structures
   • Research about the situation and role of youth media in Europe
   • Cooperation with different partners (e.g. European Journalist Federation, European Commission, other European institutions)
   • Representation of the needs of youth press associations towards public and political institutions
   • Giving service to national structures through information and support to their activities
3. The organisation fulfils its goals and objectives politically neutral and independent from governments and religions on the base of free democratic principles.
4. All documents created, owned or sent to EYP should be considered public and should be eligible to be read by members of EYP who so ask.

§3 Non-profit character of the association

1. The association pursues exclusively and directly non-profit purposes in the sense of the section tax-privileged purposes of the tax code. The association is non-privileged active and it does not pursue primarily self-economical purposes.
2. Materials of the association may be used only for statutary purposes. The members do not receive allowances from the association in their characteristic as a mamber. They do not have any requirements when they are separating to the property of the association. No person may be expenditures, which are strange to the purposes of the association, or by disproportionately high remuneration to be favoured.

§4 Membership

European Youth Press has two kind of memberships: full member and observer member ship:

1. Full member of European Youth Press can become:
   • National organizations of young media makers on the European continent, whose aims and objectives correspond with the ones written in §2/a. In addition, they must be legally established since at least one year and must not be politically dependent.
   • Transnational or European media organizations, whose aims and objectives correspond with the ones written in §2/a. In addition, they must be legally established since at least one year and must not be politically dependent. They also need to have more than 50 individual young media makers and work in more than five European countries.
   • Every accessing association had to haven an observer status for one year, before the General Assembly decides upon full membership with a 2/3 majority of all member organizations.
2. Observer status

Observers do not have a vote, but they are to be invited and listened to at the General Assembly and are able to work within the organization. Observer member status can become:

• Any youth media organisation, that is legally established, applying if it potentially meets the criteria of full membership in one year. After one year observer status the General Assembly may decide to give full membership to the observer, to prolong its observer status, or to refuse its application.

Youth media organizations which do not fulfil the criteria for full membership may also apply for observer status and remain observers in the organization for an undetermined period of time.

§5 Ending of membership

1. To end its membership, the member explains its with to the executive board with one period of three months to the conclusion of the financial year.
2. A member can be excluded by resolution of the GA, if it acts against the aims and objectives of the association or does not follow its obligations in relation to the association. The member is to be invited to the GA and to be heard. The member can be excluded with 2/3 majority of votes of the members of EYP.

§6  Organs of the association

1. The organs of the association are:
   • General assembly
   • Executive board
   • Revision committee

§7 General assembly

1. The general assembly is the highest organ of the association and regulates especially the following isues:
   1. election of the executive board, two financial auditors and the revision committee
   2. decision upon the financial plan from the executive board
   3. receipt of the annual report and financial report of the executive board and the financial audit report
   4. discharge of the executive committees
   5. decision upon a financial order
   6. decision upon the establishment of project groups
   7. decision upon membership applications and exclusions
   8. changes of the statutes
2. At least one General Assembly is to be organized every year by the Executive Board in coordination with a local member. All members are to be invited in written form, in a document including the draft agenda, at least one month before the beginning of the General Assembly. It applies to the date of the post stamp. The meeting of the members is quorate only if the invitation is valid and two thirds of the full members are present. Member organizations should delegate representatives to the General Assembly being major of age, but being younger than 30 years.
3. An extraordinary general assembly takes place if the executive board, the revision committee or at least 40% of the members explain that in written form and with their reason to the executive board. That assembly must take place in the next two months after the request. The order for invitation from § 7, 2 are still valid.
4. Decisions are taken, if the Statutes say nothing else, with simple majority of the delivered votes. Each member has one vote. Cumulative voting is inadmissible.
5. The General Assembly has to vote on the financial report and the activity report of the previous year and the budget plan and the working plan for the following year.
6. About the decisions and about the substantial process of negotiation, minutes are to be taken. It is signed by the chairman of the General Assembly and the minute-maker. Minutes are to be made accessible for the members within four weeks.
7. The communication language in the general assembly is English.
8. Between two General Assemblies, the member organizations represent themselves towards the EYP by their authorised contact persons. These contact persons are responsible for the communication between their organizations and the EYP in order to provide mutual feedback towards each other about current issues. These contact persons have to be informed about relevant activities, financial issues and structural changes of the Association.
9. The General Assembly can establish Working Committees for the accomplishment and continuous running of certain projects.
10. Guests can participate in the GA according to GA's approval. Guests have no right to vote but have to be listened to.

§8 Executive board

1. The Executive Board, in the sense of §26 BGB (German Civil Law), consists of minimum four, maximum nine persons and the Treasurer. The members of the Executive Board must be under the age of 30 years; they can be but are not necessarily members of the member organizations. The adhesion of the Executive Board is limited to the property of the Association. The activity in the Executive Board is honorary.
2. The members of the Executive Board are elected by the General Assembly. The term of the members of the Executive Board is two years. They remain in office until the installation of the new Executive Board. The term of office ends within six months after the completion of the 30th living year of the individual member. When a member of the Executive Board resigns, a by-election can take place at the next General Assembly. The election procedure of the members of the Executive Board by the General Assembly is regulated by rules of procedure. The Association is legally represented by two members of the Executive Board, authorised by the Board.
3. The executive board selects out of its circle two executive board speakers and if necessary resort leaders.
4. The Executive Board acts to the duties and responsibilities stated in the rules of procedure. The decisions of the Board Meetings are to be logged in written form and to be signed by the writer of the minutes and one further member of the Executive Board. All minutes of the Board Meetings are to be sent to all the member organisations within four weeks.
5. The executive board can employ an administrative office with a secretary general, who can legally act and represent the organisation. The regulations of the administrative office are defined and described in the Rules of Procedure as well as details regarding office employees’ entering and quitting positions.
6. The Executive Board can establish Working Committees for the accomplishment and continuous running of certain projects.

§9 Revision committee

1. The revision committee should consist of 3 persons to critically investigate the finance and the organisations
2. The revision committee is to be elected by the GA.
3. The revision committee should report about its activities to the GA on every general assembly meeting. Appointed by the GA, elected by the simple majority of the voting body.
4. The revision committee has to call for the extraordinary GA, if irregulations within the work of the Executive Board are suspected.

§10 Changes of statutes and dissolution

1. The general assembly decdes on changes of the statutes the changes of the aims and tasks of the association and the dissolution. Proposals to changes of the statutes, the changes of the aims and tasks of the association have to be provided to the members at least three weeks in advance before the next general assembly. For adoption of decisions on that topics a majority of 2/3 of the voters present with beginning of the meeting is necessary.
2. Changes or adds to the statutes, which are prescribed by the responsible registery office or by the tax office, are converted by the executive committee and require no adoption of resolution by the GA. They are to be communicated to the members at the latest with the next invitation for meeting of the members.
3. In the case of dissolution, with extraction of the legal capacity of the association or with ommision of the tax-privileged purposes the entire fortune falls to the “reporters without borders” with the edition it for non-profit purposes in the sense of the tax code excluding and in accordance with § 2 of this statute to use directly.

§11 Validity

1. The statute enters into force with its decisions.
2. The legally binding version of the Statutes is its German translation.
3. The present Statutes, the elected representatives (i.e. members of the Executive Board, the members of the Supervisory Committee) and the various Member Organizations of the Association are to be presented at the official website of the Association (www.youthpress.org) together with contact information.
4. The supplemental documents form the integral part of the Statutes, but they can be adapted to the needs of the organization at every General Assembly without implying the need for an official Statutes change.