Since we announced the launch of SFCT a couple of weeks ago, I have had one or two questions about how this may or may not affect the SOLWorld organisation, conferences and other events. This seems like a good time to clarify a few things, so that rumours don’t ‘fester into facts’ (as Robin Williams says in the movie Dead Poets Society).
The founders of SFCT – 13 people from Europe, America and Asia – are all key members of SOLWorld and have been involved in the organisation of every SOLWorld event up to 2009. We hope we have been very careful to construct a different kind of organisation in SFCT.
SOLWorld is an open-access umbrella group under whose banner various people step forward to organise events. It also runs a listserv and ning group (http://solworld.ning.com) which are free and open to join, paid for from a levy from the international conference each year. SOLWorld has no members, no entry requirements and no bank account - this is its power, in my view.
SFCT is conceived as a membership organisation which will review work and provide a quality stamp for members. It also publishes a journal. None of these are possible without some kind of funding. You can view a more detailed description of the differences between the two organisations at http://www.asfct.org/documents/Sfct%20and%20SoL.pdf.
All the SFCT founders continue to be part of the SOLWorld community, involved in the Steering Group and indeed involved in planning and organising future events. Long may they continue!
