More efficient membership approval process

[Matthew East]

The Community Council has recently implemented some changes to
community governance processes which it believes reflect a significant
improvement in one area of community governance: applications for
Ubuntu membership.

The Ubuntu project is rapidly expanding and the previous process for
approval of new Ubuntu members has been struggling to keep up with the
increased participation. The list of pending membership applications
was so long that the Community Council cannot focus on other issues.
Also, it is often difficult or impossible for potential new members to
attend Community Council meetings which do not coincide with their
availability in a particular timezone.

As a result three regional membership boards have been created to
consider applications from contributors to the project for Ubuntu
membership. The boards are:

Americas
Europe, Middle East and Africa
Asia / Oceania

These boards will meet each week at staggered times and days, to
ensure that as many candidates as possible have a chance to attend a
meeting which fits their schedules. If necessary, candidates from one
region may attend a meeting of a board for a different region, if this
suits their schedule better.

The Community Council will continue to oversee the process for the
first few months of its operation. New members will be reported in the
Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter:

https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbuntuWeeklyNewsletter

For more information, and if you are interested in applying for Ubuntu
membership, please visit the membership wiki page:

https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Membership

The change will leave the Community Council free to take a more active
role in its review of other aspects of the community. The Community
Council now meets according to a fixed timetable every two weeks.