2023 General Assembly
Minutes of the general meeting for the year 2022-2023
Introduction
The general meeting of the Phyto-info non-profit organization was held, following the convocation of its President, on 23 June 2023 at 9:30am (local time) in France and by videoconference.
The President noted that all members of the Board of Directors were present, either physically or online: Ms. Karine Fenix (Vice-Chair), Mr. Nicolas FĂ©nix (Treasurer), Ms. Fany Savina (Secretary). The total number of votes was thus four; the President then declared that the Assembly was regularly constituted and could validly deliberate and take decisions by the required majority.
Moral report
Reminder of the values of the non-profit organization
The aim of the non-profit organization is the democratization of knowledge about plants, their risks and benefits, as well as the creation, development and dissemination of any educational material in the field of plants.
The Chairperson recalled that Phyto-info had a strictly educational purpose and was in no way an aid in diagnosing a pathology or in setting up a treatment, the latter being reserved for health professionals, as part of personalized follow-up for a person.
Conduct of activities during this fiscal year
- Development of the website
The Phyto-info.com website is now fully operational. You can find information about the non-profit organization’s activities and about plants there, the motto being “plants made easy”. For example, the TL;DR (“too long ; didn’t read” – “trop long ; pas lu”) will reveal a therapeutic use per plant.
- Phyto-info search tool
Phyto-info search tool aims to list and synthesize information relating to plants (constituents, possible toxicities, precautions for use, benefits, etc.) from books published by recognized professionals, whether health professionals, scientists, or even practitioners from non-conventional sectors (not officially recognized). The Phyto-info search tool thus offers a library of information on certain plants and is accessible to members of the non-profit organization. An explanatory video summarizing the essential points of the search tool is also available online. At the time of writing this report, the search tool includes 20 plants for 290 uses; the objective is to add 3 to 4 new plants per month.
- General terms of use and privacy policy
Because the protection of personal data is a priority for the non-profit organization, the drafting of the general terms of use and the privacy policy was finalized with the help of Elise Guilhaudis, lawyer and founder of NUMETIK AVOCATS.
- Exposition
The President and the Treasurer held an information stand at the wellness festival in Mont-sous-Vaudrey in the Jura on 3 and 4 June 2023, in order to promote the non-profit organization and present Phyto-info search tool. It was an enriching and rewarding experience that will be repeated if necessary.
Future axes
- Toxic and/or illegal plants
Since the objective of Phyto-info is strictly educational, informing certain plants that, in addition to their benefits, have a certain toxicity (e.g. horse chestnut, borage, etc.) is considered essential for raising public awareness of the real dangers of plants. This information is therefore included in the Phyto-info search tool.
Some plants, on the other hand, are not always welcome and may even be considered illegal in some countries at some point. The common daisy, for example, was banned on German territory in the 18th century, falsely accused of being an abortive plant. Unable to take into account all the legal prohibitions of each government, Phyto-info, by providing information on the properties and risks of plants, will warn the reader if the illegality of one of these was known in a given country at the time of publication.
The President recalls that some plants can cause side effects and are likely to interfere with drug treatments, so it is strongly recommended to consult a doctor or a health professional before using medicinal plants.
- Partial free access
In order to find a compromise between a philosophy of sharing information and the inflow of money necessary for the proper functioning of the non-profit organization, partial free access to the search tool will be offered very soon. Initially, only one result per search will be displayed, the rest will be blurred. The information on the plant sheets, with the exception of modalities and contraindications, will also be blurred.
- Internal regulations
The amount of subscription, as indicated in the internal regulations, remains unchanged for the year 2023-2024. Active members are those who are members of the board of directors and those whose request is unanimously accepted by the board of directors.
Active members undertake to provide a certain number of hours of volunteer work each year and to pay a subscription of 30 euros. Supporting members are those who support the actions of the non-profit organization and who have undertaken to pay an annual subscription of 15 euros.
The annual subscription is due as soon as the new members are approved. Any subscription paid is definitively acquired by the non-profit organization.
- Translation
In order to increase the visibility of Phyto-info and its search tool, an English version is necessary. Since all members of the board are fluent in English, an internal translation will be initiated to optimize the costs of such a project. Emphasis will also be placed on acquiring herbal medicine books written in English to expand specialized vocabulary.
Tasks to do
Improving the Phyto-info search tool
- Organize a quality control by a third party
- Implement a search by therapeutic property
- Implement a search by biochemical composition
- Write frequently asked questions (FAQs)
- Adjust the Confidence Index according to the type of bibliographic sources
Comply with RGPD
- Designate a pilot and map the processing of personal data
Translate the site and the search tool
- Start translating internally
Offer partial free access to the search tool
- Display a search result in plain text
Antiquarian book project
- Layout old books for quality reprinting
Financial report and memberships
See appendix (accessible to active members only)
- Memberships
- Summary of accounts
- Forecast for the fiscal year 01/07/2023 - 30/06/2024
Resolutions to vote on
- First resolution: Quitus of the moral report
For: 4 votes; Against: 0 votes; Abstention: 0 votes; Total voters: 4 votes The general meeting approves the moral report of the Board of Directors and approves its management; this resolution is adopted unanimously (4 votes).
- Second resolution: Exit from the financial report
For: 4 votes; Against: 0 votes; Abstention: 0 votes; Total voters: 4 votes The General Assembly approved the financial report of the office and authorized it to manage it; this resolution was adopted unanimously (4 votes).
- Third resolution: Toxic and/or illegal plants
For: 4 votes; Against: 0 votes; Abstention: 0 votes; Total voters: 4 votes The General Assembly approved the addition of toxic and/or illegal plants to the search tool; this resolution was adopted unanimously (4 votes).
- Fourth resolution: Partial free access
For: 4 votes; Against: 0 votes; Abstention: 0 votes; Total voters: 4 votes The General Assembly approved the partial free access to the search tool; this resolution was adopted unanimously (4 votes).
- Fifth resolution: Internal regulations
For: 4 votes; Against: 0 votes; Abstention: 0 votes; Total voters: 4 votes The general assembly approved the internal regulations; this resolution was adopted unanimously (4 votes).
- Sixth resolution: Translation
For: 4 votes; Against: 0 votes; Abstention: 0 votes; Total voters: 4 votes The General Assembly approved the translation of the site and the search tool; this resolution was adopted unanimously (4 votes).
Divers questions
No questions.
Closing
With no one else wishing to speak, the President reminds everyone that the report covering the period from 01/07/2022 to 30/06/2023 demonstrates an active non-profit organization and reflects the achievement of previously set objectives. The President thanks the members present for their involvement and dedication to keeping this non-profit organization alive, and reiterates her commitment to doing everything possible to energize and develop the non-profit organization.
As the agenda was exhausted, the meeting rose at 11.38 a.m.
The present minutes of the General Assembly are drawn up, in which the President and the Secretary participated in the drafting of the meeting. It is signed by the President.
Certified compliant on July 5, 2023.