Continued from: https://www.bungie.net/en/Forums/Post/207288671?page=0&sort=0&showBanned=0&path=1 So I've been seeing more posts lately which make the point that Bungie really needs to open up more to the Community, as there are many decisions and changes being made that a LOT of people quite obviously disagree with. UltraNoah currently has a post going right now about it which I would urge everyone to give a read: https://www.bungie.net/en/Forums/Post/208670434?sort=0&page=0 This has been an ongoing problem ever since the whole Dark Below debacle. Its clear that the lack of communication is a problem, and its become likewise obvious that after 2 years we are the ones who are going to have to do something about it. Nothing will ever change if we just continue waiting around and sit idle, expecting change to just happen on its own. [b]That is the PURPOSE of Feedback in the first place.[/b] I finally got the opportunity a couple days ago to sit down and contemplate this next part. I've been getting a lot of PMs asking me about if the Council was still happening or not because its taken so long to see anymore progress with it. The reason for that is because this particular topic is one that has been of most debate. As you know, I start these conversations off by providing a rough draft to serve as a base for discussion and debate. But each time I make one, I try to include feedback from people in the previous threads as well. Many have different ideas and opinions for how this should be handled, so I'm going to try my best to be as inclusive as possible. Remember, these are rough drafts, nothing written in stone. This is for the sole purpose of generating conversation and getting feedback. We will eventually go over all the possible revisions for the Council once we get through all the various aspects of it, at which point we can then begin to finalize the system. But this isn't something we want to rush, otherwise we risk making serious mistakes which could very easily come back to bite us. [quote][u]Candidate Requirements[/u] The following is a list of requirements that each Candidate will need in order to become a Council Member. The Community will be responsible for monitoring and enforcing these terms, reserving the right to have a Council Member removed from their position immediately without the option to appeal. [b]1: UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES CAN THERE BE A CONFLICT OF INTEREST.[/b] Council Members must maintain a stance of neutrality at all times, their only responsibility must be to serving the Community. In order to protect the integrity of the Guardian Council, those who profit off of Destiny are not eligible to be Candidates. This includes, but is not limited to; Twitch Streamers, YouTubers, Bungie Staffers, etc. [b]2:[/b] The Guardian Council will require you to put in a decent amount of time reading over submitted propositions and observing debates. As such, all potential Candidates will [b]need to be active on the forums and have flexible schedules[/b] to put in the time necessary. (Candidates will need to have their Forum Activity showing at all times) [b]3:[/b] The minimum age requirement to register as a Candidate is [b]18 or older.[/b] Given the nature of this position and the dedication needed, anyone still attending school will not be eligible. (Excluding College) Nothing is more important than your education which must always take priority. [b]4:[/b] To ensure that everyone in the Community get an equal opportunity to serve, [b]those currently on the Council at the time will not be eligible to register.[/b] An exception can be made if there aren't enough Candidates or if the Community supports such. However, this can only happen ONCE as the longer a person stays in their position, the greater the chances are for corruption to take root.[/quote] I was also going to include how Candidates have to leave any past conflicts or personal grudges at the door upon becoming a Council Member as well, but I figured that doesn't actually apply to "Candidate Requirements" as it would be more in regards to how they behave and conduct themselves after being elected. So that will probably be added to the list of revisions as well for later discussion. MOVING ON! [quote][u]Council Elections[/u] The Guardian Council exists to serve the Community and so it stands to reason that its members should consist of those from the Community as well. To decide who will become Council Members, the Community will [b]hold elections once every 6 months.[/b] [b]1:[/b] Registration will be [b]open to everyone who meets the Candidate Requirements[/b], in which anyone will be allowed to throw in their name for consideration without limit. (Meaning there is no restriction to how many folks can register) [b]2:[/b] In order to register yourself, you [b]simply make a new post for yourself with the #GCRegister[Insert Year] tag.[/b] So for example, you could make the title of the post something like "Smoothies for All" and also provide some information about yourself and why you want to be on the Council, basically trying to gain support from others. Then if say the elections were starting this month? It would be #GCRegisterJuly2016. [b]3: VOTING WILL BE DECIDED BY LIKES.[/b] What this means is that there are no limits to how many Candidates you can vote for. If there are several, ten or even twenty people that you like, feel free to toss their post a Like to vote for them. [b]Elections will be held for exactly 1 week.[/b] [b]4:[/b] Once the Election Week has concluded, the Council will go through and count votes. [b]The Top 10 Candidates with the most Likes will be chosen[/b] to be the new Council Members for the next 6 months, at which point elections will be held once again. [b]5:[/b] An additional [b]5 Alternates will be chosen as well[/b] in the event any Council Members fail to meet their responsibilities and need to be replaced. (So basically 15 people will be getting chosen who have the most Likes out of all the other Candidates, but only the Top 10 of that number will actually be made Council Members while the remaining 5 serve as back-up)[/quote] Mars had an excellent idea with how Elections could be carried out as well, which would involve needing Cozmo or a Mod/Ninja to assist with it. At first I was going to go with that for the rough draft, but I felt it would be best to make the system more self-sufficient instead of relying upon B.net staffers. But that isn't to say we can't still go with that, obviously. Like I've said, what I have here is just to act as a base for the Community to build upon. As always, any and all Feedback is welcome and encouraged. I will be sending PMs to everyone from the previous discussions who took an interest in this as well. (If you don't receive a PM I do apologize, the site isn't really friendly when it comes to this sort of thing...)