Testimonial: Naomi Ellemers (1999-2002)

Quoting from her presidential address at the end of her term as president in 2002:

During the past three years, our Association has again grown. Whereas the EAESP had 788 members during the Oxford General Meeting in 1999, the Association currently has 881 members in total. This growth is visible in all membership categories, with postgraduate members having increased from 155 to 183, and affiliate members from 108 to 126. In view of the goals of the Association it is also important to note that the number of Eastern members has increased from 89 in 1999, to 100 at present. Indeed, while this General Meeting has attracted a larger-than-ever number of non-member participants, it has also been an important impetus for new membership applications, and we hope that more will decide to join our Association afterwards—in particular our Spanish colleagues who are attending the conference.

The policy of the Executive Committee has been to support the research of the Association’s members in a broad way, trying to find ways to fund members at different stages of their career, and from different geographical areas. It seems that we managed to accomplish this. If we calculate the number of people who during the past three years were supported by the Association in one of the ways mentioned, this amounts to 850 in total, which is approximately the number of members of our Association.

During the past years we have made the transition from a small-scale, and relatively informal Association to a larger, professionalized and more complex organization. This is evident from all kinds of developments and initiatives within our Association. These ongoing developments pose a number of important challenges but are also an important sign of the excellent health of our Association.