[Note: Candidates were limited to 300 words for each answer.]
What are your thoughts on the OTW accepting volunteers who are under the age of 18, even if they might be over the age of legal majority in their country of origin?
I think that as long as the volunteer has the maturity to perform the role to the same standard as older volunteers, there is no issue with accepting younger volunteers should they apply. Naturally certain roles are not suited to younger applicants, due to the sensitive nature of some of the information they would be exposed to (Abuse, for example, deals with confidential and sometimes disturbing content, which would be inappropriate for younger volunteers), but there are roles within the OTW that would be suited to younger members and as long as there are no Legal-related issues preventing them from joining I have no problem with it.
Assuming Legal okayed it, should non-paying volunteers who’ve been with the OTW for over X months be eligible either for voting in the elections and/or being elected for board?
Assuming Legal okayed it, yes I feel that non-paying volunteers who have been with the OTW a certain length of time should be permitted to vote in Board elections, definitely. As the Board and those elected to stand on it does have an effect on them as volunteers, I feel it only fair for them to be permitted to be involved in selecting the Board, even if they might not be able to afford to pay membership. As they are giving up their time to the OTW I think it’s a fair reward for their hard work to have that ‘perk’ as it were.
As for being elected for Board, again I’m inclined to say I’m fine with it as long as there are no issues from Legal’s side. I believe that long service should definitely be able to be used as a sort of ‘credit’ towards the benefits of membership, up to and including running for Board. After all, some people prefer to give their time rather than their money (or are unable to give money and so donate their time instead), and I don’t feel that they should be excluded from Board if they are a long-term volunteer wanting to get more involved. I would likely suggest restricting Board candidacy to volunteers who have been involved for a longer amount of time than the voting, though, in order to ensure the candidates are more likely to be willing and able to sit for the full term.