ERN’s Board is elected annually, and our next election is expected at the General Assembly in December. Here’s how you can get involved.
The easiest way in is as a Board Fellow, open now and on a rolling basis. Fellows are non-voting, take on a real focus area for a fixed stretch (usually 6–12 months), and are paired with a Board mentor for it. It’s meant to be a genuine trial run rather than a title: you help run something real, whether that’s the conference programme and peer review, membership and Discord, working groups, communications and the website, mentoring future Fellows, regional engagement, or keeping the research database up to date, and by December people can see what you’ve actually contributed rather than take your word for it. If that sounds interesting, just email board@esportsresearch.net with your name, affiliation, what you’d like to help with, a couple of sentences on why, and a copy of your CV. Nothing formal, we’ll start matching people with mentors as we head toward the General Assembly.
You don’t need to be a Fellow first to stand for election, though. Any eligible member can be nominated directly. Eligibility is fairly straightforward: an earned doctoral degree or similar terminal degree (or a Master’s plus at least 5 years in esports research-related industry work), meaningful contributions to esports research or ERN, some recent engagement with ERN’s activities (as a guideline, having attended two of the last three conferences, with exceptions considered), and at least a year as an ERN member. The formal call for nominations goes out with the General Assembly invitation about a month ahead of time, but you don’t have to wait for that, feel free to reach out early, any time of year, so we can start circulating candidate statements. When you’re ready, send board@esportsresearch.net your name, affiliation, the role(s) you’re interested in, and a short statement of around 150–250 words speaking to those criteria. If email isn’t easy, pass it to any current Board member and they’ll forward it on.
If you’re weighing either path and would rather talk it through face to face, we’ll be at ERNC26 in Tsukuba, Japan, from 15–17 September. Come find any of us and ask what the roles are actually like day to day, time commitment included, before you commit to anything. Not making it to Japan is no problem either; Discord and board@esportsresearch.net work just as well.
Between now and December: Board Fellow interest is open right away, ERNC26 gives us a chance to talk in person in September, the formal call for nominations will be until the 15th of November and the election itself happens at the Assembly in December.
Questions or want to get involved? board@esportsresearch.net