Dear NCI folk, before I get to the heart of the post, I want to thank each of you for dedicating your time and skill (be it scripting, building, helping new citizens, or a sense of humor that can help lighten the mood of Group Chat.) NCI can be a great organization without a single Linden Dollar or a single square metre of land. But it must have great people to be a great organization. And NCI is full of great people. Thank you for making NCI what it is.

And now for the juicy stuff…

I am Tateru Nino. I have been an integral part of NCI since Brace Coral’s day. I decided to start recruiting site staff, started an education track, recruited event hosts, and more. In August, the reins were passed to Gramma Fiddlesticks and the Board of Directors.

Since then, Gramma has done an excellent job of keeping NCI strong and functioning and growing. When she agreed to be acting chairman, it was on the condition that it would be a short period of time. And while we would all like her to stay on indefinitely, she has decided that she would like to retire, as all Grammas eventually do.

I have agreed to end my sabbatical (well, technically, I was retired, but now that it has ended, I suppose it just counts as having been a sabbatical), and become NCI’s executive. You see, NCI must have an actual owner, because of the way Second Life accounts handle land and money. That is just how SL works, whether that’s what we would like, or not. Previously that was me and Carl. In addition, the Board of Directors will remain in their role as advisors, implementers, and voters, when a vote is necessary. We cannot and should not do without them.

In addition, as executive, I hope to equip the board with the tools and structure to function better democratically. In the mean time, there will be a few changes, as with any new administration.

You’ll have already noticed (I hope) Airmid Morgwaine as our new Events Coordinator, and Wellington Beam is handling payments until we can get something more permanent sorted out there. Quite Oh is going to be filling in as Senior Land Officer at NCI Beach, in addition to her other duties.

My short-term goals include increasing AdNode income, and possibly additional partnerships, similar to the one we have with Boomer. And, as we all know, more funding means that we are able to do more for our new citizens- greater grid-wide exposure, more classes, more events, and more parties. \o/

Later this month, Carl Metropolitan will be performing an independent audit of NCI’s finances and financial position. Carl managed NCI funds for four years and never stole anything. Either that or he was robbing us blind and we never could tell; either way, he’s the guy we want to have doing the audit.

NCI is a running clock that needs some adjustments and the occasional repair – but we cannot ever stop it while that’s done. All the work is delicate work, otherwise a mess of cogs and springs explodes in your face. There’s very few things that are truly minor issues.

Long-term goals include improved operation for the board and managers, where people are under less stress and are less likely to burn out; some sort of chartered trust arrangement to hold NCI’s cash and assets in such a way that protects them from wrongdoing or misuse.

Please do not hesitate to introduce yourself, volunteer (wink,wink), or just say hello. Though bear in mind that I’ve had a ton of things dumped on me that I’m still trying to sort through, and my responses may not be the fastest you’ve ever had.