Clingman, a long-time member of the IGDA, says he is excited to continue leading the board as the association continues to broaden its outreach and advocacy on issues that matter most to game developers.

IGDA continues to mature into an International organization with a focus on professional development and advocacy,” said Clingman. “We have an amazing Staff and incredible leadership on our Board. The future has never looked brighter for The IGDA!”

The IGDA Board of Directors also recently welcomed back Tom Buscaglia as a returning board member and Luke Dicken as a first‐term member. “Both Tom and Luke have proven themselves to be valuable contributors to the IGDA” said Robbins. “Their continued efforts for helping drive the IGDA’s mission forward will be invaluable to the org and the industry.”

IGDA’s complete list of 2013‐2014 Directors:
•  Dustin Clingman (Chair) – CEO, First5 Games
•  Ed Fries ‐ (Treasurer) Former VP, Microsoft Game Studios
•  Sheri Rubin (Secretary) – Founder and CEO, Design Direct Deliver
•  Brian Robbins (Vice Chair) – Mobile Games Consultant
•  Tom Buscaglia – The Game Attorney
•  Luke Dicken – Founder, Robot Overlord Games
•  Cordy Rierson, GPM, Microsoft Studios

The IGDA Board of Directors would like to thank all of the former directors and officers for their service to the association and all the IGDA members who voted in the most recent election.

Visit www.igda.org/directors for more information.

About the International Game Developers Association (IGDA)
In its 17th year, the International Game Developers Association is the largest non‐profit membership organization serving individuals who create video games. The IGDA is committed to advancing the careers and enhancing the lives of game developers by connecting members with their peers, promoting professional development, and advocating on issues that affect the developer community. For more information on the IGDA, please visit www.igda.org.

Just a quick mid-GDC update! Meeting minutes for our 21 February Meeting are officially up: http://www.igda.org/board/minutes.

Our next scheduled meeting is 18 April 2013.

We look forward to seeing you at the IGDA Annual Meeting today at GDC!

Yours in service,
IGDA Board of Directors

Since we did not meet quorum, the election was declared void and the Board was tasked with selecting the new board members. The board decided to select the top two vote recipients for the two open seats.

Selected to the two 3-year board seats with terms to begin 1 April are:

Tom Buscaglia – Total Votes: 256
Luke Dicken  – Total Votes: 241

The remaining vote count:

Brennan Priest  – Total Votes: 165
Justin Berenbaum  – Total Votes: 130

Please join us in congratulating Tom and Luke, as well as thanking our outgoing board members Gordon Bellamy, Darius Kazemi and Coray Seifert.

Yours in Service,
IGDA Board of Directors

The election nomination committee presented a final slate of candidates to the Board, which the Board then unanimously approved.

We are proud to announce the candidates for the two open seats in the 2013 IGDA Board of Directors Election (in alphabetical order by last name):

1. Justin Berenbaum
2. Tom Buscaglia
3. Luke Dicken
4. Brennan Priest

Voting begins on 4 March 2013 – best of luck to all!

Additionally, the minutes from the January Board of Directors meeting are now available online here: http://igda.org/board/minutes.

Yours in Service,
The IGDA Board of Directors

Just another quick update while we’re busy with Board Elections!

We’ve officially pulled together our election nomination committee, which is comprised of 4 former board chairs. They are Kathy Astromoff, Noah Falstein, Mitzi McGilvray, and Tobi Saulnier. For more information on why we instituted a nomination committee, check out this post from 2012.

The nomination committee will review all nominees, and will provide to the Board for ratification, a final slate of candidates to be put forward to the membership for election. That final slate of candidates will be no more than double the number of seats open for election. This year we have 2 seats open for election, so the final slate they provide will be no more than 4 candidates.

The minutes from December’s meeting are now available online here: http://igda.org/board/minutes

Yours in service,
The IGDA Board of Directors

REMINDER: Any individual wishing to participate in these elections must be a voting eligible member by the close of nominations on 28 January 2013.

Below is the 2013 IGDA Board of Directors Election Schedule:

• 7 January: Begin call for nominations.
• 28 January: End call for nominations; all nominations must be received by this date. All voting eligible members of record as of this date may vote.
• 29 January: All submitted candidates are reviewed and confirmed they meet requirements by the Executive Director and those passing requirements are sent to the Nomination Committee.
• 30 January: Nomination Committee begins review process of candidates to help determine a recommended final slate.
• 20 February: Final recommended slate provided to the Board by the Nomination Committee for ratification.
• 21 February: Board meets and approves final slate of candidates to present to membership for voting.
• 29 February: All members of record as of this date are eligible to vote.
• 4 March: Election materials with voting instructions are emailed to all eligible members; voting commences.
• 18 March: Voting period ends; e-ballots are counted.
• 21 March: Board meets and either certifies election results or appoints directors if quorum is not met.
• 22 March: Election results are announced.
• 1 April: Newly elected Directors take their seats.

All members eligible to vote will will receive an email with voting instructions starting 4 March 2013. Please note: student members are not eligible to vote.

If you have any questions please contact Kate Edwards, Executive Director, at kate@igda.org.

MT. ROYAL, NJ – 27 December 2012 – The International Game Developers Association (IGDA), the world’s largest organization serving individuals who create games, has named Kate Edwards Executive Director. Edwards brings more than 16 years’ experience in the game industry as a culturalization strategist to the position.

Edwards has applied her expertise to many game titles, including Halo, Age of Empires, Fable, Dragon Age, Mass Effect, Fallout 3, Modern Warfare 3 and Dance Central. As Microsoft’s geopolitical strategist in the internal team she created (’92 – ’05) and as a consultant in her company Englobe (’05 – present), she pioneered the field of “culturalization” to identify geopolitical and cultural risks and opportunities in digital content.

“Kate’s knowledge of the global game industry and local cultures make her ideal to lead the IGDA,” said Dustin Clingman, Chair, IGDA. “Her long service to our organization and commitment to the global development community will lay a foundation for ongoing international growth.”

In her new role, Edwards will work closely with the elected board of directors to further the IGDA’s goals — empowering game developers to advance their careers and, in turn, enhance their quality of life.

“Game development is an artistic endeavor with mass appeal,” Edwards said. “Developers and fans alike are increasingly aware of the diversity of those who both create and play games. Today, we’re engaged in creating great games for a global audience, and the IGDA remains the relevant focal point for supporting developers in the broadest sense of the definition. I’m thrilled to be given the privilege to lead and nurture this awesome community.”

Edwards has been a member of the IGDA since 2004, founding and chairing its Localization Special Interest Group, which led to her co-organizing Game Developer Conference’s Localization Summit.

Beyond games, Edwards has handled a broad range of issues regarding global-facing content, from online mapping and government relations to marketing and distribution in local markets.

Edwards will remain based in Seattle.
About the International Game Developers Association (IGDA)
The International Game Developers Association is the largest non-profit membership organization serving individuals who create digital games. The IGDA is committed to advancing the careers and enhancing the lives of game developers by connecting members with their peers, promoting professional development, and advocating on issues that affect the developer community. For more information on the IGDA, please visit www.igda.org.

CONTACT
The Bohle Company for the IGDA
Attn: Robert Brown
Robert at bohle dot com
Tel: +1 310 785 0515 x231

Just a quick mid-holiday update! Meeting minutes for November 15th are officially up: http://www.igda.org/board/minutes.

Our next scheduled meeting is 17 January 2012.

Wishing you health and happiness this holiday season,
IGDA Board of Directors

Just a quick update for you today! We’ve been working hard on several initiatives (including the new Executive Director search), but the primary news today is that the meeting minutes for September 27^th, October 25^th, and October 31st have been posted.

Yours in Service,
IGDA Board of Directors

MOUNT ROYAL, NJ – Oct. 31, 2012 – The International Game Developers Association (IGDA) has made IGDA Finland the first chapter formalized as a legal entity inside Europe. IGDA Finland registered as an association under Finnish law and its relationship with the U.S.-based IGDA will be governed by the contract signed between the parties in September 2012.  The IGDA plans to continue their initiative to formalize other existing international Chapters in order to best serve its members.

IGDA Finland’s new status allows a greater proportion of funding and support to be allocated to their individual needs, better serving the interests of local members. As its first action as a formalized Chapter, IGDA Finland will begin expanding its service offering beyond Helsinki, starting with a network of IGDA Finland Student Club initiatives across the nation. IGDA Finland plans to eventually provide support to game developers across the country.

Dustin Clingman, Board Chair, IGDA commented, “As an organization, IGDA continues to seek out ways to help improve the lives and careers of our members around the world. With today’s announcement, we are excited about serving our International members directly in their local communities.”

The International Game Developers Association is the world’s largest non-profit membership organization serving individuals that create video games.  The organization has formal and informal chapters in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Australia and Africa.

“IGDA Finland wants to facilitate the exchange of ideas and best practices, help new talent get into the local industry as well as attract foreign talent to Finland. In conjunction with Student Clubs we are able to drive regional development, support local game development hubs across Finland and promote entrepreneurship,” states Sonja Ängeslevä, Chair of the IGDA Finland chapter.

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ABOUT THE IGDA:

The International Game Developers Association (IGDA) is the largest non-profit membership organization serving individuals who create video games. The IGDA advances the careers and enhances the lives of game developers by connecting members with their peers, promoting professional development and advocating on issues that affect the developer community. These core activities advance games as a medium—and game development as a profession. www.igda.org

CONTACT:
The Bohle Company for the IGDA
Robert Brown
Robert@bohle.com
Tel: (310)-785-0515 x231

About IGDA Finland ry:

IGDA Finland ry is a legally registered association under the Finnish law. The mission of IGDA Finland is to promote the development of careers and professional skills of individual game developers (and individuals of related industries) based in Finland, and to further develop the international recognition of the Finnish game developer community.

CONTACT:

IGDA Finland ry
Sonja Ängeslevä
Sonja.Angesleva@igda.fi
Tel. +358 400 759 817