Dear club members, dear friends,

In 2017, when I was asked by William Sutherland and Lutz Petersen to help save ipernity from shipwreck, I had just turned 65. I felt too young and energetic for a tranquil retirement. So I went for it, knowing well that it would be a challenging venture full of uncertainties because no one on the founding team was a qualified IT professional. But volunteering for a worthwhile non-profit project appealed to me, and as a passionate mountaineer I was used to handling uncertainties. In doing so, I made a promise to serve our community for five years. This is a usual term of mandate for executives. This commitment ends on my 70th birthday in May 2022.

It is therefore time for the community to start thinking about who to entrust with my two mandates in the ima team (Vice-President and Treasurer). Because this will have to be voted on at the next General Assembly at the end of March 2022. After that, I will of course be available to coach my successors and to advise the ima team, as far as this is desired.

Four years ago, I embarked as a turnaround manager. Together with the others from the ima team, I have fulfilled this task. Apart from the known risks and some minor malfunctions, our website is currently running smoothly. The user experience has never been as good as it is at present. Our association is also well arranged in organisational and financial terms. Nevertheless, we are faced with two major challenges. One is that the technological basis of our website is inexorably approaching the end of its life cycle. The other is to attract enough new club members to pay for the required technical upgrade. These two tasks cannot be done in my remaining election period. They have rather the scope of another three to five years. For this, our association needs new strength and a breath of fresh air.

Of course, it would be possible to run for both mandates for another two years. The knowledge and experience I have gained are the very best prerequisite, and mentally I feel absolutely fit for it. But meanwhile my physical body is very clear in showing me limits that I must not ignore. After two eye operations in the past months, one of them an emergency glaucoma operation, I have to accept that my vision will never be the same any more. For me as a photographer, this is very sad to accept.

But above all, a further candidacy would also be dishonest towards the club. For I can no longer promise that I will be physically able for long enough not only to tackle the challenges described above, but also to bring them to a successful conclusion. It is therefore with a heavy heart that I choose to practice the art of a timely retirement and prepare myself to be only a normal member of the association in the future, as well as to give my successors all the support I am capable of.

Our association needs one or two new leaders from next March, who are keen to tackle the challenges with vigour and lead our association into further bright future. In order to allow enough time to apply for my succession, I am already informing you of this today.

Your 'Bergfex'
(Bernhard Westrup, Tyrol, Austria)