The International Naturist Federation, of which British Naturism is a member, is on a “distinctly positive course” after its biennial World Congress held in Luxembourg last week, according to British Naturism’s International Director, Edwin Kilby.
The organisation, which marks its 70th anniversary next year, took a number of important decisions which will help it be more effective and visible. The anniversary will be celebrated at an event at Montalivet in France in September which will feature workshops and other meetings alongside more “fun” activities such as wine and oyster tastings. A series of conferences – to be held in person and online – on topics affecting Naturism worldwide will be launched in Bonn in March. And a working group will be established to examine the rules about membership of the organisation to see, among other things, how best to bring more Naturist voices within the INF’s embrace and make it more globally representative.
Edwin says that the Congress was the most harmonious and collegiate such meeting he had yet attended, with clear and encouraging signs emerging of a shared vision of how the Naturist federations should work together in future. He thinks this is at least in part due to the success of the co-presidency shared by Stéphane Deschênes and Sieglinde Ivo, following Stéphane’s election last year.
The meeting also saw Edwin elected as one of the Vice-Presidents of the INF, a role which puts him in the influential position of Secretary – working closely alongside the two Presidents and the Treasurer as part of the leadership of the organisation, helping with arrangements for congresses, setting the agenda for meetings and, crucially, interpreting the INF’s statutes.
Edwin added, “I’m really looking forward to working as a team alongside Stéphane, Sieglinde, the rest of the committee and, of course, the Naturist federations. If last week’s meeting is anything to go by, there’s a renewed willingness among the federations to work together to advance the organisation and – more importantly – worldwide Naturism. It’s a really exciting time to be involved at this level.”
Asked about the impact on his work for BN, Edwin said, “I have a fair idea of the workload involved in the INF position. And I’ve already been doing a lot of INF-related work alongside my BN work – I’m on a working group revising the statutes, for example, and I’ve been working pretty hard in the run-up to the Congress – so I think I know how to balance the demands. But one thing I won’t be able to do is occupy the BN seat at INF meetings. That could be an interesting opportunity for somebody.”
Image: Delegates at Luxembourg