Thank you for your interest in helping out the Long Point Biosphere Reserve as Secretary.
Long Point and the surrounding watershed is an area rich with natural and cultural heritage, home to a wide array of species, biodiverse ecosystems, and incredible scenery. In the heart of Carolinian Canada, Long Point is situated in Norfolk County, on the north shore of Lake Erie, about 2.5 hours southwest of Toronto. The LPBR is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, first designated in 1986.
You can find out more about us here: https://longpointbiosphere.com/about-the-biosphere/
The Secretary is responsible for the safekeeping of the Corporation’s documents and records. Our records are now maintained in a cloud environment (Google Drive). Our agendas and related documents are prepared in the cloud and emailed to directors in advance of every meeting. You may be a signing officer for the corporation.
You will work closely with the Chair and Treasurer to ensure that the agendas are prepared and financial documents are available to the directors. We have a precedent form we use to prepare agendas.
Meetings are monthly, and you may attend by video conference (Zoom) or in person, at Birds Canada (Port Rowan). Meetings are generally every two months, with an annual members’ meeting in September.
Ideally, you can “real time” type during meetings, but if it is easier to take notes by hand and type them later, that is fine too.
All our directors and officers are required to be members as individuals to serve. The membership fee is currently $30 per year.
Mission: We collaborate to enhance ecosystem and community well-being, and unite people with nature.
Vision: All living things thrive here together.
Values:
- RESPECT: We value all living things, the land, air, water, and our interconnectedness.
- TOGETHERNESS: We value and share knowledge from diverse sources, including Indigenous, local, and scientific ways of knowing.
- RESILIENCE: We promote healthy ecological, social, and economic systems that are able to withstand, adapt to, and flourish in the face of challenges (this value is still a work-in-progress)
- RESPONSIBILITY: We promote stewardship of the natural world, recognizing our actions have an impact on the planet and on future generations. We are committed to responsibly using funds and resources to support actions that align with our values.
We exchange information and work collaboratively with the Canadian Biosphere Reserves Association, as well as other biosphere reserves in Canada and around the world. Our World Biosphere Reserve designation comes from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and Man and Biosphere program, and does not bring with it any new authorities over lands, water or resources.
If you have any questions, please contact the current secretary at paula.boutis@longpointbiosphere.com or by phone at 416-802-3118 and she will be happy to answer them.