The Nature Conservancy. Protecting nature. Preserving life.™

About the Trustee Council

The Nature Conservancy’s Trustee Council represents and expresses the wide array of views, values and perspectives that make the Conservancy a strong and diverse organization.

The Council serves as a catalyst and resource for engaging trustees in cross-border priorities, and acts as an integral part of a broader program of improved communication, dialogue and engagement of volunteer leaders across the Conservancy.

For more information about the Trustee Council, please contact Jennifer Bristol.

How the Trustee Council Works

I. Composition

1. Beginning in 2009, this group will be composed of chairs of state, country, and regional boards; i.e., “chapter chairs.” Should the chair be unable to attend a meeting or other activity of this group, he or she may select the chair-elect, vice-chair, or other member of that board’s leadership to attend.

II. Principal Purposes

1. Provide advice and counsel to the Board, sharing views on issues and discussing major Conservancy initiatives with the Board of Directors at an appropriate annual venue.
    
2. To recognize the leadership role played by the chairs of our state, country, and regional boards and to provide them with the opportunity to develop greater understanding of and participate in the Conservancy’s regional, global, and organization-wide issues.
    
3. C. Stimulate greater engagement of all Trustees in issues transcending state and country lines, leveraging their skills, interests, and relationships inside and outside the Conservancy to advance key strategies (e.g., sustainable harvests, legislative initiatives, partnerships, philanthropy, branding, etc.).

III. Activity

1. Chapter Chairs/alternate Trustee Council representatives will meet annually with the Board of Directors. Other meetings or calls will be scheduled as needed to address significant organizational issues.
    
2. Chapter Chairs may be asked by the Board or staff to help identify and recruit other Trustees to serve on special short-term task forces to address specific conservation challenges and opportunities (e.g., energy, climate change, raising public awareness, etc.).

IV. Chapter Chair - Board of Directors Annual Meeting

1. Chapter Chairs will receive a “state of the organization” report covering conservation, finance, philanthropy and/or other topics. Major issues will be outlined and discussed.
    
2. The Chapter Chairs will have the option of selecting one or two colleagues to serve as liaisons to the Board of Directors and staff to develop the agenda for each meeting or call. The liaison role will be a one-year, rotating assignment. The Board of Directors in turn will select up to two of its members to serve as liaisons for the chapter chairs throughout the year

V. Selection of Leadership

1. The Trustee Council will be headed by a Chair and Vice Chair, each serving one-year terms. In practice, the Vice-Chair would typically become Chair in his or her second year. This model assures a constantly overlapping team of leaders who know many of the Council’s members and who understand both its recent past and its new and emerging priorities.
    
2. Eligibility: All members of the Council are eligible for the Chair and Vice Chair roles, and may serve in those capacities beyond their active terms as chairs of their chapter boards. Also eligible are individuals who have been Council members within the previous year. Vice Chairs would be considered active Council members during their tenures, regardless of status with their own program boards. As a result, someone elected Vice Chair could potentially be serving as Council chair for two years or more beyond chairing his or her own program board.
    
3. Role: The Chair and Vice Chair will work with the staff, the Council liaison(s) from the Board of Directors, Council members, and other Trustees on a variety of tasks, including Council communications, agendas for Council meetings and calls, special Council projects, the nomination of new Council leadership, and other activities of the Council as they come up. The roles require considerable time and a commitment to attending the annual meeting. Travel to other meetings may sometimes be desirable, although not a requirement for service.
    
4. Cross-border commitment: Candidates should have a demonstrated commitment to TNC’s global conservation goals and the Campaign for a Sustainable Planet. Experience with TNC’s cross-border conservation work, individually and/or through the candidate’s own board, is highly desirable.
    
5. Timing and Terms of Service: The Chair and Vice Chair will serve one-year terms. In most cases, it’s likely the Vice Chair would be nominated to become Chair for the year following his/her one-year term as Vice Chair, for a total of two years in Council leadership roles. The first elected Chair would serve one year, only. The Chair and Vice Chair will be nominated in the fall of each year and elected at the Council’s annual meeting with TNC’s Board of Directors.
    
6. Nominations: A nominating committee will be created and consist of the following individuals:
    
   
   1. The current Council Chair and Vice Chair
   2. The Board of Directors member(s) appointed by the Board as Council Liaisons
   3. The Council’s immediate past Chair
       
7. Submission: Council members will submit nominations (including self-nominations) for the Chair and Vice Chair positions to the Director of Trustee Programs by August 1 of each year. Each nominee will provide a brief biography and statement outlining qualifications and goals he or she hopes to achieve as a Council leader. The nominating committee will ensure candidates meet the eligibility criteria and strive to select people from chapters reflecting the diverse nature of Conservancy programs—small vs. large, U. S. vs. non-U. S., dissimilar challenges that represent common program situations, etc. Council members will receive the nominating committee’s recommendations for Chair and Vice Chair one month before the Council’s annual meeting, at which the Council will vote on the proposed slate of officers.
    
8. The newly elected Chair and Vice Chair will commence their terms at the conclusion of the Council meeting at which they are elected and end at conclusion of the fall meeting in the subsequent year.
    
9. Replacement of Officers: In the event a serving Chair or Vice Chair cannot complete his or her term, the nominating committee would call for new nominations as outlined above and submit a new nominee to the Council for vote by conference call, mail or email.

Related Propositions:

1. Trustees will be provided with significantly more opportunities over time to work across state and country boundaries and interact with volunteers and staff from other programs. The global summit will be augmented in off-years with regional meetings and other opportunities for cross-border engagement.
    
2. Trustees will be encouraged to play a more active role in identifying candidates for the Board of Directors. The Board’s Governance Committee will produce an annual profile of the backgrounds and skills being sought in new candidates for the Board, and all Trustees will be asked to recommend fellow trustees and other individuals as potential candidates
    
3. The Board of Directors will continue to evaluate the effectiveness of the Council on an annual basis.