Surfrider Foundation: MAKING WAVES

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	The National Board of Directors MAKING WAVES, Feb.-March 1999 by Larry Manson, Board of Director 1995-98

Surfrider is a team and the main elements of the team are chapter activists, the Surfrider National staff, and the National Board of Directors. Each part of the team is critical to the success of carrying out the Surfrider mission.
     While the crucial importance of chapter members and their activism is obvious to every Surfrider member, and the role of the National staff is well known, a lot of members don't know much about the National Board or how it works.
     First of all, every National Board member, like every chapter member, is a volunteer. That means that Board members do not receive any compensation, in any form, for their service on the Board. In fact, Board members pay all their own expenses to attend all Surfrider activities, including Board meetings. While this is a financial burden, Board members strongly believe that all funds coming to the Foundation be used to CARE about the ocean and beach environment--that the funds should go to Conservation, Activism, Research and Education in defense of the ocean and beaches.
     There are fifteen members on the Board and they are selected as follows. Any Surfrider member can nominate another member for the Board. The person doing the nominating must send the nominee's name to the staff at National. Nominees are then contacted and asked if they wish to run. If they are interested, they write a letter stating the reasons for their interest and any other information they would like to have in their application.
     Members of the Board then receive all the information. It is very typical for nominees to receive phone calls from Board members so they have a chance to get to know the nominees. The Board members then send their ballots to an independent auditor and the results are sent to the National office.
     A person is elected to a two year term and there is a limit of serving two consecutive terms. Each year approximately half of the positions on the Board are up for election.
     The National Board has the responsibility for developing and establishing the policies of the Foundation, hiring and providing direction to the Executive Director, safeguarding the financial operations of the Foundation, ensuring that the Mission Statement is carried out, overseeing liaison and communication with Surfrider Chapters and members, and evaluating and recommending improvements in Surfrider programs and activities.
     There is also a very important advisor to the Board, and that is the Chief Financial Officer. The CFO is also a volunteer and has responsibility for overseeing the financial operations of the Foundation including audits and tax liabilities. Though the CFO is not a voting member of the Board, the Chief Financial Officer is critical to the effective and responsible operation of the Foundation.
     The Board meets four times a year--three times in San Clemente and one time outside Southern California. The meeting outside So-Cal generally, though not always, is on the East Coast.
     This is a report on the bare bones of what they Board does but it doesn't capture the stoke that people bring to the Board. Everyone has a strong ocean background and are presently, or have been, very active surfers. Most Board members also have other skills including scuba diving, sailing, boating, windsurfing, or snowboarding. An average member has about twenty years of ocean and professional experience, so the Board represents about 300 years of collective knowledge. (A brief biography of each member is on the Surfrider National website.)
     Everyone who has had the opportunity to serve on the National Board feels a very strong obligation to contribute to the successful and effective operation of the Foundation. Working over budget numbers, wading through legal opinions, or writing Surfrider policy isn't nearly as much fun as dropping into a pitching peak at a local beach, but doing the work is aimed at saving that peak for ourselves and future generations.
      -Lawrence Manson, Board of Director 1995-1998

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Surfrider Foundation USA:
122 S. El Camino Real #67
San Clemente, CA 92672
tel. (949) 492-8170
fax (949) 492-8142

Email addresses:
Membership: mmate@surfrider.org
Chapter Issues: emazzarella@surfrider.org
Envir. Issues: ekliszewski@surfrider.org
Legal Issues: mkremer@surfrider.org
Catalog: jwright@surfrider.org
Website Staff: mbabski@surfrider.org
Other: info@surfrider.org

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