Mobilizing ResourcesAn Environmental Networking and Partnering Forum

Environmental Legacy Fund Advisory CommitteeCommunity Foundation of Whistler

Presented by:Dave Williamson

Community Foundation of WhistlerOverviewStarted in 1999$4.2 M in 26 fundsCFOW manages donations as long term investments in the community, supporting grants to local charities year after year. We are building a community where charities have long term sources of stable funding to support the full range of community life. As the only local option for creating a permanent personal legacy for your community, we help you to support the causes that you care about. The Community Foundation of Whistler is working to bring the community together to grow and ensure our solid tomorrow.

Environmental Legacy Fund Advisory CommitteeELF is the largest fund managed by the CFOWGrants approximately $100,000 annually. $634,000 to date.Purpose:• Preserve, enhance, conserve or restore the environment,

primarily within the Whistler region, and/or• Be of a research or educational nature that will benefit the

environment, primarily within the Whistler region.

Environmental Legacy Fund Advisory CommitteeGoals:to encourage eligible organizations through financial support to establish or develop programs and processes, primarily in the Whistler region, that:• establish environmental conservation activities.• restore, rehabilitate or enhance natural habitats.• provide, encourage or support scientific research that benefits the

environment.• provide, encourage or support public education or raise public awareness

about environmental stewardship.• map and inventory the natural resources for environmental management

planning purposes.• establish or promote local environmental stewardship or local

participation in programs that preserve, enhance, conserve or restore the environment.

ELF Advisory Committee• Made up of members of the

community, RMOW, CFOW and technical experts (me, for the past 15 years)

• All members have an enviro background or interest in environmental issues

• Recommendations are made after much, lively discussion

• Seldom unanimous decisions

Accessing the FundEligibility• Applicants for funds must have charitable status. They must

be registered charities with a federal charitable tax number/business number.

• Applicants that are not registered charities, such as a school, a service club, a church or other community group, may be sponsored by an organization that is registered as a charity. The sponsor must be willing to assume the legal and financial responsibility for the project.

• Grants are not made to individuals or businesses.

Evaluating ProposalsWhat is ELF looking for?• New innovative ideas• Projects that truly build

the community’s capacity• Something that the

community can build on or that future generations can use

• Projects with good optics.

ChallengesThe application process• Keeping it simple and short – use the EOI as a course filter• But it is still onerous. Fit of the Project• Contribution to community.• Do they have capacity? Does it build community capacity?• Is there a legacy? Completion, Delivery and Reporting• Especially when project goes over budget or the project

leaders leave.• Who owns the data and is it shared? Entitlement• Few non-profits in the area, increased administration without

provision of funding• When it becomes part of an annual operational budget and

the NGO relies on it for multi-year programs. i.e. 2009.• The Virtuocracy, same people/projects year after year.• Spreading out the funding results in many small project – less

impact.

THANK YOUContact Info:

Community Foundation of Whistlerccoffey@whistlerfoundation.com