Foundation for Virginia's Natural Resources
Minutes
July 11, 2006

July 11, 2006, 10:00 a.m.
George Dean Board Room
Virginia Department of Forestry
Charlottesville, Virginia

Board of Trustees Members Present

• The Honorable Bob Bloxom (Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry)
• Eleanor Brown (Eastern Shore River Basin)
• Kim Chiapetto (Roanoke River Basin)
• Ed Davis (Upper Tennessee/Holston River Basin)
• Bob Denton (New River Basin)
• Jim Garner (Piedmont James River Basin)
• Jay Gilliam, Chair (Upper James River Basin)
• Roderic Slayton (Rappahannock River Basin)
• Lee Stephens, Vice Chair (York River Basin)

Advisory Group Members Present

• Russ Baxter, VDCR
• Nancy Bell, VMNH
• Don Blankenship, VDACS
• John Campbell, VDOF
• John Carroll, VDOF
• Denny Casey, VMNH
• Mike Foreman, VDOF
• Harry Gregori, VP - Env. Solutions, Inc.
• Ron Jenkins, VDOF
• Ann Regn, VOEE

Guests

• The Honorable Emmett Hanger, Senator

Recorder of the Minutes

• Brenda Taylor

Convene Meeting

Jay Gilliam, Chair, called the meeting to order around 10:05 a.m. and welcomed everyone in attendance. He thanked the Department of Forestry, as the primary agency partner, for making facilities available and recognized Brenda Taylor and Mike Foreman from VDOF for their administrative support.

Introductions

Chair Gilliam asked everyone present to introduce themselves.

Jay Gilliam, Chair of the Foundation, is from Rockbridge County.

Lee Stephens, Vice Chair of the Foundation, is from Irvington, Virginia, in Lancaster County on the Chesapeake Bay. He is a lawyer with a Richmond firm who lobbies during General Assembly.

Brenda Taylor is Administrative Staff Assistant for the Virginia Department of Forestry in Charlottesville.

Ed Davis, Professor at Emory and Henry College, is from Emory, Virginia.

Jim Garner is a retired State Forester from the Virginia Department of Forestry and lives in North Garden.

Eleanor Brown is a tax attorney with a practice in Newport News, and is Associate Professor of Law at Regent University School or Law.

Kim Chiapetto is a store owner in Christiansburg and is from Floyd, Virginia.

Bob Denton is a Professor at Virginia Tech and also is Director of the Center for Leader Development at VT. He has attended two meetings of the New River Roundtable, and there is a great interest in the Foundation and what it can do for them.

Roderic Slayton is an Attorney in Orange.

The Honorable Emmett Hanger, Senator, primarily represents the Shenandoah Valley area and also Western Albemarle County and Green County. He sponsored SB 1141 which led to the formation of the Foundation.

John Campbell is Director of Public Information for the Virginia Department of Forestry. He is working with Jim Garner on publicity for the Foundation.

Denny Casey is Director of Education and Public Programs at the Virginia Museum of Natural History.

Nancy Bell is Director of Development at the Virginia Museum of Natural History.

Harry Gregori is Vice President of the private consulting firm of Environmental Solutions, Inc., in Richmond. He worked for DEQ for about 20 years in charge of pollution prevention programs until two years ago. He also teaches graduate school at VCU in environmental planning. As Chair of the Virginia Sustainable Future Forum, he stated that he would like to speak with those interested in sustainable practices after the meeting today to try to set up a college and university network. He is also working on a project with the State Fair with hopes of getting an initial project funded, and DEQ is involved in sustainable practices of natural resources protection and education as well. He sees some potential overlap with the State Fair which is a non-profit, educational, agricultural oriented function.

Russ Baxter is Deputy Director of the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation.

Ann Regn is with of the Virginia Office of Environmental Education. She announced that the North American Association of Environmental Education, a professional association of international educators, will hold their Annual Conference at Virginia Beach next year. She will request that proceeds from this meeting be donated to the Foundation's Trust Fund, and the Foundation would then become a partner with them.

Mike Foreman is employed by the Virginia Department of Forestry as Riparian and Land Conservation Manager and also deals with Chesapeake Bay issues. He assists the Foundation with their Strategic Plan.

Don Blankenship is Deputy Commissioner for the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

The Honorable Bob Bloxom is Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry.

John Carroll is Deputy State Forester with the Virginia Department of Forestry.

Ron Jenkins is Assistant State Forester for Policy, Planning and Budget for the Virginia Department of Forestry.

Chair Gilliam thanked everyone for being present and emphasized the importance of the planning and development of the Foundation and its future effectiveness for the Commonwealth. He expressed gratification for the collaborative effort of the State agencies that have been supportive of the Foundation.

Approval of Minutes

With a motion from Ed Davis and a second from Jim Garner, the April 18, 2006, Minutes of the Board of Trustees were approved with the following modification: Ann Regn is in charge of the Virginia Office of Environmental Education housed at the Department of Environmental Quality in Richmond.

Financial Report

Brenda Taylor reported that three donations to the Trust Fund have been received totaling $1,200.00. Donations were made by Spotts Fain law firm ($500), Smithfield Foods ($500), and Jim Garner ($200). The donations are unrestricted and may be used at the discretion of the Board of Trustees consistent with the mission and purpose of the Foundation. Expenses for travel reimbursement, food and lodging for meetings of the Board of Trustees have totaled $2,123.18; and the Department of Forestry has found a way to support some of the administrative costs of the Foundation. Chair Gilliam stated that in the long-term, some donations may be targeted for specific projects and others may be unrestricted.

The Honorable Emmett Hanger, Senator - Vision for the Foundation

Chair Gilliam introduced Senator Hanger and expressed his pleasure at working closely with him for the last few years on environmental and natural resource issues.

Senator Hanger reviewed events leading to the establishment of the Foundation by the 2005 General Assembly and offered his vision of what the Foundation might accomplish in the future. He expressed his appreciation for everyone present and for their stewardship.

As Chair of the Majority Caucus Policy Committee, he has become involved in many State projects, many of which the Foundation could support and resources the Foundation could access.

One project to consider is upgrading rest areas. The General Assembly appropriated funds for two new rest areas rather than upgrades to the 20 existing rest areas throughout the State. This could be a project for the Foundation to undertake; adopt a rest area within watershed districts; ensure that it is an appropriate representation of the area that you live in.

During the time the establishment of the Foundation was being discussed, there were those who weren't supportive of the concept; therefore, the sunset clause was placed in the Code. Since no certain amount was specified, the $1,200 raised for the Trust Fund fulfills the technical requirement. Senator Hanger stated that, from what he's read in meeting minutes, policies, goals and aspirations generated by the Foundation, some tremendous work has already been done in terms of the beginning process. Identifying specific projects can be very important when working with citizens and legislators. When there is a specific project in mind, money can flow more readily.

Senator Hanger is the Chair of the Chesapeake Bay Commission this year. The CB Commission has a fairly modest budget for Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia ($190,000 each year for each state). They were able to raise money to supplement the budget. One of the projects this year is the 2007 Farm Bill (which may be a source of funding for the FVNR). The CB Commission generated a booklet last year with their perception of the concept of conservation reform in the CB region. They were able to raise $100,000 to support their initiative of lobbying and working with Congress. There are those who are willing to make donations for specific projects. A meeting will be held in Annapolis on July 12 to make a decision on hiring someone to work with them in Washington. Congressman Goodlatte and others will be involved with the 2007 Farm Bill to make sure that conservation interests are well represented in terms of their plan for the Bay region.

At other times, in spite of best efforts, money has to be raised in other ways. The General Assembly allocated money in the budget for the Lynchburg storm water overflow project. Senator Hanger has been focusing on storm water management issues and discharge in the District of Columbia which includes part of northern Virginia, southern Maryland and D.C. He suggested that Board members from that area (northern Virginia region) may want to undertake it as a project as a matter of education. Projects like this can be very important in terms of working with citizens, business entities and others to coordinate with our Congressional delegations to make sure that people are aware of these issues and that they understand these are priorities that have to be dealt with.

Senator Hanger described the following budgetary initiatives brought forward by the General Assembly:

• $100 million per year for point source clean-up effort
• $200 million loan funds to localities to help put improvements in place (partnered at Federal and State level)
• Water Quality Improvement Fund surplus monies and additional appropriations for non-point source projects, an initiative to help ensure additional money to staff positions at DCR and also at the Soil and Water Conservation Districts statewide ($1.5 million each year; $3 million total) to assist farmers in implementing Best Management Practices and management plans.
• Land Conservation Tax Credit Program (caps removed) - good opportunity for public/private partnerships in terms of steering the program in the appropriate way.
• Modifications to the Conservation Easement Program (the Governor proposes extending to $100 million). Education would help to ensure money is spent efficiently. The most concentrated area of farming in Virginia is in Rockingham and Augusta County. The program for tax credits has been used sparingly there but, when used, the average cost has been approximately $650 per acre. If the average were $1,000 per acre, then $100 million would conserve 100 thousand acres per year. If we want to make an impact, we need to look at where we can get the biggest value for public and private dollars that may be expended in the effort.

Senator Hanger, Secretary Bloxom, Secretary Bryant and their staffs will hopefully be working to set up a legislative commission to look at land conservation programs and possible incentive programs for preservation of farmland (specifically staffing money for the Office of Farmland Preservation and funding for purchase and development rights program to assist localities with these purchases). Other incentive programs will be reviewed to make sure they're targeted appropriately for the goals that we want to achieve. There is concern about putting all the money into one program. This is something that the Foundation can influence in a variety of ways in the watershed districts.

Senator Hanger is an advocate for the State Parks system. Leveraging with advocacy groups and friends of the Parks State-wide can get things accomplished in terms of subsidizing the State and public effort. He emphasized the importance of selling the message, educating, coordinating and organizing people to be advocates for the Park system to ensure that the Parks are supported and adequately maintained.

Senator Hanger stated that he is impressed with the Foundation's Mission statement, and is hopeful that Board of Trustees members will get back into their watershed districts and help with watershed planning and tributary strategies.

One goal this year for the Chesapeake Bay Commission is to leverage and partner so that a new model can be developed with on-the-ground technology and volunteers involved with actual stream monitoring and monitoring stations so that real data can be fed into a computer model and filtered down to a master model which will track efforts. All three States want to ensure that we're getting value for the dollars that we're spending.

Senator Hanger hopes that this Foundation would recognize problems that exist but be very positive-oriented and capable of gathering information to support the fact that we're accomplishing our mission and sharing it.

The non-regulatory education outreach opportunity is a critical component and has to be a combined area with the regulations. The business community is ready to help but they need to be directed. Appropriate recognition and well-timed "pats on the back" can go a long way to resolving some of the issues out there. There needs to be a coordinated focus on common goals; and, in order to accomplish common goals, there has to be considerably less emphasis on who gets the credit for outcomes. It has to be a joint effort. That has to be a part of the work plan.

Clearly the Foundation is looking at public/private partnerships. This will ensure the maximum effort for tax payers' dollars as well as supplement efforts in the public arena. Establish goals and plan of actions. Lobbying is an appropriate role for all of those who are advocates for issues in terms of lobbying which is an educational process. Many individuals represent us in the State Legislature and at the Federal level who are willing to do the right thing as long as they know it is the right thing. They need to be well educated about their options.

At various levels, we all have to be involved if we're concerned about the environment. The transportation issue is being debated right now. It has to do with appropriate road planning. The Foundation can influence appropriate actions in individual regions. We're not recognizing as much success as hoped for with that issue. But then we do recognize that, in the CB area as an example, that whole region of the watershed is growing by 100 thousand persons per year; and we've maintained. With that much growth in the watershed area, we've been able to maintain and show some progress. It would have been even better if we had appropriately planned that growth so that we didn't create some of these issues that are out there. We could have dealt with them much more cost efficiently had we dealt with them up front and planned accordingly.

Senator Hanger stated that he looks forward to attending future Foundation meetings and working with the Foundation.

Chair Gilliam expressed appreciation for Senator Hanger's presence and sponsorship of the Foundation.

Chair Jay Gilliam - Announcements

• Chair Gilliam stated that Senator Hanger is an advocate of watershed planning. There is an excellent roundtable in the Shenandoah Valley serving the Shenandoah River Basin called the Pure Water Forum. It was the first roundtable that was initiated in October of 1996. Their first meeting was held at Coors Brewing who took a leadership role with the Pure Water Forum in the Shenandoah. Senator Hanger and Chair Gilliam have both been watching that organization for 10 years. Coors has consistently supplied manpower, leadership and dollars to make that organization sustainable. Just recently, when there has been a tragic fish kill for several years in a row in the Shenandoah River, the Pure Water Forum has taken on a function of being a coordinating body for the scientific research that's going into the eventual solution of that fish kill problem which is very complicated. And that's extremely rewarding to watch a roundtable be used as a vehicle for solving a specific problem. Chair Gilliam stated that he hopes the Foundation will be a support system eventually for the concept of the roundtable; thus the makeup of the Board of Trustees with 13 individuals representing each river basin with the addition of the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry and the Secretary of Natural Resources.
• Over the last couple of months, Chair Gilliam has been speaking with Coors management explaining the Foundation's strategic planning process and asking them to become part of the process by lending their management and fiscal expertise. Yesterday, he received a message from the Executive Director of the Pure Water Forum saying that they are considering providing a national expert in organizational development to present a one-day workshop for Board Members. Chair Gilliam will be pursuing this opportunity for the Board as well as including representatives of roundtables throughout the State, whom we will be working with in the future, to do a joint workshop with this expert. Bill Charney is the workshop presenter, and Chair Gilliam will forward his web site address to everyone.
• Katie Hicklin, a rising Senior at UVA interested in environmental issues and policy, has volunteered her time as an intern this summer to (1) update the inventory of environmental education programs (developed by Ann Regn) and (2) develop an Internet "threaded message board" to be used by the Foundation to communicate among themselves. Ed Davis has agreed to be the primary contact person working with Ms. Hicklin. Kai Degner from JMU is also working with Ms. Hicklin on the Internet project. As this message board is developed, subject matter will be broken down into specific areas; and communication among the Foundation's Board and Advisors can take place here instead of by telephone conference. A print-out of the web page (message-board) was distributed. The Google web site address is: http://groups.google.com/group/fvanr.
• Jim Kibler, Board of Trustees Member representing the Lower James River Basin, recently resigned from the Board stating that he did not have time to make the commitment that was necessary. Chair Gilliam expressed his appreciation for Mr. Kibler's time and ideas. Chair Gilliam contacted Joanna Martin in the Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth, and she assured him that she would take into consideration candidates with environmental education in non-regulatory programs in their backgrounds. If this group has suggestions for candidates from the Lower James, please contact her. She does have a pool of individuals who have expressed an interested in natural resource service opportunities.

Jim Garner - Information Brochure

Jim Garner and John Campbell reviewed a draft copy of a tri-fold brochure Mr. Garner designed. The idea behind the brochure is for Board Members and Advisors to distribute to clubs and interested people to introduce them to what FVNR is trying to do and what an interested citizen can do to be part of it. The brochure will include Vision, Mission and Goals of the Foundation. Mr. Garner suggested including a logo or an image that would be recognizable by the public as the Foundation's image.

Mr. Campbell asked the group for their ideas on how to make the brochure work. He expressed the importance of defining the call to action--getting people to do something whether it's to give money, to join the Foundation or to donate land.

Discussion centered around purpose of the Foundation, purpose of the brochure, where it would be used, how it would be delivered and to whom.

Lee Stephens recommended using the United Way as a model to get the sense of community giving for resource conservation. To avoid redundancy with other conservation organizations, we need to develop very strict grant prioritization methodology to assure donors they will get the maximum effort for their money.

The group agreed to a tri-fold brochure with a memorable look, a short slogan and a brief story about the Foundation in color on re-cycled paper. A sponsor will be found to pay for the brochure. 1,500 copies will be printed. The brochure will be placed in a PDF file so it can be printed as required on a color printer. The Board agreed that Mr. Garner and Mr. Campbell should develop a draft copy. The brochure will be developed for distribution to the business community, presidents of clubs such as the Ruritans, activists/advocates, Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee and interested citizens. A section on the brochure will be dedicated to memberships and donations.

Chair Gilliam recommended that attendees review the Department of Forestry's brochures and publications which are displayed in the downstairs lobby.

Mr. Garner called attention to the quarterly internal newsletter, Forestry News, published by the Department by John Campbell's Public Information Division. The Foundation's Board of Trustees members will be placed on the mailing list to receive this publication in the future.

Mike Foreman - Strategic Plan

Mr. Foreman expressed his appreciation to the Board and Advisors for past and continued work on the Foundation's Strategic Plan. Notes from the Sweet Briar Retreat in May were distributed and reviewed. The retreat was a continuation of the Strategic Planning process that began at the Board meeting in April at the Environment Virginia Conference in Lexington. The Mission statement expresses very well in a single, broad statement what the Foundation is all about; and the Vision statement expresses intent and long-term sustainable viewpoint. Section 10.1-2135 of the Code of Virginia, which created the Foundation, was reviewed to understand exactly what the legislation says and what efforts need to stem from this section of the Code. Board members listed their expectations for the role of the Foundation and what the future may hold. Three goals were identified: (1) Achieve sustained funding to support on-the-ground programs (short-term goals that will lead to immediate, positive success); (2) Be the state's matchmaker between natural resources, donors/sponsors, and needs (long-term goals for funding, match-making, and distribution entity for long-term sustainable support); and (3) Broaden the support base for watershed-based programs in environmental education, pollution prevention, and citizen science. The Strategic Plan was a group effort which led to some general ideas which have been condensed into a two-page document.

Chair Gilliam stated that the facilitation process was an interesting, exciting, positive experience due to skilled facilitators and excellent participation of Board members and Advisors. The Conference Center at Sweet Briar was comfortable, the food was good, and the cost was low; therefore, this facility is highly recommended.

Lee Stephens has agreed to Chair of the sub-committee to develop a Business Plan which will be ratified by the Board in October, 2006. The Business Plan is broken down into four categories with overseers assigned as follows:

1. Financial Plan (Lee Stephens)
2. Operational Plan (Jay Gilliam)
3. Overall Strategic Plan (Jim Garner)
4. Marketing Plan (Ed Davis, Shelley Butler-Barlow, and Bob Denton)
   Input and suggestions are needed from everyone to finalize the Business Plan.

Mike Foreman asked everyone not to be overwhelmed by the language of the various plans being developed (business plan, strategic plan and operational plan). The Strategic Plan is the over-arching guidance document that can be used for reference in regards to "who's going to do what, by when;" and it can be revised anytime at the discretion of the Board.

All goals, objectives and strategies were reviewed; and modifications were made as needed. Chair Gilliam will poll Board members and ask them to take responsibility/leadership for specific objectives. Lee Stephens moved to accept the draft Strategic Plan as the official Strategic Plan with the modifications made. Eleanor Brown seconded the motion. The motion passed. Further discussion ensued as follows:

• Develop CD's for presentations to clubs and organizations
• Provide information to Virginia legislators within each watershed regarding activities in their districts specific to environmental education, prevention and protection before the 2007 General Assembly session.
• Find support for educational staff in State Parks and wildlife management areas
• Support outdoor classrooms
• Seek 501(c)(3) status for the Foundation. A vote was taken, and the Board approved to add this under Goal #1.

Lee Stephens - Business Plan

Mr. Stephens reminded everyone of the weekly telephone conference call held on Mondays at 4:00 p.m. and welcomed anyone to participate. The ad hoc Business Plan committee has also been tele-conferencing on Thursdays. Highlights of the telephone conferences are as follows:

• The first step in selling the Foundation is to identify the audience then tailor the message to fit the target audience; identify constituencies (target businesses, philanthropists, interested citizens, government grants and organizations)
• Communicate the benefits to them
• Ensure measurable results
• Seek constructive criticism from the Board, Advisors and others not present today (feedback regarding the Business Plan)
• How can we motivate them through incentives?
• Use words such as "natural resources" or "resource conservation" as opposed to "environmental" which has negative connotations for many in the business community.
• Join with others to build a culture; keep the plate spinning by encouraging them.

Mr. Stephens and Jim Garner met with David King, Development Officer of the State Fair. Although
Mr. King's experience is in pure non-profits unlike the Foundation's body-politic status, he is the best expert consulted to date. Some maxims provided by Mr. King are as follows:

• People give to people (not to causes) - draw connections with the people you're talking to.
• Build rapport with senior staffers in government (the people who can make things happen)
• Draw support ($) from three main groups: individuals (80%), foundations (15%) and corporate philanthropy (5%)

Mr. Stephens distributed and reviewed a handout from Mr. King entitled, "Nonprofit Business Planning, Sample Outline" from the Center for Nonprofit Excellence and suggested this handout be used as the Foundation moves forward. A Business Plan is a management tool that sets short-term objectives and defines the steps necessary to achieve them (stay operating and fulfill the Mission).

A slide show of sample spreadsheets were reviewed which are similar to those to be used for the Financial Plan for the Foundation. Areas of focus, revenues expected from month-to-month, income, and expenses (flow of money in and out of the Trust Fund). The first year will be on illustrated on a month-to-month basis, then on a five-year basis to show profitability. State agencies will be consulted to determine what line items to include.

Plans are to hire an Executive Director with primary responsibilities for communications, recruitment, implementing fund raising events and grant writing. This will be placed in the Appendix of the Business Plan.

Mr. Stephens reviewed grant-making priorities of the Gates Foundation and suggested that the Foundation think big and become a "Gates Foundation" for Virginia's natural resources.

Mr. Garner stated that Mr. King said not to waste time and effort on mail or telephone solicitations because of the small returns received.

Jay Gilliam - Operational Plan

Chair Gilliam reviewed the draft Operational Plan which can be described as "how we do business." He stated that this document is filled with assumptions such as hiring staff (executive director, administrative assistant and a financial officer) and asked for suggestions for additional principles to be added to this list. A campaign to raise enough money to hire staff should be an early priority.

How we do business needs to be guided by certain principles as follows:

• Support watershed-based strategies that are developed by collaborative efforts and implemented for a major river basin.
• Do not duplicate existing efforts of any public or private initiatives.
• Support programs that connect agriculture and forestry with natural resource protection.
• Support meaningful and positive opportunities for interested citizens to be involved with natural resource protection.
• Seek and Support partnerships between itself and other public/private interests (SWCD's, RC&D's, universities/colleges, agencies, businesses) that result in watershed health and enhancement.
• Promote clear, effective and comprehensive strategies that promote citizen stewardship.
• Be good stewards of all contributions to the Foundation's Trust Fund.
• Support the policies and goals of State and local governments where they intersect with our areas of interest.
• Broaden and diversify constituencies for natural resource protection in Virginia.
• Calculate all activities to make the Foundation and its work sustainable.
• Execute a transparent and accountable decision-making process.
• Support programs that connect cultural and historic resources with natural resource protection.

Considerations for how the Foundation will operate are as follows:

Members of the Board of Trustees

• Develop a job description for Board of Trustees members
• Serve as ambassadors for their river basin.
• Training and assistance provided to Board members (i.e., workshop provided by Coors).

Staff

• Develop job descriptions, personnel policy, and initial goals before hiring staff.
• Staff will be responsible for the entire Board.
• Staff will work closely with the Department of Forestry.

By Laws

• Develop and approve a set of by laws.
  (Note: Grant criteria and operating guidelines of the Trust Fund are separate documents but can be referred to in the By Laws.)

FVNR Programs

• Have diverse "programs" to address multiple areas that we are tasked with addressing (i.e., river basin strategies, K-12 program, Forestry and Agricultural education programs, higher education and academic research, programs of statewide or bay wide importance, public information and data access, and restoration program).

Incentives for Contributions to FVNR

• Identify and develop incentives for diverse contributors to the Foundation and its projects (i.e., public recognition, accountability, part of a strategic initiative, flexibility, etc.)

Marketing Plan

The Foundation's Marketing Plan will be developed by Ed Davis and Bob Denton.

Russ Baxter asked that electronic copies of the plans be distributed to everyone. The plans will also be posted on the threaded message board when it is operational.

The meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Foundation for Virginia's Natural Resources adjourned at 2:50 p.m.

Last modified: Friday, 07-Mar-2008 14:13:34 EST