West Coast LEAF (Join West Coast LEAF’s Board of Directors!)

Organization Name: West Coast LEAF
Opportunity Title: Join West Coast LEAF’s Board of Directors!
Category: Boards / Committee / Leadership
Commitment: Ongoing Opportunity (> 1 year)
Start Date: October 3, 2022
End Date: October 8, 2029

Email: nominations@westcoastleaf.org
Website: http://www.westcoastleaf.org
Details:

• Appropriate for youth (i.e., less than 18)
• Appropriate for volunteers aged between 18 and 55
• Appropriate for volunteers aged 55 and over

Opportunity Description:

Are you interested in advancing gender justice? Do you have an inclusive and intersectional vision of feminism? Are you keen to use your skills to support sustainable stewardship in the not-for-profit sector? If so, we are looking for you! West Coast LEAF is currently seeking 1-3 new members to join our volunteer Board of Directors. 

ABOUT WEST COAST LEAF
West Coast LEAF’s office is located on the unsurrendered homelands of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and səl̓ílwətaʔɬ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations (also called Vancouver, BC).

West Coast LEAF is a legal non-profit and charitable organization with a mandate to advocate for inclusive and intersectional gender equality. We use law reform, public legal education, and litigation strategies to achieve systemic transformation, collaborating directly with communities impacted by gendered harms. We are committed to advancing an inclusive vision of feminism that defends the right to be free from discrimination based on gender identity and gender expression. As a predominantly settler-led organization working within colonial legal frameworks, we take responsibility for positively transforming our relationships with the Indigenous people on whose homelands we predominantly work.
THE ROLE OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Board members are a valued and essential part of West Coast LEAF. The Board of Directors is legally responsible for the governance of our organization, which includes ensuring we are upholding our vision and mandate through all our activities, policies, and plans. Board members are in a relationship of trust with, and are accountable to, West Coast LEAF’s membership and staff and the broader communities we serve.

Key areas of board member responsibility include fiscal stewardship, governance, strategic planning, and management of the Executive Director.

West Coast LEAF works with a group of Indigenous advisors who guide us in meeting our commitments to dismantling anti-Indigenous racism, white supremacy, and settler supremacy in our work and in our organization. This Indigenous Advisory group is an important part of our structure, and we expect that the Board and the Indigenous Advisory group will continue to have opportunities to collaborate and deepen their relationships.

The organization is currently exploring the implementation of a new strategic plan, which will include formalizing our commitment to sex work decriminalization. This is an exciting time to be part of this growing and vibrant organization!
THE COMMITMENT
The Board holds regular meetings approximately 10 times per year, each of which is between 1.5-2 hours long. Regular board meetings are currently held via Zoom, and we expect some form of hybrid meeting structure to continue so that we can support accessibility, individual needs, and participation from folks outside the Lower Mainland. The board meeting schedule is determined in consultation with all members and is respectful of members’ home, work, and community commitments. Meetings have typically been scheduled during weekday evenings.

Board members are also expected to attend our Annual General Meeting, which takes place each fall. We hold a fundraising event in March, at which board member attendance and support is strongly encouraged. The board also meets jointly with the staff for an annual planning process. This is typically held over a weekend, with dates canvassed well in advance. Throughout the year, the board is also invited to optional relationship-building events and training opportunities with the staff and the Indigenous Advisory committee. Board members are expected to attend board meetings, familiarize themselves with the organization’s work, engage with a spirit of collaboration and respectful curiosity, and participate in committees or at events as necessary.

Board members are elected for a two-year term and may serve no more than four consecutive terms (for a total of eight years in total).

The time commitment is approximately 4-8 hours per month.

Board members are not permitted to be compensated for their service. However, funds are allocated to meet childcare, technology, and accessibility needs as identified to ensure that board members are supported to participate fully in the work.
ABOUT PROSPECTIVE BOARD MEMBERS
We welcome applications from folks anywhere in British Columbia who are committed to inclusive and intersectional feminism. Non-Indigenous applicants must be committed to supporting the organization’s ongoing and emergent work on decolonizing and reconciliation.

We are recruiting up to three board members to strengthen the diversity of perspectives and lived experiences shared around the board table. Legal training and/or professional experience are by no means required. We are looking to recruit a board member with experience as a CPA or in accounting/financial governance.

We especially welcome applications from people with the following lived and learned experiences and knowledge:

• Decolonizing, anti-oppression, anti-racism practices;
• Disability justice lens;
• Non-profit governance;
• Human resources;
• Accounting and financial governance;
• Marketing and communications; and/or
• Policy development.

West Coast LEAF is working to ensure our teams reflect the diversity of the communities with whom we engage, and who disproportionately experience gendered discrimination and harms in our society. We especially encourage applications from trans people of all genders and Two-Spirit, non-binary, and/or gender non-conforming people, as well as people who are Indigenous, Black, racialized, disabled, queer and/or have other experiences of exclusion and marginalization. Youth (aged 16 and older) are also encouraged to apply.
HOW TO APPLY
Interested applicants are invited to send a statement of interest or cover letter telling us more about themselves and their interest in joining West Coast LEAF’s Board of Directors. Please also share what you hope to gain from your board service and what you hope to bring to West Coast LEAF.

Please submit your statement of interest / cover letter via email to nominations@westcoastleaf.org with the subject line “Board Member Expression of Interest.” You are welcome to submit a resume as well, but it is not required.

We look forward to receiving your applications by August 15, 2022. Shortlisted applicants will be contacted by August 30, 2022.

West Coast LEAF Board Recruitment