Constitution

FTCCIS Constitution

SOCIETY ACT

CONSTITUTION

    1. The name of the society is the Forest Trust for the Children of Cortes Island Society (hereinafter referred to as “the Society”).

  1. The purposes of the Society are, for the benefit of primarily the current and future generations of children on Cortes Island, British Columbia, and secondarily the general public:

  1. to preserve and protect natural forest lands on Cortes Island, British Columbia with high ecological significance and representing intact eco-systems,and to ensure the long term ecological integrity of such lands ;

  2. to contribute to and enhance the education, health and welfare of the current and future generations of children on Cortes Island, as well as the general public, by ensuring that they have access to such natural forest lands for purposes of education and recreation;

  3. to develop and deliver to the children of Cortes Island and the general public, nature-based educational programmes related to such preserved forest lands;

  4. to conduct objective, academic and scientific research regarding the long term ecological integrity of such preserved forest lands;

  5. to engage in such charitable activities or endeavors, including the acquisition and stewardship of forest lands on Cortes Island, British Columbia and the registration on title of conservation covenants,as may in the opinion of the Society board of directors facilitate the above objectives;

  6. to do all such other things as are incidental or ancillary to the attainment of the purposes and the exercise of the powers of the Society.

3. The activities of the Society shall be carried on without purpose of personal gain for its members and any income, profits or other accretions to the Society shall be used in promoting the purposes of the Society.

4. Upon the winding-up or dissolution of the Society:

(a) all properties secured under the Ecological Gifts Program of the Government of Canada will be transferred to one or more eligible recipients as defined by the Ecological Gifts Program, with the intention of first offering said properties to a not-for-profit society incorporated under applicable legislation with similar purposes as the Society and subject to permission from the Government of Canada;

(b) all properties that have been declared inalienable pursuant to the bylaws of the Society will be transferred to one or more qualified donees as defined by the Income Tax Act (Canada), with the intention of first offering said properties to a not-for-profit society incorporated under applicable legislation with similar purposes as the Society so long as it is a qualified donee;

(c) the assets remaining after any transfers made pursuant to clause 4(a) or 4(b) above, and after the payment of all costs, charges and expenses properly incurred in the winding-up, including the remuneration of a liquidator, and after payment to employees of the Society of any arrears of salaries, or wages, and after the payment of any debts of the Society, shall be distributed to one or more charitable institutions with purposes similar to those of the Society, or, if this cannot be done, to one or more qualified donees as defined under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada) from time to time in force.

5. Paragraphs 3, 4, and 5 are unalterable.

BYLAWS

The by-laws of the society are those set out in Schedule B to the Society Act with the following variations, deletions and additions:

  1. Add a new Part 13 headed Protection of Property and add a new Bylaw 63 to read as follows:

63(1) The Directors may declare a property or an interest in land to be inalienable.

63(2) When a property or an interest in land is declared to be inalienable, the Society will take every measure possible to ensure its protection in perpetuity.

63(3) A property that has been declared inalienable shall be:

(a) protected by a Conservation Covenant under section 219 of The Land Title Act (British Columbia). The Covenant shall be held by one or more organizations independent of the Society and shall, if allowed by the Registrar of Land Titles, prohibit mortgaging and restrict sale; and

(b) protected by adequate insurance.

63(4) A property that has been declared inalienable shall not be:

(a) mortgaged under any circumstances; or

(b) sold or transferred unless the Society is being dissolved, and then may be sold or transferred only to another society having similar purposes.

63(5) An interest in land that has been declared inalienable shall not be released or sold.

63(6) An interest in land that has been declared inalienable may be:

(a) transferred or assigned only to an organization having similar purposes to the Society, provided that the Society retains a reversionary interest in the land and such transfer is approved by a Special Resolution of the Society; or

(b) transferred or assigned only to an organization having similar purposes to the Society, without a Special Resolution of the Society and without a reversionary interest, if the Society is being dissolved.

63(7) The Society will seek to constantly improve the level of protection provided to inalienable property as new legal mechanisms become available.

63(8) The Society may not remove inalienable status once granted.