Terms of Engagement

1. The name of this group shall be The SW Fire and Climate Adaptation Partnership (SWFireCAP)

2.  All members of the partnership shall have equal voice and status.

3.  All members will consult with and represent the views of their organization when making decisions within the Steering Committee and on behalf of the Partnership.

4.  Records of Partnership related meetings will be kept and made available to all members as needed.

5.  In signing on to the SW Fire and Climate Adaptation Partnership, all members of the Constellation: Steering Committee, Coordinating Team and Roundtables  agree to participate in good faith toward the decision-making and conflict resolution process outlined in this document.

6.  The SW Fire and Climate Adaptation Partnership website is:

swfirecap.org

Roles and Responsibilities of the Steering Committee 

7.  The Steering Committee’s purpose is to ensure a mechanism is in place to support the Constellation and the roundtables that evolve from it. It will support and facilitate the Constellation activities as an extension of The SW Fire and Climate Adaptation Partnership Guiding Principles. 

8.  The Steering Committee will consist of representatives from the following nine founding members: 

9.  The Steering Committee is responsible for making decisions regarding the work, direction and development of the partnership, maintaining primary responsibility to the broad spectrum of projects and activities.  In addition, the Steering Committee will oversee the work of the Coordinating Team directly.

10.  Everyone is welcome to join the Steering Committee as long as commits to:

Follow the Vision of the Partnership and Guiding Principles 

Participate in meetings

Assists the Partnership

Leads a Constellation

11.  In a case where a member is not acting in good faith or the interests of the Partnership, as defined in this Terms of Engagement, a vote of two-thirds of the Steering Committee will be required to remove that organization. 

Roles and Responsibilities of the Roundtables 

12.  A roundtable is a self-governing, activity-based group; meaning that although it is based in the Partnership and shall benefit from the broader group, it will make its own decisions about how to work together. 

13.  A roundtable will direct its own work as it relates to its objectives, deliverables, budgets, contracts, implementation and administration of various projects.  In most cases, a lead organization will be identified within the roundtable to administer the work and liaise with funders.

14.  A roundtable is responsible for reporting its activities to the Steering Committee on a regular basis so that the Committee may play a coordinating role, and work to leverage the skills, assets and expertise of the Partnership for the roundtable’s benefit. 

15.  With the support of the Partnership and the Coordinating Team, new roundtables will continue to evolve from the Steering Committee.  They will result from strategic planning and coordinated communications strategies.  Any partner may suggest the creation of a roundtable; it will be up to the Steering Committee to allocate priority and resources accordingly.

Roles and Responsibilities of the Coordinating Team 

16. The Coordinating Team is a small group of members from the Steering Committee that will agree to provide administrative and fiscal support. 

17. The Coordinating Team will be responsible for facilitating the communication amongst the group at meetings, online and between meetings. Also, conflict mediation, project development, planning, strategy, partnership development, budgeting, initiation and support of the event initiatives.

18. Other responsibilities include: Act as fiscal agents for funding; ensure all funding conditions and reporting requirements are met; supervise the work of the partnership coordinator; and provide administrative support to the partnership, including hosting meetings, providing minute taking and circulating meeting information.

19. The Coordinating Team include at least the following members:

The partnership chairperson

The fiscal host for partnership funding

The partnership coordinator

20. The Coordinating Team reports to the Steering Committee, regardless of the funding source and which lead organization the funding is secured through. 

21. The process for joining the Coordinating Team requires that an organizational member first sits on the Steering Committee.  

22. Representation of the Coordinating Team will rotate among the Steering Committee organizations on a two-to-three-year basis. Terms should be staggered to assure there is not complete turnover in the Coordinating Team at any given time. 

23. Every two-to-three years the Coordinating Team must determine how resources from different organizations will be utilized to meet the core roles and responsibilities assigned to the Coordinating Team.

Advocacy

24. No group will take a position regarding issues on behalf of the Partnership, a roundtable or other organization, without the consent of the Steering Committee.  Groups will clarify in advance, on a project-by-project basis, how they would like to advocate with one another.

25. Neither the Coordinating Team nor the Steering Committee will take a position regarding issues on behalf of an organization, unless clearly decided by the Steering Committee.

26.  Any initiative or project within the Partnership may invite other partners to “opt-in” to specific campaigns.

Funding

27. Coordinate fundraising and program development efforts among members. Alert members to funding opportunities that arise and convene meetings for interested members to develop joint applications or agree upon who will apply. Encourage members to coordinate their individual fundraising strategies to avoid unnecessary conflict or duplication of services, and to enhance the likelihood of meeting identified needs.

28. Unless otherwise stated, grant applications will come from the lead organization with all members of the roundtable listed on the application. One of the groups will act as the leadorganization in all cases. This means that the applications will come from the Partnership with a full list those organizations that are signing on to that project. 

29. If a roundtable intends to apply for funding under the name of the SW Fire and Climate Adaptation Partnership, the Steering Committee must endorse its activities. 

30. The Partnership may assist the participants in coordinating the proposal preparation process and obtaining the necessary endorsements and linkage or support letters. 

31. Resource allocations are made within the roundtable; ideally, these allocation decisions will be made prior to grant submission. Where this process is not possible, all members that are signatories to the grant should be involved in such decisions. 

32. In light of the nature of collaboration and fiscal responsibility, the lead organization will retain financial and legal control associated with grant administration.  This organization will most often be the constellation leader; however, not in all cases. 

Decision-Making and Conflict Resolution Process

33. The Steering Committee will work to consensus; consensus being “a collaborative process where a decision has been developed in ways that seek to meet the needs and interests of all the group members.”  In other words, the point where everyone can live with the final agreement without compromising issues of fundamental importance.

34. If a discrepancy or disagreement exists between any of the groups, a meeting will be held with the affected parties and the Coordinating Team in hopes of reaching a consensus on the issue.  

35. Members need not agree on all issues.  The constellation model enables members to “opt-out” of a project or process at any time without offence.

Dissolving the Partnership 

36. The Partnership may decide, at any time, to dissolve itself or a roundtable, with a unanimous vote from the Steering Committee members. 

37. The Partnership may also cease to operate, given a lack of funding or initiative amongst the members.  

38. Any member may choose to re-ignite a roundtable, with the support of at least two of the original members.