DCNA Board Meeting 1 st -3 rd November 2005

Transcription

1 DCNA Board Meeting 1 st -3 rd November 2005 DAY ONE: Tuesday 1 st November 2005 Location: NGO Platform offices, Saba Present : Board members: Nicole Esteban (NE), Woti Bakhuis (WB), Andy Caballero (AC), Elsmarie Beukenboom (EB), Janine le Sueur (JLS), Roy Croes (RC), Willem Ferwerda (WF), Leendert van Driel (LvD), Frensel Mercelina (FM) and Paul Hoetjes (PH). Observers: None Staff: Elsmarie Marchena (EM) Welcome address Apologies for absence were received from Executive Director Kalli De Meyer (KDM). Don Martina of Conservation International, who had been invited as an Observer, sent his regrets at being unable to attend. Chairperson Nicole Esteban welcomed those present and determined that ten Board members were present of which nine were voting members. The meeting was declared open. New Board members, Roy Croes, Leendert van Driel and Frensel Mercelina were introduced and welcomed to the Board. Each Board member introduced them self. Letter from Frits Goedgedrag, DCNA s newest Patron, was circulated to the Board Approval of previous minutes The minutes of the previous meeting were approved unanimously with no changes and signed by the Chairperson and Secretary. The signed copy will be held by the DCNA Secretariat. Agenda The Agenda for the meeting was approved Finance Committee The Board recognized a Finance Committee in accordance with DCNA statutes, consisting of EB (Treasurer) and financial expert LvD. Any new Board members selected for their financial expertise will automatically join this Finance Committee. Review of Action points from previous meeting The action points from the previous meeting were reviewed and the following outstanding items will be addressed at the next Board meeting: Page 1 of 36

2 Operational Manual Bylaws Organogram Fund raising strategy Communication strategy Funding proposal to WWF for the production of brochures Legal advisor, Monique Brown, who was contacted by STENAPA, confirmed that there is no problem with DCNA having foreign board members providing that it is written in the Statutes, especially since these Statutes would have been verified by the Notary. New Board members need to sign the Board Pledge. Board members have already been reminded they still need to provide DCNA with copies of their statutes, mandate to manage parks, legislation, letters of empowerment and/or Board pledges. Board members were requested to hand the documentation to EM or confirm when they will provide DCNA with the documentation. The following additional action points were identified. Action: Establish official per diem rates for Aruba (RC) Visit the Governor of Aruba and the Board of Parke Nacional Arikok (KDM) Create an inventory all existing management contracts between the park management organizations and the island governments (KDM/PH) Update on DCNA Activities Board Books were distributed to Board members and a written update on DCNA activities (June October 2005) was circulated to those present (see appendix) and reviewed at the meeting Board members liked the Board books and thanked EM and KDM for their hard work in producing them. Board members praised the new DCNA website. A Dutch web address has been reserved for DCNA: It will automatically transfer visitors to the website. The importance of going public with the website, even if it is not quite finished was stressed. WF indicated that the Postcode Lottery have a strong interest in seeing the website on the worldwide web as soon as possible. Action: Website will be launched, whether or not it is completed, on the 1 st December Board members who wish to see changes made to the existing site should notify KDM before 25 th November 2005 Park organizations are kindly requested to supply information on their organization for the website by 25 th November KDM to supply guidelines (such as content and length of text) TOR for patrons and financial experts to be resent to the Board (KDM) Delay in the purchase of furniture for DCNA was due to lack of funding when IUCN NPL2 funding was delayed. A pickup vehicle was purchased by Coral Resource Management and this has been donated to DCNA. The pickup vehicle provides good PR for DCNA and is used for picking up guests and showing them round the island and for running errands. A Page 2 of 36

3 contract will be drawn up between the two organizations addressing the obligations and financial obligations of each party. The contract will be based on standard long term hire contracts used by local car hire companies. [Lunchtime presentation was given by Dr Robert Powell on Reptiles and Amphibians of the Dutch Caribbean. Thanks to NE the book contains a chapter on DCNA and features the DCNA logo on the front cover. This valuable and attractive book is an important addition to the body of knowledge on the biodiversity of the Dutch Caribbean islands and is the first publication in which DCNA is profiled.] FUNDRAISING BZK Committee Update A presentation was given to the Board by PH outlining the history and outcome of the BZK discussions. All documents were circulated to the Board before the Board meeting by and hard copy can be found in the Board Book. The Board reviewed the simple flowchart below and decided that reporting and administration are extremely important and professional standards are essential. Board agreed with all necessary steps to professionalize both the park management organizations and DCNA to include: Annual financial audits Standardized reporting Strict reporting schedule BZK Euro 10M NPL Euro 1.7M DCNA To be distributed to the Park organizations and used to partly support DCNA and IUCN NL lobbying/comm. TRUST FUND Other Sources after 2007 Diagram illustrates the concept of funding flows to capitalise the TF using the BZK funds The Board discussed how the BZK funds were to be distributed and identified the flowof funds to be transferred into the Trust Fund. The Board noted that other funding sources would need to be found by 2007 in order to ensure that BZK funding is matched in order to be passed through to the Trust Fund. Aside from a contribution to the basic operational costs, direct benefits to the Park organisations of swapping a portion of own funds and facilitating the transfer of Page 3 of 36

4 funds to capitalise the TF include financial support to the DCNA secretariat, institutional and capacity building for DCNA and the Park organisations, inter island projects and research, a communication strategy and lobbying. DCNA should aim to achieve NPL beneficiary status by the end 2006 either independently or through De Landschappen or if these two options are not possible through IUCN NL. DCNA can then hope to receive Euro 1 million per year as institutional support (instead of project funding) which could also be important an important contibution to the financial sustainability of the park organisations. Three of the members (JLS, AC, NE) announced that their Island Organisations (Saba Conservation Foundation, Nature Foundation SXM and STENAPA) had approved the BZK neutral budgetary swap and that the confirmation letter had been signed. Letters were handed to EM. Action: A meeting must be held with the Board of Parke Nacional Arikok to explain the Trust Fund and BZK swaps (Letitia Buth, KDM, RC) A meeting must be held with the Board of CARMABI to explain the Trust Fund and BZK swaps (Letitia Buth, KDM, WB) A meeting must be held with the full Board of STINAPA Bonaire to explain the Trust Fund and BZK swaps (Letitia Buth, KDM, EB). Trust Fund Board recognized that a Trust Fund must be established in the coming year. This is a priority item and is required as part of the funding agreement with BZK Action: A Trust Fund must be established as soon as possible Finance Committee will approach financial institutions to find a suitable financial asset management company based on criteria of sustainability. The findings of the Finance Committee will be presented at the next meeting. LvD will verify that the Statutes of DCNA provide for the entity of the Trust Fund. PH to send all correspondence relating to legal establishment of Trust Fund from Barry Spergel to LvD. The Board discussed various possible funding sources including inter alia a tax on oil and gas, EU and FCCA (Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association) Vision Planning and vision are key components of professionalization. Board members need to formulate a five year vision to identify their potential funding sources and likely constraints on funding (see appendix for first draft) Action: A letter is to be drafted to De Landschappen requesting their assistance in drawing up a strategic vision for DCNA (KDM). Letter will be hand delivered to the Director of De Landschappen (WF) CBF keur DCNA must ensure that it complies with CBF standards (Centraal Bureau Fondsenwerving keur) within the coming years. This is a seal of approval which non governmental organizations can apply for and which ensures that they meet basic good governance and administrative standards including transparency of operation. Page 4 of 36

5 Action: DCNA will pursue applying for CBF keur (Johan van der Perk to take the lead) Reporting cycle Reporting IUCN to BZK Annual report by 15 th August [BZK to respond with any comments or concerns by 1 st October] Budget for coming year to be prepared by 1 st November (IUCN or BZK funds for following year to be transferred before December 31) Reporting DCNA and Parks to IUCN NL 1 st April no later than 1 st May: technical and financial report for previous calendar year 30 th June: annual financial audits for previous year 1 st October: half year technical and financial reporting (Jan-Jun) 1 April 1 May 30 June 15 Aug 1 Oct 1Nov Dec Technical and financial reports for previous year submitted to DCNA by Parks Technical financial reports submitted to IUCN NL by DCNA Approved annual reports and financial audits submitted by DCNA and Parks and to IUCN NL Annual Reports and annual financial audits sent by IUCN to BZK Technical financial reports submitted to DCNA by Parks Budget prepared and sent to IUCN DCNA budget for coming year submitted to BZK BZK funds transferred for following year It was recognized that the technical and financial reports which will be submitted by the Parks and DCNA to IUCN in April/May will not have been approved by their Boards. Therefore the Park organisations must be sure to make the approved reports available to DCNA immediately after their respective Boards have approved them. The reporting schedule is very tight and very rigorous. Some Park organisations may need capacity/ technical assistance to meet deadlines particularly in early stages. Decision: Board approved reporting cycles as proposed Decision: Board meetings will be held twice a year in 2006 and will synchronise with the bi-annual reporting to IUCN NL Decision: Board recognized the need for timely reporting and auditing and wishes to select one auditing company. Action: Finance committee will look for an appropriate auditing company and will set up a meeting with IUCN s auditors to discuss standardised requirements/ formats/ procedures in order to synchronise reporting. Overview of deadlines and dates needs to be confirmed and sent to Board members Technical assistance should be provided as necessary to ensure that deadlines are met NPL2 funding WF gave an overview of NPL2 funding and how this will be effected by the BZK swap. NPL have agreed that the remaining funds can be used to capitalize the Trust fund. Page 5 of 36

6 Action: NPL wish to see their logo on all publications and printed materials produced by the Parks where NPL funds have been a contributor. They would also like to see their logo at the entrance of all the Parks (for details please contact JvdP) AMFO/NGO Platform Discussion postponed to next Board meeting. Page 6 of 36

7 DCNA Board Meeting 1 st -3 rd November 2005 DAY TWO: Wednesday 2 nd November 2005 Location: NGO Platform offices, Saba Present : Board members: Nicole Esteban (NE), Woti Bakhuis (WB), Andy Caballero (AC), Elsmarie Beukenboom (EB), Janine LeSueur (JLS), Roy Croes (RC), Willem Ferwerda (WF), Leendert van Driel (LvD), Frensel Mercelina (FM) and Paul Hoetjes (PH). Observers: Steve Tooze (ST)(journalist) Staff: Elsmarie Marchena (EM) Welcome Steve Tooze was welcomed to the meeting and introduced. ST will produce a press release, write short bios on Board members and assist in producing a communication strategy for DCNA. Board membership Council of patrons DCNA now has three patrons: Nico Visser, Jaime Saleh and Frits Goedgedrag Action: TOR for patrons to be re distributed to the Board (KDM) Governor of Aruba to be approached as a possible candidate (KDM, Letitia Buth) Don Martina to be approached as a possible candidate (PH) Follow up meeting/letter with Governor Frits Goedgedrag (KDM + Board member) Communication strategy to be developed for patrons (KDM) A member of the Dutch Royal Family should be approached but the candidate should be selected by the existing council of patrons Financial experts Ron Gomes Casseres was approved by the Board as a potential Financial Expert. Action: PH will speak to Jaime Saleh to see whether he has approached Ron Gomes Casseres. If not he will suggest that LvD approaches him directly, and will communicate this to LvD. Representatives of International NGOs WF approached various potential candidates within WWF NL but so far there is insufficient interest. BirdLife International and the Audubon Society were suggested as other potential partner organizations. WF will continue to search but no specific action is to be taken at this time. Support Group WF supplied the meeting with an overview of Support Group members (see appendix) and this was discussed. There are two new members: Birdlife Netherlands Page 7 of 36

8 and Milieukontakt. IUCN have produced a matrix showing what kind of assistance Support Group member organizations can provide. Action A letter should be drafted to De Landschappen (KDM) requesting their assistance in drawing up a strategic vision document for DCNA. Letter will be hand delivered by WF. Trust Fund Board brief discussion on other funding sources for the Trust Fund. Decision: no funds will be accepted from oil companies or corporate businesses that have controversial background/ history. DCNA should seek to align with green investment. Action The Board recognizes that it needs to develop guidelines (such as code of ethics) to identify which kinds of donations/funds it will and which it will not accept on ethical and/or environmental grounds. This will be placed on the agenda for the next meeting BZK funding BZK funding cannot be placed directly into the Trust Fund because of internal constraints within the Ministry on how funds may be spent. An explanation was provided for the mechanism whereby BZK funding will be passed to the Parks and in exchange Parks will swap grants (such as NPL2) and self generated income into the Trust Fund. BZK funding will be used to cover the operational expenditure of DCNA as well as the lobbying and communication work of IUCN NL and DCNA and an equivalent amount of NPL2 funds will be placed in the Trust Fund. BZK budget (see below) 2006 was presented to the Board. Funding allocations are as follows: 75%: Nature management (operational costs for survival and secure basic management of the parks, inter island projects for capacity building and biodiversity) 15%: DCNA Operational costs (encouraging cooperation between the parks) 10%: IUCN NL serving and representing DCNA in the Netherlands, communication and influencing policy, government and corporate entities, (to attract donors, but also to promote the conservation of areas of high biodiversity) Page 8 of 36

9 Parks The proposed swapping of funds into the Trust Fund is to be a neutral operation for the Parks i.e. they will neither loose nor gain money. There will be a bank agreement that will have the effect of simultaneous transfer of an equal amount of money into the Trust Fund on receipt of a funding transfer from BZK (via DCNA), The technicalities of such revolving banking agreements will be sorted out by LvD who is familiar with such procedures. Such mechanisms will prevent the need to actually have the money available to transfer into the trust fund before receiving the BZK transfer as is stated in the BZK agreement, because it is a simultaneous process. At the same time it will ensure that once money is received from BZK (through DCNA) it will in fact go tot the trust fund without the possibility of it being used otherwise. Parks will be required to report on the operational expenses incurred by the Park to BZK (via DCNA and IUCN NL) DECISION: For the year 2006 the following Park management organizations agreed to swap the following amounts of self generated income into the Trust Fund (note: neither the Nature Foundation St Maarten nor the Parke Nacional Arikok will swap funds into the Trust Fund in 2006): Saba Conservation Foundation STENAPA Carmabi Stinapa Bonaire Parke Nationale Arikok 0 St Maarten Nature Foundation 0 The total funds swapped into the Trust Fund via the parks will be approximately 750,000 per year of which 396,000 each year will be from self generated income. NPL2 funds The inter-island projects (capacity building and biodiversity conservation) as well as the activities of DCNA and IUCN will be funded using BZK funding while and an equivalent amount of money from NPL2 funds will be placed directly into the Trust Fund. Decision: All proposed funding swaps and funding allocations for 2006 were agreed. Any small outstanding items will be dealt with at the next Board meeting Decision: Revenues from the Trust Fund will not be used for the duration of the funding from BZK (i.e. until post 2015) Decision: a mechanism will be found to transfer funds by the Parks to the Trust Fund automatically on receipt of a transfer of BZK funding (LvD) Parks and Capacity Building The project concept submitted to AMFO regarding DCNA professionalization (see appendix) was circulated to Board members and discussed. Board felt that the proposed 7-S model should be modified to suit DCNA s needs and should be used as a framework only. Emphasis should be on improving financial administration Action: a full proposal should be developed with Galan Group with emphasis on financial administration and submitted to AMFO (and others) for funding (KDM) Page 9 of 36

10 Decision: if no alternate funding has been found by the 31 st December 2005, NPL2 funding can be used to pay for DCNA professionalization Decision: Parks and DCNA agree to perform annual audits and to focus in the coming year on improving their financial administration and transparency Action: auditing firms will be contacted by the Finance Committee, including IUCN s auditors, and LvD will advise the Board on which company should be selected Decision: standardized reporting formats need to be implemented. Audit will be conducted as if one company with six locations rather than as seven separate entities to save cost of auditing. LvD will explore possibility of auditing companies doing work pro bono. Communication Strategy Netherlands A flow chart was presented on the proposed communication strategy in the Netherlands (see below). Elements include: Press kit Website Special edition of IUCN magazine Book Board discussed the possibility of DCNA becoming a 13 th landscape within De Landschappen by Book launch could coincide with this and a media event be created around it. Action: a meeting will be organized with De Landschappen (WF, LvD +/- Park representative) to discuss the possibility of DCNA joining De Landschappen early in Discussion would include the proposed strategic planning document. Action: JvdP should ensure that he is familiar with Dutch Parliamentarians agendas to inform Board members when they will be visiting the Dutch Caribbean and to put nature and the environment on the agenda of the Parliamentarians. Page 10 of 36

11 Communication strategy DCNA in the Netherlands DRAFT Press kit available Website Special issue E & O Contacting potential donors and investors Glossy book Dutch Caribbean DCNA conference De Landschappen NPL beneficiary Permanent contact with DCNA, Supp. Group and Parks; Politicians The Hague. Frequently press releases, visiting relevant meetings, symposia, presentations etc.; DCNA Board Meetings Support group Meetings DCNA Board Meetings Support group meetings DCNA Board Meetings Support group meetings Friends of DCNA Note: De Landschappen aim to make DCNA part of their federation as the thirteenth landscape of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. This provides a sequire beneficinary with NPL and other donors. JvdP.24okt.05 Book The proposed book should be a coffee table style book to showcase DCNA. The primary audience should be current and future donors, investors, politicians and the traveling public. It should contain good maps, geo political information as well as scientific information (not just pretty pictures) and should focus on the Parks and ecosystems as well as threats, success stories and vision. The suggested name: Dutch Caribbean Nature. Language: English. Publisher could be ANWB as they have huge resources and a distribution network, but the Board may prefer DCNA to publish independently In either case additional funding will need to be sought. Decision: a book should be produced as described above on the Dutch Caribbean nature Action: project proposal to be developed for the book, content agreed and publishing houses identified. KDM and WF to take the lead on book development. Action: funding to be sought for production of the book (e.g from WWF NL, Prins Bernhard Fonds or similar) and within the Caribbean. DCNA action plan and budget 2006 Proposed DCNA action plan and budget was circulated to Board members and discussed (see appendix) Capacity building and auditing Board agreed that professional standards of administration and financial administration are critical. Some organizations (SCF) wish to undergo a pre-audit as a preparation for audit in order to see whether they meet the auditors standards now. Page 11 of 36

12 They believe they do but have never been audited and need the experience via pre-audit. Decision: Finance Committee must nominate the auditing company and will do so on the recommendation of LvD Decision: administration and financial administration practices must be standardized as much as possible with the use of templates and standard procedures Trust Fund Financial Asset Management Budget line for developing Trust Fund was felt to be too low particularly as legal costs could be high. There should be no visit to Suriname as the cost is too high for what can be learnt Action: Support Group to be asked for their assistance in setting up Monitoring and Evaluation of DCNA as an organisation (WF) Other funding sources should be indicated on the action plan and budget (KDM) DCNA needs to ensure that it has ownership/copyright (through Consultant/Organisation Contracts) for all projects, project materials and project results Budget notes need to be written (KDM) Changes requested Office manager should read Administrator Project officer should read Project Finance Officer Promotion/representation island level increase to $ 15,000 Promotion/representation international increase to $ 10,000 Project Finance Officer Board supports the decision to strengthen the capacity of the DCNA office e.g by employing more staff. Job description should include: arranging financial matters for projects e.g funding transfers, grant making, following up on reporting, assisting in writing project proposal and other project documentation. The candidate for this post should have a financial administration background and could start as a part time position final decisions to be taken by KDM. Action: KDM to develop job descriptions for Communication Officer and Project Finance Officer for presentation to the Board by for their comment. Contingency fund Decision: Board recognized that the DCNA budget is restrictive and that it is necessary to fast track DCNA development. Board therefore took the decision to include two contingencies within the budget which would be funded (if necessary) from NPL2 funds US$ 50,000 for projects (capacity building/conservation) US$ 100,000 for DCNA operational costs Action: if this contingency funding needs to be used KDM must first contact the DCNA Chairperson for approval Page 12 of 36

13 DCNA Board Meeting 1 st -3 rd November 2005 DAY THREE: Thursday 3 rd November 2005 Location: NGO Platform offices, Saba Present : Board members: Nicole Esteban (NE), Andy Caballero (AC), Elsmarie Beukenboom (EB), Janine LeSueur (JLS), Roy Croes (RC), Frensel Mercelina (FM) and Paul Hoetjes (PH). Observers: Steve Tooze (ST)(journalist) Staff: Elsmarie Marchena Project process development A proposed standard contract was presented to the Board (see appendix) for discussion. Decision: standard contract is approved for all DCNA projects involving pre payment of funds. Decision: All project documentation (such as project proposal, TOR and contract) must be initialed on each page by both parties and signed. Documentation must then be faxed to DCNA and an original sent by post to be held at DCNA headquarters Action: KDM to make approved changes and circulate the contract to all Park management organizations in duplicate. Parks are then to initial, sign and return one copy Action: KDM to develop standard TOR, contract and procedures (e.g requiring copy of CV) for all work subcontracted by DCNA / Parks Action: DCNA must purchase fax machine Project Management System Powerpoint presentation made by JLS Action: Standard templates are being finalized and will be available to all Board members by the 20 th November (KDM) Park management organizations (or Park managers) are requested to send the name of a project which they will use to pilot test the new project management system and start date to KDM by end of November (due to internal constraints FPNA will only be able to submit a project at the beginning of 2006) Park management organization (or Park manager) will write project proposal for their pilot project and contact Robbert Kroon of the Galan Group who will then help and guide them through the project management system Page 13 of 36

14 DCNA / Parks have six months in which to pilot test the new project management system Project updates Management Success (phase 2) A short powerpoint presentation was given by PH. Parks now have a snapshot of their protected areas. The next steps are to improve on this baseline data set and to submit updates at regular intervals. Board was very pleased with the mini reports and acknowledges the value of collecting this information. This is a very valuable resource. Action Send copies of mini reports electronically to each Park (KDM) Some written interpretation needed especially regarding the human resources and work units Expand the scale on the staffing (lines are too small) Pressures effecting LPA and MPA should be put on the same page Modify the short names to (airport) codes as follows: o ARU = AUA o STA = EUX o CUR TPE = CUR TPA Need explanation of the following terms: o Core management o Maintenance Standard reporting format needs to be developed and agreed by Board Sections not necessary and report should be tailored towards a more general readership One on one meetings should be held with each park to determine their specific requirements for the reporting and interpretation (KDM) All Board members to receive a copy of the powerpoint presentation (KDM) Deadline for critique/feedback on mini reports is due from Parks by 20 th December Outstanding information needs: o GIS maps o Detailed financial information o Visitor numbers o Detailed information on staff time o SXM marine park size o AUA species data, staff data, achievements o Conservation value (separate project) o Management plans (separate projects) Turtle tagging An update was given on the turtle tagging project execution led by Dr Robert van Dam on Statia and St Maarten which included substantial outreach and media coverage on both islands. Action: The data from the tagging programme will be presented at the next Turtle Symposium and, if possible, will be published, possibly in the Caribbean Journal of Science Board agreed that Emma Harrison should take the lead. Turtle Outreach Page 14 of 36

15 There are some funds left in this project and the project has been extended to the end of the year. Project leaders (EB, NE, JLS, AC) will meet to discuss how remaining funds should be spent and to prioritize activities. Action: contact details for turtle group on Aruba to be sent to KDM (RC) Action: the Board agreed that Emma Harrison should take a lead in preparation of a paper for the next Turtle Symposium. Basic information Three projects are currently underway to collect basic information on the islands, Park management organizations, conservation efforts and biodiversity. These projects will compliment the Management Success project by establishing the conservation value of the islands. The information is also needed for the website and will form the basis of the data used in the proposed book. Jo White is leading the project for the windward islands Kris Kats is leading the project for the leeward islands Alice Ramsay is creating a species database for all six islands Invasive Species Statia initiated a year long programme in November 2005 headed by Dr Pieter Kettner to investigate coralilta and to determine control mechanisms for this invasive species. This is funded by AMFO. Note should be made of the IUCN Invasive Species Specialist Group (ISSG), see Management plans Bonaire National Marine Park has contracted Duncan MacRae to write a management plan for the park with funding from WWF NL. DCNA wrote the draft project proposal and TOR between Duncan MacRae and STINAPA Bonaire as well as drafting the Management Plan outline and reviewing content for them. DCNA will also assist STINAPA with the stakeholder input into the management plan. DCNA has also circulated the draft outline of the BNMP management plan to Saba so that they can use this to guide their Management Plan activities. Review of project portfolios/bylaws/operational Manual Postponed to next Board meeting Communication strategy: Dutch Caribbean A discussion was lead by EB on the communication strategy and design look for DCNA. A review was given of the new design materials produced by CuraNet. They are based on the website and have not changed much. RJ van Oosten has some design ideas for a logo which will be presented to the Board later. Target audience was discussed: Public sector: island government, central government Goal: influence policy, get nature on the political agenda Other organizations: island level, regional Goal: establish DCNA as a model, get co-operation, identify funding sources General public on the islands Goal: information on DCNA and what it is doing Page 15 of 36

16 Private sector: island, regional, corporate Goal: identify funding sources Research institutes and scientists Goal: stimulate research, promote conservation management Visitors Goal: information Means Fliers: glossy, double sided, targeted to different audiences Website Brochures Presentations Action: Copies of all existing media lists are to be sent to KDM Full contact lists for all media contacts will be sent to Board members (KDM) Antillean expats in the Netherlands should also be targeted along with wealthy Dutch citizens who own property in the Dutch Caribbean. (WF) Lists of past volunteers should be made available to KDM Explore the possibility of establishing a Friends of DCNA (KDM) Next meeting will be hosted by CARMABI on Curacao in May 2006 (venue and dates to be confirmed) Meeting was declared closed. Sidebar meeting with R.J van Oosten Location: Julianas, Saba Present : Board members: Nicole Esteban (NE), Andy Caballero (AC), Elsmarie Beukenboom (EB), Janine LeSueur (JLS), Roy Croes (RC) and Paul Hoetjes (PH). Observers: Steve Tooze (ST)(journalist); R.J van Oosten (graphic designer) DCNA design look RJ presented proposed logo, letterhead and business card. All were well received and approved in principle by the Board with changes outline below: Comments: Colour scheme is too similar to ALM: change one of the colours Double sided business cards will be expensive to produce Font needs to be made bolder Letters DCNA need to be added though it was agreed that if letters were within the letterhead, it wasn t so important for the logo. There should be two versions of the letterhead (one with the watermark and one without) Page 16 of 36

17 Brochure Design was well received and style was approved by the Board. Comments Park logos should be included in each island section Friday 4 th November Location: Julianas, Saba Present : Board members: Nicole Esteban (NE) Observers: Steve Tooze (ST)(journalist); R.J van Oosten Communication strategy: Dutch Caribbean Based on the previous day s discussion with the Board a draft communication strategy was developed for the Dutch Caribbean (see appendix) Action: the communication strategy needs to be reviewed in light of the Trust Funds study (section C) and a simple outline strategy send to the Board (KDM) Page 17 of 36

18 APPENDICES CONTENTS 1. DCNA update on activities Board vision Support Group overview Project concept: DCNA professionalization DCNA proposed action plan and budget Proposed funding contract Draft Communication Strategy: Dutch Caribbean 35 Page 18 of 36

19 1. DCNA update on activities Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance Update on activities June October 2005 Governance Governor Frits Goedgedrag agreed to become a patron of DCNA in September He has already been working on our behalf to promote DCNA with Bonaire s Lt Governor, Herbert Domacasse and with Minister Pechtold. Leendert van Driel accepted a Board seat as DCNA s first financial expert and met with Letitia Buth and KDM to become acquainted with DCNA s affairs Patron Jaime Saleh met with Letitia Buth, Paul Hoetjes and KDM for an update on DCNA affairs and has agreed to work with DCNA to facilitate contact with a possible second financial expert, Ron Gomes Casseres Willem Ferwerda contacted another possible financial expert, the former head of the National Postcode Lottery, but has not received a reply from him KDM met with Uniek Curacao s new Board member, Frensel Mercelina on Curacao to give him an introduction to DCNA s affairs Terms of Reference were developed both for DCNA s patrons and for financial experts. DCNA has drawn up a standard contract for Board members to sign which will expedite the transfer of project funds. New Board Books have been produced for all Board members. They contain, amongst other things, up to date contact information for the Board, governance documents, funding contract with IUCN, minutes of previous meeting and documentation on the proposed BZK funding. KDM took part (along with Elsmarie Beukenboom) in a two day Governance training workshop on Bonaire given by the Galan Group. The course covered hard governance (legal obligations, new Civil Code etc) as well as soft governance (such working with Board members, ethics etc). The course was very useful. Administration Elsmarie (Elsje) Marchena joined DCNA as a full time Administrator on the 15 th August She will take care of all the basic administration, book keeping and office maintenance for DCNA. Elsje has been busy setting up a filing system, cataloging materials, bringing the book keeping up to date and, most recently, preparing for the Board meeting. DCNA now has one savings account, one current account and a VISA credit card! Complete Office Support is providing full financial accounting services to DCNA. They have set up DCNA s accounting system based on the DCNA budget approved in June. Reports are available for the months April September Due to the communication difficulties which arose in June/July 2005 the accounting system is due to be reviewed by IUCN s Financial Officer, Anja Henselmann KDM met with Anja Henselmann in September to discuss the National Postcode Lottery funds. Most of the confusion which lead to the later transfer of funds revolved around the fact that DCNA had not indicated where there were additional funding sources e.g for the project management training. A revised budget has been prepared. The DCNA approved budget has been reworked to fit within the new BZK funding budget lines and the new proposed budget is for the calendar year Problem areas include: travel funds (staff and Board members) and staffing for DCNA. Furniture has been ordered from Curacao for the DCNA office (two desks, two chairs, two filing cabinets and six visitor chairs). They should be on island before the end of the year. In the meantime DCNA continues to enjoy the generosity of STINAPA Bonaire (visitor chairs) and KDM (rest). Reimbursement has finally been received for the laptop computer which went missing en route from St Maarten to Bonaire in June DCNA will be purchasing a second desktop computer with these funds which will be used as a server for the DCNA office. Installation of the server should be complete within the coming fortnight. DCNA has a new high speed ADSL internet connection at the office Page 19 of 36

20 Coral Resource Management purchased a four door Nissan pickup in August which it has generously lent to DCNA. The pickup has the DCNA logo on the driver and passenger doors. A contract will be drawn up between the two foundations whereby DCNA pays for the maintenance and running costs of the vehicle. Communication The DCNA website has now been populated with information and is available for review (hard copy) and on CuraNet s website at: Comments and feedback are urgently needed. [Please write on the hard copy or send comments/information/feedback directly to KDM]. The weakest areas include the park descriptions and information on the natural resources of the islands. Please notify KDM if DCNA should supply this text. CuraNet has developed a house style including stationery and business cards (with powerpoint and folder designs yet to come) based on the website design RJ van Oosten has been working on a DCNA logo and has developed the outline for a DCNA brochure he has a presentation on his ideas Steve Tooze, a journalist who wishes to make a career change into tropical environmental management, kindly agreed to attend the DCNA Board meeting to work with DCNA on the development of a communication strategy and to write a press release of the meeting. Steve will also informally interview Board members and will be seeking information on the management organizations, conservation activities and threats on each island Participated in an outing organized for Minister Pechtold by STINAPA Bonaire. Spoke to Mr Koerten (representative of the Netherlands on Curacao), Gea van Craaikamp (Director of Kingdom Affairs) and Lt Governor Herbert Domacasse about DCNA and its activities. Thanked Minister Pechtold for his generous agreement to fund nature conservation and DCNA. Funding Willem Ferwerda, Letitia Buth and KDM met with BZK s Bob van der Bijl in June 2005 to discuss the proposed Euro 10 million which BZK are prepared to make available in order to capitalize the Trust Fund. The meeting went well and was followed by a second meeting between Willem Ferwerda, Johan van der Perk and Bob van der Bijl in September 2005 when it was proposed that IUCN should act as an intermediary for the BZK funding. This proposal was warmly accepted by DCNA. In September 2005 during a meeting with IUCN s Doeke Eisma and Willem Ferwerda, Minister Pechtold indicated that BZK will indeed support nature conservation in the Antilles with a grant of Euro 10 million over ten years A project concept was submitted to AMFO (October 2005) for a project aimed at addressing professionalization and organizational strengthening of DCNA. The primary goal would be to ensure that both DCNA and the Parks are capable of becoming fully BZK compliant within the coming year. Discussions have been held with Robbert Kroon (Galan Group) who is prepared to invest time in assisting DCNA to write an AMFO proposal. Galan Group would use a holistic approach to inventory of the current state, ascertain the future state and then work with DCNA to provide a road map to achieve any necessary changes. This is the same approach which was adopted with the project management. A final written report and financial overview were submitted to MINA for the Management Success Phase one totaling Naf 24, The monies will be repaid to Coral Resource Management as the contracting party which advanced the funds. All of the funding which was due to Coral Resource Management under the NPL 1 contract with IUCN has been paid and the accounts are being finalized. Currently DCNA owes Coral Resource Management approximately Naf 10, in operational costs from the transitional period (April to August 2005). This will be reimbursed within the month. As part of the BZK Committee KDM reviewed the proposed contract with BZK, discussed the proposed budget and commented on the proposed contact between IUCN and DCNA for the multi-year BZK funding. Letitia Buth is to be highly commended for her outstanding work in putting together these documents on behalf of DCNA. Support and Networking KDM worked closely with Galan Group s Robbert Kroon to develop a tailor made project management system for DCNA loosely based on the PRINCE 2 project management system. Page 20 of 36

21 This culminated in a two day workshop held on Curacao on the 15 th and 16 th September at which all of the Parks and Uniek Curacao were well represented. The project management forms have been developed with the intention that they will be intensively field tested by DCNA and the Parks over the coming six months. Thereafter DCNA will look into the possibility of developing an automated system to facilitate project management. Information centre Three mini projects are being launched to start collating information on the islands, their natural resources, the parks and the conservation initiatives on each of the islands. These include: SSS project: lead by Jo White ABC project: lead by Kris Kats Species database project: lead by Alice Ramsay This information will form the basis of DCNA s ongoing outreach and communication strategy, it will be given to the park management organisations and will be posted on the DCNA website. Project management DCNA continued to provide funding and to guide the implementation of the turtle outreach programmes on Bonaire, Statia, Saba and St Maarten and gave copies of materials and a verbal update to a representative of the funder. There will be surplus funds for this project which need to be spent by the end of the year. Project leaders need to ascertain how much funding is needed to complete the original project as agreed and then to produce a prioritized list of proposed project elements (within the general framework on turtle outreach) for the remaining funds. DCNA continued to work with Duncan MacRae to revise and refine the Management Success project phase 2 which has resulted in a project proposal and TOR (based on the new project management system). The main deliverable at this project phase are the mini reports for each of the parks. Park staff are strongly recommended to critically review the reports and to update their Park data to fill in gaps or to correct mistakes. Comments and feedback are urgently required particularly on the comparative component. This project is currently on track with regard to the timeframe and within budget. DCNA drafted a management plan outline for the Bonaire National Marine Park (based on the new project management system) on behalf of STINAPA along with a Terms of Reference for the consultant on the project, Duncan MacRae DCNA has funded and overseen turtle tracking work on Statia and St Maarten (Phase 2 of the turtle tracking project). This project has been completed on time and within budget. DCNA provided seed funding to develop standardized monitoring protocols for the Marine Parks of the Dutch Caribbean. Results and recommendations will be available by the end of the year. MEETINGS Netherlands June 2005: met with Bob van der Bijl (BZK), Erik van Zadelhoff, Henk Jan Kievit (De Landschappen), Carel Drijver (WWF NL), Pieter Borkent (CI) and Willem Ferwerda UK September 2005: worked with Duncan MacRae to refine the Management Success project, draft project proposal and TOR as well as critically reviewing project results to date Netherlands September 2005: met with IUCN staff Bonaire September 2005: participated in Governance workshop Bonaire October 2005 World Heritage Site: discussion of possible serial marine nomination with San Andres, Colombia or with the Dutch Caribbean. Constraints - challenges Whilst DCNA now has two full time staff members, with the BZK funding due to come on line early in 2006 there is a clear need for a communication officer and a project officer (or similar). Funding does not currently exist for these posts. The two most important focus areas for the coming year should be: - professionalization and capacity building - communication and lobbying Page 21 of 36

22 It is imperative that park staff and DCNA work closely and effectively to ensure transparency and effective reporting and financial reporting particularly now with the prospect of BZK involvement. It will be necessary to raise additional funds, for example to improve staffing levels at DCNA and to continue to support field and projects NPL 2 funding overview NPL2 budget lines Amount (US$) Funds received from IUCN (US$) Outstanding (US$) Parks 212, ,801 Inter-island projects 250,000 82,460* 167,540 DCNA overhead 157,275 50, ,275 Communication Antilles 29,500 29,500 0 Unspecified TOTAL 649, , ,532 Project funds allocated as follows: Turtle tagging $ 30,640; Management success II $ 20,000; Basic information $ 17,000; Support and networking $10,000; Monitoring and evaluation $ 5,000 Page 22 of 36

23 2. Board vision Vision Income Constraints St Maarten Finalize Marine Park Establish Land Park Levy tax/cruise ship Aruba Bufferzone around Arikok North coast= P.A. Establishment M.P.A. Income cruise ships through tour operator Entrance fees at Arikok Government subsidies Dependance on government Curacao To manage all the coast mentioned in nature plan (LVV/Prov/Carmabi) (Implement Nature plan) Implement Marine Law Entrance fees for 2x terrestrial PA s Divers fees Government does not have ecosystem vision/ambition Government has no $ for conservation Bonaire Make P.A. financially sustainable Cruise income Timing Saba P.A. land including Visitor s center Removing Antenna Saba bank: management plan including sustainable use zones Parks fees Waste mgt income Nursery market Local politics Carrying capacity SCF-entrepreneur STENAPA Sustainable.funding sources Professional staff Actively mgt of Boven NP Diver/hiker/tanker fees Lease income property Green airport tax Wider income tourist Size economical base Governance subsidy/ Less divers/hikers Page 23 of 36

24 3. Support Group overview Staatsbosbeheer Staatsbosbeheer was founded in 1899 with as main task to develop and manage new forests on soils which were not interesting for agriculture. Since 1899 Staatsbosbeheer (governmental forest management department) manages forests and other natural areas under responsibility of the Dutch government, including nature conservation, recreation and (sub)urban areas. With a total area of ha, Staatsbosbeheer is the largest nature management organization in the Netherlands. The organization manages almost 25% of the Dutch forests. Until 1998 Staatsbosbeheer was part of the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature management and Food quality (Ministerie LNV). Afterwards Staatsbosbeheer has become an independent organization which periodically deals with the Ministry about their management activities and planning. The Ministry LNV carries the final responsibility. Staatsbosbeheer offers work for about The mission of Staatsbosbeheer focuses on the creation and management of a sustainable environment for man, plant and animal. To stimulate a long lasting relation Staatsbosbeheer chooses for multi functional nature which fulfills the needs of nowadays society, like recreation, tourism, timber production, wildlife experience etc. Contactperson: Jan Blok Tel. +31 (0) info@staatsbosbeheer.nl Natuurmonumenten (Nature Monuments) Vereniging Natuurmonumenten is an independent society which protects nature, landscape and cultural heritage by buying land, conserve and manage nature for now and future generations. Natuurmonumenten works with around 600 employees and about volunteers. Natuurmonumenten was founded in 1905 by the famous Jac P. Thijse and Eli Heijmans. They wanted to prohibit the use of the Naarder Lake as a city dump. This area is nowadays the oldest protected nature monument in The Netherlands. Vereniging Natuurmonumenten has 13 districts; the 12 provincial districts and Amsterdam. The members within a district choose a representative for the Society council. The representatives per district together form the district commission. The Society council chooses the board, controls the policy and initiates new policy. The board meets twice a year and visits once a year a specific area. Contact person: Feiko Prins Tel. +31 (0) f.prins@natuurmonumenten.nl De Landschappen The federation of provincial landscapes are 12 private nature conservation organizations which have united in their goal to conserve, manage and develop nature, natural areas but also cultural heritage all over Holland. The provincial Landscapes are all founded between 1925 and The youngest member is Stichting Het Flevolandschap which joined De Landschappen in All provincial landscapes are organized as foundations, except for It Fryske Gea, which is a society. Page 24 of 36