----- Original Message -----
Sent: Tuesday, June 28, 2005 10:34 AM
Subject: CALL FOR MEMBERS OF CAC SHAREHOLDER ACTION TASK
FORCE
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CALL
FOR MEMBERS OF CAC SHAREHOLDER ACTION TASK FORCE
Please submit
application by July 31, 2005.
The Sierra Club's Corporate Accountability
Committee (CAC) has formed
the Shareholder Action Task Force (SATF) as one of
its subcommittees
to promote an important tool in holding corporations
accountable that
can be used in conjunction with Club campaigns. The Sierra
Club has
purchased a select number of targeted stocks in order to
file
shareholder resolutions, attend annual meetings, and gain
some
leverage with these corporations regarding issues raised in
the
resolutions.
In addition, the SATF currently has two staff members
sharing one
full time position to help carry out the work of the
SATF.
The SATF was initiated in 2002 with an informal membership
and
issued a formal call for members in 2003. We are now seeking
three additional
members.
The CAC is especially interested in candidates who have
experience in
shareholder resolutions, corporate annual meetings and Security
and
Exchange Commission (SEC) interactions and an interest in using
these
tools in ongoing club campaigns.
The Corporate Accountability
Committee (CAC) is one of five national Sierra
Club issue committees that
report to and advise the Environmental
Quality Strategy Team (EQST). The
other committees are: Air,
Environmental Justice, Toxics, and Water. The
Club's Strategy Teams
appoint issue committees, supervise their budgets, and
assist them in
developing and carrying out their work plans.
The CAC
will select task force members, taking into consideration the
applicant's
relevant experience as described above and their ability
and interest in
applying these tools to hold corporations accountable
for protecting the
environment and promoting environmental justice.
Candidates should have a
basic understanding of how corporations use
their power to prevent
implementation of environmentally sound
policies and an ability to view local
threats in the larger context
of national and international corporate
agendas.
Please review the Sierra Club SATF website at:
http://www.sierracluborg/cac/shareholder/Candidates
should be able
- to devote time to developing educational
materials
for use in the Sierra Club and in communities;
- to share experiences
with other Club activists;
- to remain active on the task force for at
least two years; and
- to participate in monthly conference calls and
communicate by
e-mail.
Also, ability to travel occasionally to
meetings or conferences, as
well as dialoguing with corporations and/or
attending annual
corporate meetings is helpful. Members will be reimbursed
for travel
and lodging expenses, as well as telephone calls, related to
approved
SATF business.
In considering membership , the Corporate
Accountability Committee
strives to achieve diversity in geography,
ethnicity, and gender, to
build closer connections with grassroots
leadership, to expand the
Club's influence by communicating with and
motivating people external
to the Sierra Club, and to increase our ability to
communicate more
effectively within the Club about the issues and the
accomplishments
of activists at all levels.
We encourage members in
Texas, Delaware, New York, southern
California and the Chicago area to apply
because this is where many
annual corporate meetings take place.
If
you are interested in applying, please read and follow the
instructions
completely. We are only accepting self-nominations. If
you know of others you
think may have an interest in serving on the
SATF, please pass this
announcement on to them.
Applicants must be current Sierra Club members.
Sierra Club of Canada
members are not eligible to apply. Please contact
Sierra Club
Canada at
[log in to unmask] for information on Canadian
participation as
liaisons in these committees.
For more information on
serving as part of the SATF, please feel free
to contact David E. Ortman at
[log in to unmask] or Ruth Caplan at
[log in to unmask].
DEADLINE FOR RECEIPT
OF APPLICATIONS IS JUNE 30, 2005
A copy of the completed application
found at the end of this posting
should be sent (email preferred) to these
members of the Search
Committee:
NAME: David E. Ortman, Co-Chair
Corporate Accountability Committee's
SATF.
ADDRESS: 7043 22nd Ave
N.W., Seattle, WA 98117
PHONE NO: 206-621-8868 (w)
Email:
[log in to unmask]NAME: Ruth
Caplan, Chair of Corporate Accountability Committee and
of
WPTF
ADDRESS: 3407 34th Place NW, Washington DC 20016
PHONE
NO: 202-244-0561 (w)
Email:
[log in to unmask]The reasons that the
task force is concerned about the corporate
accountability and shareholder
action include:
* Corporations wield power, resources and influence that
exceed that
of many countries.
* Corporations have been granted status
by our court system as
"artificial persons" with many benefits but little
responsibilities.
* Corporations are too often the major obstacle to
implementing
Sierra Club policies, programs and campaigns.
*
Shareholders have the ability to vote directly on corporate policy.
The
Shareholder Action Task Force was formed to respond to the
problem by
educating Sierra Club members and the larger public about
the roots of the
problem and by promoting corporate accountability
and challenging the basis
of corporate power.
Specifically, the SATF will continue
to
--Gain experience in using shareholder resolutions to go
after rogue
corporations as part of ongoing Sierra Club
campaigns
--Develop winning strategy on at least one
resolution
--Develop an approval process for proposed
shareholder
actions.
*************************************************
SHAREHOLDER
ACTION TASK FORCE APPLICATION FORM
Name:
Membership #
(required):
Contact information
Address:
Phone number(s):
Fax:
E-mail:
Best times to reach
you:
Sierra Club activities and leadership positions held, with
dates:
Environmental and related public interest work (community,
state,
national, and/or international level):
Statement reflecting
interest in and experience with corporate
accountability, and shareholder
actions.
References (3), with phone numbers. Your Chapter Chair must
be
included as one of the three.
DEADLINE: July 31, 2005
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