Caucus Structure and Function

Caucuses of the Canadian Environmental Network are networks within a network — more specific in their area of work, but operating under the same guidelines for membership, accountability, and decision-making as the Canadian Environmental Network. The RCEN is a non-profit, nongovernmental network that reaches over 700 environmental groups across Canada. The RCEN and its regional affiliates facilitate communication and cooperation among environmental organizations by providing mechanisms to share information and coordinate activities of member groups, by managing delegate selection processes in cooperation with national and regional caucuses, and by organizing workshops, conferences and consultations in order to contribute to the enhancement and protection of the environment. Member groups of the RCEN and its regional affiliates are all non-profit, nongovernmental organizations interested in a wide range of issues. Some member groups operate on a national basis while others focus on more regional or local issues.

The caucuses of the Canadian Environmental Network provide a specialized mechanism for member groups to communicate with each other; to facilitate joint briefs, submissions and other activities; to establish ongoing consultative relationships with target government departments and agencies in accordance with the principles of public consultation; and to ensure that the voices of smaller largely volunteer groups, particularly those outside metropolitan areas, are heard along with the more established national and provincial organizations.

Caucus activities and projects are overseen and directed by a steering committees comprised of representatives of RCEN member groups. Steering committees include representation of at least four regions, and strive for balanced representation of gender, language, urban/rural, and organizational size, reflective of the diversity of RCEN member groups.

The RCEN is a democratic organization whose caucus steering committee members are elected by its membership, either through annual meetings held concurrent with the RCEN's annual general assembly or through mail-in ballots of the caucus member groups. The steering committee is directly accountable to caucus membership for the decisions and actions taken on their behalf, and to the national steering committee of the RCEN for matters of fiscal and corporate responsibility.

Qualifications Required:

• To have current familiarity with caucus's area of concern, in their province of residence, and/or at a national level.
• To belong to a member group of the Canadian Environmental Network or affiliate network.
• To maintain a commitment to the purpose and objectives of the RCEN and of the caucus.

Benefits:

• Regular communication with representatives of environmental organizations working in the caucus' area of concern from across Canada.
• Contributing to and enhancing the activities and positive effects of the environmental movement.

Rights of Caucus Steering Committee Members:

• To have ready access to all corporate information, such as financial records and statements, minutes of decision-making meetings, organizational records, and policy manuals.
• To receive fair and reasonable notice of all steering committee and membership meetings, and to have equal opportunity to participate in such meetings.

Rights of the Caucus Steering Committee:

• To manage and make decisions with respect to the caucus finances, income and expenditures.
• To plan projects and programs for the caucus, and to represent the caucus with respect to those programs and projects, or to appoint representatives to do so.
• To contribute to the evaluation of RCEN core staff; to set priorities with other RCEN caucuses for the caucus coordinators activities, in conjunction with the RCEN Executive Director and National Council; and to make decisions on hiring of caucus assistant coordinators, in conjunction with the RCEN caucus coordinator and RCEN Executive Director.

Responsibilities of Caucus Steering Committee members:

• To participate in steering committee discussions regularly, and to participate in the decision-making of the caucus steering committee, in consultation with member groups.
• To be familiar with caucus contracts, policies, and current programs, and relevant policies and programs of the RCEN. In particular, to be familiar with the RCEN policies on conflict of interest, membership, taking positions and use of the RCEN name, delegate selection, and caucus operation.
• To assume particular responsibility for aspects of the caucus's program and projects, and to report on these to the steering committee between and at steering committee meetings, as appropriate.

Responsibilities of the Caucus Steering Committee:

• To manage and make decisions with respect to the caucus finances, income and expenditures.
• To plan projects and programs for the caucus, and to represent the caucus with respect to those programs and projects, or to appoint representatives to do so.
• To provide advice on hiring of caucus assistant coordinators to the RCEN national office, where appropriate.
• To oversee the development and implementation of caucus programs, in accordance with contracts and agreements made with other parties, including federal departments of government or other agencies.
• To identify appropriate funding opportunities,' and to delegate funding and contract negotiations to the caucus chair and caucus coordinator, or other steering committee member, by decision of the steering committee.
• To ensure that contract negotiations and final contracts are reviewed and signed by RCEN staff, and are conducted in accordance with RCEN policies.
• To organize meetings of the Caucus, in conjunction with staff and/or member groups.
• To oversee the production and distribution of any and all information on behalf of the caucus, for reasons consistent with the caucus mandate and programs.
• To ensure that Caucus activities proceed in accordance with the bylaws and constitution of the Canadian Environmental Network.
• To hold an annual general meeting and establish a steering committee, and to produce meeting reports and provide information to the membership, in accordance with RCEN policy.
• To provide and revise caucus workplans, in accordance with RCEN policy.

Role and Responsibility of the Caucus Steering Committee Chair:

• To communicate all caucus work requests to the caucus coordinator (i.e. steering committee and caucus members must communicate work requests through the caucus chair).
• To chair caucus meetings and conference calls, or to delegate the chair, by agreement of the steering committee.
• To convene meetings and conference calls, further to the advice of the caucus coordinator and steering committee members.
• To develop agendas for meetings and conference calls, further to the advice of the caucus coordinator and steering committee members.
• To ensure that minutes of meetings and conference calls are kept and distributed to all appropriate participants, and to ensure follow-up on action items, in conjunction with the coordinator.
• To represent the caucus' interests in discussions of the RCEN caucus chairs, and to the RCEN management where appropriate.

RCEN Caucus Workplanning Strategy

A. The premises of caucus workload planning

Without good mechanisms for workload planning, the caucus unit and its productivity (and caucus coordinators) are vulnerable to competing and conflicting demands among the variety of caucuses.

Caucus work is done by caucus coordinators as staff, and by caucus chairs, steering committees and members; workplanning should be of benefit to all, as it should assist everyone in assessing what commitments they can make, and so then in making commitments they can keep.

There is a potentially infinite amount of work that could be done, while resources will always be limited; given the member-driven nature of the RCEN's work, increasing RCEN staff would not necessarily mean an exponential increase in caucus productivity, since caucus work also demands the time of caucus chairs, steering committees and members.

Caucus workplanning should save time and effort rather than increasing it; the mechanisms for workplanning must be simple, consistent, and designed to avoid confusion rather than increase it.

B. The practices of caucus workload planning

CAUCUSES, through their steering committees, will:

• Provide a draft workplan to the RCEN office each year, which outlines each caucus's general work goals for the coming year. This report will identify, at minimum, if the caucus will require staff support to:
  1. convene a meeting, either at the AGA or elsewhere;
  2. do a mailing to the membership;
  3. develop and submit a request for funding. A template for this workplan will be developed by national office staff, and circulated by e-mail or fax to caucus chairs once per year in order to make the reporting process as simple as possible.
• Provide quarterly workplans which identify any requests for funding or staff support required through the RCEN for the next three months; the quarterly report will identify, at minimum, if the caucus will require staff support to:
  1. convene a meeting, either at the AGA or elsewhere;
  2. do a mailing to the membership;
  3. develop and submit a request for funding.
  A template for this workplan will be developed by national office staff, and circulated by e-mail or fax to caucus chairs on a quarterly basis in order to make the reporting process as simple as possible.
• Provide a quarterly update on work undertaken in the previous three. This will serve a number of purposes: it will assist in workplanning; it will respond to a request from Environment Canada for more regular information about caucus activities; it will be used in the RCEN Network News; and it should also build a sense across caucuses of the volume of work underway, and so help to inform each caucus's decisions to request staff support. A template for this report will be developed by national office staff, and circulated by e-mail or fax to caucus chairs on a quarterly basis in order to make the reporting process as simple as possible.
• Make any requests for additional staff support to the caucus coordinators in writing at least five work days in advance; the request should describe the work support needed, and make some estimate of the time that the caucus estimates would be needed; the request should be provided to the caucus coordinator by e-mail or by fax.

CAUCUS COORDINATORS, in conjunction with their caucus counterpart and other staff as necessary, will:

• Prepare a "consolidation" of caucuses' annual workplans, and identify any high or low peaks in the upcoming year's activities. This will be circulated to all chairs, and posted in the Caucus Chairs electronic conference.
• Prepare a quarterly "consolidation" of caucus workplans, and identify any high or low peaks in the upcoming quarter's activities. This will be circulated to all chairs, and posted in the Caucus Chairs electronic conference.
• Provide a quarterly update on work undertaken in the previous three months in the caucus unit. This will be circulated to all chairs, and posted in the Caucus Chairs electronic conference.
• Respond to any requests for additional staff support within two workdays, identifying whether the request can be met, and at what time, and giving an estimate of the amount of work time that will be needed to meet the request.

COMBINED CAUCUS CHAIRS/COORDINATORS will:

• Review of the workplans will be a combined effort of RCEN staff and a caucus chairs committee.

C. Provision of Staff Support

The provision of staff support to individual caucuses is contingent on their compliance with this policy.

Caucus Coordinator Job Description

The National Caucus Coordinators, reporting to the Executive Director, are responsible for facilitating the work of the RCEN's standing caucuses, coordinating delegate selections, negotiating and implementing caucus and consultation contracts, and ensuring an effective role for the RCEN in consultative processes between the federal government and environmental groups.

Responsibilities include:

General Caucus Support

• Coordinate caucus preparations for the RCEN Annual General Meeting;
• Provide limited administrative support to caucuses without staff, e.g. coordinate mailouts;
• Attend caucus meeting as appropriate;
• In cooperation with caucus members, explore funding opportunities and develop funding proposals;
• Maintain ongoing communications with caucus chairs and caucus staff, and among national and regional caucuses as appropriate;
• In conjunction with National Council and Executive Director, develop RCEN caucus policies and ensure that they are implemented.

Delegate Selection

• Administer delegate selections for national and international processes, conference, etc. as agreed by RCEN, and facilitate delegate selections for caucus-related activities;
• In conjunction with National Council and Executive Director, develop RCEN delegate selection policies and ensure they are adhered to in all selection processes.

Caucus and Consultation Contracts

• Explore opportunities for consultations at early stages in policy planning; explore opportunities for RCEN to coordinate involvement of environmental groups;
• When RCEN is requested consultation with environmental groups: inform requesting body of RCEN's consultation policies and processes; consult with relevant caucus and environmental groups already involved in the consultation of knowledgeable in the issue area; in consultation with caucus or member groups, negotiate funding for consultation and pre-consultation activities; develop funding proposals; finalize contracts in consultation with the Executive Director and National Council;
• Ensure implementation of caucus and consultation contracts undertaken by RCEN, including, as appropriate, organizing meetings, approving invoices and expense claims, preparing financial and activity reports, organizing delegate selections, preparing documentation for participants, supervising staff to carry out same.

Other

• Track federal environmental policy development processes and identify opportunities or responsibilities for ENGO involvement;
• Provide information to RCEN Bulletin editor and for RCEN publications and reports;
• Work with Finance Coordinator to approve expenses and prepare financial reports for caucus and consultation contracts, as well as to develop cash flow projections;
• Represent, as appropriate, RCEN in committees as they relate to caucuses and consultation processes;
• Coordinate additional projects requiring facilitation of the RCEN, as mutually agreed upon with the Executive Director;
• Attend, prepare for and follow-up on National Council meetings as required.