Organisation - Fundy Biosphere Reserve

We will be posting, in the near future, the names and profiles of our work team.

The members of the board of directors are:

Yves Gagnon (PhD), Chair - University of Moncton, Holder of the KC Irving Chair in Sustainable Development

Paul Bogaard (PhD), Vice-chair - Mount Allison University, Professor of philosophy

Frank Tenhave - Secretary-treasurer- Director- Enterprise Fundy

Arnold Kearney - Government of New Brunswick, Department of Intergovernmental Affairs, Director - International Relations

Edouard Daigle - Parks Canada - Chief of Resource Conservation, Fundy National Park

Peter Etheridge - President - Sustainable Strategies Association

Mission: The UNESCO Fundy Biosphere Reserve Regional Network is dedicated to conserving biodiversity and promoting sustainable economic development.

Vision: To create a diverse network of partners and stakeholders who will work to assist communities and resource sectors on the upper Bay of Fundy achieve a greater level of sustainability, while preserving the area’s natural heritage. This will be achieved by focusing on the following:

Conservation

To contribute to the knowledge and practices concerning the conservation of ecosystems, species and the natural genetic diversity of the region.

Sustainable Development

To foster and promote sustainable development, i.e. development that is ecologically, culturally, economically sustainable across human generations.

Capacity Building

Provide a forum for dialogue and information sharing between communities, resource sectors, government agencies and researchers. It will achieve this through strategies that will focus on: outreach, education, monitoring and research.

The objectives are to :

Provide a forum for dialogue and information sharing between communities, resource sectors, government agencies and researchers.

Create a cooperative network of partners who will work to assist communities to achieve greater sustainable development.

Develop a governance model based on Research, Monitoring Education and Outreach Committees.

The Fundy Biosphere Reserve Regional Network evolved from a core group of volunteers that had a common desire to enhance conservation and sustainable development in the region of the upper Bay of Fundy. During the development process, management and coordination of the project was carried out by this core group with assistance of an administrator. Once the project evolved to the point of securing enough resources and stakeholder support to proceed with the UNESCO nomination process, a chairperson and interim board of directors was formalized (see appendix 3 for a list of board members). Once designation was achieved, the interim board's first tasks consisted in hiring staff, setting up an office at the Université de Moncton and establishing a governance model, with related policy and procedures that the organization would implement.

The FBR UNESCO Nomination documents that were prepared and reviewed at the local, provincial, national and the UNESCO International office level, indicated that once designation was achieved, a Board of Directors would be established, consisting of 12 – 15 members that represent the various sectors within the Fundy Biosphere Reserve. The sectors that will be represented on the Board of Directors are as follows, which is subject to modification based on participation and changing issues and priorities with time.

Academic institutions
Community economic development agencies
Conservation organizations
Federal departments and agencies
First Nation communities
Heritage organizations
Municipalities
New Brunswick provincial departments and agencies
Public at large
Regional planning commissions
Resource sectors
Tourism associations

The governance structure adopted by the Interim Board of Directors, the board and the executive staff members share the responsibility for the administration and performance of the FBR Regional Network. The governance structure is intended to be open and transparent. The executive director and the board will work toward maintaining effective communication to ensure the success of the FBR’s projects, initiatives and activities.