Board of Directors 

Description & Responsibilities

 

ABOUT NWSA


Founded in 2010, the National Wilderness Stewardship Alliance (NWSA) is the only national organization tasked with connecting, supporting, and building a network of partner-led wilderness stewardship organizations to care for every wilderness area in the National Wilderness Preservation System. Our mission is to grow and support a national network of wilderness and public land stewardship organizations to provide ongoing stewardship for America's wilderness areas. Read our Strategic Direction to learn about our organization culture, priorities, and goals.

NWSA is laser-focused on bringing support to the wilderness stewardship community, driving our community forward, and fostering effective partnerships between community-based, non-profit wilderness stewardship organizations and all government agencies charged with the management of our national wilderness areas. We work closely with federal agency partners and nonprofit stewardship organizations, often serving as a voice and advocate for our network of wilderness stewardship organizations in national-level planning and budgeting decisions to bring funding and other resources to our community. Our funding programs engage thousands of volunteers, benefit millions of public land visitors, contribute positive impacts to underserved communities, foster the next generation of wilderness stewards, and support the hundreds of nonprofit partner organizations who are essential to this work. The National Wilderness Workshop, hosted in partnership with the Society for Wilderness Stewardship, brings the wilderness stewardship community together to learn, share, and connect around emerging wilderness issues. We also offer more ongoing training and resources through webinars, our website, and our monthly newsletter, Wildernews.

2024 Annual Budget: $1,034,000 (includes funding programs)

 

The NWSA Board


NWSA’s by-laws call for a Board of 8 - 13 members. We are working to diversity representation on our board to include a range of skillsets, backgrounds, perspectives, and communities. We do not currently have any board seats with specific reservations.

Board Terms 

2 years (can serve 3 consecutive terms)

Board Contributions

Each Board Member is expected to make a meaningful monetary donation annually and contribute to the organization’s annual fundraising goals through direct fundraising activities or indirect fundraising support such as making connections and thanking members and donors.

The obligations of Board members are to:

1.   Support and promote NWSA and its mission.

2.   Attend and actively participate in at least four Board meetings per year, with priority given to the annual in-person Board retreat. NWSA is a fully remote organization; all Board meetings, outside of the annual Board retreat are held bi-monthly via video conference.

  • For all meetings: Board members are expected to prepare in advance by reviewing all meeting materials provided.
  • For in-person meetings: Board members are expected to make every effort to join these two-day meetings in-person, to arrive on time, and to participate in the full duration of the meeting, including field or service trips (as ability allows). Board members are encouraged to cover their own travel and lodging costs as well as meals that are not provided as part of the meeting. A small amount of funds are budgeted annually to assist with Board member travel, as needed, to accommodate members with varying levels of financial resources.
  • The Executive Director attends all Board meetings.

3.   Make efforts to attend and assist with the National Wilderness Workshop. A small amount of funds are budgeted annually to assist with Board member travel, as needed, to accommodate members with varying levels of financial resources.

4.   Serve on at least one standing Board committee within six months of joining the Board, with a commitment to serving on the committee for two years. Committee meetings are held via video conference. Committee assignments are based on a Board Member’s interest, expertise, and the Board’s need. Committees may be tasked with writing policies, assisting with events and programs, strategic and other organizational planning, budget development, developing Board training, fundraising, and other duties. Standing committees include:

  • Executive Committee (Board Officers & Executive Director)
  • Finance Committee
  • Revenue Committee
  • Board Development Committee
  • Ad-hoc committees may be developed as-needed

5.   Annually sign the Board Commitment Form.