Category: Elections

Congratulations, Jessica Connoly, Alexandra Hoffman, David Krueger and John Moore for being reelected to the NCRA Board and welcome Tim Dewey-Mattia!!!

The NCRA Board of Directors had five seats open and five candidates.  The Elections Committee (Mary Lou Van Deventer and Lori Marra, with assistance from Juliana Gerber) began the process in November by identifying the due dates and deadlines per the bylaws.

All bylaws deadlines were met and the protocols were followed.  All candidates submitted statements timely, and the election was conducted electronically using the SimplyVoting website.  The cost was $200.

Members had ten days to vote.  All members in good standing as of the record date, midnight January 10, received electronic ballots on January 11. “Good standing” meant that dues were fully paid and in NCRA’s hands, not just in the mail.  Members who hadn’t yet voted received up to four reminders before the election ended at midnight January 20.

There were 178 eligible voters, and 79 voted, for a turnout of 44.4%. That was down from 63.4% in 2015.  In 2015 there were more candidates than openings, and the competition may have motivated more voters to cast ballots.  The results were certified by SimplyVoting.

New Directors were announced at the January 21 members’ meeting. Their two-year terms officially begin in February.

Thank you, Directors, for stepping up to lead NCRA in 2016.  This should be a banner year for the Zero Waste movement of which NCRA is part.

Serve On the NCRA Board!

Be at the heart of a thought-leading recycling organization! NCRA has been a leader in recycling thought since the 1980s and is still out front. You can help develop the cutting edge of recycling while you get to know many of the regional recycling who’s who by serving on the Board of Directors. Read More “Help Steer NCRA Toward Zero Waste!”

Prepared by the Nominations Committee, Mary Lou Van Deventer and Lori Marra

CANDIDATES 2015
Arthur Boone, Douglas Brooms, Steven Chiv, Jordan Figueiredo, Laura McKaughan, Jessica Robinson and Tomer Shapira

STATEMENTS
Arthur Boone – I became a professional recycler in 1983 and have served on the NCRA Board for most of those 32 years (no term limits here). I have served in all Board positions but am best known as founder and for 17 years director of NCRA’s well-known Recycling Update. I still teach NCRA’s Introduction to Recycling class twice a year for newcomers, and chair our Zero Waste Advocacy Committee. Your vote will assure my continued Board membership. Thank you. Seventy-seven in March but going strong; a little crusty at times but usually for a good cause.

Douglas Brooms – I’ve served a half term and would be honored to continue in a full term. I enjoy helping with and participating in NCRA events. I continue to video tape each Introduction To Recycling training and the Zero Waste Youth Convergence. I’ve represented NCRA at several green expo-type events.

I’ll continue with residential recycling advocacy. I’ve assisted with and written letters to the City of Oakland and Council to advocate for no-cost green carts for multifamily dwellings. I’m on the committee to help promote organics collections at multifamily dwellings.

I’m on the Zero Waste Advocacy Committee (ZWAC). I’ll do my part regarding NCRA’s watchdog role regarding special interests opposing diversion. I’ll give thoughtful deliberation on issues requiring Board attention. I’ll support synergism among organizations that share our common interests.

I’ve proposed revisions to the ZWAC Webpage and wish to keep the content fresh. I’d further like to propose ideas towards increasing the appeal and usefulness of NCRA’s website by adding best practice resources and tools.

I helped increase awareness about the annual America Recycles Day (ARD), including outreach letters to local recycling businesses. I’ll advocate earlier and greater NCRA support and promotion of ARD.

I have sustaining commitments to environmental stewardship causes. However waste reduction and recycling advocacy are my stronger passions, making NCRA my best place. I would appreciate your vote.

Steven Chiv –  I’d like to submit my candidacy for a NCRA board member position and respectfully request your vote. NCRA is my favorite recycling and Zero Waste advocacy organization. I’ve been involved with NCRA for the last 6 years and I believe in the vision and good work that drives our Northern California Recycling Association.

I work with the San Francisco Department of the Environment in Commercial Zero Waste and have extensive experience working with San Francisco’s residential sector. I’m results driven and focused on growing environmental awareness. I care deeply about our beautiful planet and strive to increase individual responsibility to drive environmental action.

As a NCRA board member, I want to continue NCRA’s push to stay on the radical cutting edge of Zero Waste. I want to keep raising NCRA exposure to the new generation of recyclers and share the vision and history of our Zero Waste movement. I want to serve to strengthen NCRA’s Bay Area wide bond with my community in San Francisco. I fully believe that collectively we can move towards a healthy happy community and more sustainable planet.

I would be both honored and excited to serve on the NCRA Board.

Jordan Figueiredo – As Solid Waste Specialist for Castro Valley Sanitary District (CVSan), I manage a successful commercial recycling and organics programs and various graphic projects such as our quarterly Pipeline newsletter and annual Calendar/Annual Report. In addition, I work with Castro Valley schools to install and improve recycling and food scrap recycling (composting) programs. I also give informational and motivational presentations to students and the greater Castro Valley community to reduce waste even more. Lastly, I work on various other exciting projects such as event greening, publicity, the CVSan website, grant acquisitions, and whatever else it takes to push the bar even higher for CVSan and Castro Valley with our Zero Waste Strategic Plan as our guide. It has been a great honor to serve on the NCRA Board for the past four years, as Secretary, Treasurer, NCRA Jobs Co-Chair and RU Co-Chair in the past, and now as Zero Food Waste Forum Chair. I look forward to continue supporting NCRA’s path as a cutting-edge Zero Waste association.

Please vote for me to continue my service to NCRA, and most importantly, my service to you, NCRA’s loyal members.

Laura McKaughan – As a professional working in the Zero Waste industry for the past 10 years, I feel I am well qualified to serve as a Board member for the Northern California Recycling Association. Currently I serve as Principal for Envirolutions Consulting, a company founded in 2014 to promote Zero Waste and sustainability for private industry, government and non-profits in Northern California. Prior to this, I worked for nearly 8 years as the Recycling Manager and then Associate Director of Green Programs for the San Francisco Conservation Corps. In this role, I oversaw the Green Programs Department, including commercial collection of recyclables, Zero Waste services for events, managing grants and contracts and facilitating trainings on recycling and Zero Waste. I have a BA in Psychology from the University of Arizona and an MBA in Environmental Entrepreneurship from Dominican University.

I have served on the NCRA Board since 2011 and as NCRA’s president since 2012. I have enjoyed the opportunity to contribute to the Zero Waste movement from this position and view NCRA as a valuable asset whose influence will only continue to grow. There is much left to accomplish – I ask you to please vote for me for 2015 NCRA Board.

Jessica Jane Robinson – I first want to thank all NCRA members for granting me opportunity to serve on the NCRA Board. These past two years have been full of learning and growing for me as a Board Member. I have served as the NCRA Treasurer which I enjoy. I have learned about budgeting, reading, drafting and delivering financial reports. I would like to continue to be your Treasurer and work on perfecting what I learned to better serve NCRA.

Two years ago I promised to help get NCRA’s name more exposure and bring my creative and innovative talents on Board. I have fulfilled my promise with the two-year Annual Ethical Fashion Show, where I helped teens produce their own fashion show based on up-cycling textiles and thrift shopping. I brought on celebrity judges to support the Ethical Fashion Show both years. I have also produced “Resilience Climate Change Expedition” (during Zero Waste week – see on YouTube) that has gotten attention from celebrities from Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom all the way to Al Gore’s Climate Reality Project. NCRA is now one of the producers.

With two more years I hope to do much more for NCRA, put my skills to work and help the Zero Waste movement in order to solve climate change.

Tomer Shapira – It has been an honor to serve on the Board for the past two years, and I would like to ask for your vote once more, so that I can serve another term with NCRA.

Since joining NCRA as a member four years ago, I have sought for ways to get further involved in advocating and promoting Zero Waste in Northern California, and I remain as deeply committed today as I ever have. As a director, I would like to continue to work to organize around Zero Waste in the community, and support local projects to further the organization’s reach while engaging the Bay Area’s diverse youth population.

In the past year, I have served as co-chair of the Board’s membership committee, represented NCRA at community events like the CRRA conference and Feed the 5000 in Oakland, and have worked as volunteer coordinator for NCRA’s annual Recycling Update event, a role I am planning to help with again this year. I look forward to the opportunity to continue to serve the Zero Waste community on the Board of NCRA. Thank you.

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HELP STEER TOWARD ZERO WASTE!
Want to be at the heart of a thought-leading recycling organization? Other organizations are working for Zero Waste now, but NCRA has been leading in that direction for many years, is still out front, and is still on the move. You can help develop the cutting edge by serving on the Board of Directors.

NCRA will have six board positions open in the January election. It’s a two-year working post. Attendance at nearly all ten meetings a year is important, as is between-meeting work on at least one committee. Meetings move around the greater Bay Area. Phone participation is possible at some but not all locations especially at tour sites. Directors discuss issues, hear debates, and influence regional and national recycling thinking. They track and comment on legislation; listen to leaders in the regional industry; work on behalf of colleagues who need a boost; tackle issues that can’t be ignored; tour facilities; and talk business with operators. Benefits include free entrance to the annual Recycling Update.

Read about NCRA’s large vision in its bylaws, Article III: Purpose, Principles, Policies and Objectives. (Need Bylaws link)

You can be a part of the action! To run for the board, submit a campaign statement of up to 200 words. Say who you are and why you’d like to serve. Here are last year’s statements and 2013’s.

By midnight December 6, notify NCRA that you want to run. By midnight December 10, send in your statement with contact information to ncra@ncrarecyces.org. It will be presented to the members electronically. Voting will be conducted electronically from January 5-14. Results will be announced at the Members’ Meeting on January 15.

So help build your industry! Have fun with your colleagues! Get your statement in!