All organizations need policies to help them operate efficiently and fairly. Policies, for many new organizations, are adopted from "boilerplate" manuals and tailored over time to fit the unique situation of the organization. Some organizations develop policies as situations arise, and that has been true of our VFC policies. Here you will find the beginnings of what will eventually become our VFC policy manual. These policies have been adopted by the board.
Committee Membership
Copyright and use of name
Mail and .coop addresses
Membership Termination
Official Documents and Identity
Reimbursement and Spending

Spending and Reimbursement:
In order for a director to be reimbursed for expenses for the VFC:

Director in-kind donations:

Mail and ".coop" Addresses:
Until such a time that VFC has a physical location and staff, post office/mailbox access is restricted to current Board members or Board designated person(s).

Personal .coop email addresses (firstname@vancouverfood.coop) shall be reserved for board members or paid staff only. Key volunteer positions shall have addresses relating to the volunteer position, such as "newsletter@vancouverfood.coop".
 
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Copyright and use of Name:
All public use of the name Vancouver Food Cooperative, Vancouver Food Co-op or other variations of the name shall require approval of the board; this shall include our website address and our logo.

Individual board members must get permission from the board to use the above mentioned VFC referenced names.

If a director, volunteer or owner uses the above mentioned VFC names without permission, there will be a formal warning given to discontinue the use of the name, at which point the named person will need to stop.
 
If the person continues to use the name without board approval, the board will need to bring the issue up for further evaluation and recourse.
 
Official Documents and Identity:
All official documents of the Vancouver Food Cooperative shall include a footer with the date and "printed by VFC".

The production of officially sanctioned materials should be done by the specified board member in each committee – that way committees can create documents that are traceable and officially representative of the VFC when needed.

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Committee Membership, adopted March 9, 2009
Standing committees shall consist of at least three members, with at least one member of the board serving on the committee. Only members of VFC may serve on standing committees, though non-members may be invited by the chair of the committee to work on special projects of these committees. Committee members must sign a confidentiality agreement.

Special committees or task groups may be established by the board from time to time, the membership criteria of which shall be determined by the board at the time of establishment.


Membership Termination, adopted May, 2009
Termination of membership will occur according to the terms of Vancouver Food Cooperative (VFC) bylaws.  Membership termination may occur either of the following ways:
Voluntary:

The redemption of share amount, if any, will be determined at the board’s discretion. Whether membership termination is voluntary or involuntary, member voting rights and other privileges of membership will cease upon board approval of membership termination, and on the date of the boards’ written notification of membership termination.

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