Conflict of Interest Policy
Appointed officials of the Board of Directors, committees, task forces, and other individuals (collectively “Individuals”) acting on behalf of the Renewable Natural Resources Foundation (RNRF) shall be informed of and conform to the following conflict of interest and confidentiality policy. Individuals shall use their best efforts to disclose and mitigate any actual or apparent conflict of interest or unauthorized representation of RNRF. Conflict of Interest is defined as, but not limited to, activities that oppose, detract from, or in some manner could become detrimental to RNRF or activities involving RNRF in which the individual has a personal or financial interest, providing personal or financial gain to the individual.
The conflict of interest policy requires Individuals or related parties* affected to disclose any relationship that could give rise to a real or apparent conflict of interest. Once a conflict of interest is disclosed, the affected individual may address the group making the decision with respect to the transaction to present their views. The individual should then recuse themselves from the remainder of the discussion. The decision-making group will determine the following requirements of the individual with the disclosed conflict:
- The individual must physically leave the meeting or disconnect from the meeting while the decision-making group discusses and votes on the matter.
- The individual is allowed to remain in the meeting but is not allowed to participate in any discussion or vote on the matter.
- The individual is allowed to remain in the meeting and participate in the discussion, but is not allowed to vote on the matter.
All disclosures shall be entered into the meeting minutes. If the majority of the disinterested decision-makers approve the decision, then the measure may be undertaken.
*Related parties for affected individuals include spouses, children, employees, employers, and companies that are more than 5 percent owned by the affected individual. Appointed individuals affected by this policy must submit this statement annually, detailing their own activities and those of related parties.
This conflict-of-interest policy also prohibits certain situations, outlined below, in which conflicts inherent in the situation may harm RNRF. These types of situations include serving on Boards or committees of organizations with competing interests.
- No individual has the authority to act on behalf of RNRF except with such authority as it is outlined in the bylaws, approved policies, or approved by the Board of Directors, President, or Executive Director.
- No individual is authorized to use the RNRF name or logo or any terminology implying RNRF sponsorship or endorsement without prior approval of the Board of Directors or Executive Director.
- Transactions involving interested Individuals should not be approved unless the following facts are established and reflected in the meeting minutes:
- RNRF is entering into the transaction for its benefit;
- The transaction is fair and reasonable to RNRF at the time RNRF enters into the transaction, and RNRF’s financial obligation shall not exceed fair market value or price;
- Prior to consummating the transaction or any part thereof, the Board has authorized or approved the transaction in good faith. This action is done by a vote of a majority of the Board without counting the vote of any interested board member or members and with the knowledge of the material facts concerning the transaction and the individual’s interest in it.
- Individuals shall not accept or seek from any person or entity conducting or interested in conducting business with RNRF a gratuity, favor, loan, or gift greater than a nominal value beyond the common courtesies usually associated with accepted business practices.
Confidentiality
The Individual shall not disclose any confidential information with respect to RNRF acquired through becoming an affected individual. Moreover, the Individual shall not use any confidential information acquired through or from RNRF for personal profit or advantage, or for the personal profit or advantage of a related party.