Burns Bog Conservation Society members have elected a new board of directors after the society’s second AGM in just under three months.
On Tuesday, June 29, the society held its 2021 annual general meeting in a three-hour Zoom session, re-electing the bulk of the board acclaimed at the society’s delayed 2020 AGM, held earlier this spring on April 3.
The 50 members at Tuesday’s AGM re-elected former Delta resident and founding society member Derek Zeisman president, as well as the rest of the executive: Surrey resident Sharon Elizabeth (Liz) Walker as vice-president, Delta resident Ed Brown as treasurer, and Langley resident Nancy McLeod as secretary.
“I’m honoured to have been re-elected as the society’s president,” Zeisman, a legal officer with Global Affairs Canada, said in a press release. “I really appreciate the membership’s confidence in my leadership and the positive new direction taken by the board since our 2020 AGM in early April.”
“I’d also like to sincerely thank all the members who took the time and effort to support our team at the AGM, despite it being held in the midst of the recent heatwave.”
Also re-elected were incumbent directors Beverley Bly, Laurie Haliburton, Pixie (Beverly) Hobby, Dr. Lynne Mackenzie and Angela Rebrec. Joining them are new directors Clare Hurst and Kirsty Peterson, who will fill the seats vacated by retiring board members Robert Saito and Christopher Durrant. Saito will remain president of the Burns Bog Conservation Foundation.
Biographies of all board members will soon be posted on the society’s website (burnsbog.org).
READ ABOUT THE 2020 AGM: Olson out as Burns Bog Conservation Society president (April 5, 2021)
SEE ALSO: OUR VIEW: We owe much to Eliza Olson, protector of Burns Bog (April 8, 2021)
“We have an amazing group of directors for the 2021-22 term, including many returning faces and several new ones as well. I look forward to working closely and cooperatively with them over the coming year,” Zeisman said.
He said the new board will continue to renew and strengthen its internal relationships with staff, volunteers and members, as well as with key external stakeholders including Metro Vancouver, the City of Delta, the federal and provincial governments, and many others.
“The new board and I remain concerned that Burns Bog’s complex and diverse ecosystem is coming under increasing pressure from urban development, whether industrial, commercial or transportation-related,” Zeisman said. “Our mission remains to protect and preserve the bog, while understanding the need for responsible but limited economic activity within its vicinity.”
Zeisman underlined the essential ecological importance of Burns Bog to coastal British Columbia, and beyond.
“As a natural carbon sink and water filter, Burns Bog is truly ‘the lungs of the Lower Mainland.’ Our talented, energetic new board will work hard to ensure its health for generations to come.”
Besides electing a new board, society members embers also passed a number of important special resolutions, including several key amendments to the society’s bylaws.
The members also ratified a special resolution allowing the society to apply for a $60,000 interest-free loan through the federal government’s Canada Emergency Business Account program. The deadline to apply for the funding was June 30, hence the reason for holding the 2021 AGM so close after the 2020 meeting.
Details about the 2021 AGM can be read at burnsbog.org/2021-agm.
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