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The CSPG Educational Trust Fund Comment
This message from Claus Sitzler was published in the April 2010 Reservoir.
The CSPG Educational Trust Fund (ETF) is the charitable fundraising body of the CSPG. Due to Canada Revenue Agency regulations we operate at arm's length from the CSPG. As Trustees, governance is in accordance to the Trust Deed. We do this by promoting Petroleum Geology education and awareness across Canada through our financial contributions. At the same time, part our role is to attract new geologists to our Society and profession.
Our efforts are directed towards the public, whether they are the average Canadian who is concerned over our impact on the environment, a Geology graduate deciding on a career in hard or soft rock, or a student unsure of their potential career choices when they go to university. Our most important mission is to encourage Canadian youth to look toward petroleum geology as a potential career choice. Having my own children currently enrolled in grade school and having personally given numerous presentations at their schools, I see a large need for promoting Science and especially Geology in our classrooms. The teachers are thankful to have us in the classroom to discuss a topic that the students find so fascinating. Sadly though, there is little Geology in the Alberta curriculum and most of it is in the early years. By the time that these students are making career choices, usually at the end of junior high or at the high school level, there is almost no Geology in the curriculum. I personally did not even know that Geology existed until I was in my third year at university and a friend suggested I try the subject. Through participation in and partial sponsorship of programs like Ed-Geo (teacher earth science training), the Kids In Science program at the annual convention (KISP), the Honorary Address, the Calgary Youth Science Fair and Science in a Crate we provide additional teaching tools to the schools to try to help make Geology relevant and enticing as a career choice.
At the university level we provide scholarships, M.Sc. and Ph.D. awards, and bursaries for undergraduate and graduate students like the Andrew D. Baillie Award. In addition, the ETF helps fund university conferences and the Student Industry Field Trip (SIFT), which is the star of the CSPG's university-oriented student program. SIFT introduces university level Geology students to the petroleum industry. The CSPG now provides free student membership in the Society to university students to encourage interest in petroleum geology, in the hopes that these students will continue their membership once they have graduated.
For the general public we are providing Outreach through the Honorary Address, and new this year is a public exhibit floor at the Earth Science for Society event (ESFS or Super KISP) at the 2010 GeoCanada convention.
We are not a charity that can strike at the emotions as other charities can. We need to address the pride and strength of our membership, our obligation to our profession to provide mentorship to the youth of today and the future geologists of tomorrow. We have an 83 year history of sharing our wealth of knowledge; we need to help now to provide more outreach funding. Calgary has arguably one of the technically strongest groups of geologists in the world; this comes from our long history of mentorship, volunteerism, and sharing of both information and knowledge and our time and resources. I ask you to consider contributing your resources to make a difference in the name of your Society, the CSPG.
During the last year, CSPG and the ETF were not able to meet all the requests for funding such as KISP, some University Outreach programs, Evergreen Theatre, and Canmore Stones and Bones. Your support is needed more than ever before.
The CSPG Executive has provided us with the opportunity for you to leave a legacy by naming some of the programs and events the ETF helps run. The Calgary Foundation puts your money to work on behalf of the ETF. These donations can be in the form of cash or marketable securities.
In the past, a member's passion for geology has led to endowments in their estate. If you have left a legacy for CSPG and/or the ETF in your will, would you please inform us so that we can include this information in our future program planning?
We, the Trustees, are at your disposal. If you have any ideas for Outreach activities that we should pursue or fund we will gladly consider them. We are willing to listen to and discuss any new funding ideas that you may have. All donations are important to us, from the $50 contributions that sustain us from year to year and allow us to keep our approximately $1 million Trust Fund intact, to the larger donations that can be added to the Endowment and allow us to support more of the Outreach goals of the CSPG.
Our board currently consists of 11 members: Peter Harrington as Treasurer, Dan Krentz as Secretary, John Cuthbertson, Bruce McIntyre, John Hogg, Clint Tippett, Alice Payne, Bob Dick, as Independent Trustees and Mike DesRoches and Steve Dryer as CSPG appointed Outreach Trustees, and myself as Chairman. If you are interested in helping us raise funds or promote the Outreach activities of the CSPG please contact us at cspgtrust@cspg.org. More details on the ETF structure are available in Reservoir's May 2008 Message from Bruce McIntyre, past Chairman of the ETF (please see below).
If you would like to discuss in detail more about what the ETF is about and what we would like to accomplish please contact us at cspgtrust@cspg.org. To donate to the ETF, you can follow the links to donate on the CSPG website or donate directly online to Canada Helps at www.canadahelps.org/donationdetails.aspx. Lastly, you can mail or drop off your donation to: Treasurer at CSPG Educational Trust Fund, 600, 640 8 Ave SW Calgary, AB T2P 1G7.
Claus Sitzler,
The CSPG Educational Trust Fund Chair
Geoscientists for our Future
This comment by Bruce McIntyre was originally printed in the May 2008 Reservoir.
The Trust raises money to fund educational programs to inspire individuals to pursue a career in petroleum geoscience. The Trust is a Registered Charity with the Canada Revenue Agency.
I have been involved with the CSPG organization since the mid 1970s and have served on several Committees and the on the CSPG Executive as Business Manager and President. My current role with the CSPG is as Chairman of the CSPG Trust. I would like to take this opportunity to clarify the role CSPG Trust within the CSPG organization.
The CSPG Trust was started as the CSPG 50th Anniversary Fund its primary role was to fund and operate the Student Industry Field Trip (SIFT). The CSPG Trust was setup as a registered charity to allow it to issue charitable receipts to individual donors.
In order to obtain and maintain Registered Charity status the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) requires that the Board of the CSPG Trust must be independent of the CSPG Executive. The Board of the CSPG Trust; however, is appointed by the CSPG Executive and two members of the CSPG Executive sit on the Board of the CSPG Trust. The Trust by its Charter is charged with financially supporting educational initiatives across Canada that promotes Earth Sciences at all levels. A detailed summary of the programs the CSPG Trust has historically supported can be found in the October 2004 Reservoir, a copy of which can be found in the Reservoir archives on the CSPG website.
When the CSPG Trust was initially conceived its responsibility was to determine which programs to support and to operate those programs on behalf of the CSPG and the CSPG Trust. Within the last two years the CSPG Trust has changed from an operational entity into strictly a fund raising entity. Responsibility for operating the initiatives funded by the CSPG Trust has been turned over to the CSPG Executive, under the guidance of the Outreach Director.
The CSPG Executive is responsible for the funding of the CSPG Outreach programs. The CSPG Trust looks to the CSPG Executive for guidance on which programs the CSPG Trust will fund on an ongoing basis. The CSPG Trust must remain an independent organization and it must review funding requests from the CSPG Executive within its educational mandate. Programs such as SIFT, EdGeo, 100 Student Jobs and the Honorary Address are funded in part by the CSPG Trust, Corporate and Individual sponsorships and the CSPG Executive acting on behalf of the CSPG Membership.
In order to help fund the CSPG's Outreach initiatives The CSPG Trust currently has approximately $1 million dollars which is managed by the Calgary Foundation. The Trust is mandated by the CRA to distribute 80% of the funds donated annually (unless those funds are specifically directed to the Endowment) and 3.5% of the balance of the endowed funds on an annual basis. The CSPG Executive has at its disposal approximately $1 million dollars in its "rainy day fund" and the funds generated by membership renewals, conventions and other sources of income to help fund its Outreach initiatives.
The CSPG Executive has an ambitious budget for Outreach programs over the next several years and has requested the financial support of the CSPG Trust and the CSPG Trust is supportive of those programs as they fit within the mandate of it charter.
In order to realize on these programs the CSPG Executive and the CSPG Trust, working in concert, will be seeking funding from both Corporate and Individual sponsors. The funds raised can be directed to general Outreach in initiatives, individual programs or directed to the CSPG Trust's Endowment fund.
Please consider supporting the CSPG Trust in its efforts to raise funds to support the CSPG's Outreach initiatives. You can make a difference to our profession by helping to educate the next generation of geoscientists.
Thank you,
Bruce G McIntyre,
CSPG Trust Chairman
Trust Deed
Educational Trust Fund Deed (PDF)
Trust Annual Reports
2009 ETF Annual Report (PDF)
Trust Annual Financials
CSPG Trust Audited Statements for year ended August 31,
2009
Audited
Statements (PDF)
