• Title: Treasurer (voluntary role)
• Employer: Friends of the Earth (FoE) Melbourne
• Contract Type: Voluntary role
• Hours: 4-6 hours per month
• Start Date: as soon as available
• Location: preferably Melbourne but regional Victoria considered

About Us:

Friends of the Earth (FoE) Melbourne is a not-for-profit community based organisation working for a socially equitable and environmentally sustainable future for more than 40 years. Friends of the Earth Melbourne is an anti hierarchical organisation and a local member group of the national federation known as Friends of the Earth Australia, which in turn is the country member of Friends of the Earth International.

The broader Friends of the Earth International network has over 5,000 local branches across the globe and is the world's largest grassroots environmental network with over 2 million members and supporters around the world. FoE campaigns from the local to the global on today's most urgent environmental and social issues; challenging the current model of economic and corporate neoliberal globalisation, and promoting solutions to create environmentally sustainable and socially just societies.

At Friends of The Earth Melbourne, we don’t have a CEO or bosses, we strive for anti-hierarchy and practice consensus decision-making. Friends of The Earth Melbourne is made up of collectives and active members, together we form the Strategy Collective which is the main decision making body outside of the AGM.

About the Role:

Friends of the Earth Melbourne is an environmental charity and an Incorporated Association. As such we are required to have a Committee of Management (or board), which we call the Policy and Advisory Committee (PAC).

Friends of The Earth Melbourne’s PAC is currently seeking a new Treasurer in a voluntary capacity to lend their years of experience in accounting or other Treasurer roles to Friends of The Earth Melbourne. This role would be suitable for someone who is looking for 4-8 voluntary hours per month (including bi-monthly meetings) and who has experience in finances, budgets and organisational oversight from an accounting perspective. If you are passionate about environmental and social justice, have experience in accounting or as a Treasurer and would like to contribute to supporting a grassroots organisation, then this voluntary role on PAC could be for you.

While PAC does not have a day-to-day role in managing the organisation, PAC is responsible for the oversight of the organisation and plays a role in supporting the organisation to achieve its primary purpose, the protection of the natural environment.

PAC is:

• accountable for the performance of the organisation.
• legally liable for action undertaken by the organisation, its staff, active members and volunteers
• responsible for the stewardship of the organisation by setting goals and strategic direction and exercising oversight.
• responsible for overall governance by ensuring legal compliance, financial viability and that risks are appropriately managed

PAC has a particular responsibility to make sure that its actions, and the actions of its employees and workers (which includes paid staff, active members and volunteers) within the workplace are lawful, and that its contractual obligations are met.

These responsibilities can be summarised into:

Legal: that the organisation operates within the law, and honours all contracts ('probity')

Financial: that the organisation does not go broke or into unmanageable debt ('solvency')

Constitutional: that the organisation follows the aims and rules of its constitution ('compliance')

Key Responsibilities:

The Treasurer role on PAC is to work with other PAC members and the Finance Coordinator to ensure the organisation's finances are kept correctly and that the organisation is meeting all of its financial obligations as a Charity and as an Incorporated Association.

The Treasurer will also ensure that the financial statements and reports are created in an appropriate and timely manner and work in conjunction with the FoEM Finance Coordinator, Operations Coordinator and the Gift Fund Committee for oversight of FoEM DGR funds.

Responsibilities Include:

• Ensuring that the accounts of FoEM (on behalf of its members) are kept correctly, and that the organisation is working within its agreed budget;
• Ensuring that adequate financial statements are made available to the FoEM membership, funders and government agencies where required.
• Ensuring that the organisation is using its public funds for the clear and distinct primary purpose of the organisation
• Ensuring the organisation is protected against fraud and theft, by ensuring safe custody of money,
• Making sure the entire board understands its financial obligations
• Making sure the organisation complies with tax regulations, such as GST, payroll tax
• Review all internal financial processes and reporting methods at least annually in collaboration with the Finance Coordinator and Operations Coordinator
• Work with the Operations Collective and Food Cooperative to ensure timely and considered organisational budgets
• Work with the Membership and Fundraising Coordinator to support fundraising strategies
• Advise board on financial and potential fundraising pathways
• Attend (online or in person) bi monthly PAC (board meetings) FoE Melbourne

Key Selection Criteria:

• Passionate about environmental and social justice
• Experience in accounting, the financial sector or auditing
• Experience overseeing budgets and financial reporting to regulatory authorities
• Understanding of the charitable sector and regulations
• Working knowledge of Excel, Xero or similar accounting platforms and tools
• Experience working with groups and volunteers

Desirable:

• Experience working in anti-hierarchical or flat structured organisations
• Experience in the not for profit or charity sector
• Experience or understanding of food cooperatives or hospitality industry in relation to stock management and budgeting
• Experience with consensus decision making

Accountability:

The Treasurer is accountable to PAC and ultimately to the membership of the organisation via Annual General Meetings and the Strategy Collective.

Salary & Conditions:

This is a voluntary role. There is no salary.

The Treasurer is required to be a member of FoE Melbourne (the successful applicant will be required to join FoEM for this role).

Hours of work:

As a voluntary role the hours may vary depending on the circumstances. Including bi monthly PAC meetings and regular check ins with the Finance Coordinator. This role is approximately 4-8 hours per month.

Friends of the Earth Melbourne (FoEM), our campaigns office, community meeting space and Food Co-op and Cafe are located in Yálla-Birrang, Wurundjeri Country, in the Kulin Nation.

We acknowledge that we meet and organise across many nations spanning the area currently known as Victoria where sovereignty has never been ceded. We pay respects to First Nations elders past and present and acknowledge the pivotal role First Nations peoples play in the struggle for environmental and social justice.

A position description is attached.