CODE OF ETHICS AND RULES OF CONDUCT
BOARD of DIRECTORS and VOLUNTEERS
CASA DE LAS AMERICAS, CARI CORPORATION
The Board of Directors of CASA DE LAS AMERICAS, RINCON DEL INMIGRANTE, CARI CORPORATION has the obligation and duty to make decisions for the entire community and is responsible to set a standard and a tone for behavior that is conducive to the best interests of the entire community. The Board of Directors of the CASA DE LAS AMERICAS, RINCON DEL INMIGRANTE, CARI CORPORATION hereby adopts the following code of ethics and code of conduct that are applicable to all volunteers serving the community:
1. The Board of Directors will use its best efforts at all times to make decisions that are consistent with high principles, and to protect and enhance the safety and property value of the CARI Corporation.
2. The Board of Directors promotes a coherent, truthful methodology to community work, sustained in qualified data and substantiated professional information, perceiving and observing the community needs. The Board of Directors promotes a specialized role among its members, motivating high professional standard into the community issues' review and its needs.
3. The Board of Directors recognizes the friendly and attached importance, and obligation of being, a qualified community advisor, reflecting the community voice.
4. The Board of Directors will attach importance and priority to participate in continuing professional education for the due process of getting, high-quality of job into the Board of Directors context.
5. The Board of Directors will respect CASA DE LAS AMERICA, CARI CORPORATION, core of values, concepts and principles, in fact the community philosophy for which CARI was created, and correlatively will help to shape and add new standards, pursuing the strengthening of the community growth, according to its own cultural identities and with respect to the Canadian values.
6. No gifts of any type worth, reward, incentive, bonus, return, repay or more will be accepted by any volunteer from any CARI’s member, contractor, or supplier.
7. No contributions will be made to any political parties or political candidates by the Agency CARI Corporation.
8. The Board members will protect confidentiality of other Board members’ personal lives, as well as all CARI members’ personal lives.
9. No promise of anything can be made to any subcontractor, supplier, or contractor during negotiations, unless approved by the Board as a whole.
10. No drugs, alcohol, or substance abuse will be tolerated.
11. Any Board member convicted of a felony will voluntarily resign from his/her position.
12. The Board members will be adhered to any code of ethics and standards of practices, or any other instruments, document, rules or regulations internally prescribed and implemented by CARI Corporation and might be subjects of disciplinary procedures in the same way like any CARI member.
13. Language at Board meetings will be kept professional. Personal attacks against Board Members, CARI’s personnel are prohibited and totally unacceptable and are not consistent with the best interest of the community.
14. It is understood that differences of opinion will exist. They should be expressed in a clear and business-like fashion.
15. A High level of respect of others opinion is expected by the Board members. Any issue must be taken in the context of objective evidences, analysis and logical reasoning filtered of personal dislike, hate, repulsion, antipathy or disgust.
16. Proper parliamentary procedure should be followed to have such dissenting positions stated clearly within the official records of the CARI Corporation.
17. A Board member may not knowingly misrepresent any facts to anyone involved in anything with the community that would benefit himself/herself in any way.
18. No Board member may use his/her position into enhance his/her financial status through the use of certain contractors or suppliers. Any potential or actual conflict of interest must be disclosed to the other Board of Directors.
19. Any member of the Board of Directors might invoke the violation of this code of ethic, or any other body of CARI’s rules or regulations. When a violation of this Code or any other rule is alleged, the first review will be decided by the President.
In a second review, if the Board of Directors cannot reach an accepted decision by the majority, it will be reviewed and investigated by an independent Professional Review Committee, which will determine that it meets all the criteria for such action.
The Board of Directors agrees that the complaint and disciplinary procedures accomplish five things:
A. Maintain high professional standards
B. Increasing the users' credibility and the community's confidence
C. Provide a fair process for handling complaints against members
D. Identify members who will benefit from additional training
E. Identify those committing serious violations of the Code of Ethics
20. The Professional Review Committee will be a community-professional body, specialized in conflict resolution, who ultimately would take a decision as a friendly arbitrator and which must be accepted by the participants in disagreement as a final decision, if there are not legal implications that should be reviewed in court.
The above procedure applies to the Executive Director, by recommendation and resolution of the majority of the Board of Directors.
21. After the investigation and when a decision has been reached, the President will notify the Board of Directors
I. Presents a solution to the dispute that is agreeable to both sides.
II. Comes down in favor of the complainant and sets out the disciplinary action and/or how the member can rectify the situation.
III. Comes down in favor of the member and sets out why the complaint will not be upheld.
IV. Reaches no conclusion due to lack of concrete evidence or other extenuating circumstances.
When the court has taken a decision, CARI Corporation will follow the court order accordingly.
This resolution is adopted this day of January 21, 2008, at an open Board meeting where a quorum of the Board was present and will become effective immediately. Upon approval, each new community volunteer and board member will be required to agree to this code of ethics and rules of conduct.
MEXICO
