Legal information

Please note, this English translation has been provided for your convenience. The German translation applies, read it here.

Statutes of the “Rhino and Forest Fund” Association

§ 1 Name, Seat and Fiscal Year

1 The association bears the name “Rhino and Forest Fund”, which will be supplemented by the suffix “e.V.” after its entry in the register of associations. The abbreviated name is “RFF”.

2 The registered office of the association is in Kehl.

The fiscal year is the calendar year.

§ 2 Purposes of the Association

The association pursues exclusively and directly non-profit purposes in the sense of the section “tax-privileged purposes” of the tax code (AO).

The purpose of the Association is the promotion of science and research as well as the protection of the environment, animals and nature.

The purpose of the statutes is realized in particular by the following measures:

1. nature , animal and species protection: the association supports, organizes and carries out measures that are conducive to the survival of the Sumatran rhinoceros and other highly endangered species mainly in the tropical rainforests. This also includes the protection of the natural habitat of these species as well as its restoration through renaturation measures.

2. climate protection : in addition to the protection of existing tropical forests, the association is also committed to their expansion through targeted reforestation measures that are as close to nature as possible. The reforestation of tropical forests can actively contribute to removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and is intended to counteract climate change. In addition, the protection of rainforests is of particular relevance for the world climate due to their central role in the system of global water cycles.

3. public relations: the association wants to make the public aware of the critical situation of the rainforests and the endangered species living in them by campaigns and by providing information.
Furthermore, possibilities for countermeasures against the destruction of the rainforests are to be pointed out.

4. promotion of science and research : the association supports scientific research projects that can be useful for the protection of endangered species and their habitat.

5. acquisition of funds : For the fulfillment of the statutory purposes, financial means shall be acquired and used through contributions/allocations, donations, grants and other contributions.

§ 3 Independence

The association sees itself as independent and non-partisan.

§ 4 Non-profit status

The association operates selflessly. It does not primarily pursue its own economic purposes.

The Association’s funds may only be used for purposes in accordance with its statutes. In their capacity as members, the members of the Association shall not receive any benefits from the Association’s funds.

No person may be favoured by expenses that are alien to the purpose of the association or by disproportionately high remuneration.

§ 4a

1. the offices of the association and its organs shall be held on an honorary basis.

2. the meeting of the members can decide deviating from paragraph 1 if necessary and under consideration of the economic circumstances and the budget situation that association and organ offices are exercised against appropriate remuneration on the basis of a service contract or against payment of a lump-sum expense allowance. The Executive Board shall be responsible for deciding on the start of the contract, the content of the contract, the amount of remuneration and the end of the contract in accordance with § 26 of the German Civil Code (BGB). 3.

3. if necessary and taking into account the economic situation and the budgetary situation, the Executive Board may award contracts for activities on behalf of the Association to third parties in return for appropriate remuneration or fees.

(4) In order to carry out the management tasks and to run the office, the Executive Board is authorized to hire full-time employees for the administration within the framework of the budgetary activities.

In addition, the members and employees of the Association shall be entitled to reimbursement of expenses in accordance with § 670 of the German Civil Code (BGB) for expenses incurred by them as a result of their work for the Association. These include in particular travel expenses, postage, telephone, copying and printing costs.
Members and employees must observe the principle of economy.
The Board of Directors may set lump-sum expense allowances by resolution within the limits of tax law.

§ 5 Membership

The association consists of active (full) members and supporting members.

1. full members
Any natural person may become an ordinary member.
Full members are those members who are directly involved in the association and are entitled to vote.
members.
Full members are entitled to participate in all events offered by the Association.
In addition, they have the right to submit motions to the Board of Directors and the General Meeting.
The prerequisite for ordinary membership is active participation in the Association. The ordinary membership must be applied for in writing to the board. The General Meeting shall make a final decision on the written application for membership by a simple majority of votes.
The association is not obliged to inform the applicant of any reasons for rejection.
Ordinary membership ends by voluntary resignation, exclusion or death. Voluntary termination of membership may be declared at any time by written notice or in text form to the Board of Directors or may be made verbally at a General Meeting.
The exclusion of a member with immediate effect and for good cause can be pronounced if the member grossly violates the statutes, regulations, the purpose of the statutes or the interests of the association or misuses the association for party-political interests. In addition, the board can withdraw confidence from a member and request a vote on the withdrawal of membership at the general meeting.
The general meeting decides on the exclusion of a member exclusively of the member concerned with 2/3 majority. The member shall be given the opportunity to comment on the allegations made within a period of two weeks.
In the event of termination of membership, for whatever reason, all claims arising from the membership relationship shall expire. A repayment of contributions, donations or other support is generally excluded.
The number of ordinary members can be limited. The general meeting decides on the limitation with a 2/3 majority.

2. supporting members
Sustaining members are non-voting members who are not actively involved within the association, but who promote and support the goals and also the purpose of the association in a suitable manner. Every natural and legal person can become a supporting member.
Supporting members have a right to information and a right to make proposals concerning all matters of the Association and are regularly informed about the activities of the Association.
The sustaining membership results from a written application for membership as well as a regular payment of membership fees and ends with their cessation for more than 12 months or at the request of the sustaining member in text form at any time.
The number of non-voting sustaining members is not limited. The Board of Directors shall have the right to deny or withdraw sustaining membership to any person or organization without cause.

3. membership fees
The amount of the annual membership fees is left to the members or supporting members, unless otherwise decided by the general meeting.

§ 6 The General Meeting

Tasks of the general meeting

1. the general meeting has the following tasks in particular:

– To receive and discuss the annual reports,
– To render accounts for the past business year,
– to discharge the board of directors,
– (in the election year) to elect the board of directors,
– to decide on the statutes, amendments to the statutes as well as the dissolution of the
dissolution of the association,
– to elect the cash auditors, who are neither members of the board nor of a
appointed by the board and may not be employees of the association.
be employees of the association,
– To pass resolutions on motions submitted.

2. convening

An Ordinary General Meeting shall be convened by the Board of Directors of the Association as needed, but at least once during the fiscal year, if possible during the first half of the fiscal year.
The date shall be determined by consensus of the Board.
The invitation shall be sent at least 14 days in advance via the e-mail list or by mail by the Executive Board with notification of the provisionally set agenda to the last known member address of the Association.
The Board shall convene an extraordinary General Meeting without delay if the interests of the Association require it or if at least one-third of the voting members of the Association request the Board to do so via the members’ e-mail list with feedback or by mail, stating the purpose and reasons.
The general meeting may also be held by electronic communication (e.g., by telephone or video conference) or in a mixed meeting of those present and video conference/other media/telephone.
Whether the General Meeting is held in a meeting or by way of electronic communication or in a mixed meeting of those present and videoconference/other media/telephone shall be decided by the Board.

3. motions

Motions of the members concerning the agenda have to be submitted in writing to the board of the association at least two weeks before the general meeting. Subsequently submitted agenda items must be communicated to the members in due time before the beginning of the general meeting. Subsequent motions – including motions submitted during the general meeting – must be placed on the agenda if a majority of the voting members present at the general meeting agree to the handling of the motions (emergency motions).

4. minutes

Resolutions of the general meeting shall be recorded in minutes and counter-read by two members of the board. The minutes will be sent within two weeks via the e-mail list or by post.

5. right to vote

Only full members are entitled to vote. In the general meeting, the voting rights of members can only be exercised in person.

6. quorum

The general meeting is quorate if at least 2/3 of the board and one auditor are present.

7. voting

The general meeting passes its resolutions with a simple majority. Abstentions shall not be taken into consideration. In the event of a tie, the motion put forward shall be deemed to have been rejected. Voting in the general meeting shall be open by show of hands or by acclamation, unless one of the members present requests a secret ballot.

8 Amendments to the Statutes

Amendments to the statutes can only be decided by the members at a general meeting.
A resolution to amend the bylaws shall require a ¾ majority of the members of the Association present at a general meeting. The motion for a resolution to amend the bylaws shall be submitted by an Association member via the email list with the subject “Motion to Amend the Bylaws” or by mail at least two weeks prior to a membership meeting.
A spontaneous change of the statutes during a general meeting requires a consensus among the members present and requires the presence of at least 50% of all members.

9. dissolution

The dissolution of the Association requires the approval of a ¾ majority of the members of the Association present at a General Meeting and requires the presence of at least 50% of all members.
The motion to dissolve the Association must be duly submitted for a vote as a proposed resolution two months prior to a General Meeting.

10. asset commitment

In case of dissolution of the Association or in case of loss of tax-privileged purposes, the assets of the Association shall be transferred to the “Zoologische Gesellschaft für Arten- und Populationsschutz e.V.” (Zoological Society for the Protection of Species and Populations), Munich, which shall use them exclusively and directly for non-profit purposes.

§ 7 The Executive Board

The board of directors is composed as follows:

a) a 1st chairperson
b) a 2nd chairperson
c) a treasurer

Board members are elected by the general meeting for a period of one year.
The unlimited re-election of board members is permitted.
After expiration of the term, the board members remain in office until their successors take office.
The board of directors is responsible for the work of the association and is responsible for the management of the association.
It can give itself rules of procedure and can distribute special tasks among its members or appoint committees for their processing or preparation.
The board of directors in the sense of § 26 BGB are the first chairperson, the second chairperson and the treasurer.
Each member of the board is individually authorized to represent the association judicially and extrajudicially.
The board decides with a simple majority of votes.
The board is accountable to the members.

§ 8 Auditors

Two cash auditors are to be elected every two years for a period of two years at the annual general meeting. The cash auditors have the task of examining accounting documents and their proper accounting and the use of funds and, in particular, to determine the use of funds in accordance with the statutes and tax regulations. The auditors shall inform the General Assembly of the results of the audit.

§ 9 Foundation clause

If changes and adaptations of the statutes are necessary for the registration in the register of associations or for the recognition of the non-profit status by the corresponding authorities, the executive committee can also carry these out without a resolution of the general meeting. The Executive Board is hereby expressly authorized to take such action.