Fig Tree Questions and Answers.

Q: Is the Fig Tree Foundation a political or religious based organization?

A: No.

Q: Can I support one of the Roundtable participants/agencies directly?

A: Absolutely! As stated in our charter we are not in competition for funding with the Roundtable participants. We encourage you to explore the websites of all of our roundtable participants and do your due diligence just as you might when making an investment in a publicly traded company.

Q: How do you keep YOUR administrative costs so low?

A: As you can tell from our financials we have very low overhead expenses. We do this in three ways. Firstly, we do not have any full time employees, all work is done by volunteers and many services are provided to us by our business stewards at no charge or at a significant discount to retail. Second, we do not operate projects, we facilitate gathering of those that do and offer them the support and input from a business perspective. Thirdly, we strongly believe (our philosophy) that any dollar spent locally is a dollar that could be used in the field to achieve immediate results for the end user.

Q: Who are your Roundtable Participants and what do they do?

A: The Roundtable is a collection of International Aid Agencies with Canadian/Calgary operations. Some are well known large groups and others are lesser known grass roots organizations. The purpose of the Roundtable and “Virtual Roundtable” is to provide a venue for and facilitate cooperation, engagement, communication and sharing of ideas between theses agencies much as a Professional Peer group might operate in the “for profit” world. The Roundtable Participants meet on a bi-monthly basis and their feedback is reported back to the Board of Directors by the Fig Tree Liaison.

Q: Who can become a Roundtable Participants?

A: As stated in our charter, “The Roundtable Participants are registered non-governmental organizations active in aid work, who have been invited to and have agreed to participate in the FTF vision.”

Q: How do you invest the funds or securities that are donated?

A: The FTF is establishing an endowment fund from which income can be used to fund projects and agencies. Once funds are received by the FTF, they will be invested by our fund manager QV Investors Inc., (who have donated their services free of charge), and will be managed in a parallel fashion to the Canadian Ethical Group of Mutual funds criteria, some of whose funds are also currently managed by QV Investors Inc.

Q: Will I get a tax receipt for any donations?

A: Yes, The Fig Tree Charitable Foundation is a registered Canadian charity -Charitable BN: 852034172RR0001

Q: How can I help?

A: There are a number of ways that you can become a steward , all of which are located in the become a steward section of our website.

Q: What are the benefits of donating securities directly?

With the tax on capital gains now reduced to zero, this is the most tax-effective way to donate to the Fig Tree Foundation
Highly appreciated securities provide the means to make a significant, low-cost gift
Your charitable donation credit could be more than the purchase price if the securities have appreciated significantly.
The gift of flow through shares is also a very tax-effective way to eliminate the capital gains taxes that will be payable upon normal disposition of such shares.

Q: Where can I get your financial information?

A: At the Fig Tree Foundation we strive for and encourage all of participating organizations provide the highest level of governance and transparency with respect to financial reporting to donors/investors. Our most recent financials can be accessed through the following link (PDF). 2006 Financials (coming soon)

Q: Can I designate my donation to a specific organization?

A: At this time, No. If after your consideration and due diligence you chose to support a specific agency, we ask that you support them directly. Each has instructions on their respective websites that can be linked to from our Roundtable Participants page.

Q: Can any group apply for FTF funds?

A: No. Funding is limited to Roundtable Participants.

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