Blue Marble Space

“Members of the Board of Directors (BoD) are elected by members of the Blue Marble Leadership Council (BMLC) according to the provisions established in the BMS bylaws (Articles III and V). BoD members are elected for three-year terms, and the BMLC is responsible for electing or re-electing directors with expiring terms at the end of each fiscal year. BoD candidates may include current BoD members, members of the BMLC, and members of the Board of Advisors (BoA).”

“Form 990 was completed by two officers of BMS, Sanjoy Som (President/Chief Executive Officer, SS) and Jacob Haqq-Misra (Chief Operating Officer, JH). JH used the Form 990 Online website (https://efile.form990.org/) to create a return for the current tax year, which allows previous year's data to be recalled when creating a new return. JH set up the new return for tax year 2013 and entered preliminary information. SS then entered the required budget information and checked to make sure form 990 accurately reflects the BMS accounting records kept using Intuit Quickbooks. JH and SS then met in a virtual conference room to discuss completion of Schedule O, which includes descriptions of the major program activities of BMS. JH and SS completed these sections using a shared Google document, which JH then entered into the online form 990. JH and SS both made one final check through the form for accuracy, and the completed form was sent to the Board of Directors for review. After addressing any concerns raised by board members, JH then signed and submitted the form.”

“Documents relating to BMS are all made publicly available on the BMS website (http://bluemarblespace.org/about/). These include articles of incorporation for the state of Washington, a letter of exemption from the IRS, documentation of organizational structure, and documentation of bylaws (which includes a conflict of interest policy). Any other documents will be provided upon request; requests can be made by contacting BMS via mail or email (http://bluemarblespace.org/contact-us/).”

“GreenSpace (http://www.growgreenspace.org/) is a new initiative of Blue Marble Space that began on October 9, 2014. GreenSpace is a permaculture center that provides Pennsylvania and Delaware with nutritious and ethically grown produce. Guided by the latest research in sustainable farming, Greenspace is committed to the health of our planet, our families, and our customers. GreenSpace fits into the organization's broader goals by helping us realize specific aspects of the Blue Mable Space vision; specifically, through GreenSpace, we can work toward "improving the human condition on Earth", "facilitating the synergy of technology with the environment", and "advancing and preserving international awareness of our planet, its resources and its people". We reflect these goals in the GreenSpace Code of Ethics (http://growgreenspace.org/ethics/). As an initiative of Blue Marble Space, GreenSpace provides the "hands on the ground" that connects the aspirations of our research and education efforts with real-world problem solving of improving sustainable development on Earth. We also use the GreenSpace facility to engage in research relevant to the broader issues of space exploration. Any proceeds we generate beyond our operating expenses are re-invested in the research and education initiatives of Blue Marble Space. As we grow our production, we hope to not only support the Pennsylvania community with local produce, but we will also directly provide support to educational initiatives and basic scientific research.”

“Rounding error”