How Industry, Academia, and a Non-Profit Organisation Plan to Create Cash and Conserve Species

Wildlife populations continue to decline across much of the world. Meanwhile, hundreds of dot-com internet companies have become endangered species in their own right, teetering on the brink of extinction. This paper describes a unique partnership in which these two beleaguered groups join forces with a third element—academia—in an exciting and innovative business venture. The three-way partnership involves a private college (Monterey Institute of International Studies), the United States’ largest non-profit conservation group (National Wildlife Federation), and a new internet company (Digital Collectibles, Inc.). The paper emphasises five aspects of the partnership: (1) what the group is producing; (2) how the collaboration evolved; (3) partners’ roles and responsibilities; (4) major challenges to maintaining the coalition; and (5) key lessons for launching such ventures. The paper provides an important and unusual example of academia, industry, and the non-profit sector collaborating for mutual gain. It should be of interest wherever companies seek to enhance their triple bottom line through strategic partnerships.