The alliance between CBS/EcoMedia began just last year in an effort to bring advertising dollars directly to nonprofits, and the success of the program is beyond doubt as five more nationally recognized environmental nonprofits have recently joined the ranks. The effort of the partnership is allow corporate sponsors who buy advertising through the CBS conglomerate to direct some of that money toward the nonprofits themselves. According to the EcoMedia mission statement, “We’ve developed partnerships with cities across America, all of which have environmental projects in need of funding. When companies advertise with us, dollars go directly into these projects, thereby turning traditional television commercials, radio spots, online advertising, and outdoor billboards into EcoAds.”
The success of the young program has already caught the attention of the Edison Awards Foundation, which has nominated EcoMedia for a 2012 Innovation Award, and the US Trade Department’s Patents Office, which has expedited the partnership’s trademark and patent applications. And a press release from CBS on 29 March announced the addition of The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Waterkeeper Alliance, Forest Stewardship Council, Enterprise Community Partners, and Volunteers of America into the partnership.
The CBS/EcoMedia partnership sees as its mission the opportunity to fund longer-term environmental projects that might be struggling to get longer-term financing or exposure to the public. The branding − the EcoMedia Leaf − shows the relationships between corporate advertising dollars and funding of various projects, but the relationships are fundamentally between any given corporation and its chosen project. EcoAd is not a certification program nor is the EcoAd logo a seal of approval from CBS/EcoMedia.
Here is another brief video showing how EcoMedia helped fund green initiatives and retrofitting at the EcoTarium in Worcester, Massachusetts:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfSowppNjiM[/youtube]
If your nonprofit organization has similar ambitions and needs, contact one of EcoMedia’s regional offices for further information. The program is surely only going to expand as all sides benefit: corporations foster good PR for the relationships they have with green projects, CBS Media enjoys credit for its socially and environmentally conscientious efforts, and of course a growing number of greening projects across the country get much needed funding and advertising. Yours should be a part of the partnership.
We are grateful to Don Akchin of Don Akchin Strategic Communications for giving us the heads-up on this story.
