Our Approach: Corporate Partnership Guide

What makes a good partnership with a company?

EDF engages with companies on many levels, from information sharing via our Innovation Exchange, to public policy advocacy, to formal partnership projects that extend over a year in length and result in a public announcement.

For our formal partnerships, EDF is unique in our approach. We don’t accept any funding from our corporate partners, which helps ensure the project’s credibility and protects EDF’s independence. We also focus on developing entirely new innovations with the corporate sector, not general greening efforts that have already been well documented. Finally, we request that our partners make the results of our work together public so that other companies within the industry can adopt the best practices and magnify our environmental results.

With over 20 years of experience in developing groundbreaking innovations with leading US companies, EDF knows what it takes to achieve a successful partnership with business and environmental benefits. Many of these lessons are chronicled in the Guide to Successful Corporate-NGO Partnerships, the definitive guide to designing, implementing and measuring the success of business-non-profit collaboration.

A partnership with EDF isn’t for everyone. But if your company feels like it is ready to take the next step in exploring partnership opportunities with EDF staff, please read our FAQs and select one of the options below that is tailored to your company:

Large Companies/Industry Leaders

EDF primarily partners with Fortune 500 companies that have significant market share in their respective industries and a desire to show environmental leadership. If this fits your description, please contact Corporate Partnerships Project Manager, Greg Andeck to brainstorm ways that EDF and your company might collaborate. We also encourage large companies to get involved in EDF’s Innovation Exchange network, which facilitates the widespread sharing of environmental best practices via the web and at conference events.

Small & Medium Sized Companies

EDF generally as a rule only enters into formal partnerships with large Fortune 500 size companies (or the subsidiaries of those companies), but is interested in hearing about new, cost effective, innovations that occur within small or medium sized companies that are worth promoting to the broader corporate sector. If this sounds like you, please fill out our contact form and let us know more about your company’s innovation.

We also encourage small and medium-sized companies to get involved in EDF’s Innovation Exchange network, which facilitates the widespread sharing of environmental best practices via the web and at conference events.

Suppliers/Advocates of New Technologies

EDF principally partners with large Fortune 500 companies and takes a technology-neutral stance in its partnerships. However, we want to know if there are any new, cost effective innovations that have the potential to significantly reduce an industry’s environmental footprint. If this sounds like your company’s technology, please fill out our contact form and let us know more about your firm’s technology. We’ll be in touch if we think there’s a good fit with one of our partnership projects.

We also encourage suppliers to get involved in EDF’s Innovation Exchange network, which facilitates the widespread sharing of environmental best practices via the web and at conference events.

Media/Speaking Requests

EDF is an active thought leader with novel partnership stories to talk about. If you are a member of the media or conference organizer and wish to speak with EDF Corporate Partnerships staff, please contact Marketing and Communications Director, Melanie Janin.

Posted: 19-Jul-2007; Updated: 20-Nov-2008