Today is our blog’s first birthday!!

Today our blog celebrates its first birthday!!

A year ago this very day I wrote the very first, very humble, blog post.

The birth of the blog owes much of its final impetus to Michael Ambjorn and ultimately Ogilvy & Mather’s Idea Shop. It seems like a long time ago now but the enthusiasm from this team of marketing professionals, from our 45 minutes session in East London, was insatiable. We had good content and we needed to share it.

Since then, it’s been a steep learning curve and I’m working out what works and what doesn’t. Yes, there’s been the odd 303 redirects, a few typos and some broken links but overall, 12 months on, it has grown into something that the whole organisation is really proud of.

Every EIA campaigner has now contributed to the blog, from each of our campaigns. So you, as the reader, can now get first-hand information on what it’s like at EIA, what it’s like out in the field, gather expert opinions as well as tap into more personal reflections on the topics EIA works on (as well as interesting tangents!)

We’ve also encouraged those more behind the scenes to step up to their e-literary debut; Charlotte Davies, our intelligence analyst has taken a particular shine to our blog and written some fantastic posts. Our comms and fundraising team had have time in the e-limelight as well as our volunteers, who donate their time so enthusiastically thoroughly deserving airtime.

And thus, we have religiously published our weekly blog for the last 52 weeks (perhaps a few exceptions for national holidays) on a whole host of topics; from tigers to rhinos, from our community projects in Tanzania to whaling in the Faroe Islands and gala dinners to pangolins! An unexpected bonus is that the blog content fuels our monthly emails which have, in turn, dramatically improved internal communication and encouraged more cross-campaign dialogue.

More than that, the expert opinion of campaigners is being picked up by other groups and organizations, such as REDD monitor and Global Tiger Initiative on blogs and Computer Aid, Client Earth and others on Twitter; so our outreach exponentially increases.

But it’s not just about churning content out; it’s about building a dialogue as well. We are keen to hear your feedback and have made every attempt to respond to comments written by you. We are only human however, and apologise if some have slipped through the net. Please keep your comments coming; what would you like to see improved? Do you have a favourite blog post? What would you like to hear more of?

What are the stats?

• 68 blog posts

• 154 comments

• 15,482 visits

Technical Paragraph – for the geek within

Sticky Content generously donated places on their course for many of our campaigners, a huge thank you to them. They highlighted the important differences between writing for print and the web; tough lessons including “don’t expect people to read all your content” and “write your copy, halve it and then halve it again”.

Michael Ambjorn at Eurocomm

Following a communications conference in Italy, there have been some subtle differences to the blog; improved Search Engine Optimisation, shameless promotion, more links and pingbacks, using alt.text and keywords, all of which has helped build a strategy to use the blog more effectively and to help make sure we are findable on Google. We’re not there yet but have made some great improvements. A huge thank you to Steve Seager and Michael Gaasterland on Twitter

The next 12 months

With all going well, we will have the new EIA website up and running soon (I don’t want to jinx the date!) and this will see the blog fully integrated into the website. It’s an exciting time for EIA comms as we finally make that leap into Web 2.0. The blog and our other social media platforms will become an integral part of the website and we will continue to produce fantastic content as our campaigners get more into the swing of blogging.

Conclusion

Watch this space.

Afterword

A few days ago I bumped into Ruth Jamieson from Ogilvy at the latest Ideas Shop at Marketing Week Live and I see Michael Ambjorn at IABC events; it’s great to keep in touch with the people that took the time to dispense small pearls of wisdom to us. Those pearls, 12 months on, have had such a huge impact on how we communicate here at EIA, so thank you to all those who have made it possible.

Sophia Cheng

Fundraising & Communications Officer

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IABC’s Eurocomm 2011 – from an NGO perspective

I have returned back to the office after 5 days in Italy, yes it’s sunny here but Islington Green has nothing on Via Roma or Parco del Valentino, Costa below us doesn’t quite cut it anymore and Pizza Express over the road has lost its appeal. Suffice to say, things have changed post- Turin and that’s not to mention the real reason why I was there.

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Eurocomm, hosted by the International Association of Business Communicators, the Middle East and Europe division, is a communications conference held every two years with speakers from the very top of their field.

Yes, I know what you’re thinking, business communicators, small NGO?! Where’s the link? Surely you’re not spending all my donations on trips to Turin. Well no. Thanks to the board of IABC, I managed to secure a scholarship to help me get there and Ryanair did the rest of the job (actually, quite painlessly).

So I arrived with my metaphorical socks pulled up high, pen and paper (and smartphone) poised and ready to learn, or perhaps absorb is a better word, all that I could from the world of communications and see how it could be best applied to EIA.

Ashraf Amin, Journalist shares with us the role of communications during the Egyptian revolution.

Two days were spent in a stunning location overlooking the city  learning about the latest in comms, with interesting and dynamic people, all fuelled by the best espresso.

In short, I have taken away so much from the conference and could go on at length about the importance of communications but in this information overload world we now inhabit, instead I will summarise some of the key lessons in less than 140 characters. In other words, a tweet!

• Stephane Dujarric, Director of News & Media at the UN: “Issue comes before the logo”, always tell a compelling human story
• Silvia Cambie working with the European Training Foundation: “Networks are replacing individuals as base of communications”
• Aureli Valtat – Eurocontrol and Tweeting through the ash cloud: “Twitter is not just a push channel – interactivity is key”
• Mark Comerford on Social Media & Journalism: “Everything is changing…and survival relies on being responsive to change”
• Are you ready for the digital revolution?
• Steve Seager on SEO: “Shameless blog promotion is ok!”
• Suzanne Salvo of Salvo Photo on the accidental photographer: “show results, not the product”

Approaching things from a new angle - Mole Antonelliana - the landmark of Turin.

So for EIA, we are in the middle of updating our website (in fact this conference could not have come at a better time) and there is much we can implement right away. From optimizing content, integrating more of our media (analogue & digital) and selecting powerful imagery that crosses the language barrier. Embracing the perception shift may take a little longer. But watch this space.

I will finish with the words of Mark Comerfor:

“if you want to reach me, you will have to reach my network”

Join EIA’s network on Twitter, on Facebook, LinkedIn and Vimeo.

I would like to add a personal thanks to board members of the IABC, especially Michael Ambjorn.

Sophia Cheng

EIA

“NGO comms newbie”

 

 

 

 

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Weekly Blog: Reflecting on the Tiger Gala, a personal account

Will Travers & Joanna Lumley

Last Thursday saw the culmination of months of work, events invariably incur high levels of stress in the lead up; Will everyone turn up? How will the auction go? And the big question, will we raise enough money to have made all the effort worthwhile?

It was indeed a labour of love and I am immensely proud to say, yes it was worth every moment spent in preparation, the mild hysteria during the day and the pain of putting my feet in heels for an extended period of time, we raised over £100,000 and we’re still totting up the figures!!! Once costs are accounted for the total will be split between the 3 NGO’s.

What made the evening such a success? I believe it was the collaborative dedication of all the people involved. I recall sitting in a small meeting room months ago with what was at the time just a group of like-minded people (and all strangers to me), Simon Clinton had a vision and his enthusiasm was infectious, he threw time, energy and brilliant people on board to move the project forward. The complementary nature of the three NGO’s involved led to a natural partnership and everyone got stuck in! Sourcing auction prizes, guests, venue, entertainment, wine and champers not to mention celebrities, all at minimal expense possible, is no easy task with the 3^rd of March ever looming!

Then of course, there’s the food, I must confess, attending the tasting at the Mandarin Oriental stands out as a particular highlight. It was a tricky business deciding which of the exquisite five courses should be served to our 200 guests but I take pride in my thoroughness and ensured the final menu was a culinary delight.

All the goody bags!

Another task delegated to EIA was the humble goody bag. Guests paying a hefty £300 expect a certain caliber within the tiger themed bag; clients of The Clinton Partnership generously contributed but where was the rest to come from? Two words. Cold calling. I have a deep-rooted fear of cold calling, is it just me? Perhaps it’s because I fear rejection, well no one likes to be dumped over the phone. Thankfully, after much personal procrastination the wonderful Café Direct and Lush jumped on the idea and generously donated 200 fabulous goodies, old EIA friends Iain Green and Laura Barwick did the same and my ego remained intact.

The Thai Music Circle

And then the day itself, filling up the goody bags was executed with military position and table plans finalised. As soon as it hit 5.30 an army of people were on board to transform the room into an Asian paradise, whilst simultaneously transforming ourselves from shabby NGO staff to glamorous and elegant folk. The Thai Music Circle began to play, photographers from Hello and Ok were poised and the champagne was poured as the firsts guest arrived.

Show time.

My Asian roots led to me playing a role front of house, inspired by the idea to represent as many tiger range countries as humanly possible, it was a very novel honour to lead Buddhist monks from the Buddhapadipa temple through the tables of expecting guests to the stage to bless the tiger.

Virginia McKenna, Donal MacIntyre & Joanna Lumley

The celebrities had turned out, Donal MacIntyre did a fantastic job of hosting throughout the evening, alas Mr. Bailey did not make it but Joanna Lumley’s impromptu but powerful speech reminded everyone why they were there. I am in awe of the wonderful Nicholas Parsons, how he personally commanded the room full of, by this time, rather saturated guests. Extravagant auction prizes went to the highest bidder amidst plenty of cajoling from Mr. Parsons. The Malaysian drummers took people’s attention away from the food and to the stage, the fabulous Made Pujawati, captivated us with her Balinese tiger dance. Gauri’s dancers performed an exquisite Kathak dance, culminating in all artists sharing the stage, with a Chinese lion dance finale. It worked seamlessly, a shame it’s not mirrored politically.

By midnight my ratio of strictly working vs. wine consumption tipped heavily towards the latter and I rested my sore feet satisfied that is was a job well done.

See The Londonist review of the night.

Something I am still in awe of is the generosity of individuals and companies despite the current age of austerity. Here are my hearty thanks to the following companies who contributed to our fantastic evening, Pangkor Laut Resort, Air Asia, Arsenal, Jacob’s Creek, Laurent-Perrier, Easter & Oriental Express, The Ritz-Carlton, Cowdray Park Polo Club, YTL Hotels, Land Rover, Twining, encounters asia, Raymond Blanc Cookery School, Thyme at Southdrop, Samara, Vintage Roots, Texture, Tiger Beer, Real Digital International, Café Direct, Tiger J’s Chocolate, theWildGarlic, Kit Digital, Chewton Glen.

Liz Bonnin & other tiger friends.

To individuals I would like to thank, Betty Yao, Zehan Verden, Ralph Dixon, Jimmy Choo, Ching-He Huang, Bill Oddie, Simon Lycett, Ronni Ancona, Alistair McGowan, Gary Hodges, Iain Green, Laura Barwick, Frances Jarvis, Joanna Lumley, Donal MacIntyre, Nicholas Parsons, Christy Symington, Laura Lian, Chris Wright, Steve Cawston, Liz Bonnin, Virginia McKenna, Rob Murray.

To our entertainers, Gauri Sharma Tripathi and her dancers, Made Pujawati, Thai Music Circle, Lim’s Martial Arts and a special thank you to the monks from the Buddhapadipa Temple, London.

Sophia Cheng

Membership & Fundraising Officer

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Weekly Blog; A post dedicated to you.

Thank you to you!

None of our work would be possible without support from people like you. EIA is a small organisation but a lean one, for every £1 that is donated, 79p goes directly towards our frontline, investigation and campaign work.

Many of you have been fundraising for EIA this year in all shapes and forms; some of our top fundraisers include,

Sue Spicer who had an EIA stall at the Dive Show twice this year, raised £1500. Andy Rouse, who has donated over £1000, from the proceeds of his book. The Wignall family raised over £450 from a sponsored 50 mile walk in Somerset. Thank you to Nicola Shepherd, Sue Harris who gave over £900 in celebration from a wedding and a party respectively!

Dan Cockril, Tony Husband and friends organised a fantastic event a few weeks ago, Roar, Imagine a Tiger, a collection of poets and artists performed including John Hegley, Polar Bear, Charlie Dark and Sean Taylor. Despite tube strikes and adverse weather they raised a smashing £600! It was a wonderful evening; glass of wine in hand and seated in the comfort of Screen on the Green, away from the cold and the snow, the audience were entertained with a wonderful variety of performances in aid of our tiger campaign, in this, the Year of the Tiger.

Last week, we jointly held the UK tiger forum, in conjunction with Born Free and Wild Aid, hosted by Asia House, it was a fantastic evening and you can see highlights here. Donal McIntyre hosted the evening, Bill Oddie was a guest speaker, Virginia McKenna, Liz Bonnin attended and even Brian May was there (for a short time), 300 of you turned up to find out how the tiger fares following the International Tiger Forum in St. Petersburg. All the money raised will be split between the three organisations.

Thank you to all our funders, from larger trusts and companies, down to each individual member. Thank you to all those who gave their time, our volunteers; Tomo, Debbie, Cara, Ilaria, Alessandro and Alex and others who shared their expertise, Michael Ambjorn, Julia Hailes and Ogilvy Ideas Shop, amongst others. We really appreciate all your support.

Looking ahead, Jason Cheng (yes, ahem, you might note a similarity in the surname, he is my brother!) will be running the 2011 marathon for EIA.

He are a few words from him;

“I’m supporting The E.I.A for this year’s London marathon as I am an avid supporter of the work and research they undertake and I am all for increasing the awareness of endangered species around the world. As a typical university first year student studying in Bangor, north Wales; marathon training will provide a good structure to disperse between zoology lectures and the pub, which will be sorely missed over the coming months. This Christmas, it would be great iif you would find a few extra quid to donate to this worthy cause; http://www.justgiving.com/jasoncheng”

So all that leaves to me to say is Merry Christmas and

thank you for all your support over the last 12 months.

From the EIA team.

Sophia Cheng

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Weekly Blog; Dates for your diary & what goes on behind the scenes…

The days are shortening but there is always a hive of activity here at EIA HQ as winter sets in.

Campaigners are always coming and going from investigations or conferences across continents and this month has been no different. But if you look a little harder, you will notice the other parts of the EIA team that are always at HQ. Less glamorous perhaps but crucial to keeping the cogs of EIA turning; the finance team do a fantastic job and the comms team relentlessly spread the work of EIA, out to the press and you folks. I work in the fundraising department in EIA, I don’t to go as far as Bali or Bangkok, more like Brighton and Birmingham! But we’re all beavering away too.

 

Janet with little Phoebe

 

So what have we been up to? Well behind the scenes, it’s an endless cycle of ensuring funding is secured to see the longevity of the organisation, year after year. Janet, our Head of Fundraising, has just got back from maternity leave and has been thrown straight back in the deep end!

Our elephant appeal has just been sent out, thank you to all those who have donated so far, it’s great to see all the cheques coming in. The generosity shown by our members and supporters all over the world not only goes into funding the important work we do but endorses our faith and passion to bring about environmental justice. With your support, we hope to be able to carry out investigations that map out the scale of poaching and demand for ivory, early in the new year. The ele’s team will keep you updated with developments.

Meanwhile, closer to home, the tiger is receiving a great deal of attention as a season of tiger events gets underway next week. Asia House are hosting an exhibition entitled The Tiger in Asian Art, showcasing a collection of Asian paintings, sculptures, textiles, photographs and other works of art. These pieces have been drawn from the British Museum, the Victoria & Albert Museum and private collections, many of which are unseen. Complementary documentaries and trailers are also being shown, including one from EIA. Based on the full documentary you can see our trailer here. The exhibition opens to the public on the 5^th November at Asia House, London, W1G 7LP. Admission is free.

The ROAR collective, a group of artists who support EIA, are hosting a fundraising extravaganza,  Imagine a Tiger, starring poet/musician John Hegley and acclaimed cartoonist Tony Husband, creator of Private Eye’s Yobs. The event also features poet and DJ Charlie Dark, spoken word poet Polarbear, poet and comedienne Liz Bentley, Israeli singer/guitarist Hadar Manor, singer/songwriter Sean Taylor, poet Daniel Cockrill and the band Howls. This event will take place will take place at Islington’s Screen on the Green cinema, London N1, on Monday, 29^th November, 2010. To buy a ticket, make a £15 donation here. All proceeds go to EIA’s Tiger Campaign.

Following the International Tiger Forum, held in St Petersburg in November, Asia House are hosting Save the Tiger Forum, putting words into actions. A panel of internationally renowned conservationists and speakers will be providing a platform for raising issues and debating possible solutions to save the tiger from extinction. Our own Debbie Banks will be on the panel and proceeds from the evening are split between, Wild Aid, Born Free and EIA. This event will take place on the 7^th December at the Royal Geographical Society, London SW7 2AR. Tickets are from £10.

You can find out more about all the Asia House Events on their website.

So, whilst we’re busy raising funds here, perhaps your calendar will be busy too, attending some of these fantastic events!

Sophia Cheng

Membership & Fundraising

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Law passed: Importing illegally sourced timber is now banned in the EU.

But what does this all mean and why should the Average Joe Bloggs care?

We all want nice furniture for our home; a wooden dining table, wooden flooring etc, but how often do you question where the wood has come from? Have you considered how your dining table came to be? From forests, often in Asia or South America, to timber factories; into Europe and the shop floor and finally into your home? A very rough analogy would be; did you question buying chicken breasts from your supermarket before Jamie and Hugh highlighted the terrible conditions of chicken farms?

There is a story behind every piece of wood furniture; millions of people world-wide rely on forests for their livelihood. Illegally sourced wood directly and dramatically affects many of these communities, EIA’s work in Indonesia highlights just one area of exploitation. The core issue behind illegal logging is corruption, and the illegal trade in timber involves major criminal syndicates. Consumers in the UK have spent up to £700 million a year on timber and wood products that we believe are illegally sourced.

And ultimately illegal logging destroys bio-diversity. The most extreme examples of illegal logging are taking place in the last remaining areas of primary forest.

EIA’s campaign originally focused on the Orang-Utan but you cannot save this iconic primate without protecting its habitat – habitat that is disappearing fast.

Why does this affect you?
The US and Europe are the largest consuming markets for these wood products, 20% of the wood that currently enters the EU is illegally sourced, 7% for UK specifically. Our demand for these products drives the trade (WWF; 2007). This new law directly addresses the rogue traders and criminals involved in the illegal timber trade.

You will soon be able to ask the supplier where the wood furniture has come from. Because of the new law, they will be required to ensure they have information of where the timber was harvested.
Last week the EU voted heavily in favour of this law, however it will take two years before it is implemented fully. EIA will now work with the European Commission and member states, including the UK government, to thrash out the details. Penalties need to be high to ensure it deters further illegal activity. This law will make the trade more transparent, one of EIA’s goal, so that in future when we ask where is it from, suppliers will be obiligated to know.

Our mindset to obtain exactly what we desire, prepared, flatpacked, even skinned and seasoned for us (when it comes to chicken!) at a cheap price, without questioning how it came to fruition is ultimately at the root of the problem.
This law and similarly the Lacey Act in the US, both of which EIA have led the way, is a step in combating this crime. Changing your mindset is up to you.
“There is no silver bullet in stopping the illegal trade in timber but this is a good first shot” – Faith Doherty.
EIA campaigner, Faith, has been personally working on this campaign and last week’s vote is a culmination of ten year’s hard work. Whilst investigating the trade ten years ago in Indonesia, she and her colleague were kidnapped and tortured by timber barons for exposing illegal logging. Her personal story is compelling read her interview at mongabay.com our own video with Faith will be on the homepage soon eia-international.org

For more details on the law click here.

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