Nine leaders from local environmental organizations were interviewed by Ecology Action staff and the project consultant Kathleen Quinlan in November 2006. This Executive Summary of interview results was prepared by Ecology Action to highlight key responses. A full report for the interviews will be available from Ecology Action in early December.

Who Participated?
Nine organizational leaders were interviewed. Organizations were first identified based
on their history of having numerous, long term and/or successful collaborations. The final selection was made to ensure that there was sufficient variety among missions, age, geographic focus, type, organizational structure, and size.

• Annual budgets ranged from $25,000 to $1.5 million
• Organizations were founded between 1941 and 1999
• They reported an average of 5.2 recent collaborations. This is 44% higher than
  the average reported number from the on-line survey, which may confirm that the
  project indeed appropriately selected successful collaborators to interview.

Factors for Success
The interviewees suggested three factors that were critical to the success of their
collaborations.

• Effective communication was top on the list (6 responses)
• Additional factors that had three or more responses include:
  • Shared understanding of a clear, common goal
  • All parties sharing a willingness or enthusiasm to collaborate
  • All parties have adequate resources to meet commitment
• Additional recommendations were
  • Provide enjoyable and neutral work environments
  • Ensure clear understanding of each other’s goals, mission, and strategies
  • Individual collaborators must have good personality fits and commitment

Benefits of Collaboration
Interviewees unanimously thought that our sector would benefit from increased
collaboration, naming the following specific benefits.

• Assurance that there is no duplication of effort. (3 responses)
• Increased awareness of each other leads to increased opportunities to
  collaborate. (3 responses)
• Increased effectiveness by combining strengths and efforts (2 responses).
• Increased visibility and political presence (2 responses)
• Increased support through shared responsibilities (2 responses)

Challenges to Address
Two themes emerged regarding challenges.

• Ensuring collaborations stay on time and on target was advised by three
  respondents who noted that delays cause collaborations to disintegrate as
  participants revert to past positions/patterns or simply fall off due to inactivity.
• Three respondents identified limited staff time to address the details of
  collaborations as a challenge.

Duplication within Sector
Overlap or duplication within the sector was not identified as a significant challenge or
problem.

• Over four respondents felt that there was no duplication of effort in our sector.
• Two respondents noted that their main concern with overlap was between
  nonprofts and the government sector.
• One respondent felt that there was overlap in the area of environmental
  education, but that “more was better” and each group “had its own market.”
• One respondent pointed out that there is “a lot of overlap if you look at the broad
  goals of local organizations, but very little overlap in specific activities or issues
  they are working on.”

Closing Advice for Successful Collaborations
One interviewee suggests that “collaborators should be treated like donors, with mutual
respect and a professional attitude.”

One interviewee suggests that “we can’t take it for granted. We need to continue to
work together and keep doors open.”

One interviewee suggests that “advocacy groups can be great partners due to their
incredible ability to garner citizen interest. When advocacy groups wish to collaborate,
they should be clear on what they can compromise on and authorize a representative to make decisions.”

One interviewee suggests that “consistent participation is critical to ensuring a strong
outcome and collaboration.”

For additional information, please email Kirsten Liske or call (831) 426 5925 ext 123.