Julisa Colón
Senior Manager, Brand Marketing, The National Audubon Society – New York
We’re honored to have such a variety of incredible social impact pros as EFG Members. Whether they’re part of a company expanding its social good footprint or a nonprofit honing its corporate partner strategies, the work they do creates a better world. Today, we’d like to introduce you to EFG Member Julisa Colón. May the answers she shares spark inspiration, new ideas and help you further your path at the intersection of profit and purpose. Enjoy!
How has being an Engage for Good member helped you?
Though we are relatively new members, being part of Engage for Good has definitely been a value-add for our Brand Marketing team here at Audubon. Megan Strand reached out with a warm welcome shortly after we joined, offering to set up an intro call to orient our team. She also helped us identify key webinars and other relevant content available through EFG. A critical thinker at heart with an interdisciplinary background, I am constantly looking for different tools and resources to challenge and expand the ways I approach the work I do. Already, I’ve found EFG to be a rich resource to this end.
What social impact project are you most proud of?
While I’m so proud of all the work our team does, two recent projects are particularly dear to my heart. The first is an Earth Day campaign in partnership with eco-shoe brand Allbirds. Together, we created five limited-edition sneakers inspired by iconic, climate-vulnerable bird species. The collection was released a week prior to Allbirds announcing their commitment to go climate neutral and the shoes sold out within a month, elevating awareness around sustainability, birds, and climate change while also raising funds for Audubon’s critical mission to protect birds and the places they need. The other campaign is an experiential marketing event series produced in partnership with Canon U.S.A. Coined Birds in Focus, the events were aimed at elevating bird photography while putting Canon in focus for audiences at Audubon centers across the country. Both of these multi-faceted initiatives involved many, many moving parts, all integrated and pushed forward by some of the most talented individuals I know. Both of these campaigns are 2020 Halo Award Finalists!
What are you working on that excites you?
I’m fortunate in that my work at Audubon allows me to build campaigns that bolster a wide array of goals and programatic initiatives. Recently, we launched an Audubon on Campus initiative that is super exciting to me. Getting younger, diverse audiences excited about nature and inspired around conservation is imperative. Growing up, my parents and other elders instilled in me a deep respect for diversity, animals, and the natural world. This model is a big part of what drives the work I do, and I’m excited to integrate Audubon on Campus and Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion goals into the partnerships and campaigns we create in 2020 and beyond.
What are you eager to learn more about?
IDing birds in Spanish! I have had so much fun noticing differences in Spanish naming conventions for bird families and species. For example, my colleague Holly Mascaro and I love how woodpeckers are called carpinteros – also the word for carpenters. Though Spanish bird species names do vary by country, I recently got my hands on Kenn Kaufman’s Guía de campo a las aves de Norteamérica as a baseline. Really looking forward to taking it out birding once migration season ramps up.
Thanks for reading along! Interested in seeing yourself in a member spotlight and being a part of a dynamic group of social impact pros dedicated to doing well by doing good?
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