DENVER, Colorado — When nonprofit leaders enter the headquarters of DigitalGlobe, they often wait in the lobby beneath a glass ceiling shaped like a satellite dish, then walk into their meeting asking what can be offered for free.
“More often than not, development folks will approach DigitalGlobe or other companies expecting us all to act in the same way — that we are a funder, or that data philanthropy is our approach to the community, and everything should be free and this is why,” said Rhiannan Price, director of DigitalGlobe’s Global Development Program, a commercial vendor of satellite imagery and geospatial analysis based outside Denver, Colorado.
“They [NGO representatives] tee up the conversation with: ‘This could be really great for you guys for PR.’ And it’s like, ‘I completely understand where you guys are coming from. Let me explain to you our theory of change and why we do it the way we do.’ I don’t think they’re used to working with companies that have dedicated teams that work with not-for-profit organizations.”