Digital Review Committee

Overview

The Digital Review Committee (DRC) exists by direction of the Conservancy’s SOP on Digital Presences. Its mandate is to review, provide guidance, and approve or decline proposals for digital applications that are to be built and maintained outside of TNC’s existing digital infrastructure. This existing infrastructure includes:

• TNC’s global (nature.org) and international (Spanish, Portuguese, Canada, Australia, Indonesia, India, Hong Kong, China, Mexico) sites
• SAS / Centralized Email Program (CEP)
• Engaging Networks (Events Platform)
• CONNECT
• conservationgateway.org
• Other sites built on TNC's AEM (Adobe Experience Manager) platform
• Other sites/applications already approved by the DRC

Digital applications that are subject to DRC review include (but are not limited to):

• External websites of any kind that are owned and/or operated by TNC, including coalition sites
• Third-party platforms (aside from Engaging Networks or SAS) that will collect and/or store constituent data, including email addresses, and/or send emails
• Mobile applications
• Fundraising applications, including those housed on third-party platforms
• Social media accounts/channels that will represent TNC
• Sites/applications previously approved by the DRC for which new functionality, design, or infrastructure is proposed that wasn't present during the initial review.

Why We Are

The creation and management of digital resources carries a wide range of burdens and risks, including financial, legal, technical, reputational, security, and long-term maintenance considerations. As such, the Digital Review Committee exists not to hinder or obstruct digital projects across TNC. Instead, our goal is to help project managers and digital content owners determine the best solution for your digital need, bearing in mind all of the aforementioned factors.

The committee serves you and TNC by assessing the strategic, technical, and legal aspects of creating a new digital presence and then devising recommendations based upon your application. We do so after meeting with you to discuss the specifics of your prospective project.

The process gives you a one-stop approach to determine the feasibility of your digital plan, and it assures that the Conservancy’s resources are being used effectively and in accordance with the objective of the Board policy. It also mitigates risk, both for your team and for the organization.

Who We Are

The core committee members include:

• Joe Bowman: Senior Enterprise Architect
• Chris Bruce: Associate Directory, Cartography & Design
• Zach Ferdaña: Director, Conservation & Geospatial Systems
• Heather Fugitt: Senior Attorney, Privacy Specialist
• Todd Metrokin: Director, Brand Strategy
• Suzannah Park: Information Security Analyst
• Justin Ringsak: DRC Co-Chair, Marketing Technology Senior Web Developer
• Daniel Sotelino: Senior Attorney, WO General Counsel Team

These core members represent their respective teams and offer their expertise as it relates to your project. If your project touches upon other areas such as fundraising, membership, finance, advocacy, or coalitions, extended committee members may be brought in to help advise on a path forward. Adjunct committee members who may advise on these areas include (but are not limited to):

• Grazi Dib: Senior Marketing Technology Manager
• Monica Ardaya: Social Media Manager
• Shiloh Stark: Director, Audience Strategy, Membership
• Elizabeth Wolf: Associate Director, Cause Marketing
• Erin Smith: Manager, Workplace Giving and Gifts
• Silvia Noriega: Deputy Director of Finance and Operations

Questions? Please send us an email.

About the Review

Reviews consist of three steps:

First, determine whether your content can fit on TNC’s existing digital infrastructure as described above.

Second, if you determine your program needs to pursue an independent online presence because of some unique requirement, please complete the Digital Review Questionnaire (MS Forms).

To complete the form, fill out all fields that are applicable to your project, then submit. You are not required to complete all fields, and please leave any fields where you are unsure of answers blank - the DRC can often help to flesh out the details of digital projects, and it is important that you submit as early as possible in your project planning process.

Third, after your provide your completed questionnaire, y​ou’ll be invited to attend a 30-minute meeting with the committee, where we’ll discuss your project together. The committee meets every other Thursday to consider applications, and decisions about how to proceed are documented and sent by email roughly one week after the meeting. If appropriate, the committee conducts project discussions and reviews with applicants via email for expediency.

Keep in mind that the committee may decide that the solution for your proposed project better lies somewhere in TNC's existing digital infrastructure. Given the organization's investment in the Digital Transformation, which has greatly expanded the range of options available for building and maintaining digital content, as well as the inherent risks associated with the establishment and maintenance of new external digital applications, it is the goal of the DRC to facilitate the development of digital projects inside TNC's existing infrastructure whenever possible.

The committee’s decisions can be appealed and, depending on the nature of the content, the appeal will go to the Global Science department or Marketing department for a final decision.

Important Note from the Digital Review Committee

If you choose to develop an external digital presence of any kind, you assume full responsibility for all risks associated with it. The Digital Review Committee exists to advise you of these risks and help you to mitigate them. However, neither the committee nor the Marketing division is responsible for situations in which:

• The owner of an external digital presence failed to secure DRC approval before developing it or signing contracts associated with it.
• The owner of an external digital presence failed to abide by DRC requirements as detailed in the outcomes document that is furnished by the DRC following completion of the review.

Either of the aforementioned scenarios is considered non-compliance with the SOP on digital presences and may be the subject of an audit finding. In those instances—as well as instances in which the Conservancy is exposed to liabilities because of non-compliance—responsibility lies with the owner of the digital presence in question.

Additionally, responsibility for ongoing management and maintenance of external digital presences rests fully with their respective owners. Neither the Digital Review Committee nor the Marketing division or Global Digital team has the resources to support with long-term maintenance or management of external sites or applications.