etribes Creates Interactive Web/WAP site for FFI
Howard Lake | 15 December 2003 | News
etribes has created an unique online community and WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) site for conservation and development charity Fauna & Flora International (FFI). The new service combines an interactive website with cutting-edge WAP technology to offer a resource that is accessible both online and via mobile phone.
www.wildlive.org was conceived by FFI following a creative workshop run by etribes back in 2002. The aim was to create a website that would be both an information resource and a highly stimulating mechanism for sharing news and ideas. By channelling some of this content into a WAP site, FFI hopes to tap into new audiences, especially young people, via their mobile phones.
The wildlive! website provides an online repository of up-to-date news, information and resources, as well as interactive features such as a discussion forum, bulletin board and online poll. Certain tools are designed to bring members closer to the cause – such as the Field Diary, which is written daily by FFI overseas staff as they, for example, track tiger poachers in Sumatra. The Photo Gallery displays many of FFI’s amazing photographs and the Members Gallery allows users to post their own photographs to the site. The site also comes with a complete e-commerce package that enables members to buy photographs and other FFI products, pay their annual subscription to FFI or make a donation online.
The wildlive! WAP site shares the same database as the website and displays much of the same news and information, edited or compressed into a smaller format for mobile phones. The most exciting mobile features are the animal sounds, wildlife wallpapers and wildlife games – which can be pre-viewed, bought and downloaded in seconds. The WAP site is currently accessible via Vodafone live! and is top of their What’s New? list.
Luke Brynley-Jones, Managing Director of etribes, said of the project: “This has been one of the most innovative and challenging projects we’ve taken on. Creating a combined online community and WAP site in this way is, as far as we know, a first for the UK voluntary sector. Ensuring that information passes smoothly between the web and WAP interfaces and that it arrives in the right format is a real test, but we’re delighted with the result and are working with FFI to ensure the project is a success. We also hope to work with other organisations to make their web content available via mobile handsets. As an innovative way of communicating with supporters and enabling them to connect with each other, we feel this project has set new standards for the voluntary sector – which can only be a good thing.”
Ken Banks, Project Technical Advisor from FFI, said: “Wildlive! has been an incredibly exciting project to manage. By combining Internet and mobile technologies, conservation is now available to a whole new audience in an entirely new way. For FFI, Wildlive! represents a huge leap forward and a perfect opportunity to embrace the very latest in communication technology. Not only are mobile users able to keep in constant touch with the conservation world, but their mobile devices are a perfect platform for FFI’s vast range of stunning photographs.”
He added: “Not ones to rest on our laurels, we plan to extend the service throughout 2004, looking specifically at a global rollout and region-specific content. This will bring challenges in itself, but something we are very much looking forward to.”
Notes to Editors on etribes Limited
etribes™ is an award-winning Internet solutions provider. The company specialises in creating useful, vibrant and sustainable websites, Intranets and online communities for voluntary, community and public sector organisations.
etribes™ also provides excellent web consultancy, design, development and hosting services. The company’s website solution, communitybuilder®, offers a low-cost interactive website, intranet or online community. etribes’ consultancy process, communitycreation™, has helped many organisations in the UK to create useful and sustainable interactive online services.
etribes™ has worked with a wide range of clients, including:
British Airways PLC
YMCA England and Wales
Christian Aid
The National Autistic Society (NAS)
The Youth Hostels Association (YHA)
The National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts (NESTA)
Fauna and Flora International (FFI)
The Woodland Trust
The Ecologist Magazine
For more information call 020 8297 3999 or visit www.etribes.com.
Notes to Editors on FFI
Fauna & Flora International (FFI) acts to conserve threatened species and ecosystems world-wide, choosing solutions that are sustainable, based on sound science, and taking into account human needs.
Founded in 1903, FFI is the longest established international conservation group, and is currently supporting conservation through 300 partners in more than 60 countries world-wide
For more information, visit www.fauna-flora.org
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.