SUSTAINING THE NHU'S IMPACT
Developing and launching a new B2B strategy for BBC Studios Natural History Unit
THE CHALLENGE
As anyone who has spent a Sunday evening watching Attenborough knows, BBC Studios’ Natural History Unit has a unique offering: some of the world's best nature storytelling.
But world-class natural history content takes significant investment, and commercial partnerships play an important role in sustaining BBC Studios' work.
At the time, sustainability was rapidly moving up the corporate agenda and businesses were grappling with a different challenge: how do you communicate complex issues like climate change and biodiversity in ways that actually make people care — without greenwashing?
For the NHU, there was an opportunity to bring these worlds together — using decades of storytelling expertise to spark new conversations and collaborations with business, while opening up new commercial opportunities for BBC Studios. The challenge was doing so in a way that felt credible and appropriate for one of the world's most trusted broadcast brands.
MY ROLE
I was brought in to develop and deliver The Alliance — a new B2B platform bringing together creativity, science and business around one central idea: the power of storytelling to help people connect with and protect the natural world.
What began as a new approach to engaging businesses has become an ongoing model for the NHU, still in use three years later.
I led the programme strategy and worked closely with senior NHU stakeholders and the BBC Studios commercial team to turn the idea into a proposition that could create value for both the NHU and participating businesses.
THE APPROACH
Rather than leading with a traditional sales proposition, we created a space for shared learning, ideas and collaboration.
The Alliance brought senior business leaders together with NHU producers, impact leads and scientists through intimate, invitation-only roundtables and showcases at the NHU's Bristol headquarters. Each explored a major conservation challenge through the lens of storytelling — from land and regenerative agriculture to oceans and marine conservation.
I led the creative development, audience and guest strategy, outreach to the C-suite target list, shaped the programme and narrative, wrote core messaging and scripts, briefed senior speakers and managed internal stakeholders. I also worked with the commercial team to create a follow-up process that could turn new relationships and ideas into an ongoing pipeline of conversations.
The Alliance events brought together 30 senior leaders across marketing, sustainability and impact, including representatives from Pernod Ricard, Natura & Co, Yeo Valley, Pukka Herbs and the Soil Association.
THE IMPACT
100+ businesses engaged
30+ conversations generated for the NHU pipeline
Two waves of The Alliance developed and delivered
More importantly, The Alliance created a new way for the NHU to engage with business - turning its storytelling expertise into a platform for collaboration, relationship-building and commercial opportunity. This is a method they are still employing 3 years on.