As collaborations between universities and external individuals and organizations (donors, corporations, governmental agencies and bodies, NGOs, and foundations) proliferate, it is vital to have a clear set of principles to protect academic integrity and the public interest. The following principles cover various major donor-institutional and inter-institutional collaborative agreements, ranging from individual donors providing funding for a university institute or centre to broad strategic alliances such as the University of Alberta’s $10-million collaboration with Imperial Oil. After each principle, some specification is offered to clarify the context and provide some parameters to guide policy development and practice in universities.