//extend the A object with Backbone.Events methods var A = _.extend({name:'A'}, Backbone.Events); var B = {name:'B'}; //when the event on A is called, set the callbacks context (i.e. this) to B A.on('sayMyName', function () { console.log(this.name); }, B); //trigger sayMyName A.trigger('sayMyName'); //logs B because we adjusted context of callback