Some creatives see only creative opportunities (read, awards) in public service advertising. ‘Guys, we have to do an ad campaign on Climate Change!’ would make them rub their hands in glee – effectiveness be damned. The campaign created by The Duffy Agency, Sweden (where my good friend @AsifAnsari is a partner) to raise awareness about Climate Change, for their client Schneider Electric,  is a bit different.

It is got two things working for it: (a) a nugget of new information that makes you sit up and take notice and (b) a simple call for action. According to the website ActiveBE, buildings and their construction account for nearly half of all the greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumed…architects hold the key to turning down the global thermostat’. The online activity which includes a Twitter page, a YouTube Channel and a Facebook page is linked to COP15 – the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen where world leaders are scheduled to gather. The call for action is a simple video pledge (see mine here). For every pledge made, they will donate $20, up to $10,000, towards a college scholarship for a deserving student of Architecture or Engineering. As of date, they need 941 more pledges to reach their goal. So do your bit and record your pledge, please.

A couple of thoughts on the campaign: The ActiveBE website has tons of interesting information on how buildings pollute, what makes a building green etc. The topic has the potential to create a lot of buzz. But one effort could perhaps raised it to higher level. A key to such activities is that one creative effort – be it a video on YouTube or activity on social media that gets everyone talking. Is that missing here?