RETURN TO SENDER

TitleRETURN TO SENDER
BrandPUBLIC EYE
Product/ServiceHUMAN RIGHTS
Category A08. Charities, Public Health & Safety, Public Awareness Messages
Entrant PUBLIC EYE Zürich, SWITZERLAND
Idea Creation PUBLIC EYE Zürich, SWITZERLAND
Media Placement PUBLIC EYE Zürich, SWITZERLAND
PR PUBLIC EYE Zürich, SWITZERLAND
Credits
Name Company Position
Samuel Textor Freundliche Grüsse Creative Direction
Pascal Deville Freundliche Grüsse Creative Direction
David Elmiger Freundliche Grüsse Copyright/Concept
Res Matthys Freundliche Grüsse Copyright/Concept
Alain Aebersold Freundliche Grüsse Art Direction
Patrick Biner Freundliche Grüsse Consultant
Stefanie Schmid Freundliche Grüsse Consultant
Nadine Mojado Freundliche Grüsse Design
Sean Dünki Freundliche Grüsse Design
Erwan Eydt Freundliche Grüsse Programming
Alexander Meier Meier Production Film direction & production
Derek Stierli Meier Production Camera

The Campaign

To show the shocking health impacts dirty diesel has on the African population, Public Eye asked us to do a unique campaign. With the help of activists in Accra, Ghana, we shot a short film showing local people capturing the polluted air into canisters and return it to the sender. As a reaction to the dirty business of Trafigura: We sent the air in a shipping container back to the commodities giant.

Creative Execution

The campaign was implemented in 3 phases: Phase 1: awareness, mobilization (14.9. – 25.9.16). Phase 2: engagement, journey (26.9. – 26.10.16). Phase 3: involvement, call to action, event (27.10. – 7.11.16). In phase one, the audience was shown a teaser film with local people capturing the polluted air into canisters and return it to the sender. In phase 2, the journey of the dirty air to Switzerland started and was a public event. Users could follow the cargo ship in real time on the website returntosender.ch, including precise geolocation of the container ship, weather data and progression. The website also contained extensive information about the report. It led to a petition demanding Trafigura to stop their dirty business and focus on their goal of becoming market leader in social responsibility. The hook of Phase 3 was the delivery of the dirty air to the sender, to Trafigura in Geneva.

Results

Site traffic: The website reached about half a million visits and the campaign almost a million impressions. Response rate: The petition was signed by almost 20´000 people. Accompanied by the press, the signed canisters and the petition were handed over to Trafigura at their headquarters in Geneva. Change of behavior: Public pressure caused by our campaign moved the government of Ghana to toughen its national sulfur standard by a factor of 60. As other West African countries are following, the campaign continues to have impacts on local policymakers and trading companies involved in the traffic of dirty diesel.

The campaign had a response driven core idea. As Trafigura pollutes the air with dirty diesel in Ghana, we sent to dirty air back with the help of African activist. On the way back to Switzerland, almost 20´000 people supported and signed the petition to stop the commodities giant. So our campaign had a direct influence on consumer behavior and furthermore produced a direct measurable response. «Return to Sender» is a direct concept at all points.

Public Eye has a member and donor community of 25´000 people. With the campaign, we addressed urban, well-educated Swiss who want to fight against social inequity. People who care about global justice. The idea was to reach the target audience and to multiply the reach by activating the Public Eye community. With the campaign, we wanted to create public pressure through the mass media and then through the people, in order to get the involved companies to change their behavior. We wanted to involve people and to find as many petition supporters as possible.