Title	THE ALPHABET OF ILLITERACY
Brand	PEARSON
Product/Service	LEARNING COMPANY
Category	B02. Public Affairs & Lobbying
Entrant	WEBER SHANDWICK London, UNITED KINGDOM
Idea Creation	FCB INFERNO London, UNITED KINGDOM
PR	WEBER SHANDWICK London, UNITED KINGDOM
Production	FCB INFERNO London, UNITED KINGDOM

Name	Company	Position
Emma Thompson	Weber Shandwick	Managing Director, Consumer
Stuart Lambert	Weber Shandwick	Strategy and Creative Director
Chris Hogwood	Weber Shandwick	Director
Josie Whittle	Weber Shandwick	Account Director
Olivia McCulla	Weber Shandwick	Account Manager
Lucinda Walker	Weber Shandwick	Account Executive
Lincoln Hill	Weber Shandwick	Account Executive
Lauren Hall	Weber Shandwick	Account Executive
Owen Lee	FCB Inferno	Chief Creative Officer
Julia Ferrier	FCB Inferno	Senior Art Director
Martin McAllister	FCB Inferno	Senior copywriter
Chris Baker	FCB Inferno	Head of Strategy
Nic Willison	FCB Inferno	Senior Strategist
Tom Kingham	FCB Inferno	Business Director
Helena Georghiou	FCB Inferno	Account Director
Olivia Pearson	FCB Inferno	Senior Account Manager
Charlie Griffith	FCB Inferno	Account Manager
Charlotte McConnell	FCB Inferno	Broadcast Producer
Kate Grenfell	FCB Inferno	Broadcast Producer
Laura Visick	FCB Inferno	Social Media Manager
Nick Vassou	FCB Inferno	Senior Interactive Designer
Kit Peebles	FCB Inferno	Interactive Producer
Kate James	Pearson	Chief Corporate Affairs Officer
Emilie Colker	Pearson	Vice President, Brand & Social Impact Strategy & Campaigns
Jen Young	Pearson	Director, Social Impact Programs
Emma Buckle	Pearson	Community and Digital Marketing Manager
Chris Treen	Pearson	Community and Digital Marketing Manager
Chris Treen	Pearson	Community and Digital Marketing Manager
Ivana Martinovic	Pearson	PR and Marketing Manager
Rochelle Bond	Pearson	Project Manager

The Campaign

The campaign had one simple insight: while people understand, when prompted, that illiteracy leads to bigger problems, illiteracy itself does not resonate as a “cause”. We had to shock people, politicians and media out of apathy if we were to go beyond raising awareness to inciting action. The creative idea was to take something synonymous with reading and writing, something that embodies the building blocks of learning, something childlike and innocent – the alphabet – and give it a provocative, emotional twist. In The Alphabet of Illiteracy, each letter highlights an issue that could be tackled if literacy was improved. In our alphabet, A is for AIDs. B is for bloodshed. C is for child brides. And so on. The ad agency used this to develop a 90-second video of an animated A-Z, featuring striking designs by sculptor Wilfrid Wood, sung to the tune of a modified "A You’re Adorable".

Execution

We worked with Lily on a speech that would tell Project Literacy’s complex story in a compelling, accessible way. We had one simple message: Illiteracy is the root cause of the world’s greatest challenges. And that if we teach everyone to read and write, we can rewrite lives. On 23/2/16, Lily Cole delivered an impassioned speech to politicians, US ambassadorial staff, influencers and media at the Houses of Parliament in London. Big Issue founder Lord Bird told his uplifting story of growing up illiterate, taught to read in jail aged 16 by a guard. Lily launched a petition, to be presented to the UN on World Literacy Day, 8 September, urging it to put literacy at the heart of every action to advance the Global Goals. The event and Alphabet of Illiteracy video were supported by a paid social media campaign. Next, we’re taking the story to the U.S.

The campaign catapulted Project Literacy onto the policy agenda, with support from across the political spectrum. Stephen Twigg MP pledged to hold an enquiry into the role education plays in international development, with evidence from Project Literacy. Labour Party education spokesman Lord Watson described the launch as “impressive”. Since the launch, the UN has taken steps to put literacy at the heart of the sustainable development agenda, inviting Project Literacy to be part of its Global Literacy Alliance. Borhene Chakroun, Chief of UNESCO Youth, Literacy and Skills Development, said: “This is how to capture the public’s imagination and create a call-to-action. The ‘Alphabet of Illiteracy’…proves why tackling illiteracy needs to be firmly on the agenda of governments across the globe.” Knowledge/consideration: 186 pieces of high-quality coverage, including BBC, Guardian, CNN, Channel 4, Huffington Post, Harper’s Bazaar, Grazia. Outputs: • 12.1million video views • Reach: 462million • 14,352 petition signatures.

The Situation

Illiteracy is the root cause of the world’s biggest problems, including AIDS, FGM, poverty and radicalisation. The Alphabet of Illiteracy distilled decades of academic research and statistics into a story that gave a voice to the 1-in-10 people who cannot read or write. Smart public affairs, including powerful creative content (12.1 video views), engaged politicians and reached 462million. The UN has now taken steps to put literacy at the heart of the sustainable development agenda, inviting Project Literacy to be part of its Global Literacy Alliance. We haven’t eradicated global illiteracy in a month, but it’s not so invisible anymore.

The Strategy

We elevated this powerful creative into a robust, agenda-setting public affairs campaign. Behind the creative lay a huge volume of research into problems from crime to disease to poverty. We knew that trying to explain this complex story in a compelling way to politicians and journalists would be a huge challenge. Our strategy was to find a voice. Someone who could tell the story for us, authentically, and simply. Actress, activist, entrepreneur and mother Lily Cole, who is outspoken on the importance of education, was the perfect ambassador. But Lily needed a platform. Something that policymakers, and the media, couldn't miss. As the UK was the launch market (it’s also bottom of the developed world literacy tables), Parliament – the birthplace of modern democracy – was perfect. The chair of the International Development Committee, Stephen Twigg MP, agreed to invite Lily to the House of Commons to give a speech.