Climate Change Campaign
Media, Private-sector and international development agencies collaborate in Public Awareness on climate change concerns
5 August, 2011 – Singapore — The Media Alliance, supported by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) is coordinating a public awareness campaign in response to challenges posed by climate change.
The campaign will draw on the participation of (1) Media, Entertainment and Creative Industries; (2) Advertising, Creative and Entertainment Industries; (3) Private Sector Sponsors; (4) Multilateral, Bilateral and Development Agencies; and (5) Tertiary Academic Institutions in target countries. As a pilot phase for the project, the partnering organizations will include three countries to be selected from Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines and Vietnam for the first year of the project, and will add additional countries annually for up to five years.
Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific and MTV Networks are two of the campaign’s regional media partners, providing assistance in the selection and direction of youth or ‘university creative teams’ who are being selected for involvement in developing youth-to-youth communication techniques, incorporating social media channels. National media companies in the targeted and participating countries are being invited to join the awareness campaign as supporters by providing production assistance and facilities for the university creative teams and for meetings with climate change experts and stakeholders.
Ogilvy and Mather have been engaged as the advertising agency providing the regional creative brief, campaign branding and design. Youth or university creative teams will design more locally- and culturally-relevant messages and communication techniques based on the priority climate change concerns of their country and as determined by their national climate change commission and the United Nations Framework for Climate Change Commissions.
Microsoft is the first among several, targeted private-sector companies that provided technical support for the online and social media elements of the campaign and based on its ‘Eye on Earth’ and ‘Bend the Trend’ projects with the European Environment Agency.
Market research company Synovate are supplying pre- and post-measurement support through a climate change market survey on consumer awareness and attitudes, which provides information on audiences in the target countries and the existing levels of awareness and individual concern on the impact of climate change.
The campaign will include the creation of a range of educational and public awareness materials including country-specific Public Service Advertisements (PSAs) and other content for use in broadcast, print, digital, interactive and on-line knowledge sharing networks, outdoor advertising, cinema and in-flight media outlets. Other content will include informational vignettes, online banner ads, and content for mobile phone messaging and social marketing sites aimed at communities and governments of countries most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.
The campaign and its initial content will be launched on 7 December at a ‘Media Leaders Forum’ on Climate Change to be held at the Asia Television Forum (ATF) 2011 in Singapore. The high-level forum of Asia-regional media leaders will be held to discuss the role and responsibility of media companies in affecting positive social action and behavior change on climate change and is being organized jointly by The Media Alliance, Reed Exhibitions, CASBAA and ContentAsia and with the support of the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), the International Advertising Association (IAA), the Asian Federation of Advertising Associations (AFAA), the Asian Media Information and Communication Centre (AMIC), the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) Singapore, and the Singapore Compact for Corporate Social Responsibility..
For additional information contact:
Craig Hobbs
Asia-Pacific Media Alliance for Social Awareness
1 Kim Seng Promenade
#15-12 West Tower
Great World City
Singapore 237994
Phone: + 65 9864 2994
Fax: +65 6491 5121
craig.hobbs@mediaalliance.asia
BACKGROUND OF THE PARTNERING ORGANIZATIONS
The Asia-Pacific Media Alliance for Social Awareness (‘The Media Alliance’) is a Singapore-based non-profit organization formed through the involvement of a group of Asia-regional media industry executives and their companies. The Media Alliance has come together to leverage valuable media “inventory” or media space for the delivery of critical pro-social messaging through Public Service Advertising, entertainment and editorial content. The Media Alliance also leverages the contribution of creative expertise of advertising agencies in the production of high-quality campaigns designed to achieve maximum target audience penetration. The Media Alliance stakeholders include (1) Media Companies, including print, broadcaster, online, outdoor, cinema and in-flight who provide media space for pro-social campaigns; (2) Advertising & Creative Agencies, who contribute in-kind creative and production services (3) International Development and Donor Organizations working in sustainable development; and (4) Private-sector Companies supporting Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives.
The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) works according to directives of the Swedish Parliament and Government to reduce poverty in the world. The overall goal of Swedish development cooperation is to contribute to making it possible for poor people to improve their living conditions. Swedish development cooperation is part of a global cooperation in which Sweden is one of many international participants. In order to carry out its work Sida cooperates with Swedish government agencies, organisations and associations and international bodies like the UN, the EU and the World Bank. Sida’s efforts are concentrated on issues where Sweden has specialist knowledge and experience and where there is the greatest demand for Swedish support.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a regional development bank established in 1966 to promote economic and social development in Asian and Pacific countries through loans and technical assistance. It is a multilateral development financial institution owned by 67 members, 48 from the region and 19 from other parts of the globe. ADB’s vision is a region free of poverty. Its mission is to help its developing member countries reduce poverty and improve the quality of life of their citizens.
