Sydney - Saatchi & Saatchi Sydney has been recognised by the inaugural D&AD White Pencil awards in London, with a brave and audacious campaign to launch a satellite into space.
Its ‘Peace Star' campaign is one of just eight entries globally to be given "in-book status" for the award - voted for by D&AD's awarded members. Saatchi & Saatchi Sydney is the only agency from Australasia to receive this honour.
The brief was to create global awareness of Peace Day, and to maintain this awareness on an ongoing basis. To spread the message of Peace Day in a way that was impossible to ignore, Saatchi & Saatchi Sydney looked to the skies for inspiration, devising a prominent annual feature the whole world could see.
The agency proposed launching a ‘Peace Star' satellite into space, using simple and available technology.
Saatchi & Saatchi Sydney ECD Damon Stapleton says the objective of the Peace Star was to bring the global community together to celebrate Peace Day.
"It may sound crazy, but launching a satellite is actually completely achievable and not very expensive," he says. "There are already over 35,000 satellites orbiting earth."
"We wanted to encourage interaction both locally and globally. Local communities could gather together to view the star - and hopefully build new connections and discuss world issues with their friends and neighbours. On a global level, the world could interact on Twitter to see updates and share their experiences."
The satellite would feature prominent LED lighting, which could be activated remotely once a year on Peace Day. The lights would make it a dazzling feature in the night sky.
The Peace Star would complete a 24 hour orbit of the earth, allowing everyone on the planet to see it on the same day.
The White Pencil is awarded to a creative idea with the potential to effect real change in the world. The brief was to solve a communications problem for a non-profit organisation or established cause. The idea should demonstrate the capacity to raise awareness and change behaviour around that cause.
The award was won by Leo Burnett Chicago for their project Recipeace, a social movement designed to bring people together over a shared meal. The winner was selected by an esteemed panel of judges at the Royal Institute in London, chaired by Lord David Puttnam, and was awarded last Tuesday, 27 November 2012.
View Saatchi & Saatchi Sydney's Peace Star idea here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tW6698NwS0&feature=youtu.be
Follow the Peace Star campaign on Twitter here:
https://twitter.com/ThePeaceStar