Who: Canadian Women’s Foundation, with creative by Forsman & Bodenfors and Asymetric, Vapor Music, School Editing and Fort York VFX.
What: An awareness campaign called “The Tireless,” intended to drive support for the non-profit, which fights for gender equality.
When & Where: The campaign is running now through the end of the year, using a combination of donated media (TV and radio) as well as paid digital (video and social), print, and out-of-home.
Why: The CWF’s mission is to instil confidence and empower women to escape violence and poverty. At a time when the public is talking more about the issue, it felt right for a advertising push to raise awareness and encourage donations, but the message had to be right.
“We position ourselves organizationally as a leader in advancing gender equality in Canada, but ‘gender equality’ can be abstract, and perceived as too big and unwieldy to conquer,” said Paulette Senior, CEO of Canadian Women’s Foundation. “We need to rally people to continue to fight to achieve our mission, but wanted to do it in a positive and inspirational way.”
How: That aspirational tone and positive messaging comes through a quick-cut montage of female Canadian heroes, from Roberta Bondar and Hayley Wickenheiser, to Bianca Andreescu and Autumn Peltier, along with scenes of less famous but equally determined women who are tirelessly pushing for gender equality.
Quote: “We were so inspired by what the Foundation is trying to accomplish. It feels like we’ve reached a tipping point and this is the moment to advance gender equality. It’s important to move the interest in this issue beyond words and hashtags, into action and financial support.” —Melanie Johnston, CEO of Forsman & Bodenfors.