AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS — Several leading agencies have joined a new alliance established by global NGO Creatives for Climate to drive radical collaboration and new standard-setting across the industry.
Enviral, Fanclub PR, Kibbo Kift Agency, Leap Agency, Media Bounty, and REVOLT are the first to join. To launch, they will collectively share tactics used to campaign for change in the alliance’s first free and open webinar on October 04.
The alliance marks a new dawn for purpose-driven agencies to share knowledge, explore collective challenges, and launch ideas to create new standards across the industry to use creativity to accelerate climate solutions and social justice. It follows months of interviews with founders on the challenges they face in pioneering new ethical agency models, such as functioning in silos, facing time challenges to network, and competing against agencies whose values are questionable.
To join, agencies must engage three out of every ten employees on a pathway action plan created by the NGO calling for radical collaboration, upskilling to tackle greenwashing, and an agency commitment to divest from representing the world’s worst polluters, fossil fuel companies.
Beginning in Europe, the Ethical Agency Alliance will soon launch across the Asia Pacific, where it will be led by newly appointed New Zealand Chapter Lead Antonia Estall. By launching in The Global North and then the South, the alliance aims to facilitate knowledge across diverse regions through its global collaboration Hub.
“It’s no secret that running an agency is hard work, and running an ethical agency is even harder. Saying no to promoting harmful clients comes with a cost, and we want to support the agencies raising the bar so that we can inspire and provoke the whole industry to do the same,” said Lucy von Sturmer, Creatives for Climate Initiator.
“We are committed to using our services to drive the social and environmental movement forward, and joining the alliance is a great opportunity to work with others on this collective mission, bigger than any single one of us can tackle alone,” shared Joss Ford, Founder of Enviral. “From an industry perspective, the notion of ‘creativity for good’ is under threat if we don’t distinguish between agencies walking the walk on climate action and transformation and those just putting occasional climate-related projects on their website. We want to show what a real commitment to take action looks like.”
Sam Narr, CEO and Founder of Kibbo Kift Agency, commented, “From awards shows to lackluster accreditation to greenwashing, hypocrisy in the industry is rife. It’s often infuriating and lonely as a small agency to be self-governed by your own ethics and morals in a sector that’s so influential yet lags so considerably on progress for climate and social justice. I’m incredibly grateful to be part of a like-minded network of agencies guided by a fully transparent framework to achieve action and create change.”
“It’s so good to see communities like Creatives for Climate growing and gaining power. It’s easy to feel like it’s all too much if you are on your own, but when you find the others, you find your power. I wish the network and team had been around when I was still working in advertising,” expressed Jon Alexander, Co-founder of New Citizenship Project and Author of Citizens.
Femke Sleegers from Fossil Free Advertising Netherlands concluded, “The agencies joining the Ethical Agency Alliance are frontrunners by refusing to use their creativity to help the polluters continue their polluting business, and now they are calling for more agencies to follow. They are the leaders of change.”
Agency action-plan pathway summary
Agencies must commit three out of every ten employees to a three-step pathway and commit to five core community principles that underpin the ideology of the movement. This process focuses on:
- Collaboration across sectors
- Upskilling in climate communications
- Divestment from representing fossil fuel clients
Upon completing these steps, agencies receive a badge of certification and are added to a network aimed at fostering radical collaboration and knowledge sharing, championed by Creatives for Climate NGO as shining examples of an industry in transition.
Launch event
To launch the Ethical Agency Alliance, a global webinar will occur on October 04 at 4 pm GMT. It will be a 60-minute session aimed at transcending borders, allowing attendees worldwide to learn from the ethical agencies.
To register, visit here.
