Ad(ctivism) of the day #12: Greenpeace China Coal Story

A great arty ad this week which is part of Greenpeace China’s campaign against the use of coal in emerging markets, and therefore here in China.

This animated film does a great job at raising awareness about a whole set of coal-related issues, both social and environmental, such as  deadly labor conditions, air pollution & climate change, thus leading to rising sea levels, etc. It therefore shows very well how a coal-fueled economic growth will inevitably (and is already) casts a shadow on China’s development at both social and economic levels.

Some numbers to keep in mind, and that are extracted from The Tue Cost Of Coal, a China-based research report sponsored by WWF, Greenpeace and the Energy Foundation, and published in 2008:

• China is the king of coal. It is the world’s biggest producer and consumer (coal makes up 70 percent of China’s energy needs – compared with a world average of 40 percent)

• Last year environmental and social costs associated with China’s use of coal came to RMB1.7 trillion – that’s about 7.1 percent of the nation’s GDP for the same year

• More than 31,000 coal miners in China died from accidents down the mine between 2000 and 2006

• Some 80 percent of China’s carbon dioxide – a key greenhouse gas – emissions comes from burning coal

• According to recent scientific data, rising temperatures, loss of arable land and water scarcity may cut China’s overall food production by up to 23 percent by 2050

Credits:

Advertiser: GREENPEACE // Ad Agency: OGILVY BEIJING, CHINA // Executive Creative Director: Doug Schiff // Creative Director: Yanyan Yang // Copywriter: Doug Schiff // Agency Producer: Fei Wang/Doug Schiff/Yimeng Bai/Lulu Yang // Account Manager: Vivian Guo // Production Company: VIGORTIME Beijing, CHINA // Director: Doug Schiff // Music: Artist/Title: Kadri Gopalnath // Animation: Li Zhen/Fang Xiaodong/Hou Kun/Yang Qian/Gao Lue/Hou Kun/Wu Xiandeng/Deng Nanbing/Sun Yuzhen // Art Director: Fei Wang/Yanyan Yang/Yimeng Bai // Other Credits: Animation Directors: Hong Yu/Li Jie/Zhang Aihua

Thanks @thomascrampton for sharing this.