New edition of the magazin "Verträglich Reisen"

The new edition of "Verträglich Reisen" in the shops. You can see in online and get inspired for your next vacation.

Bike in the sky

Just nice to look at.

Together in...Boulogne Billancourt

Boulogne Billancourt was for 24 hours the European Responsible Communication capital.

Sidièse welcomed, on the 14th of October, its close friends from Creative Concern (Manchester, UK), Fairkehr (Bonn, DE) and Yuluka (Brussels, BE) for an exchange of experiences, ideas, and projects.

There was good food and fresh drinks too.

The wealth in knowledge and ambition from each agency created genuine dynamism and extra motivation.

These too few moments together reinforced our belief that Do Not Smile has a real future.

Sidièse wants to thank Do Not Smile for coming. C’était un véritable plaisir.

Et...ce n’est que le commencement.

Bringing people power to Wrexham, Wales

Wrexham County Borough Council wants to reduce its carbon emissions by 50% by 2016. It’s an ambitious target but one Creative Concern is more than happy to help them achieve.

The People Power campaign has been developed to get everyone in Wrexham to start thinking about their own energy use and how they can reduce it. It’s about tackling climate change together and saving some money at the same time... a win-win situation. Creative Concern developed a full campaign, including an online ‘pledge’ site to let people sign up to making energy saving changes and find out how to reduce their energy use. To date, over 300 people have made a pledge, in fact the vast majority have signed up to more than one.

A second phase of the campaign has seen the Council putting solar panels on 3000 homes across Wrexham. Creative Concern developed the Solar Power Wrexham campaign to let people know what was happening and why. It’s a big change for many people and we have worked on a whole suite of materials including posters, leaflets, a website, media relations and even a film to explain what is involved and how switching to solar power can reduce electricity bills. You can see more on the campaign at www.peoplepowerwrexham.org

You Can Foster

The lack of foster carers in the North West of England is a real issue. There are many children who need a home, but the number of foster carers is on the decline. Creative Concern developed the You Can Foster campaign for an alliance of North West Local Authorities’ foster care providers to tackle this shortfall and inspire potential foster carers to come forward.

The campaign aimed to dispel many of the myths around foster caring and to showcase the diversity among foster carers and how they make a real difference to a child’s life. It has a warm and friendly tone, using real people and their own words to convey why others should foster. You Can Foster launched with TV, radio and outdoor advertising and featured foster carers from a diverse range of backgrounds and lifestyles. It was backed up by a website, social media and traditional media relations.

Since its launch in 2010, over 3000 people in the North West have enquired about becoming local authority foster carers through the You Can Foster campaign – far exceeding the targets set for the regional campaign. The campaign has been so successful that it has already become a model of best practice nationally. You can find out more about the campaign at www.youcanfoster.org.uk

Manchester gets toasty

Manchester winters are pretty chilly and there are lots of homes across the city that are lacking in insulation. Creative Concern devised the Get Me Toasty campaign for the ten Greater Manchester councils to encourage residents to apply for free and discounted loft and cavity wall insulation. The campaign is also supported by the Energy Saving Trust and the National Health Service.
The Mr. Toast character is at the centre of the campaign. He’s instantly recognisable and just a little bit cheeky – making him the perfect mascot. The copy is direct, conveying the offer in an accessible way. We wanted people to find the important messages without using overcomplicated technical language. Mr. Toast has been used online, in street teams, advertising, PR, branded materials, social media and even a giant Mr. Toast outfit!
The first phase of the campaign saw over 8000 people visiting the website for advice and insulation. Creative Concern has recently launched the second phase with a PR drive and new marketing materials to support the campaign, including posters, banners and leaflets. You can see Mr. Toast in action at www.getmetoasty.com

CRADLE TO CRADLE

Successfully published in 2002 in the United States, Cradle to Cradle has, at last, been translated in French. William McDonough and Michael Braungart elaborate a manifesto for a new philosophy and redefine the concepts of production and ecology: a new way of looking at consumption. The two authors describe potential positive ecological footprints thanks to an eco-conception paradigm, consisting in considering the life cycle of a product from its origins to its future lives, yes, several…

They highlight the possibility of an “eco-effectiveness/efficiency” which would not oppose the theoretically incompatible notions of economy and ecology. Rather than decreasing production, they fight for an industrial model based on the systematic composting of all objects. Products either return to their natural origins as “non-toxic organic nutrients”, either products are re-injected in the industry as “technical nutrients” in order to be recycled infinitely. This would therefore re-create the mechanisms of natural eco-systems. Food for thought.

Cradle to Cradle – William McDonough, Michael Braungart

Famous fashiondesigner Karl Lagerfeld is in a new commercial for behavioral change

It's yellow, it's ugly and it doesn't go with anything - but it saves lives!

"Es ist gelb, es ist hässlich, es passt zu nichts", so beschreibt der deutsche Modemacher die Warnwesten, die man in Frankreich ab Juli im Auto mitführen muss. Weil sie aber Leben retten, unterstützt Lagerfeld die Aktion und streift sich selbst die Modesensation über.

Start your brains - not your car.

Start your brains, not your car. For zero CO2 on short distances.

The new booklet explaining the campaign is printed and you can look at it online. Enjoy:

Open publication - More fairkehr

The French and Responsible Consumption

The Ethicity/Ademe 2011 study is, yet again, extremely full of enlightening information. This annual barometer “The French and Responsible Consumption” elaborated by the agency Ethicity (in collaboration with the Ademe) is a real landmark concerning the evolution of French consumers.

This year, the growth of environmental concerns seems to slow down compared to more economic considerations. In the last several years, the same studies highlighted a crisis of confidence from consumers towards companies’ and organisations’ messages and discourses. This year, the spectrum appears to be more individual.

One can notice a growing concern about personal and individualistic issues (health) more than about social and global issues (the planet Earth…).

These are some of the key figures extracted from the latest study: 71% of the French population consider that sustainable development is still a necessity. For 63% of them, health (personal, family, friends) is in their top three concerns. As a consequence, 36% consider that the selling promise that “these products are healthy and possess health benefits” is their first purchasing criterion, more important than environmental messages (for only 27% of respondents).

It is in this shifting context that the idea of “consuming differently” evolves: For 45% of the French consumers, “consuming responsibly” corresponds to “consuming differently” (an increase in 10% compared to 2010). 51% claim having focused on more “sustainable development” products this year (including 13% who declare consuming less). Global environmental considerations do not trigger as much concern for the French population as before. 49% of respondents are still very implicated compared to 55% in 2008.

Buying locally is a growing consumption model in favour of sustainable development, globally positively seen by the French respondents. 24% of respondents actually favour a regular consumption of locally produced products.

The MEDDM (the French Environment and Sustainable Development Minister) names Sidièse to manage the online campaign for eco-labels.

Don’t hesitate to checkout and promote the eco-label online viral website: www.simplementecolabel.fr created by Sidièse.

The French Environment Minister has chosen Sidièse to boost and promote the French and European eco-labels online.

The objective: collaborate with influential blogs and websites through the creation and implementation of web banners. Electronic signatures are also created and available for anyone eager to replace their classical signature: “Please do not print this email…”

Please spread this crucial message to encourage better consumption and keep every follower and actor posted!

The European Parliament adopts “The Impact of Advertising on Consumers’ behaviour” report.

On December the 15^th of December 2010, the European Parliament adopted “The Impact of Advertising on Consumers’ behaviour” report. This text was an initiative from Mr Philippe Juvin (French, PPE). The members of the European Parliament agreed on the fact that advertising is valuable and that the level of auto regulation is high. They also settled on the principle that consumers must be warned about the new intrusive and misleading advertising techniques, which are widely present on the Internet and often personalized according to people’s personal characteristics.

The report also stresses the importance of a better protection of vulnerable consumers and emphasizes the role that advertising has on image building and calls to fight against stereotypes. In order to improve consumers’ safety and enhance transparency, the report encourages the European Commission to develop an official EU website on labelling systems and confidentiality models which certify data protection standards for websites.

Mr Philippe Juvin’s report underlines the phenomenon that advertising often conveys discriminatory and despicable messages, often based on stereotypes and sexism. To fight against this issue, the report requests reconsideration and progress of “extremely shallow models” from agencies and media professionals so as to “avoid harmful messages based on stereotyped physical characteristics”.

In-house sensitization campaign in favour of recycling at Nestlé Waters MT

Sidièse was offered the task to elaborate a campaign for in-house sensitization on the importance of recycling plastic bottles by Nestlé Waters MT.

The agency created a coloured, fun and catchy plan structured around a collaborative website called “I’m doing it” which encourages employees to post their own created slogans. This site grows and lives thanks to personal experiences, ideas and information.

We also recycle our own plastic bottles of course, but not only! Pencil pots, wasp traps, and thrash cans named “Elise”…

The Ademe « Batucamob » for the European Week For Waste Reduction

On Saturday the 20th of November, the Ademe and its partners kicked off the European Week For Waste Reduction with a bang.

A group of percussionists took part in a Batucamob (combination between a Batucada and a Flash Mob): a unique event that highly entertained the Trocadéro in Paris with exotic Batucada rythms (famous Brazilian music). One significant difference though: the music instruments were replaced by thrash cans, tins, and other scrap metal boxes and pots!

One could not imagine a better (and noisy) way to highlight the issues that waste management represents (Each person produces more than 390kg of waste in a year!).

The Sidièse team, which organized the event, were out there in full force! For those who sadly could not participate, a video is available on www.batucamob-serd.fr

Greenpeace and VW's Death Star

Simply great: Greenpeace vs. the Dark Side!



Watch the video, join the campaign and stop Volkswagen from destroying the earth by constructing cars that emit too much CO2.

The Transtheoretical Model – six steps towards behavioural change

The Transtheoretical Model of Behaviour Change assesses an individual's readiness to act on a new healthier behavior, and provides strategies, or processes of change to guide the individual through the stages of change to action and maintenance.
The Transtheoretical Model is also known by the acronym TTM and by the term "stages of change model".

In the Transtheoretical Model, change is a process involving progress through a series of stages:

1. Precontemplation – people are not intending to take action in the foreseeable future, and are most likely unaware that their behaviour is problematic
2. Contemplation – people are beginning to recognize that their behaviour is problematic, and start to look at the pros and cons of their continued actions
3. Preparation – people are intending to take action in the immediate future, and may begin taking small steps towards change
4. Action – people have made specific overt modifications in their life style, and positive change has occurred
5. Maintenance – people are working to prevent relapse," a stage which can last indefinitely
6. Termination – individuals have zero temptation and 100% self-efficacy... they are sure they will not return to their old unhealthy habit as a way of coping

In addition, the researchers conceptualized "relapse" (recycling) which is not a stage in itself but rather the "return from action or maintenance to an earlier stage."

For the campaign „Start your brains - not your car“ fairkehr made use of this model of behavioural change: While designing the messages for the campaign the team took into consideration that behavioural change is a long term process and conceived three phases out of the six steps of TTM. These were transferred into three campaign phases.

Read more about the campaign in the magazine „fairkehr“.

Visit the campaign’s webpage.

Cars become bicycle crowds

Ten bikes instead of one car: The British company Cyclehoop has constructed a bicycle stand that shows how much space a parking car takes. The „Car Bike Racks“ were first to find in Derry Street, London Kensington, in September 2010. In November the Swedish city Malmö decided to replace two parking spots with the „Car Bike Racks“ – as a signal to car drivers to better go by bike. Other European cities followed: Bicycle drivers in Helsinborg in Sweden, Almada in Spain and in Dublin can already chain their bikes to cars.

Europe via train, bus or ferry

Travelling by bus, train or ferry is much more relaxing than going by car or plane and it reduces the emission of CO2. The website Verträglich Reisen shows maps of European countries with all connections for trains, ferries and busses. In addition you find advice for your journey, special offers, tips for booking and accommodations.

Generation Rent-a-Car

Owning a car is so yesterday – that’s the opinion of fairkehr’s chief editor and chief executive Michael Adler. That’s why he has written a book about the „Generation Rent-a-Car“ and the new pleasure in a different kind of mobility.

He explains why it is high time for us to change our ways of thinking in times of climate change and peak oil. And he shows how young people in cities already get around differently than their parents: completely flexible with carsharing, rental bikes, professional hitchhiking organisations, bus and train. This young metropolitan’s lifestyle should infect other social groups.

Michael Adler creates a concrete agenda for society and politics: from the scheduling of bus and train traffic to the construction of cities for people, not for cars.

His book is interesting for all that want to care of turning a stylish trend into a sustainable movement.

Michael Adler: Generation Rent-a-Car. The new pleasure in a different kind of mobility. Oekom 2011, 112 pages, 12,95 Euro

check this up !!

Tension is rising on climate issues.

Watch this climate scientists, now changing tone, and rapping on their very serious professional concerns, like "hungry beasts", as they define themselves in the title.

Link is here :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiYZxOlCN10&feature=player_embedded




...which direly stresses the question : how we, "communication scientists", could help better our raging climate colleagues, shouting in the tempest of the Wild Wild Web ?

+ thank you to Team Treehugger who unveiled that pearl.