Pick 1 - that takes the prize for adorability, originality, and ability to engage with the widest possible audience is Frank Woodley's - Give Frank A Break

http://tenplay.com.au/channel-ten/the-project/extra/season-5/frank-woodley-3854301853001

Oddly enough since it was released has been 'closed to private audience' but you can watch the expose on the Project on the link above. It is essentially a humorous video (black comedy!) about protecting our oceans from waste pollution. Frank Woodley manages to tread a fine (fishing) line between environmental pathos and green humour. He certainly seems to be saying the less words you use - the more you convey in Give Frank and the Oceans a break.  On the Project TV show Frank shocks everyone by swallowing a plastic bag - presumably one which will break down inside his stomach!! 

Am hoping the link will be working again shortly. 

Pick 2 - Animal Australia - caged eggs videos campaign --- 'That aint no way to treat a lady'.  

Not as creative as the Give Frank A Break Video - nevertheless these videos are clever in that they remove any semblance of the pedestrian or prosaic from the 'chicken' label and manage to captivate us with the lovability of the chicken species. The viewer will be stunned to learn the fact that the majority of eggs in Australia are still battery hen or cage eggs which is simply unacceptable in a society which is meant to be moving towards becoming more concerned with animal rights and welfare.  

You will also learn that chickens are cleverer than we thought, can be trained to do tricks (no bird brain at all!) and they can identify the same object over and over again that depicts themselves, and even look for the missing object that resembles all of the others.  I give this campaign an extra tick as they managed to produce not one or two but four videos!

http://www.animalsaustralia.org/no-way-to-treat-a-lady

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10153403391825299&set=vb.32799215298&&theater

Pick 3  Get Up's Save the Reef 

This video just scraped it in to the 2014 list being uploaded to Get Up's Facebook in late December. It's actually very effective as it uses humour, too, but takes the innocence of the actors that little bit further and adds in some pretty hilarious misinformation.  The lack of accuracy about features of the Great Barrier Reef stirs up that familiar theme that governments don't always know what they're doing and nor do they leave our most precious natural resources in charge of the best people!

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10152418994826455&set=vb.13527056454&&theater

Pick 4 - City of Yarra - Put In Bin campaign

These zany pictures have been getting a look in throughout our Facebook page over recent months.   The City of Yarra post a caption on each of the bins stating that the contents of the bins will be sorted for recycing.    See our Facebook page for several more examples. 

Interestingly the next three campaigns concern governmental apathy in Australia, when it comes to taking stronger action and making commitments on climate change targets.  

Pick 5 - Heads in the Sand 

https://www.facebook.com/AustralianConservationFoundation/photos/a.203147261340.171976.14193666340/10152850516001341/?&theater

This one speaks for itself as does the next one. 

Pick 6  - G 20 O Solar campaign

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-11-06/queensland-farmer-sends-a-large-climate-change-message-to-g20/5871086

Pick 7 - People's Climate March - This March has had an astounding response, not because it's particularly creative or original but merely in the use of social media to rouse so many people to come together at so many different cities and locations across the world. Hundreds of thousands of people turned up to march on 21st September, 2014 in Melbourne. 

Here's a photo from the March.  The caption in the photo says 'Hey Tony, You're Heading for a Climate Change Cliff'.   


More examples of campaigns will be added throughout the year, as more spring to mind - from 2014. 
 

Where have the past 3 weeks gone?

This is the time of year for Making lots of noise, Carols and Xmas Cheer - what better time than to celebrate public transport as it's been mentioned in music and thanks to The Uncut Book of Revelations Volume 2 -  A Second Compendium of the Very Finest Rock Facts we can do that.  Here's a few quoted from the compendium. 

1. Billy Joel - New York State of Mind - .... but I'm taking a Greyhound/On the Hudson River Line...
2. Divine Comedy - National Express - ... don't just sit there feeling stressed/Take a trip on the National Express. 
3. The Beatles - One after 9.09 - I said I'm trav'ling on the one after 9.09 ... I got my bag/run to the station/Railman says you've got the wrong location.
4. Robyn Hitchcock - Trams of Old London -  Trams of Old London blow my mind/Ludgate, Fenchurch, Highgate Hill/Rolling Slowly Up there Still/Uh huh Waterloo and Clerkenwell 
5 Kraftwerk - TransEurope Express - Rendezvouz on Champs-Elysees/Leave Paris in the Morning on T.E.E/In Vienna we sit in a late night cafe/Straight connection T.E.E. 
6. The Jam - Down in the Tube Station at Midnight - And a British Rail Poster read, 'Have an Away Day! A Cheap Holiday. Do it today!'

And some others that spring to mind: 
7. The New York Dolls - Subway Train   
8. Duke Ellington -  Take the A Train  

Then there's a few that promote walking and cycling which we might get in to in more detail in the next post, but include -  Katrina and the Waves - Walking on Sunshine, and INXS - Just Keep Walking. 


Nope - being pre-christmas, didn't get the time or inspiration to do another post on topic - so will add another 'ditty' here:

Euphoria - Walk On -  (India) - being predominantly in Hindi -   it's very easy to interpret the message from watching the video. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEq1PaAAHdw

Even the name Five Nights At Freddys sounds spooky! 

Not much of a computer gamer but my son got me playing this two nights ago. What I liked about it (except - it's a little bit creepy!) is that conserving energy is one of the objectives of the game. When you get down to zero power (from closing the doors or turning on lights to check which spooky fellow's outside) you lose. It was very Dr Who-esque a la the Angels who move in an instant when you blink. Don't know whether it was cooked up by greenies or not. Of course this greenie managed to run out of electricity by opening and closing the doors and checking the CCT cameras too often. You drain the power grid, lights go off - boom you get devoured by a spooky toy character.

Fun stuff. Well, I wonder how many other computer games incorporate more subtle conservation themes. It might be more ideal if an environmentally friendly act isn't the main objective as depending on the demographic, it can be a tad 'uncool' to be green focussed, as a youngster.  

Might be fun for a city to have shopping strips competing against each other as to who has the most shops dedicated to sustainability with the top one receiving the sustainable shopping strip award.  The judging could be on the basis of  their products sold in the strip of shops - or internal shopping strip (as the case may be). I think existing awards are often based on centres and municipalities reducing carbon footprint, pollution and waste.  

Either way it would be great as a green marketing tool!  

I have been doing some work for Bee Sustainable in Lygon St, Brunswick East, which is an establishment that promotes bee-keeping, sets up home hives, as well as promoting home food production - preserve, sausage, cider and bread-making kits, selling related equipment, sustainable gifts and runs workshops along the lines of  bee-keeping and local food providoring. I think that this section of Lygon St North, East Brunswick with Vege to Go (vegan meals), and Organic grocers, a Recycled Clothing Market, and Yoga Lab plus the honey shop can vie for high end green credentials as a shopping strip, as far as greater Melbourne goes. 

I will be interested to receive any comments or ideas as to other cities with a sustainable shopping options award! 

Shopping can be fun, and what more fun than shopping for products that make us feel good, look after our health and coincidentally (?) that of the earth.