Which brands took tangible steps towards sustainability on this year's Earth Day?
Key Insights:
- Celebrated on April 22, Earth Day is a prime time for brands to advertise their sustainability practices
- Audiences are increasingly leaning towards buying from companies with a positive sustainability record
- This year's campaigns see big companies ensuring that "sustainability" becomes a recognizable part of their branding strategy
Earth Day is a prime time for creative agencies to showcase inspiring work with big brands. As the effort towards sustainability becomes bigger and better, global companies are expected to do more.
Sustainability practices are becoming a must for brands seeking to win audiences over, and multinational conglomerates must now more than ever take responsibility for how their actions impact the planet.
Consumers can no longer turn a blind eye either. Research shows that 93% of consumers maintained or increased their sustainability purchases in 2022, despite the increased cost of living around the world. Additionally, 77% of people are influenced by a company’s environmental record when deciding to buy from them.
This year Earth Day led with the slogan “Invest in our Planet” and many well-known brands took the opportunity to announce their own sustainability practices and what they are doing to work towards a better planet
Wrangler Sends Brand Message on Upcycling
The legendary jeans manufacturer leaned into its upcycling tradition for this year’s Earth Day. To highlight the high quality of Wrangler denim and its reusability through the years, Wrangler teamed up with the Texas Playboys Baseball Club.
The team fully redesigned their 2023 uniforms using Wrangler hand-me-downs, certain pieces of which date back as far as 20 years.
The campaign ties into Wrangler’s existing “We Care” sustainability initiative, which focuses on a Wrangler-improved preferred materials list with low environmental impact, implementing low-impact fabric, and maintaining a low-impact finishing standard.
Through the inspiring upcycling of materials, the company maintains one of its core branding principles – Wrangler denim lasts a lifetime.
Xbox Pushes Sustainability Practices
Xbox’s sustainability update for Earth Day left consumers hopeful for steps a global corporation can take towards sustainability.
Microsoft’s commitment to operating as a carbon-negative, water-positive, and zero-waste company by 2030 set the pace for the launch of the Xbox Wireless Controller – Remix Special Edition. The controller is made from recovered plastics including reclaimed material from CDs, water jugs, and other controllers’ parts.
Xbox also became the first platform to release dedicated energy and carbon emissions measurement tools designed for and in collaboration with, game creators. Gamers can now track how to lower their carbon emissions while playing, without impacting the player experience.
Additionally, Xbox organized interactive Earth Day-related activities such as the possibility of learning about ocean conservation through a Twitch live stream with Xbox Plays and the Seattle Aquarium.
Lavazza Questions the State of Our Planet
Lavazza opted for a campaign with shock value for Earth Day. Created with Publicis Italy/LePub, the Italian coffee manufacturer released a campaign titled “Marte” announcing the launch of “a new coffee for a new world.”
“Have you ever gazed up at the stars and wondered, ‘Is there coffee out there?’ We have,” announces Lavazza’s new Marte coffee line, with coffee beans grown and harvested on Mars.
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Of course, Lavazza didn’t grow coffee beans on Mars. But the witty campaign draws attention to what that process could look like if we do not focus on preserving “the only planet with coffee: Earth.”
The campaign then cleverly draws attention to its existing Tierra collection, a bio-organic coffee range cultivated from uncontaminated lands where the Lavazza Foundation directs its efforts to teaching coffee producers agricultural techniques to manage the effect of climate change.
While Lavazza’s Earth Day campaign does not introduce any new sustainable initiatives, it redirects consumers towards the sustainable practices of its existing products, serving as both a clever tactic by top industry advertising agencies and a reminder of the company’s environmentally friendly production method.
Impossible Food's Earth Day Campaign Takes Over Social Media
Impossible Foods took a similar approach through a campaign with Deloitte Digital.
Already known for its plant-based substitutes for meat products and its sustainability efforts, Impossible Food put its carbon footprint in the spotlight for Earth Day.
Jumping on viral social media marketing inspired by the trend #minifood, which currently has over 2.8 billion views on TikTok, the “Mini Impact Kitchen” campaign features mini food creators cooking miniature meals. This creative approach showcases the brand’s small carbon footprint compared to that of animal meat production. Research shows that an Impossible Burger generates 91% less emissions than a beef burger.
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To further play on the products’ small carbon footprint, the company will be running a 1-inch by 1-inch ad in the New York Times, its smallest ad format offered.
Rothy's Moves Towards Advocacy on Earth Day
Rothy’s took its wish for a better planet seriously, gathering to push for the “Bigger, Better Bottle Bill.” The goal of the updated bill was to extend the 5-cent container deposit law to include non-carbonated beverages, such as water, and to require beverage companies to return unclaimed deposits to the state for the funding of recycling and other environmental protection programs.
On Earth Day, the shoes and handbag company with recycling at the core of its brand philosophy, transformed its New York flagship store into an advocacy center for the “Bigger, Better Bottle Bill.”
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With appearances by celebrities such as Kate Bosworth and Justin Long, this “in real life” event reminded audiences that Rothy’s approach to advocacy and activism goes beyond its products and branding strategy.
