Sky Media Launches Net Zero Carbon Ad Break Featuring Footprint Fund Winners

Sky Media announced the launch of a series of special Net Zero Carbon ad breaks to coincide with COP26. The 170” ad break will be ‘presented by Sky Zero’ and include all five winners of the Sky Zero Footprint Fund that will run across Sky Nature and Sky News for the next two weeks.

The Sky Zero Footprint Fund initiative is a £2m advertising fund which supports businesses to inspire others to join the journey to Net Zero Carbon. The fund was established to help accelerate and amplify initiatives that drive positive behavioural change and tangible impact towards creating a more sustainable future. In a live judging event held in October, Here We Flo secured the £1 million Grand Prix with the other four finalists, OLIO, OVO Energy, Pura and Path Financial, each receiving £250,000 in media value.

The five winning ads were all produced following best practice advice and recommendations from the Advertising Association’s AdGreen programme, in which Sky is founding member. The special ad break is a first for British TV with all ads produced to be Net Zero Carbon with the intention to inspire positive change amongst viewers:

• Here We Flo: The Period Drama creative playfully recreates a Victorian era dinner setting to promote their natural and biodegradable sanitary products.
• OLIO: Against the backdrop of one of the UK’s largest landfill sites, a chorus of children sing a haunting rendition of Louis Armstrong’s What a Wonderful World – encouraging people to share more and waste less.
• OVO Energy: The ad asks viewers to make a quick and easy change, turning off the lights in their living room – saving energy and enhancing the viewing experience!
• Pura: Using a cast of “spokesbabies”, this ad encourages viewers to start a wipe revolution by switching to sustainable products; looking after their families and the planet.
• Path Financial: Revealing to viewers that switching your pension to an ethical investment option is 21 times more impactful than all of the other changes you can make, the ad asks Brits to take the right path.

Debbie Klein, Group CMO, Corporate Affairs & People Officer at Sky, said: “At Sky, we’re proud to be playing our part as the Principal Partner and Media Partner at COP26, and we’re delighted to be working with like-minded partners throughout the summit to cast a spotlight on sustainability and positive behavioural change during TV ad breaks.

Sarah Jones, Director of Planning at Sky Media, commented, “We’re thrilled to finally bring all our Footprint Fund winners together in a single adbreak. We know that advertising has a key part to play in driving sustainability and TV has the power to inspire change like no other. All our winners are encouraging the nation to make simple but achievable changes – all of which can make a meaningful impact to the planet”

Susan C. Allen, Co-Founder and interim SHE-EO of Here We Flo said: “We’re so proud to finally have a wide-reaching platform to talk about periods and sustainability in ways that have never been done before; and we’re so excited to bring our Period Drama into the world alongside the Hatch London team!”

The 170” ad break launches today – in Wild Birds of Australia S1 at 8pm on Sky Nature and Sky News at 9 with Anna Botting – and will continue to run across Sky News and Sky Nature every day for the duration of the COP26 conference, which ends on 12 November. Thereafter, each of the five winning brands will use their prize money to plan and launch their own campaigns tailored to their individual objectives and audiences.

Sky is the Principal Partner and Media Partner of COP26, and alongside reaching its target of net carbon zero by 2030, is committed to support the delivery of a successful and ambitious summit working alongside the UK Government who hold the COP26 Presidency.

Here We Flo Announced as £1m Grand Prix Winner of the Sky Zero Footprint Fund

• Here We Flo has won the Grand Prix £1m prize of the inaugural Sky Zero Footprint Fund – a £2m advertising initiative which aims to inspire behavioural change for a more sustainable future
• Other winners OLIO, OVO Energy, Pura and Path Financial have already secured a £250k media value to support their Net Zero Carbon initiatives. The ads will be unveiled as part of a launch campaign linked to coincide with the COP26 conference which Sky is a key partner
• The ads will be unveiled in line with COP26 in November, of which Sky is a key partner

Sky has announced the Grand Prix winner of its Sky Zero Footprint Fund initiative – a £2m advertising fund which supports and inspire others to join the journey to Net Zero Carbon. The fund was established to help accelerate and amplify initiatives that drive positive behavioural change and tangible impact towards creating a more sustainable future.

Challenger sanitary and sexual health brand Here We Flo secured the Grand Prix £1m prize ahead of the other four finalists at a showcase held last night. All five shortlisted businesses had already secured £250,000 as part of the scheme with Here We Flo receiving an extra £750k.

Susan C. Allen, Co-Founder and interim SHE-EO of Here We Flo “We’re beyond thrilled for this incredible win! Winning the Sky Zero Footprint Fund prize will bring our mission, of making shamelessly natural care for life’s messiest moments, to levels it never reached before, completely transforming our business. We’re so proud to finally have a wide-reaching platform to talk about periods and sustainability in ways that have never been done before, and we’re so excited to be bringing our Period Drama into the world alongside the Hatch London team!”

The decision was made last night (Monday 18^th) at the May Fair Hotel in London where each brand unveiled their ads. The winning campaign was selected by a panel of credible and knowledgeable judges with strong views on advertising, creativity and sustainability. Judges included advertising legend Sir John Hegarty; Su-Mei Thompson, CEO of the Media Trust; Juliet Davenport, Founder and Director of Good Energy; Lindsey Clay, CEO Thinkbox; Fiona Ball, Group Director of the Bigger Picture at Sky; Stephen Woodford, Chair of the Advertising Association; Jo Coombes, Founder of AdGreen, Gideon Spanier, UK Editor-in-Chief of Campaign and Karen Blackett OBE, Country Manager at WPP & GroupM UK CEO.

Judges were impressed with all final creatives presented but after tough deliberation, Here We Flo secured the Grand Prix because of its “ability to share their entire brand story in 30” and doing in it in a funny, challenging and memorable way”

Sarah Jones Director of Planning at Sky Media commented, “A huge congratulations to Here We Flo for winning the £1m Sky Zero Footprint fund. The judges were truly impressed with the passion for their business which shone through at every stage of the process. They have produced a fantastic TV ad that we believe will have a tangible impact on consumer behaviour.

All the finalists delivered brilliant pitches with high quality, big impact, creative TV executions – Olio, OVO Energy, Path financial and Pura will launch their new TV campaigns alongside Here We Flo in a couple of weeks. We know that all our 5 winners will play a key role in encouraging the nation to make small but significant changes to help the planet. It’s exciting that through the process we’ve unearthed new and disruptive brands, giving them a platform to amplify their message through the power of TV.”

The five winning ads were all produced following best practice advice and recommendations from the Advertising Association’s AdGreen programme. The ads will be unveiled as part of a launch campaign linked to coincide with the COP26 conference which Sky is a key partner of.

Established by Sky, the Footprint Fund is part of the Sky Zero campaign to be net zero carbon by 2030. The five finalists of Sky Zero’s Footprint Fund are:

• Here We Flo
  Founded in 2013, Here We Flo believes that what we put in our bodies should be as natural as possible, kind to our bodies and kind to the planet. From biodegradable pad liners to organic tampons, all products are vegan and cruelty free and made from 100% organic or natural materials.
• OLIO
  The number 1 free sharing app, OLIO, allows users to find people that are giving away food and household items to their neighbours for free. It strives to fight waste, help the local community and save the planet! 

• OVO Energy
  OVO puts the planet at the heart. It offers 100% renewable electricity on all plans. It also plants a carbon-busting tree for every year a customer joins. 

• Path Financial
  The Path is a financial advisory firm with the idea that pensions, savings, and investments could be used as a force to reverse climate change. While offering practical financial advice, The Path is aligned with UN Sustainable Development Goals and focuses on ethically-led investment strategies.

• Pura
  Launched by two Cheshire-based parents, Pura, offers affordable, sustainable baby products. From eco-friendly nappies to flushable baby wipes, Pura helps people to take care of the planet as well as their family.