It’s time you got to know a little bit more about the relationship between plastic and salt, and that’s where Green is the New Black and Dentsu come in.
We were horrified to learn that 90% of the world’s salt contains microplastics and even more horrified when people seemed to not care. In an effort to bring this issue back under the spotlight, we’re launching a video called ‘Plastic Salt‘ to remind people that we are consuming plastic on a daily basis and help empower them to take action.
The video was created in partnership with Dentsu, a global network of 10 brands that innovate the way brands are built through its best–in–class expertise and capabilities in media, digital and creative communications services. Together, we wanted to highlight the global plastic pollution crisis in a way that leverages Dentsu’s strength as a creative communications business with our shared vision of #LittleGreenSteps. As such, Plastic Salt was born and looks to make the microplastic pollution crisis “real” using the simple motif of a salt grinder.
World Earth Day made for the right occasion for us to join forces and raise awareness surrounding microplastic pollution. So without further ado, take a first look at the finished product and then read on for our interview with Chloe Rees, Partnership’s Director and Social Impact Lead at Dentsu.
What have been some of the most rewarding and most challenging parts of Dentsu Singapore’s #littlegreensteps over the past year?
Starting with the challenges, moving from London to Singapore I was really taken aback by the widespread adoption of single-use plastic in the office. People were aware of the environmental consequences and wanted to change but there was no sense of urgency. As luck would have it our annual volunteer day was just around the corner and we went for a beach clean up at Pasir Ris Park. Witnessing the sheer amount of plastic waste on our local beach first hand made the impact of single-use plastic a lot more “real”. This galvanized us as a business to look inwards make some big changes. We ran a “plastic free” campaign encouraging our teams to bring their reusables to work, there was a hard stop to single-use plastic in our catering and ordering any plastic wrapped fruit. Some teams even imposed a “plastic tax” – effectively a swear box for plastic! It was so rewarding to see how the business got behind this behavior change and these #littlegreensteps have now spread across our network globally.
What is at the top of Dentsu Singapore’s sustainability agenda for 2019?
Continuing what we started! Last year was the beginning of our sustainability journey regarding single-use plastic in Singapore. We want to continue inspiring local (and global) businesses to take #littlegreensteps to reduce their dependency on plastic. As a testament to this, we have produced our first film, Plastic Salt, to raise awareness on microplastics both in Singapore and at a global scale on World Earth Day.
We were excited to hear about Plastic Salt for World Earth Day! How did this project come about?
As we became more connected to the sustainability landscape in Singapore I crossed paths with Steph from Green is the New Black. We started exploring how we could work together leveraging our strength as a creative communications business and a shared vision of #littlegreensteps. World Earth Day (22nd April) was the perfect catalyst for us to join forces and raise awareness about microplastic pollution. Through the simple motif of a salt grinder, Plastic Salt makes the microplastic pollution crisis “real”.
Sounds great. Do you think business’ need to play a role in environmental activism?
Absolutely! For us, in Dentsu Singapore, it’s great to feel that our business is taking a stand and collaborating with social enterprises like Green is the New Black to raise awareness on this global microplastic crisis. I’m a passionate believer that the business community has the power and responsibility to change the world we live in and positively impact society. Businesses, regardless of sector, need to foster a culture of intrapreneurship as it’s these “changemakers” that will empower businesses to become leaders of sustainability – which is everyone’s responsibility.
While we don’t know what the future will hold, our actions today do have an effect on the years and possibly decades to come. Join us and help to raise awareness about refusing single-use plastic by sharing Plastic Salt with your audiences and communities. Head here for more information about the cause and what you can do.
