These ads were developed in typical Avaaz fashion -- in response to current conditions on the ground, with very little lead-time. It was an attempt to pressure Japan, the USA, and Canada, who were holding up the Bali climate talks by refusing to consider emissions targets.
The concepts evolved slightly in the little time we had available to work on it. The resulting parody of the widely recognizable Titanic poster garnered much press attention and reports indicate that it was instrumental in helping nudge Japan towards accepting emissions targets. The initial concepts for the Canada-specific version had the maple leaf morphing into an Esso logo, but the ads were rejected due to copyright fears and we went with plan B: morphing the maple leaf into the handle of a gas pump.
From an Avaaz email in the weeks following the conference:
Dear friends,
Huge news out of Japan--a top newspaper is reporting a major shift in climate policy, and citing Avaaz members as one of the reasons why!
The report [indicates] that at a critical meeting to set Japan's climate policy, the Environment Minister held up Avaaz.org's "Titanic" newspaper ad from the Bali summit--showing Japanese Prime Minister Fukuda, with Bush, sailing towards climate disaster, with 90,000 Avaaz members calling for new emissions targets.
"The world sees Japan as a force resisting change! Are we okay with this?" the minister reportedly asked, sparking intense discussion. Days later, Prime Minister Fukuda announced a major national policy shift--Japan is now setting a 2020 emissions target!
This is a genuine victory--Japan is a huge polluter, a key Bush ally, and host of this summer's crucial G8 summit. Congratulations to everyone for the positive role we all played in this!