Protecting Dugongs

Agency: TBWA South Africa
Client: Endangered Wildlife Trust

You are looking at every Dugong left in African waters.

Extensive trawling and habitat destruction off the coast of the Bazaruto Archipelago are destroying seagrass meadows, the dugong's main food source. Already, 60% of the area's seagrass meadows have been depleted.

Stand up against trawling and destructive fishing techniques.


Art Direction: Unlike the previous post, this is an example of a piece driven entirely by a simple, powerful piece of copy. While the idea is very simple, it's effective and really makes you investigate further. 4/5

Copy: There's nothing quite so powerful as a simple statement of fact: especially if that fact is terrifying. This is a great example of no-frills writing. Kudos! 5/5

"Legal" Harborside a Crime

Agency: DeVito/Verdi
Client: Legal Harborside

Legal Harborside, a seafood restaurant in Boston, might have the worst name of all time. If you look at their menus, you'll find several threatened and irresponsibly fished species of marine life: sea scallops, bluefin tuna, and Atlantic salmon, to name a few. 

Speaking of crimes, the agency DeVito/Verdi is guilty of three: these ads.

Art Direction: This is possibly one of the worst campaigns I've ever seen, other than this guy up in Cleveland. Firstly, the idea is poor. Taking Boston landmarks and putting aprons around their necks is something third graders from the short bus would think up. Secondly, the photoshop is sloppy, the aprons look stiff and very clearly...photoshopped. How hard would it have been to actually put some aprons on the statues and take a picture?! 1/5

Copywriting: What copy? 0/5

Taking care of our oceans means taking care of the abundant life that lives there. Many of the species we like to eat are fighting fin and tail (sometimes shell) for their survival--and we're not stopping. It's important to get the word out that fish are mad as hell and they're not going to take it anymore! Something as simple as eating the right kinds of seafood can make a huge difference. 

Tell "Legal" Harborside that their menu is a crime: Copy and paste this letter into their feedback.

76% of the world’s commercially fished species have been fished to or beyond the point at which their populations can sustain themselves.

Many of the species on your menu are being fished to the point of extinction, or are fished in ways that harm the oceans.

Until you feature sustainable seafood on your menu, I will not support your business, and will urge others to do the same.

Thank you.

Because EcoDivas Keep it Real

My BFF EcoDiva pointed out a duh factor in my previous two posts.

Just how in the hell DO you eat more sustainable fish?!

Thank god for the Monterey Bay Aquarium, otherwise I'd have no idea. They've given us a groovy wallet/purse/pocket size list of sustainable fish choices. I have to whip this baby out every time I go to the store. If you see a fish on the ice but aren't sure how it was caught, don't be afraid to ask. These fish come in daily and the butcher has a lot of info.

Keep in mind that fishing methods can also be unsustainable, even if the fish is a sustainable fish. Trawling, for example, is a common method in which a boat drags a net across the ocean floor, and all manner of sea life gets caught in the nets--dolphins, turtles, etc.

Don't see any sustainable choices? Go Na'vi on their ass.

Monterey Bay also released an app for your smartphone:

https://market.android.com/details?id=org.montereybayaquarium.seafoodwatch