OceanCare Campaign Recognised with VAMP Award
OceanCare’s international campaign “Because Our Planet Is Blue” has been recognised with Silver at the VAMP Award in the category “Best NPO Campaign” in Austria. Developed by the creative agency Springer & Jacoby Österreich in support of the 6 points Action Plan of OceanCare addressed to governments around the world, this recognition also belongs to the 114,559 people worldwide who raised their voices for the ocean.
On World Oceans Day 2024, OceanCare launched an international mobilisation campaign with a clear message: The ocean urgently needs real and legally binding protection. At its heart was a 6-point action plan addressing the root causes of ocean degradation:
- Ban offshore oil & gas exploration and exploitation
- Implement mandatory vessel speed reduction to protect marine wildlife
- Prohibit destructive fishing practices such as bottom trawling
- Adopt comprehensive rules to stop plastic pollution across its entire lifecycle
- Agree on a deep-sea mining moratorium
- Ensure effective marine habitat protection and restoration
Over an entire year, the campaign mobilised support across multiple countries, reflecting growing public concern about the state of marine ecosystems. The petition represented citizens from around the world who refuse to accept the continued decline of ocean health.
Creative partnership with Springer & Jacoby
The creative agency Springer & Jacoby Österreich developed a comprehensive creative concept that deliberately broke with the often idealised portrayal of the ocean. The campaign showed the multiple threats unvarnished: shipping, plastic pollution, oil and gas extraction are constant dangers to marine life. Despite imagery of destruction and pollution, the campaign conveyed a central message of hope: It’s not too late to save the ocean and its inhabitants.
Eight different campaign visuals for print, online media and video, in English, German and Spanish, created a unique, recognisable visual language through cross-media implementation. The central message “The Ocean takes care of us – we must take care of the Ocean together” culminated in the campaign title: BECAUSE OUR PLANET IS BLUE.
Strategic partnerships amplified reach
The campaign employed an integrated 360° multi-channel strategy – such as online and offline media, press coverage, digital marketing or dedicated events. Beyond the trilingual petition on ourplanetisblue.org and collaboration with WeMove.EU, strategic partnerships were forged with The Trash Traveler trough out the Trash Art Tour, as well as cooperations with many other multipliers.
Nice: The proudest moment
One of the campaign’s proudest moments was arriving in Nice in June 2025. OceanCare delivered the 114,559 signatures to Peter Thomson, UN Special Envoy for the Ocean, and Juan Carlos Navarro, Panama’s Minister of Environment, at the highest political level and as a compelling call for political change. The official UN report on the third UN Ocean Conference (UNOC3) recognised OceanCare’s six demands as “the benchmark for assessing the outcome of UNOC3, not only for OceanCare, but also for the 200+ NGOs and more than 114,000 citizens worldwide who supported the petition.
What this campaign made possible
The campaign successfully positioned OceanCare as an internationally acting expert organisation promoting the ocean-climate nexus. Throughout the entire campaign year, OceanCare systematically positioned the importance addressed the triple planetary crisis by better protection the ocean and detailed action points within all relevant UN processes. It focused especially on a call towards governments highlighting six areas of priority engagement towards the 3rd UN Ocean Conference in June, 2025, in Nice, France.
This action plan remains our clear message
This recognition acknowledges everyone who stood with us for the ocean. But our work is not done. This action plan remains our clear message to policymakers: The ocean cannot wait. Our work continues.
