Lima, Peru is the second most polluted city in Latin America, according to the World Health Organization, and an out-of-home (OOH) campaign collected that air pollution to warn residents of the health hazards.
McCann Lima worked with Peruvian gas company Calidda to produce ‘Lima Is Talking,’ an innovative project that collected actual air pollution to communicate the risks of automobile pollution and promote the benefits of natural gas.
The campaign wrote a message in pollution to local residents about how difficult it has become for it to breathe. The innovation came from a device attached to a prominent billboard location in one of Lima’s busiest traffic locations, which collected CO2 pollution from the atmosphere. The unit stored the CO2 gas, then processed it into a powder. In the transformation process from gas to powder, the powder acted as an ink and was manipulated to slowly write a message on the billboard, which began as a blank canvas. After 15 days, the billboard broadcast the final message: “It takes me a lot to breathe.”
The experiment was recorded and the online film was shared across social media platforms. The air pollution powder was packaged in the media kit and sent to influencers and the press, along with an invitation to the public to debate Lima’s appalling air pollution.
“With this initiative, we wanted to raise awareness around air pollution and engage citizens in the pursuit of solutions. Besides, we offer the natural gas option as a less polluting fuel,” said Amadeo Arraste, Calidda’s regulation director.
Mauricio Fernández-Maldonado, the creative executive vice president for McCann Lima, said: “The outdoor was installed in one of Lima’s busiest traffic points, Abancay Avenue, so that we could reach the largest possible audience, while showing the concrete result of fossil fuels.”
McCann Lima: Calidda 'Lima Talks'
