In a first of its kind collaboration between the advertising industry and Google in support of the Sustainable Development Goals adopted at the United Nations, the ‘Little by Little’ campaign will leverage the power of YouTube and global influencers to mobilize Gen Z to carry out 2 billion acts of good.
‘Little by Little’ is rooted in the truth that exponential change can be made possible through the repetition of little acts by the largest generation on earth.
To kick-start the campaign, model and activist, Jillian Mercado, is featured in the anthem video which has already garnered more than 15 million views in just two weeks. At launch, she will be joined by a global roster of influencers – UN ambassadors and YouTube creators curated by FameBit - who will share their stories, content and actions on YouTube and other social platforms, including Yara Shahidi, Marissa Rachel, Roxy Rocks, Jessica Dante, Adebola Williams, Gemma Stafford and Khushi Maheshwari, The voices of these global influencers will be amplified by a host of other creators in the U.S., U.K., India and Nigeria as they inspire user-generated content from their followers to save the world with little actions.
This global campaign is under the banner of Common Ground – the initiative by the world’s six largest advertising groups to support the Sustainable Development Goals. In April 2017, the six founding members of Common Ground, Dentsu, Havas, IPG, Omnicom, Publicis and WPP alongside Wieden + Kennedy – with the financial, creative and logistical support of Google – came together under the banner ‘The Common Futures Project’. The initial direction was conceived in a ‘Hackathon’ in New York drawing on resources from all agency partners and then developed further by a coalition of agencies including Sapient Razorfish, Ogilvy and Mediacom.
The Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations, Amina J. Mohammed commented on the initiative: “We have a blueprint for a better world – the Sustainable Development Goals. Little by Little is about young people around the world coming together to build a movement for success. It is based on a powerful notion. Yes, we face a lot of big problems – but we can start fixing them through a lot of small acts. Step by step, little by little, we will get to a better world.”
In a joint statement, the CEOs of the Common Ground partnership said, “Common Ground was born of the idea that, as an industry, we can set aside our differences to support the agenda of the 17 global goals. Little by Little is proof that this is not a theoretical ambition, but an achievable goal.”
In explaining their support for the project, Google spokesperson, Torrence Boone, VP Global Agency Development, commented: “Video can affect us like no other medium. It can educate, build understanding and even change the way we see our world. It’s exciting to see Common Ground’s Little by Little campaign come to life and we’re proud that YouTube’s platform and influencers will play a crucial role in spreading this important initiative.”
