Fridays for Future US’ ‘Aliens’ campaign reminds voters who’s most likely to destroy our planet
Image credit: Fridays for Future US
Ahead of the 2022 US midterm elections tomorrow, Fridays for Future
US — the US contingent of the climate
movement inspired by Greta
Thunberg
— has asserted that we shouldn’t fear aliens, as the Earth’s greatest threat is
far closer than we may think.
The hypothetical threat of malicious foreign invaders destroying the Earth has been the plotline for numerous successful movies and TV
shows, and the throughline for countless conspiracy theories over the last 50+
years. And while it could be argued there’s evidence of extraterrestrial life,
we alone pose the direst threat to our planet — from anti-environment
legislation and a lack of federal regulations to ongoing, rampant deforestation devastating our natural ecosystems globally, it’s clear that humans are far
more dangerous to the future of our planet than aliens could ever be.
With this week’s midterm elections taking place amid the reality that 139 elected officials in Congress
still deny the scientific consensus of human-caused climate change, Fridays for
Future US has released “Aliens” — a four-part poster series powerfully
illustrating that our fears of deadly alien invasion are the least of our
concerns. Whether it's the denial of climate change or the lack of action to
address it, the most fearsome “aliens” are already destroying our planet — one
local election at a time.
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Join us as leaders from the Accomplis Collective, Bard, Beneficial State Foundation, ReEngineering HR and REI share best practices for cultivating a culture of belonging and insights into how inclusive leadership can lead to more effective and equitable sustainability outcomes — Wednesday, Oct. 16, at SB'24 San Diego.
This new campaign marks the 7th collaboration between Fred & Farid Los
Angeles and Fridays for Future. Utilizing retro sci-fi
motifs, “Aliens” depicts four different environments under attack by humans who
look eerily similar to aliens attacking a foreign planet: Men in futuristic
suits chop down trees with abandon, with machines aiding in the devastation;
business people flee from ominous smog clouds that engulf the sky as gas
guzzling cars fill the air with fumes; a giant fishing boat with nets bursting
with fish and bycatch splits the sea like a monster; and fires rage from the
Earth as humans and massive rigs drill for oil.
Between a lack of meaningful federal regulation in the US and an ongoing lack of
political motivation on a global level (time will tell if
COP27
will have any significant impact on this front), educating the public about the
current state of the Earth and the environment and taking action has never been
more crucial.
“Every election is a climate election. The midterms will decide Congressional
action on the man-made climate crisis for the foreseeable future,” says Fridays
for Future US Policy Director Liv Schroeder. “Americans across the country
are watching our seas rise, our houses burn, and our air thicken with smoke.
It’s time to elect climate champions who will represent their constituents and
fight for our people and planet.”
Universal Music Group expands voter-engagement initiatives
Image credit: Voto Latino
Meanwhile, Universal Music Group (UMG)
has launched a voter-engagement initiative spearheaded by its Universal Music
All Together Now Foundation and its Task Force for Meaningful
Change —
a group of employee volunteers dedicated to instituting meaningful change. The
initiative features new and updated installments of the "Use Your
Voice" voter registration and
education program, as well as the Task
Force for Meaningful Change's "Pull Up to the Polls" voter transportation
components.
In addition, UMG announced that its US offices will be closed on election days
moving forward to facilitate employees' voter participation and election day
volunteer activities.
"Universal Music Group, through its Task Force for Meaningful Change and the
Universal Music All Together Now Foundation, works towards meaningful positive
change by partnering with organizations and tapping our passionate network of
artists and music lovers to join together for a common cause,” said Susan
Mazo, UMG's EVP of Corporate Social Responsibility, Events and Special
Projects. “We are proud to work with our partners both internally and externally
to ensure all eligible voters have the resources they need to cast an informed
vote."
Use Your Voice
A campaign spanning UMG's US businesses aimed at supporting voters across the
country, this year the "Use Your Voice" campaign built purposeful partnerships
and activations with organizations working to prepare voters to cast their
ballots, including:
-
Content series and voter information hub — UMG and nonpartisan voter
organization HeadCount produced the "Use Your
Voice and Vote About It" content series — which discusses the issues that
voters may see on their local ballots and highlights why it's important,
particularly for young voters, to vote in the midterm elections. Covering
issues such as abortion access, LGBTQ+ rights, voting rights, policing and
the environment, the series features UMG artists such as Kiana Ledé and
producer Benny Blanco. The series drives fans and followers to the Use
Your Voice And Vote About It Voter
hub
that provides information, resources and digital tools to help everyone
vote.
-
Student voter mobilization efforts — UMG's creative solutions team,
°1824, is supporting student mobilization efforts, including campus voter
registration training for college representatives, led by HeadCount. °1824
also engaged its influencer marketing team to create social media content
encouraging people to register to vote on National Voter Registration Day.
Last week, they joined HeadCount and their partner Liquid Death on the
University of Georgia campus to hand out water, encourage students to
make a voting plan and teach students about voting rights in Georgia.
-
LGBTQ+ voter education — As an extension of UMG's longstanding
partnership with GLAAD, UMG worked with GLAAD on Spirit Day (October 20)
to support LGBTQ+ youth and raise awareness about anti-LGBTQ+ legislation.
-
Mental health and elections — The Universal Music All Together Now
Foundation is working with the Mental Health Coalition and Anxiety and
Depression Association of America to launch a content series focused on
how to manage mental health in the wake of election stress. The Foundation
also extended its partnership with the Mental Health Coalition to provide
direct mental health support to community organizers and mobilizers working
with HeadCount this election.
-
Election Protection — The Universal Music All Together Now Foundation is
supporting Election Protection — a non-partisan
organization that works to protect everyone's right to vote and runs a free
voter hotline to help eligible voters cast their ballot. The Foundation's
support helped Election Protection get 1,000 volunteers ready to monitor the
polls this midterm season.
"HeadCount is so grateful to UMG for their continued support alongside some of
the world's biggest artists. Encouraging young people to use their voice is
imperative to our democracy and can make a true difference in this critical
midterm election year," says Lisa DeLuca, Sr. Director of Artist Relations.
Pull Up to the Polls
Created in 2020 by UMG's Task Force for Meaningful Change, Pull Up to the Polls
is a partner-centered voter-engagement campaign aimed at supporting marginalized
voters around the country through voter education and resources that help get
eligible voters to the polls. This year, Pull Up to the Polls has partnered with
Voto Latino, NAACP and YMCA:
-
Voto Latino: Launched on National Voter Registration Day, Pull Up to the
Polls partnered with Voto Latino to register 9,000 eligible voters by
election day.
-
NAACP and YMCA: Partnered with Pull Up to the Polls to make over 3,500
roundtrip rides to the polls available to voters across the country between
early voting in October and election day.
"Voting is an essential component to promote a free and fair democracy that
gives every individual the right to address their policy interests and concerns,
particularly for marginalized communities disproportionately challenged with the
opportunity to vote," said Dr. Menna Demessie, SVP and Executive Director of
the Task Force for Meaningful Change. "It's vital that we provide solutions for
any barrier that prevents someone from voting, particularly transportation,
which is also a logistical hurdle for many working-class voters. We're grateful
to our partners for providing rides to the polls to ensure everyone gets to
vote."
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Sustainable Brands Staff
Published Nov 7, 2022 7am EST / 4am PST / 12pm GMT / 1pm CET