Each year, we run our $10k Project Grant, an annual grant that supports a company or organisation to realise a great idea or initiative that will have a positive impact. In 2022, we were proud to partner with fellow B Corporation, We Are Explorers, to bring The Underwater Forest Project to life.
We Are Explorers (WAE) is one of Australia’s leading adventure lifestyle brands and certified B Corporation who have built an unrivaled audience of modern-day explorers through meaningful content that inspires adventure and protection of our natural world. Their vision for an inclusive and community-driven platform, is to create social and environmental change, encouraging every Australian to live healthy, nature-focused and adventurous lives.
Each year WAE runs a crowdfunding campaign for an organisation making a real difference for people and the planet, and in 2022, they partnered with Operation Crayweed to raise the visibility of crayweed forests and increase awareness for this important underwater habitat.
We contributed our brand know-how and resources to help them develop and execute the crowdfunding campaign, The Underwater Forest Project, raising awareness and funds for the re-establishment of crayweed forests off the coast of Sydney, bringing it back from the verge of local extinction.
To bring the crowdfunding campaign to life, WAE needed a meaningful campaign brand, theme and story that would connect with the adventurous spirit of their community. The brand needed to feel inspiring, playful and have a spirit of freedom – nurturing wonder, adventure and curiosity. The hand-drawn illustrations were given an intentional retro feel to evoke nostalgia as they came together to tell a story of connection between the land and sea. Layers of intricate detail were added for intrigue and a sense of continual discovery. The bright colours bring life, energy and movement to the campaign brand and reinforce the positive impact the cause aims to have on Sydney’s marine biodiversity.
The campaign identity then needed to be thoughtfully applied across a range of digital mediums, including the campaign’s landing page, crowdfunding page, social templates, and digital assets.
With the generous help of 240 supporters, WAE hit their target goal of raising $42,000 for The Underwater Project, where 100% of the funds will go to Operation Crayweed to help replant an entire crayweed site off the coast of Sydney. We’re looking forward to seeing Sydney’s coastline restored to its natural beauty and the return of the hundreds of marine species that rely on Crayweed forests for food, safety and reproduction.
“With a campaign like this, you need to work with people who get it, are cause-driven and equally passionate. Mezzanine brought all three to the party! Their support allowed our third crowdfunding campaign to level up both strategically, and especially visually. Their creative direction and application saw the campaign have powerful and vibrant visual storytelling across all touchpoints, while being accommodating and allowing us to adapt the creative to our needs.” – Jack Brookes, Social Media and Community Manager, We are Explorers
