Every year our members nominate the charity communicators that have inspired them. Without fail the people on the list are passionate and driven individuals who care so deeply about the causes they work for that you can’t help but stand up and take notice.
What inspires these Inspiring Communicators though? Which campaigns have had an impact on them and made them continually push for more? Quite simply what campaigns do they think have been great and deserve a bit of extra attention too?
Read on to find out…
Gina Martin’s campaign to make upskirting illegal
When you work in charity communications and on many campaigns, at some point you can reach fatigue and wonder, is this petition really going to make a difference? Or, is it ever possible to be the force that makes real change? Gina Martin’s campaign to make upskirting illegal reminded me of the power of campaigning – after experiencing upskirting at a festival in 2017 she went on to turn an experience that left her feeling powerless into a change for good. From googling ‘how to make a law’ to creating one in 18 months, Gina Martin inspired me to not give up on seeking justice and change for the things of this world that we shouldn’t just live with. Things can change and it really can start with us.”
Zoe Guy, senior digital content officer, YoungMinds
The National Autistic Society’s Autism Hour
I think The National Autistic Society’s Autism Hour campaign deserves real recognition. It’s the perfect example of how a simple idea – for shops and businesses to offer a more autism-friendly hour to their customers – has been executed to great effect. In its second year it has grown exponentially, with huge high-street names on board. I love the grass-roots elements of the campaign, where supporters can take simple actions to encourage their local high-streets to take part. And, of course, the impact goes far beyond just that hour and acts as a catalyst for lasting change.”
Tom Madders, director of communications and campaigns, YoungMinds
The Griefcast podcast by Cariad Lloyd
It’s not strictly a campaign but ‘Griefcast’ – the podcast in which writer Cariad Lloyd talks to comedians about death, dying and bereavement – is hugely inspiring. From working in the hospice sector, I can confirm that getting people to talk about death and dying is no easy task but Cariad has a wonderful way in encouraging her interviewees to talk honestly and openly. I love that this podcast is about real people sharing their real experiences. I think it’s important that we let people share their stories in their own words and this is something I try to do every day in my role.”
Sian Floyd, pr officer, Birmingham St Mary’s Hospice
CoppaFeel’s Grab Life By The Boobs
CoppaFeel!’s ‘Grab life by the boobs’ film is fab. It embodies the ethos of the charity by being really positive and celebratory while delivering a serious message about the importance of checking your body. The fact it ties in with their anniversary year makes it more special and the diverse cast of real people provide a simple reminder that breast cancer can affect anyone. I hope it’s got lots of people grabbing a feel!”
Kate Sanger, head of communications and public affairs, Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust
Bloody Good Period’s Flow Ho Ho
I want to keep my vag badge pinned firmly in place, so I will choose a campaign by a fellow ‘down there’ charity. Last Christmas, Bloody Good Period, a charity providing period products to refugees, asylum seeks and those who can’t afford them, ran the Flow Ho Ho campaign. The ask was very simple – donate money and fill a small, medium or large virtual stocking with much-needed menstrual supplies. Flow Ho Ho raised over 17k, which I think is incredible, especially considering Founder and CEO Gabby Edlin started all of this from a Facebook post just three years ago
Karen Hobbs, Cancer Information Officer, The Eve Appeal
Dementia UK’s Remember a Star campaign
Dementia UK’s Remember a Star campaign is a lovely, human-centred campaign that really fits within Dementia UK’s overall proposition. The fact that you can support their work whilst also remembering someone close to you, is a really nice value exchange. It’s all handled digitally too, which is well aligned to how people of all ages are giving now. Congrats to the team involved – I hope it goes really well for them!”
James Gadsby Peet, director of digital, William Joseph
Greta Thunberg’s school strike
Greta Thunberg’s school strike is the campaign that inspires me. We live in such unsettling and indeed upsetting times that it’s understandable that people would prefer to tune out current affairs. Yet Greta Thunberg’s desperate message to the world has managed to break through the noise to reach us. However we judge the success of her ‘campaign’, we certainly cannot say that it didn’t reach most of us. I hope that it has inspired enough of us.”
Enda Guinan, digital communications manager, Sarcoma UK
The Departure Lounge
There have been some fabulous charity campaigns this year, but if I had to pick one I’d go with The Departure Lounge (launched by the Academy for Medical Sciences, with Wellcome Trust and the Health Foundation). Sparking an authentic conversation around death and dying in a shopping centre in Lewisham, I thought it was incredibly brave. It’s something many of us have difficulty talking about, and a particularly underfunded area of research.
Dr Emily Burns, head of research communications, Diabetes UK
Everything that Encephalitis Society do
Twenty years ago I fell into the world that is encephalitis. Within six months my 30 hour a week job working from home grew to 60 hours a week as a result of the people I met and the passion I felt, through their stories, for their plight. Now an expert in the condition, I speak all over the world about its devastating consequences for those affected and their families. I have a PhD in how the stories they tell influence their recovery, their outcomes and their quality of life – what I can tell you is encephalitis is a thief: robbing families of their loved ones, and even in those families where the person survives, it often robs them of the person they once knew. Yet my passion is fuelled by the people I have met and by the human condition – the resilience and determination they show in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. I wake every morning grateful, privileged and honoured to serve them and my incredible team at the Encephalitis Society whose work and campaigns inspire me.”
Dr Ava Easton, CEO, Encephalitis Society
If you want to see the full list of winners for the 2019 Inspiring Communicator Awards and why they were nominated go to our winners page.
Photo: Greg Rakozy on Unsplash