One lonely polar bear

Television will always be one of the most effective advertising mediums for conveying emotion. TV commercials allows brands the opportunity to entertain, amuse, inform or  move an audience like no other medium. If the budget allows a TV campaign is a fantastic way for a charity to tug at the heartstrings and most importantly inspire action. 

I dare anyone to watch Greenpeace's "homeless polar bear" and not be moved. While I'm not the usual Greenpeace supporter, this ad interrupted my TV viewing and made me want to head online and find out more. And yes, as a result I did sign the petition, the power of a TV ad.  

The campaign has some big names supporting it including Sir Paul McCartney, The Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Radiohead (the soundtrack to the ad is their song "Everything in it's place") and Jude Law (who voices the ad). 

If you too feel moved to action, visit www.savethearctic.org to sign the petition. 

The poor homeless polar bear in the Greenpeace commercial is actually a human operated puppet commissioned specifically for the campaign. The polar bear has been appearing in major cities and landmarks across the globe to raise awareness for Greenpeace's Save the Arctic mission. 

Chilling with crowds at the Tower of London via The Daily Mail

Meeting tourists at Retiro park lake in Madrid - via Daylife.com

And here's a couple of print ads, just in case you weren't already convinced to sign the petition at www.savethearctic.org! (ads from Creative Advertising for NGOs)