New Zealand’s rivers, oceans and public conservation land is up for sale to the highest bidder, and Forest & Bird wants to stop it. The New Zealand government is currently selling exploitation rights to 925,200 hectares of conservation and private land, and more than 39 million hectares of ocean, through an international tender process.
Forest & Bird is a ngo that wanted to bring to the attention of the New Zealand voting public (its election year in New Zealand) that the government had put large amounts of public land and oceans have been put “on the block” for companies to tender for to prospect for minerals, fossil fuels and oil. Also through a large government irrigation subsidy the New Zealand freshwater is also being sold to commercial interests.
Graphic Designer Marie Holdaway made the campaign pro bono in eye-catching, legible and authentic ‘real estate’ billboard designs.
Marie Holdaway: “I’m sure we’re all aware that most real estate signs are more about catching your eye and screaming ‘FOR SALE!!!’ than they are about beautiful pieces of art, so I thought it was important that these billboards mimicked the in-your-face, bold and bright real estate property signs in order for the message to be conveyed strongly.
I designed 11 billboards all up, which are erected throughout New Zealand and photos of them shared on Forest and Bird’s social media accounts, encouraging people to print their own billboards and share them on their social accounts.”
Official campaign video:
Forest & Bird on social media:
Our our seas up for sale? And what could this mean for our marine life? http://t.co/AmXsTDX7f3 #nzontheblock pic.twitter.com/fB3i8MgCSF
— Forest & Bird (@Forest_and_Bird) July 31, 2014
