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MANILA – A “dead whale” in Naic, Cavite won two top awards in the 2018 Cannes Lions International Festival in France.
A project by Greenpeace Philippines and its creative partner Dentsu Jayme Syfu, the 73-foot long art installation bagged gold and silver lions for outdoor and design, respectively.
Its entire body was made and full of plastic, from bags and sachets to bottles and other containers.
“The plastic pollution issue has gotten out of hand, and the ‘dead whale’ clearly illustrated the crisis we have put our planet and our people in. The scourge of plastic pollution is undeniable, and is already taking a toll not just on our environment and food, but the overall welfare of Filipinos,” Vince Cinches, oceans campaigner for Greenpeace Philippines, said in a statement.
“It’s time for the national government to stop dragging its feet in addressing this problem and for big fast-moving consumer goods corporations to stop spewing excuses for their single-use plastic production,” he added.
The lead creator of the “dead whale,” Biboy Royong, for his part said: “Plastic pollution is one of the most obvious problems that we see but most of us don’t even bother to do something about it. This honor is very important to the campaign because the more recognition it gets, the more people will get the message.”
The “dead whale” first captured global attention when it was launched on May 11 last year, during the meeting of the ASEAN Working Group on Coastal and Marine Environment in Manila.