16 Dec The Agenda | Vol. 44 | Wrapping 2021 on a hopeful note
by the Global Impact Relations Network
DECEMBER 16, 2021 | THE AGENDA VOL. 44
Showing the world how impactful storytelling drives behavior
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Listen, we know that a lot of you are likely feeling a little burnt out and in need of a rest. It’s been a heavy end to the year, what with the Texas heartbeat bill dealing a huge blow to women’s reproductive freedom and the Omicron variant threatening to erase any progress we’ve made against COVID-19. So just for this month, we’re setting down our alarm bells and megaphones to bring you a couple feel-good comms stories to round out the year.
Remember that, in order to continue to make your work as impactful as possible, you need to take time to reflect, recharge and refill your cup. Close your laptop and set your phone aside. Celebrate a job well done. For now, we rest. And in January, we rise to fight again.
SDGs covered in this issue:
Drag queens give gaming an inclusivity makeover
Image: @DearDeere
The multi-billion dollar gaming industry hasn’t exactly had a warm and fuzzy reputation since Gamergate exposed it as a hotbed of misogyny and online hate. But not all gamers are basement-dwelling men with anger issues. Many are women, and a survey found 10 percent of gamers identify as LGBTQ. Savvy communicators, among them a new crop of gamer drag queens, are reaching the gamer audience via Twitch, an interactive livestreaming service for gaming and other entertainment content. Deere, a gamer queen who was named Gaymer Mag’s LGBTQ Streamer of the Year, has amassed 50,000 followers on Twitch and founded StreamQueens, a group of about 100 out-and-proud gaming influencers. Other savvy communicators who have used Twitch to reach the gaming community include Jagmeet Singh, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Hasan Piker.
Triple Pundit: Drag Queens Lead on Bringing More Diversity to Gaming
Clean Creatives pledge not to help fossil fuel companies greenwash
Image: Clean Creatives
The extensive (and expensive) climate denial campaigns waged by fossil fuel companies are well documented, but a new partnership is hoping to starve those companies of some of the creative power they would otherwise hire on for greenwashing and astroturfing campaigns. Advertisers, PR firms and other marketers who sign the Clean Creatives Pledge vow not to take on clients from companies on the “No Fossil Fuel Money” list. The organization’s signatories participate in tactics such as open letters to call in their peers and compiling reports on which comms firms are helping the fossil fuel industry mislead the public.
Take the Clean Creatives Pledge here
Imagining a post-pandemic world
Image: The Intercept / YouTube
An age-old tactic for dealing with adversity is to imagine what might actually happen if the bad thing comes to pass, and hopefully, discover it’s not as bad as you think. NYT morning newsletter writer David Leonhardt explores the idea of what feels out of reach right now: a 2022 in which the pandemic is over. Some industries are gone, others are barely recognizable, but there are reasons to be hopeful for solutions to some of the world’s (or at least, America’s) greatest challenges. Side note: Our favourite example of communicators using “imagine what if” to persuade is Alexandria Ocasio Cortez’ collaboration with The Intercept on this video imagining the world that is possible under a Green New Deal.
NYT: Opinion | It’s 2022. What Does Life Look Like? – The New York Times
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Thanks for reading,
— Ashley Letts, Managing Editor
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