"We Change when Our Comfort Changes"

The final posting on this blog has been endowed the title, "We Change when Our Comfort Changes". As a summation of the metaphorical messages through social awareness, the picture above displays sushi, a dish farmed by the sea, wrapped in seaweed of plastic bags, wrappers, and barcodes. The only way the human race will start to consider changing the comfort of our lifestyles for our planet, is when it starts to slowly take over our quality of life. When we replace our modern delicacies with less than desirable substitutes, or when our cars have nothing to run on, we will begin the guaranteed scramble to save our home. Social change ads strive to make the viewer uncomfortable, to stop and stare, to remain as a constant reminder to do the right thing in the conscious of the passerby. Slowly but surely we will change, and one day we might even learn the lesson that the quality of life is exponentially better when we take less than we give.   

"When did being Sick become Stylish?"

Women know how society wants them to look. There are a few, Beyoncè, Kim Kardashian, and Meghan Trainor, who boast the pride that comes with curves, the beauty behind being confident. Around the middle school age, girls start to care about what they see in the mirror, they change from the shoes that allow them to run fastest on the playground, to the clothes that will allow them to match a crowd of equally insecure girls. This ad boasts, "You are not a sketch", disproving the common misconception that the societal ideas of a perfect women are easily obtained through healthy diet and exercise. As we raise future generations, how can we expect the women to lead our countries and become the leading minds in medicine, science, and literature, to take on these roles without confidence? Our society is trying, we have music that screams lyrics of confidence behind assets, and models who boast that any size is beautiful, but we are still ignoring a greater issue. We should be raising our men, women, and children with the ideology that in the battle of brains and body, brains are always more beautiful. 

"We are Losing More than Rainforests"

We reflect on events such as genocide or natural disasters with horror and desperation to forget the damaging events of the past and prevent their reoccurrence in the future. It is estimated in 100 years rainforests, like dinosaurs, will be a figment of imagination we relive through the tales we tell to our children. As we demolish acres of rainforest through deforestation, not only do we deplete a source of the air we need to breathe, but we are the creators of a massive genocide of countless species that will soon be nothing but a dusty display in a museum. This social issue ad relays the message of the devastation to the environment that is the by-product of the human desire for hard-wood floors and fuel. When we deforest we cut through more than just wood, we slice through our planet's lungs, and will to live. 

"New Start or a New Life?"

Everyone loves a before and after story of revival, newfound passion for life, and revitalization. But how do we prevent the before from ever happening? We know dog's as man's best friend, but would you ever abuse, neglect, and destroy your best friend? The above ad, demonstrates the ability of the quality of life to change when a dog changes hands. The campaign promotes the power of adoption, the ability of a person to take a demolished life, one that has been starved of both food and joy, one that lives to love unconditionally and receives nothing but hate, and transform this life with a brand new outlook. There is beauty in power of unconditionally loving a life, but there is even more grace in the ability to see beyond matted fur and hopeless eyes to envision the new will to live that comes with a second chance at life. 

"When does a Stereotype become Stereotypical?"

Through the studies of psychology, it has been proven natural that the first impression formed when meeting someone is something that makes a lasting imprint of that individual in a person's mind. But this first impression shouldn't be based on skin color. We don't like to admit it, but stereotypes drive the way think not only individuals, but entire cultures. When do we learn these stereotypes? This ad represents the power of skin color in forming a place in society. Skin color should in no way dictate a person's job, social status, or credibility. Young children playing together do not differentiate between black and white when they are assigning roles in tag or other playground games. An issue equally as important as global warming, discrimination through race or gender must be eliminated. We must identify the point at which discrimination is born, then flourishes, we must teach the children of the next generation that the world is not meant to be seen in black or white, but rather through the lenses of passion and dedication of the surrounding individuals. 

"Is the Beauty Worth the Pain?"

No one wants to see a dead puppy, but many individuals, in the vanity of society, refuse to leave their house without make-up. As with many social issues, the underlying problem is one that many humans don't want to admit to. As the Humane Society combats the adversities of ending animal testing, some progress has been made, but still many animals are suffering because of society's insecurities. The European Union, as of March 2013, banned all sale and distribution of animal tested products. This is not enough. Perhaps more extreme measures must be taken. As with social issues, humans only act if they are affected or disturbed. Maybe pictures of suffering animals on make-up should be applied to labels, instead of designs and colors that reinforce that wanting longer lashes is a harmless desire. 

"Colors are More than Just Adjectives"

It is apparent we live in a vain world. Turn on the 7 o'clock news and the headlines read "a sunken vessel off the coast of China, over 100 deaths", "a train turned off the track from Pennsylvania to New York", and "the newly revealed images of Bruce Jenner as a woman". Not that these issues are any more important than another, but we live in a society that worships material items, beautiful people, and status symbols. The Salvation Army posted this social issue ad as a reminder of the vanity that blinds us from real-world issues. "Why is it so hard to see black and blue?". Why is it that an image of a deceiving dress will go viral, but the less stylish issue of domestic violence is silenced?  My six-word memoir represents that for many people, colors are more than just words describing a dress. The represent the marks left by abuse, neglect, and hatred. We must end the fear of talking about the big issues. At social events around the world, people were handing around cell phones with the dress, asking, "what colors do you see?". Why can't discuss domestic violence socially, asking each other, "how do we end this?"

"How Many is this Picture Worth?"

We know a picture is worth a thousand words, but what is a word worth? From the day we learn to speak we use words to communicate our wants, needs, and desires. We use words of reinforcement when those we love are down, words of encouragement for those who need support, words of love and compassion to express the true feelings of those we surround ourselves with. Sometimes, we are even at a lose for words. What if the words we grow up hearing are not those of encouragement, but rather discouraging reminders of a lack of self-worth? Using words, this ad represents the almost physical effect words can have on a person, whether young or old. Often, when one thinks of abuse or domestic violence, bruises and blood come to mind. Society needs a reminder that words leave scars that take much longer to heal than the scars of physical violence. "Your words have power, use them wisely" declares the ad, a lesson we must instill in the people of all ages. Next time someone cuts you off on the highway, steals your favorite toy on the playground, or drops a ball for the team, remember, no matter your age, no matter your frustration, one word can be worth a million different things for one person. 

"Women Should... Be a Positive Stereotype"

After doing a project on the stereotype of feminism, I became astonishingly aware of the existence of discrimination through gender in modern society. Google the beginning of the phrase "Women should" and the search engine will spit back the top suggested searches based on other users. It is disturbing to live in a society with such an advanced existence, with perks such as a limitless search engine, vaccines, and devices that allow communication to any individual on the planet, and still have a majority of the population wondering how to make women slaves, or researching the gender roles of working in the kitchen. This ad speaks through silence. The words are placed over a nameless woman's mouth. The discrimination of society has taken her ability to speak. "Women should" could be a positive phrase. Women should be leaders. Women should be role models. Women should refuse to be silenced. We must speak for those who are silenced by stereotypes, and silence those who promote discrimination. 

"Help! She's not Breathing! Do CPR!"

The existence of global warming is a constantly debated subject. When politicians aren't the capitalizing the fear it creates to gain support for their campaigns, or to budget another million dollars for a fund that has nothing to do with the environment, stripped to the facts, there is an issue. Our issue. Humans neglect to remember the effect they've had on this planet. The race forgets to acknowledge not only are we destroying our home, but it is our only home. It is in human nature that we comfort ourselves by disregarding responsibility and reassuring each other that someone will save the day, and the planet from warming. We rise to the notion that if our winters are so cold, how can the planet's inner temperature be burning at rapid rates? This ad distributed through the World Wildlife Fund, uses a representation of lungs, the air we breath to exemplify the effects of demolishing the rainforests. The lungs represent our one source of air, the deforestation showcases the diminishing ability to breathe. As with many social issue ads, the message must be graphic and applicable to humans or it will leave the advertisers gasping for air.