VALUESCO LAUNCHES GENZERO—GAMIFIED CLIMATE ACTION CAMPAIGN IN PARTNERSHIP WITH TIME & CELO––INCLUDING 100 PARTNERS BEFORE UN CLIMATE SUMMIT
THE INAUGURAL CAMPAIGN UNITES INFLUENCERS LIKE MARK RUFFALO, SOPHIA KIANNI & VIC MENSA, NONPROFITS LIKE NATURE CONSERVANCY & EARTHDAY.ORG, CULTURAL PARTNERS LIKE OBEY GIANT AND BRANDS LIKE ALLBIRDS & GUAYAKÍ
Monday, November 27, 2023 – Los Angeles, CA – ValuesCo announces the launch of GENZERO (genzeroaction.com), a first of its kind coalition-based climate action campaign and community that aims to drive individuals to take action on the social and environmental challenges of our time. The inaugural GENZERO campaign hopes to drive 100,000 participants to action with 100 partners confirmed, including TIME, amidst its 100th anniversary. Participants are incentivized to take action through rewards and gamification – enabling participation in-feed on social media and through the ValuesCo app – defining a new, participatory way to engage audiences in creating positive impact. GENZERO launches on November 27th ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) beginning on Friday.
The GENZERO campaign is available on the ValuesCo web app, which powers campaigns for participants to take action towards impact goals. Nonprofits provide actions for the campaign. Creators present actions to their audiences. Brands reward actions via sweepstakes, products, experiences, and donations. Participants take action, earn points, and redeem for prizes.
The Values app disrupts the experience economy with purpose-driven action campaigns; pictured: GENZERO
The GENZERO Coalition consists of:
Strategic partners: TIME, carbon negative blockchain Celo, global design and innovation company IDEO and award-winning Impact Media
Nonprofits: Greenpeace, The Nature Conservancy, Leonardo DiCaprio co-founded Re:Wild, Rare, Kiss the Ground, Amazon Sacred Headwaters, Amazon Watch, NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council), Zero Hour, Climate Cardinals, EarthDay.org, The Solutions Project, Amazon Frontlines, If Not Us Then Who
Creators & Activists: Including Actor & Activist Mark Ruffalo, 2022 VICE Person of Year & youngest ever UN Advisor Sophia Kianni, Black Girl Environmentalist Founder & first Black person to be a Rhode, Truman & Udall Scholar Wawa Gatheru, GRAMMY Nominated Rapper & Activist Vic Mensa, 2020 Goldman Environmental Prize Winner & 2023 Inaugural TIME100 Climate Indigenous Activist Nemonte Nenqimo (Waorani, Ecuador), Indigenous Fast & Furious/Vampire Diaries Actress & Activist Nathalie Kelley (Quechua, Peru), Entourage Actor & Lonely Whale Founder Adrian Grenier, First Indigenous Amazonian Born/Raised Model & Star of Postcard From Earth Zaya (Kamurape & Guarani Mbya, Brazil), Environmental activist & youngest ever White House Advisor Jerome Foster II, Environmental Educator & QueerBrownVegan Creator Isaias Hernandez, BLACK PEARL CEO & Creator of first-ever OSCARS® Sustainable Style Guide Samata Pattinson, GRAMMY Nominated Artist & UN Ambassador Rocky Dawuni, Parks & Recreation/Inside Amy Schumer Actress & Comedian Helen Hong, TIME100 Next Activist Xiye Bastida (Otomi, Mexico), Former All-Pro NFL Player & Renowned Yogi Keith Mitchell and Founder of Gen Z VCs Meagan Loyst––and Activists Marina Testino, Jamie Margolin, Winter BreeAnne and Keely Cat Wells, Artists Beaux, Soul Clap, Jagwar Twin and Spencer Guilburt, and Indigenous Storytellers Snow Raven (Sakha Republic of Siberia), Manari Ushigua (Sapara Nation, Ecuador) and Chief Phil Lane Jr. (Yankton Sioux & Chickasaw, U.S.) and Xiuhtezcatl (Xochimilca, Mexico)
Cultural partners like Shepard Fairey AKA Obey Giant – behind the iconic Barack Obama “Hope” poster, Ecotok Collective – the largest climate collective on TikTok, and UNIFY
Purpose-driven Brands like OLIPOP, Guayakí, GIO Scooters, Allbirds and Organic India
Prizes range from planting up to 50,000 trees, a 1 of 1 piece by nature-inspired artist Spencer Mar Guilburt (Swizz Beatz’s Dean Collection, Whitney Museum), a mentor session with Sophia Kianni (mentioned above), and brand products like electric scooters. Rewards will be unveiled and unlocked for users to redeem their points for prizes on Friday, December 1 at 12pm EST.
Why now? The UN’s recent IPCC report critically calls attention to the need for humanity to take ambitious emissions reduction actions by 2030 to keep temperature rise within 1.5° C to avoid wide-scale disaster. With the climate crisis looming as the preeminent challenge of our time, we envision a way for media companies, purpose-driven brands, and creators to come together and inspire grassroots change. TIME, ValuesCo, and their esteemed coalition invite the world to become part of a movement dedicated to affecting positive change with a campaign reach of 300M.
“Instead of being overwhelmed by the crisis, let’s join forces with local communities and show up for one another and take care of the places we call home,” said Gloria Walton, CEO & President at The Solutions Project and Mark Ruffalo, Actor, Activist, and Co-Founder of The Solutions Project. “Every action, big or small, matters — from educating ourselves on climate justice to voting and holding our elected officials accountable to making greener lifestyle choices. Together, our collective efforts add up and can wield significant impact. We must all contribute what and when we can to create a more equitable and sustainable world.”
“Although the scale of the climate crisis can be daunting, I am filled with hope by the incredible youth volunteers from all around the world who organize to advance collective advocacy,” says Sophia Kianni, climate activist and youngest-ever advisor to the United Nations. “The world’s challenges are too great for us to silo ourselves based on age or experience. We must come together, share our insights, and collaborate across generations to shape a sustainable and equitable future.”
Nonprofit coalition members have identified high impact actions across five pillars: Energy, Zero Waste, Rewilding & Conservation, Justice, and Food. Participants will be presented with 4 to 6 actions such as eating a vegan meal, taking public transit, signing petitions and organizing community actions, for each respective pillar. Influencers present these actions to mobilize grassroots action amongst their followers, encouraging them to then share about the action they’ve taken to achieve a continued effect.
“Climate change can feel overwhelming for many of us given the scale of the crisis, but we have the tools to fix it. We need to empower and mobilize even more people to demand solutions are implemented locally and globally.” says Katy Jacobs, Director of Entertainment Partnerships at National Resource Defense Council (NRDC), “That’s why NRDC is thrilled to be a part of this coalition highlighting diverse solutions, encouraging tangible actions and hopefully, expanding the climate movement.”
“We are excited to partner with ValuesCo and the GENZERO consortium of NGOs, influencers, and brands also committed to building a better future for our planet.” said Maya Draisin, Chief Brand Officer at TIME. “Our journalism drives the most important conversations forward, and this campaign provides an opportunity to move our readers from awareness to positive climate action.”
Brands will be able to join subsequent GENZERO campaigns that will launch in 2024, building on the campaign’s community and impact. Select brands have been invited to accelerate action by providing rewards upon the initial launch. GENZERO creates an inclusive space for community to unite, learn, get inspired, and take action that moves the masses to solutions.
“At ValuesCo, we believe in empowering young people to feel more agency and understand that grassroots solutions to the world’s biggest challenges are possible,” says ValuesCo Co-founder & CEO Andrew Berkowitz. “Our work with TIME, made possible with support from Celo, is a testament to how coalition building amongst publishers, brands, nonprofits, and creators can galvanize mass participation from consumers and create scalable impact to drive real change.”
GENZERO was co-designed by climate-positive blockchain platform Celo and iconic firm IDEO as a part of CxI, a web3 Innovation Lab. This unique collaboration brings together a select group of mission-aligned enterprise organizations to explore the potential of emerging technology to develop everyday, real-world solutions. By uniting IDEO’s human-centered design philosophy with Celo’s mobile-first blockchain, which platforms over 1,000 projects in more than 150 countries, the web3 Innovation Lab serves as a catalyst for pioneering solutions that revolutionize industries and drive positive impact on a global scale.
The app is built on the carbon-negative Celo network. The GENZERO team aligns with Celo’s values of introducing unique purpose and connectedness to the world. Xochitl Cazador, Chief Ecosystem Growth Officer at the Celo Foundation. “This is aligned with the core mission that we set out to achieve in creating a mission-driven blockchain and ecosystem, spurred on by our inaugural cohort of Celo x IDEO (CxI) co-lab teams, who are now coming out of stealth mode to create scalable impact in the real world.”
GENZERO launches on November 27 at genzeroaction.com and will run until January 28, 2024 with an impact report to be published soon after. Follow along at instagram.com/genzeroaction.
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Media Assets | GENZERO Partner Directory
https://values.co
https://time.com
https://celo.org
About ValuesCo
ValuesCo is a technology and experience company that powers rewards ecosystems for good. Brands, nonprofits and creators use our tools to inspire action that aligns value with values for the next gen. Founded & led by Millennials & Gen Zs, we believe a thriving world is realized through radical collaboration, access, and fun. ValuesCo is a 1% for the Planet member.
About TIME
TIME is the 100-year-old global media brand that reaches a combined audience of over 120 million around the world through its iconic magazine and digital platforms. With unparalleled access to the world’s most influential people, the trust of consumers and partners globally, and an unrivaled power to convene, TIME’s mission is to tell the essential stories of the people and ideas that shape and improve the world. Today, TIME also includes the Emmy Award®-winning film and television division TIME Studios; a significantly expanded live events business built on the powerful TIME100 and Person of the Year franchises and custom experiences; TIME for Kids, which provides trusted news with a focus on news literacy for kids and valuable resources for teachers and families; the award-winning branded content studio Red Border Studios; an industry-leading web3 division; the website-building platform TIME Sites; the sustainability and climate action division TIME CO2; the new e-commerce and content platform TIME Stamped, and more.
About Celo
Celo is a carbon-negative, emerging Ethereum layer-2 blockchain with a rich ecosystem of global partners building innovative Web3 applications within the DeFi, ReFi, and NFT sectors on Celo. Accessible to anyone with a mobile phone, the Celo ecosystem consists of a decentralized, proof-of-stake blockchain technology stack (the Celo Platform), the CELO native token, and several Mento stable assets (cUSD, cEUR, cREAL) that enable anyone to use digital assets. Launched on Earth Day in 2020, the open-source Celo mainnet supports 1,000+ projects by developers and creators located around the world.