WWF wanted to rebrand to reflect the fact that it was more than an animal charity, it was a global conservation organisation. It specifically wanted to draw attention to its efforts to fight to solve global warming and generate revenue through direct channels once consumers had understood the message.
The media solution was to create a simple billboard with the phrase 'Ocean levels are rising faster than ever' written on it. A website address and WWF's logo was written in the bottom right-hand corner.
A specially designed scalloped awning above it served to create a shadow that looked like waves across the board, which was angled in a certain way to catch the sun. As the day progressed, the sun would move and the resulting shadow would creep up the board, giving the impression that the sea level was rising.
Towards the end of the day, the sea level would reach the top of the board. In this way, the sun was literally used to help spread the message to fight global warming.
The board was picked up in international press and a viral video place on YouTube received more than 20,000 hits in two weeks.