Brazil is having the greatest devastation arisen from fires ever recorded in Amazon forest history. But, as it is far from Brazilian urban centers, it has not received due importance. Ineffective government measures to control deforestation by fires make the situation even more serious.

“Flames of Destruction” came to give visibility to the cause of the Amazon deforestation by fire, to approach the problem of the Brazilian urban centers, and to reinforced the sustainability agenda on the main press, generating debates on the urgency of protective measures of the Amazon Forest.

The idea was conceived for Natura Ekos, a Brazilian global cosmetics brand that had the preservation of the Amazon at the center of its efforts and over the past 20 years has helped preserve more than 1.8 million hectares and generate income for 7000 families in the Amazon local communities through the sustainable harvest of bioactive products.

On September 5th, known as the Amazon Day in Brazil, we conveyed to the eyes of the biggest Brazilian city something that happens daily in the Amazon, a region that due to its distance from Brazilian urban centers, is often forgotten, despite its importance. A visual projection of fire flames was put on trees of Ibirapuera Park, one of the main postcards of Sao Paulo and the most visited park in Latin America.

The park, which is usually a point of reference with lots of lights, had all its lights turned off so that the fire in the trees was even more shocking.

The event was covered by national and international media, including important TV stations, which broadcasted the projections live from the park.

Through “Flames of Destruction”, we called everyone’s attention to the biggest devastation provoked by fires ever recorded in Amazon Forest’s history.

To give visibility to the fires that are burning the Amazon, Natura Ekos needed to bring the problem close to Brazilian urban centers, where the majority of the population is.

Deforestation in the Amazon has an impact on the climate of the entire country, but people end up not making that connection. Natura Ekos has the slogan “we are all one nature”, that is, she defends that everyone is interconnected, including with nature. Therefore, simulating the fire that destroys the Forest in the largest Brazilian city was perfect to define the message: what happens there, impacts here too.

From then on, in the previous week of the projection, we created teaser pieces for social media and influencers, generating expectations on what it would be like if the largest city in Brazil catches on fire as it happens in the Amazon.

Flames of destruction started to be built the week before the event.

Influencers and conversations on social networks started with the provocation on what it would be like if the fire that destroys the Amazon happens here in São Paulo.

The day before the action, with one of the largest Brazilian TV channels, we warmed up the subject by running an one-hour program about the Amazon. During the breaks, Natura Ekos spots warned about the urgency of preservation the Forest and gave a teaser about the stunt that would happen the next day.

On September 5th, Amazon Day, a visual projection of fire was put on the trees at Ibirapuera Park.

The event was covered by national and international media, including important TV stations, which broadcasted the projections live from the park. It became the night’s topic and got to the first place on Brazil’s Twitter trending topics.

During the Amazon week, Natura Ekos campaign anchored by the projections brought 59 million media impressions and 117% increase of positive mentions in Natura’s social media. In terms of organic media it reached 23 million people which would be the equivalent of an investment of more than 7 million reais (Brazilian currency).

The event had a strong media impact and it was covered by the most important national and international media, including the most important TV station in the country which broadcasted the projections live from the park on their news programs (https://bit.ly/3nMe14Q). It became news on portals such as CNN, G1 and UOL. It became the night’s subject and got to the first place in Brazil’s Twitter trending topics and in 5th in the world trending topics.

The impactful piece brought light to the devastation culture, reinforced the sustainability agenda on the press and highlighted the urgency for effective preservation measures for the Amazon Forest.

Ekos campaign made consumers think deeply about the importance of keeping the forest alive and alerted on environmental violation.

It made more people interested and engaging even more with the cause, by asking the government to take actions in order to stop devastation, putting pressure on initiatives, and also helped creating awareness on more sustainable choices and consumption, which is exactly what Ekos brand stands for.

And all this helped reinforce Natura’s image and perception as one of the most sustainable brands in the country and the world.