The campaign had one simple insight: while people understand, when prompted, that illiteracy leads to bigger problems, illiteracy itself does not resonate as a “cause”.

We had to shock people, politicians and media out of apathy if we were to go beyond raising awareness to inciting action.

The creative idea was to take something synonymous with reading and writing, something that embodies the building blocks of learning, something childlike and innocent – the alphabet – and give it a provocative, emotional twist.

In The Alphabet of Illiteracy, each letter highlights an issue that could be tackled if literacy was improved.

In our alphabet, A is for AIDs.

B is for bloodshed.

C is for child brides. And so on.

The ad agency used this to develop a 90-second video of an animated A-Z, featuring striking designs by sculptor Wilfrid Wood, sung to the tune of a modified "A You’re Adorable".

We worked with Lily on a speech that would tell Project Literacy’s complex story in a compelling, accessible way.

We had one simple message: Illiteracy is the root cause of the world’s greatest challenges. And that if we teach everyone to read and write, we can rewrite lives.

On 23/2/16, Lily Cole delivered an impassioned speech to politicians, US ambassadorial staff, influencers and media at the Houses of Parliament in London. Big Issue founder Lord Bird told his uplifting story of growing up illiterate, taught to read in jail aged 16 by a guard.

Lily launched a petition, to be presented to the UN on World Literacy Day, 8 September, urging it to put literacy at the heart of every action to advance the Global Goals.

The event and Alphabet of Illiteracy video were supported by a paid social media campaign.

Next, we’re taking the story to the U.S.

Outcomes/awareness

The clever storytelling around the Alphabet of Illiteracy catapulted Project Literacy onto the media and policy agenda.

Since the launch, the UNESCO has taken steps to put literacy at the heart of the sustainable development agenda, inviting Pearson to be part of its Global Alliance for Literacy.

Borhene Chakroun, Chief of UNESCO Youth, Literacy and Skills Development, said: “This is how to capture the public’s imagination and create a call to action. The ‘Alphabet of Illiteracy’ is a sobering wake-up call…it proves why tackling illiteracy needs to be firmly on the agenda of governments across the globe.”

UK International Development Committee chair Stephen Twigg MP pledged to hold an enquiry into the role education plays in international development, with evidence from Project Literacy.

Knowledge/consideration:

186 pieces of coverage, including BBC, Guardian, CNN, Channel 4, Huffington Post, Harper’s Bazaar.

Outputs:

6.6 million video views

Reach: 462 million

14,352 petition signatures.