The Maui’s dolphin is the smallest species of dolphin in the world; they live exclusively on the west coast of New Zealand’s North Island. There are only 55 of these unique creatures left. Without protection, the species faces extinction.

The goal was to present a petition of 20,000 signatures to parliament putting pressure on New Zealand’s political parties during election year to commit to policies in favour of protecting the Maui’s dolphins.

If we focused on communicating the number 55 in context, and relate it to people on a personal level, they’d be inspired to take the simple and immediate opportunity to show their support. We decided to make people experience what it’s like to be a part of a dwindling community that is on the cusp of extinction.

At the start of 2014, adult Facebook users had an average of 338 friends. So we made the plight of the Maui’s dolphins a truly personal experience by randomly reducing peoples Facebook friends’ lists down to a mere 55 friends

As shocked users watched their loved ones disappear they were encouraged to sign the petition, and to share their Last 55 and our hashtag on Facebook and Twitter.

We also used traditional media to drive people to the Last 55 Facebook experience and petition.

With 108,000 signatures presented, three major parties claimed support for the Maui’s and in early 2015 the Auckland Regional Council has voted to set up a protected area for the Maui’s dolphin’s

55 is a shockingly small number. We would use this number to make the plight of the Maui's very real to everyday people.

At the start of 2014, adult Facebook users had an average of 338 friends. We would make extinction very personal by eliminating all but 55 of a users Facebook friends. A groundbreaking Facebook app captured a user’s list of friends and instantly converted it into a personalised video. This solemn video showed the user’s friends being randomly eliminated, one by one, until only 55 remained. Users were then invited to sign the petition and share their Last 55 with their family and friends, encouraging them to do the same.

What we created was personable and shareable content. To make it easily talked about online and gain true critical mass, we conceived the hashtag (#TheLast55) and asked those signing the petition to use it to spread the word.

By the 15th June 2014, 60% of people were more likely to vote for a political party that was in support of offering the Maui’s dolphin full protection from set and trawl nets (Source: Colmar Brunton).

The news articles posted on Reddit.com became the 5th most popular story on the site’s front page. This alone generated 140,000 users to click-through and view the article.

Three major political parties, Labour, Greens and Maori Party pledged support for the Maui's.

By July 30th, our hashtag had been used over 14,000 times with a combined audience on Twitter alone of over 44 million.

The total search around “Maui’s dolphins” on Google increase 885% from an average of 2,410 to 23,760 during the campaign.

Over 108,000 signatures were presented to parliament. In early 2015, the Auckland Regional Council voted in favour of establishing a protected zone for the Maui's.