Volkswagen's ‘Way to Zero’ mission promises sustainable mobility for everyone - continuing its tradition of mass mobilisation, but in innovative ways that substantially reduce the impact on our planet. Acting on these values will drive Volkswagen towards their goal of becoming a zero carbon company by 2050, producing a whole new world of 100% carbon neutral vehicles

Volkswagen’s ID.3 and ID.4 were Ireland’s bestselling all-electric cars in 2021. Yet Volkswagen had more to celebrate than that: these zero carbon cars are driving Volkswagen’s mission to deliver a carbon-free, greener future by 2050. The ID.3 and ID.4 arrive on Irish roads with a certified net zero carbon balance, ready for many years of carbon-free motoring.

Our brief was to underline Volkswagen’s sustainability leadership by reminding all Irish drivers of the zero carbon credentials of Ireland’s bestselling all-electric cars while setting new standards for the category.

To remind Irish drivers of the zero carbon credentials of Ireland’s bestselling all-electric cars, we turned to the humblest tool of them all: a pencil, and chose the biggest blank canvas of them all: a 48-sheet billboard. We hand-drew, in pencil, in-situ and over 48 hours an zero carbon billboard advertisement, simply, sustainably and responsibly yet powerfully highlighting the zero carbon credentials of the Volkswagen ID.3 and ID.4.

The launch of the ID.3 and ID.4 led to category-leading sales among early adopters. Next we aimed to grow share among mainstream motorists.

Since launch, however, a host of rival EVs had flooded the market, including models from Skoda and Audi that share many mechanical parts with Volkswagen.

Our challenge was to cut through the noise. Accordingly, we set out to consolidate Volkswagen’s leadership by setting new standards on how automotive brands should communicate about sustainability.

And this meant confronting a paradox; the act of promoting sustainable vehicles isn’t itself very sustainable.

Outdoor advertising in Europe is responsible for an estimated 9,036,000 kg of C02 annually (Sources; Eyetease, European Commission), equivalent to 22,300,000 miles driven by a petrol vehicle (EPA).

We needed to reach mainstream motorists at scale, but had a duty to do so in a manner as extraordinary and sustainable as the zero carbon vehicles themselves.

We selected a single poster site on a busy Dublin corner – after all, 33% of Irish car buyers still rely on large format out-of-home when researching a new car (PHD).

Our poster was left blank. Then, Cormac Dillion, a traditional signwriter based a short walk away, arrived on site (and on foot) armed only with a pencil.

Over two days, Cormac painstakingly rendered the Volkswagen ID.3 and ID.4 by hand in large format, using pencil-drawn reference images.

The efforts of Cormac and his humble pencil was captured on video, as the piece began to take shape. Finally, the hand-drawn copy exclaimed ‘Zero carbon. Except for the pencil.’, underlining Volkswagen’s extraordinary commitment to sustainability when producing and promoting its electric vehicles.

This statement of Volkswagen’s ‘Way to Zero’ mission was then shared in social, and seeded out to the national Irish media.