Putting the spotlight on the jobless youth, fashion retailer Benetton is inviting unemployed people aged 18-30 to submit creative projects to help aid the situation.
One could never accuse fashion retailer Benetton of being predictable (remember those ads showing world leaders kissing each other - including Pope Benedict in embrace with an Iman?) and its newest campaign is a fine case in point.
The brand's chairman, Alessandro Benetton, is so concerned with youth unemployment (estimated to be at 100 million globally) that he has launched an online contest to sustain 100 creative projects submitted by those aged 18 to 30 years old who are out of work. The projects must lead to concrete social impact in the participants' community and will be submitted to the UN HATE Foundation website and selected by the online community.
The Foundation, whose aim is to "promote a culture of non-hate" and "support youth to become actors of change against indifference and stigma" will award those chosen with €5,000 euros.
Benetton explained how the campaign "presents a realistic portrait of today's society by actively tackling a current problem, that of youth non-employment and the potential conflict between generations, in order to show it in a new light and create value for the immense human capital of young people."
An accompanying global print and video campaign shows determined young people in situation striving to find work and also includes posters and T-shirts.