Greenpeace flooded a GTA city to show Gen Z what global warming looks like / GREENPEACE "Los Santos"

The problem

Getting young people to take the climate crisis seriously has always been a tough challenge. Greenpeace picked a spot where Gen Z practically lives: Los Santos, the virtual city in GTA Online modeled closely on Los Angeles.

The insight

If lecturing people doesn't work, why not change the actual place they spend their real lives in? Using forecast data from its own science team, Greenpeace decided to build a real climate scenario directly into the game's city.

The idea

The team worked within the open-source code of a GTA Online server to recreate Los Santos with the Santa Monica Pier underwater and California's coastline gone. Residents had to wear masks and got tired more easily, and special missions were added for rescuing climate refugees and delivering drinking water. It all went live for just four days on the Kings Roleplay server, with a dedicated website where people could sign petitions or donate.

What happened

In just the first week, streamers broadcast more than 450 hours of gameplay, racking up about 8 million minutes of viewing time. Greenpeace saw a 340% jump in petition signatures and a 40% increase in donations, and the campaign won multiple awards at Cannes Lions in the Entertainment category, including two Golds.

Afterthought

Without spending a dime on ad space, Greenpeace simply rewrote the "reality" inside a video game—and the whole world leaned in to watch. What's remarkable is they didn't make a single preachy climate ad. Instead, they got players themselves wishing this fictional world could stay exactly as it was. Makes me want to go play some GTA.

Awards

• Cannes Lions Gold 2023