Work Submission: “I Am Yasuní” Campaign Brings Oil Drilling Much Closer to Home

When most Americans imagine oil-drilling they picture the process taking place far from home, in some exotic location. That’s why EO Integration and Sound Lounge developed the spot “I Am Yasuni” for the government of Ecuador in an effort to “resonate with the global influencers who can help build an international support system and financial fund to protect Yasuní National Park from the oil companies who would destroy it.”

The spot puts oil drilling in a location most New Yorkers have never considered -- their own backyard. More specifically, the spot attempts to answer the question of how New Yorkers would react if oil drilling took place at Madison Square Park. A simulated oil rig is set up at the park as enraged onlookers gather to protest the drilling.

It is not until the end of the spot, after viewers have had the opportunity to consider its implications, that they are made aware of its reason for existing: to promote Yasuni National Park in its quest to prevent oil companies from drilling within the park.

Yasuni National Park is arguably the most biologically diverse region on earth, as well as being home to two native tribes who remain isolated from civilization. But Yasuni National Park is threatened by the fact that it is home to an estimated 846 million barrels of oil. Hopefully the "I Am Yasuni" campaign will help raise awareness of the park's plight.