Are you not really sure what Goodvertising actually is? Thomas Kolster has the answer.

CSR efforts can grow under even challenging circumstances. This was true when I visited Belarus and my recent visit to Georgia proved it again.

While Coke’s new campaign might be killing the brand, could it be revitalizing sales?

The film Bitter Grapes is calling for the Scandinavian supermarkets to live up to their corporate social responsibility efforts as well as leaving me and you with the hasty message about “choose your wine responsibly”. The film’s pointed finger bothers me, so here is what the film should have done.

Join behind the scenes from Sustainable Brands Bangkok, which offered a culinary journey and inspiration from Thais pioneering a local food movement.

Finally an award celebrating impact rather than empty words and awareness: D&AD Impact Award. I was honoured to join the judging alongside creative minds like Jamie Oliver and David Droga.

Two weeks ago I had the pleasure of judging the 4th African Cristal Awards in Marrakesh. The Awards also saw a novel collaboration between Cristal and Goodvertising as it was decided to award the very first “Goodvertising Grand Cristal”.

I should be more media-savvy than falling for this recent press story. It’s a stark reminder about the power of the press.

Proud to be judging the Marketing Can Change The World Award by The Drum

A blog post originally featured in an African magazine dedicated to sustainability “How Now”.

Too much advertising has the opposite effect to that intended, and it’s high time brands realized that, author Thomas Kolster told the Media360Summit in Hong Kong.

Really excited to join the Sustainable Brands Host committee to bring the European event from London to Copenhagen.

French edition of Goodvertising coming out September 30th. What to expect?

I’m excited to share with you our upcoming change project together with North Europe’s biggest documentary film festival: CPH:DOX. Do write me if you want to join or support this amazing initiative – lots of exciting possibilities for brands and organisations. Read more here.

Check out this selection of 10 astonishing award-winning Cannes Lions #Goodvertising campaigns

Initiative from Sao Paolo. Most recycling bins ask people to sort the garbage into different categories, but do people really bother?

The EACA Care Awards is the 6th award I’ll be judging over the last two years, which is an important way for me to keep up-to-date.

There’s plenty to be optimistic about when it comes to advertising in 2015! Finally brands are beginning to recognize that it’s not about pushing messages and snappy jokes at people, but actually seeing where they can play a meaningful role in people’s lives

This sustainability tag-team took the audience at Sustainable Brands in London on a journey towards new thought processes in problem-solving.

Most brands are still scarily silent about the difference they want to make in our lives and yet hope we won’t notice them force-feeding us with advertising-as-usual

TrendBook 2014 by Polish marketing expert Hatalska presents an analysis of the five top trends for the next year and I’ve contributed to the chapter about sustainable development.

An interview about good acts, prank it forward and random acts of kindness in Danish news daily Politiken

After a period of increasing demand for shorter advisory sessions I have decided to launch a formal “Expert 1-on-1” through Skype or phone

When the Ethical Corporation invited me to a conference called the “Responsible Business Summit”, I already had two matches in bullshit bingo “Ethical” and “Responsible”. I assumed we had moved on from the responsible smokescreen to discuss what really moves 99,9% of companies: Money or the fear of losing it.

In terms of share of voice, there’s no doubt about it: standard advertising outmuscled the David-like attempts of Goodvertising to bring a different narrative forward — one that advocates caring for each other and our planet.

Brands need to have a single-minded sustainability preposition instead of a save-all approach that often equals save-nothing. Those who succeed in the green space stand for something like Bodyshop for animal cruelty free cosmetics.

I hear that statement often when I’m doing a talk or presenting to a group of marketing directors. It’s often delivered as a defiant outburst or a sarcastic mumbling,”Our clients don’t care about sustainability!” or, “Our clients won’t pay more for sustainable products!”

Together with Denmark’s biggest financial news daily Børsen and marketing magazine Markedsføring I’m putting together a conference called Sustainable Bottom Line.

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A company’s responsibility used to stop at the factory gates, but now covers the entire life cycle of the product from cradle to grave. But where does this responsibility end?

For a global gathering of the most brilliant minds from agencies it was shocking to notice that 99.9% of their so-called creativity is still used to sell more stuff instead of taking on the biggest challenges of this century: the darkening clouds of the social and environmental crisis lurking in the horizon.

Just returned from 4 inspiring days in San Diego at Sustainable Brands where I also launched wheregoodgrows.com

I was speaking last week at an advertising summit in Yangon, Myanmar and it was an exciting opportunity to get a look at a cute Asian kitten before it grows into yet another Tiger.

The theme of collaboration once again came through in the surprisingly honest and insightful experiences that the marketers shared with one another at Sustainable Brands in London.

Thomas Kolster shares his views on how to make sustainability attractive through communication.

At the conference Sustain Our Africa I saw a continent that’s far from the picture painted by most Western media of hardship, struggle and poverty

An estimated 80% of US consumers are interested in sustainability in some shape or form. The mainstream market for sustainable products is definitely there.

Even though it might sound like greening up a Hummer, which eventually filed for bankruptcy in 2010, it’s nevertheless a welcomed step. Yes, Hummer and the superyachts have certain similarities, it’s really not a necessity, but a luxury bestowed the few.

If you’re willing to come along, we can do it; and if you aren’t – we’re going without you. As I have argued, no matter where you are in the hamster wheel as a marketer, we can change towards a sustainable and respectable future.

Our ignorance has left much of our planet in a state of emergency. Our natural resources are depleted, we are faced with catastrophically high carbon levels, a destruction of half the earth’s biodiversity, exhaustion of our oceans’ fish stocks and toxins and metals in most living beings on the planet. I could go on and on.

When compiling our cases for the book, Goodvertising, we noticed that while there was certainly a trend towards more sustainable communication, there was no central source or archive where one could go and find this work. As a destination for both inspiration and sharing best-practices – we have created the first website of its kind in the world – WhereGoodGrows.

If we look at the advertising landscape of today, 99% of the messages out there communicate nothing more than: Consume the world, which unfortunately leaves slim odds for a more responsible, sustainable voice to gain traction.

Ignore the skeptics, the non-believers and change what you can. Dare to dream and do big things!

I really don’t see green washing as a problem. I see it as a potential. It is a brand’s first unsecure step in a good direction, a brand that is trying to walk the talk of sustainability.

Our friends from Metaphoria have done the very beautiful infographic in my book “Goodvertising” showcasing a consumer segment called LOHAS which stands for Lifestyle for Health and Sustainability.

“The people want to bring down the regime! The people want to bring down the regime!” As the shouting barely has silenced in Egypt’s Tahrir Square, the echoes should be an everlasting reminder to any oppressor; the power lies in the people. I think there is an equally important lesson to be learned for brands and companies. The days where brands could get away with claiming that they are “bigger, better and stronger” – like a dictator – are over.