China Environmental Protection Foundation Wins Grand Prix at First Global 2010 GREEN AWARDS

SHANGHAI, Dec. 8, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- The 2010 GREEN AWARDS announces the China Environmental Protection Foundation, in association with DDB China Group, as the winner of this year's Grand Prix for its innovative outdoor campaign urging people to walk more and drive less.

The GREEN AWARDS is a unique global awards ceremony held in London, UK, whose motto of "creativity in sustainability" best explains their commitment toward recognizing and rewarding the most creative and effective efforts to communicate green messages.

This year, at the fifth annual GREEN AWARDS, organizations from around the world were invited to participate in all 16 categories for the very first time. Entries were received from China, India, Romania, United States, Denmark, Australia, South Korea and Sweden, among others.

The GREEN AWARDS Grand Prix is given to the overall winner of the event, is the one judged the best amongst all of the entries. This prestigious award went to the China Environmental Protection Foundation, honoring its innovative and effective outdoor campaign created by DDB China Group urging people to walk more.

The focus of the campaign was to raise awareness that everyone's small "green" steps can make a significant difference. It involved the creation of an outdoor poster advertisement for pedestrian crossings across seven thoroughfares in Shanghai.

Judges were impressed by the creativity exhibited by the campaign and the simple and effective use of local knowledge. Moreover, the results of the campaign sealed the judges' decision to be unanimous and resounding. The campaign reached 3.92 million people and increased general public awareness about environmental awareness by 86%.

Ms. Lucy Lu, Communications and Networking, China Environmental Protection Foundation, commented:  "As one of China's leading environmental organizations, the China Environmental Protection Foundation needs to mobilize all social forces to do their bit for the environment.

"With the great help of DDB China Group's outstanding creativity, we successfully planned and carried out the 'Green Pedestrian Crossing' campaign. It demonstrated to the public that even an ordinary moment can be 'green,' and that taking one small step can make a significant contribution to protecting the environment. We would like to thank the organizers for honoring us with this award and hope that you will continue to encourage and promote more awareness of China's environmental protection issues."

Dick Van Motman, President and CEO, DDB China Group, who received the award on behalf of the China Environmental Protection Foundation at a gala dinner held at The Natural History Museum in London, UK, on Thursday, December 2, added:  "It is particularly rewarding to receive this award on behalf of our client as it showcases not only China's efforts to raise awareness of environmental issues, but also the standard of creativity coming out of China at this time."

About GREEN AWARDS

Launched in 2006 to critical acclaim, the GREEN AWARDS (www.greenawards.com) were established to recognize and reward creative work that communicates the importance of corporate social responsibility, sustainable development and ethical best practice in any sector and across any marketing discipline. Now in their fifth year the GREEN AWARDS™ are going global and are for the first time opened for submissions from all over the world. The global GREEN AWARDS™ have become an established event on the global eco-calendar. The awards illustrate the crucial role that needs to be played by green marketing and sustainability communications in informing people about green issues, products and lifestyle choices, and showcase examples of excellence and best practice in communicating sustainability and green issues. It's evident now there's an increasing appetite from business and industry for examples of excellence and best practice in communicating sustainability and green issues, which the GREEN AWARDS showcase. Previous winners include Nokia, Marks & Spencer, UNEP and "Do the Green Thing."

About DDB China Group

DDB China Group (www.ddbchina.com) is a full-service agency incorporating DDB, Tribal DDB, RAPP and DDB Guoan. Services include advertising, direct marketing, interactive, design and sales promotion. We believe that "creativity is the most powerful force in business." We use creativity to develop ideas that people want to play with, participate in and pass on.

DDB China Group is one of the most awarded creative agencies in China and consistently ranks in the top 10 agencies in the country, as determined by the Longyin Review and China Advertising Magazine. In 2010 DDB China won a Gold Lion at Cannes for its "Green Pedestrian Crossing" campaign, for the China Environmental Protection Foundation – the second only Gold Lion ever awarded to an agency in Greater China. In 2009 they also placed No. 1 in the R3 New Business League and placed second in the "Best Creative Agency in China" rankings by China Advertising Magazine; Tribal DDB placed second in the "Best Digital Agency in China" list. In 2010 Dick van Motman was the first expatriate to be awarded "Most Outstanding Person of the Year" by CCTV and China Advertising. This year he has also been recognized by Internationalist magazine as one of the top 30 international "Agency Innovators."

The Management Team consists of CEO and President Dick van Motman, Chief Creative Officer Michael Dee, Vice President and Managing Director of DDB Shanghai Jesse Lin, Managing Director of Tribal DDB Shanghai Jit Hoong Ng and Managing Director of RAPP Ross Gearing. Asit Gupta is Head of Strategic Planning. Neo Chuan Teo is Chief Financial Officer.   At DDB Guoan in Beijing, Richard Tan is Managing Director and Vice President.

About DDB Worldwide

DDB Worldwide Communications Group Inc (www.ddb.com) ranks among the top five consolidated advertising and marketing services global networks, according to Advertising Age. Consistently one of the most awarded networks globally for creative excellence, DDB was Campaign's 2009 Global Network of the Year, the 2010 Spikes Asia Network of the Year, and captured both the Cyber Grand Prix and Film Craft Grand Prix at the 2010 International Advertising Festival in Cannes. With more than 200 offices in over 90 countries, the DDB Group helps grow the value and influence of leading brands around the world. We believe that creativity is the most powerful force in business, allowing us to develop the ideas that people want to play with, participate in and pass along. We call this Social Creativity. DDB Worldwide is part of Omnicom Group Inc. (OMC).

SOURCE DDB Worldwide