Brand Marketing Ad of the Day: Skype Tells the Story of Earth’s First Climate-Change Refugees Unfolding tragedy at KiribatiBy Gabriel Beltrone|December 12, 2014 Share By Gabriel Beltrone|December 12, 2014 Share Skype wants you to know it isn't just good for keeping in touch with geographically distant friends and family—it's a practical tool for important professionals doing good work. A new ad from the Microsoft-owned chat service and agency Pereira & O'Dell goes behind the scenes with two journalists—Anna Therese Day and Gianlucca Panella—who have covered war zones like Gaza, South Sudan and Syria. Now, Day and Panella are in the small Pacific island nation of Kiribati, drawing attention to the low-lying country's fate as one of the early casualties of rising sea levels caused by global climate change. CNN, Mashable and Al Jazeera have already picked up the pair's editorial coverage, which sees residents displaced from their homes, groundwater polluted by ocean water, and Kiribati's government struggling to find a future home for its population. Skype is a relatively small part of the actual narrative—it's a technological aside on the modern process of producing news from remote locations. The insertion of the brand where it doesn't entirely belong can't help but feel a little forced (and doesn't really distinguish the product from competitors). At the same time, it adds volume to a story that's not top of mind for most people—Kiribati's inhabitants number only about 100,000. And the fact that it's facing crisis at all is pretty clear evidence that industrialized nations, largely responsible for carbon emissions, don't really care that much. CREDITS Client: Skype, Inc. GM, CAS Audience Marketing: Angie Hill Director, Audience Marketing: Jackie Lee-Joe Creative Director: Matt Sedik Senior Campaign Manager: Vanessa Boutwell Campaign Manager: Benjamin Lazarus Agency: Pereira & O'Dell Chief Creative Officer: PJ Pereira Executive Creative Director: Jamie Robinson Creative Director: Jonathan Woytek Associate Creative Director: Michael Gurman Senior Art Director: Ben Sweitzer Senior Copywriter: Gabriel Miller Senior Copywriter: Simon Friedlander Art Director: Myray Reames Copywriter: Demian Kendall VP, Director of Production: Jeff Ferro Executive Producer: Bill Spangler Senior Broadcast Producer: Joanna Topetzes Senior Integrated Producer: Jason Mar Co-Director of Client Services: Ivy Truong Senior Account Executive: William de Ryk Strategy Director: Molly Cabe Strategy Director – Media and Distribution: Jasmine Summerset Media Strategist: Noel Aragon Media Strategist: Katie McKinley Production Company: Station Film Director: Peking Executive Producer: Caroline Gibney Producer: Sarah McMurray Editorial and Post: Umlaut Films Editor: Jonathan Flookes Executive Producer: Gina Locurcio Producer: Kelly Gibbs Assistant Editor: Peter Geiger Sound Mix: One Union Recording Studios Sound Mixer: Eben Carr Adweek Adweek