Client
United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA)
Category
Video
Campaign
Design
Deliverables
Video
Social Media
Educational Resources
World Humanitarian Day 2024 – Act for Humanity
Background
Humanitarian workers under fire: A call to act for humanity.
For World Humanitarian Day 2024, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) asked Rooftop to create a campaign to demand an end to violations against aid workers.
The year 2024 was the deadliest on record for humanitarian workers, with a staggering 281 aid workers losing their lives globally, according to UNOCHA.
This harsh reality highlights a glaring truth: the world is failing humanitarian workers and the people that need them. International laws meant to regulate armed conflict and protect people are being ignored, and no one is being held accountable.
Challenge
Rallying the world: The campaign behind World Humanitarian Day 2024.
The challenge was to create a powerful, emotional connection that would galvanise global action and put pressure on leaders to commit to their obligations to protect humanitarian workers and civilians in conflict zones.
Rooftop’s campaign for World Humanitarian Day 2024 aimed to:
• Showcase the real impact of violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL)
• Call out global leaders, demanding that they act to protect civilians and aid workers in conflict and to hold perpetrators accountable
• Mobilise the public to share the campaign message and demand action
Solution
Clear action, powerful messaging: How #ActForHumanity took shape.
The call to action was clear. Attacks on humanitarian workers, civilians, and humanitarian assets must stop. It is time for those carrying the guns to respect the rules of war. It is time for those in power to end impunity and #ActForHumanity.
Rooftop’s #ActForHumanity campaign aimed to highlight the dire consequences of breaches of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and called on world leaders to confront the consequences of their inaction.
Our comprehensive campaign included the following key content pieces:
Hero Film
At the heart of the campaign was a 1-minute flagship film narrated by Muzoon Almellehan, a Syrian human rights activist, refugee, and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.
The film asked audiences to hold those in power accountable by confronting them with the consequences of breaches of IHL and demanding they take action. This key piece of content was widely shared by partners and supporters on World Humanitarian Day (WHD). The hero video was viewed 2.9 million times on UNOCHA’s channels.
Educational Photographic Series
This was a powerful photographic series showcasing schools, hospitals, and other civilian and humanitarian assets that had been visibly attacked.
Each imaged featured subjects such as destroyed hospitals, schools, lifesaving aid, and homes – all things meant to be protected under IHL, illustrating the stark reality of these violations.
The series aimed to bring the issue closer to the audience, and to highlight how leaders are breaking and ignoring international laws.
The whole concept of the campaign leaned on the public calling these leaders out, but this series equipped the audience with the knowledge on exactly what hold them accountable for.
Visual Symbolism and Social Media Content
A unique, unifying symbol based on the “sensitive content” icon was adapted to rally the audience to demand action from global leaders.
The symbol was animated in dynamic content, sometimes paired with previously blurred images that became clear to reveal the harsh reality of breaches of IHL.
This approach was designed to create a visual metaphor for the need for leaders to “see clearly”, to not look away and take action against these atrocities.
Microsite and Educational Resources
The campaign microsite was a central hub for the campaign, showcasing the hero film and providing information on how to share the campaign and demand action. It also offered context and educational content related to IHL, aiming to educate the public on these critical issues.
The Result
From words to action: How Act for Humanity” inspired change.
On World Humanitarian Day 2024 alone, #ActForHumanity was mentioned 26,800 times, generating 827 million impressions.
Social media reach and engagement.
The hashtag #ActForHumanity was mentioned over 49,000 times from 14 August to 27 September across social media channels and digital outlets globally, in more than 25 languages, with English, French, Spanish, and Arabic being the most prevalent. These mentions generated a total of 1 billion impressions.
UNOCHA social media campaign efforts
UNOCHA shared 87 #ActForHumanity posts from 14 August to 27 September, distributed across Instagram (18 posts), X (formerly Twitter, 31 posts), LinkedIn (20 posts), and Facebook (18 posts), directly reaching 4.4 million people and generating 154,000 engagements (reactions, shares, comments, saves).
The hero video was viewed 2.9 million times on UNOCHA’s channels.
Broader campaign reach:
#WorldHumanitarianDay was mentioned 100,000 times from 14 August to 22 August on social media channels and digital outlets globally, in more than 25 languages, with English, Hindi, Arabic, French, and German leading the mentions.
These mentions generated 1.4 billion impressions.
On World Humanitarian Day 2024, #WorldHumanitarianDay was mentioned 75,000 times, generating 1.2 billion impressions—a 50% increase compared to the previous year.
The “Act for Humanity” campaign successfully mobilised the global community, compelling world leaders to recognise and act on their responsibility to protect humanitarian workers and uphold the principles of International Humanitarian Law.
The campaign’s resonance across diverse platforms and languages demonstrated its universal appeal and effectiveness in advocating for humanitarian principles.
Mentions
Global impressions
Impressions on World Humanitarian Day
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