| Welcome to the The Conscious Advertising Network (CAN) newsletter for March 2025. Here's what we're covering in this month's newsletter: - We have launched our new CAN Guiding Principles, and our 2024 Annual Report is out
- CAN at the Climate Information Integrity Summit in Brazil
- We welcomed two new CAN members: JACK RYAN and Lucky Generals
- An important initiative from the UK Stop Ad Fraud Coalition (UKSAFC), and a new resource from Lions' The Work on building the ethical and commercial case for disability representation
- Podcasts to listen to from The Media Leader and The Drum
- A new report regarding Meta's recent changes from CCDH, and the Trans+ History Week workbook is live
- March awareness days we marked, and looking ahead to April
If you've got news related to CAN and our manifestos, please do get in touch with us at hello@consciousadnetwork.org. #TogetherWeCAN | | | CAN's Annual Report is Here | | | We are thrilled to share our latest annual report - a reflection of the progress we've made together to build a more transparent, responsible, and effective advertising industry. The report highlights the bold steps we've taken with our members – promoting information integrity, championing inclusivity, and ensuring advertising works for everyone.
Inside, we include insights from our Co-Founders, CAN's big wins of the year, Member Spotlights, Membership Engagement Insights, and a look forward to what we have planned for 2025.
"We hope as you read through this report, you will feel inspired to continue with us and unlock new opportunities for growth and innovation while ensuring advertising truly works for everyone."
- Jake Dubbins and Harriet Kingaby, Co-Founders of Conscious Advertising Network (CAN)
| | | New Launch: CAN Guiding Principles | | | This month we launched our CAN Guiding Principles. This latest resource offers practical steps to help navigate the changes within the advertising industry, whilst achieving commercial success through transparent and responsible advertising.
Our 4 Guiding Principles set out a base line for members to work from – Fundamentals, Conscious Creative, Conscious Media, and Conscious Questions. Our core principles and mission remain the same, and the changes reflect both evolving challenges and opportunities, whilst offering you practical solutions.
For further insight and guidance on how to create advertising that works for everyone – you can access our new resource below. | | | CAN at the Climate Information Integrity Summit in Brazil | | | CAN Co-Founders Jake Dubbins and Harriet Kingaby were honoured to be speaking at The Climate Information Integrity Summit, a critical event organised by FALA, Climate Action Against Disinformation, and CAN on March 25th in Brasília.
This summit directly addressed the urgent need to strengthen information integrity amidst the escalating climate crisis, particularly as Brazil prepares to host COP30. This summit brought together key voices from government, leaderships, civil society, and the media to tackle one of the greatest challenges of our time.
Ahead of the Summit, CAN's Co-Founders shared: "We live in a time of distorted reality where a lack of information integrity delays urgent action, and threatens the path to a just and sustainable future. At the Summit, we'll dive into the global and Brazilian landscape, the fight against for information integrity, and the role of advertising in building a more responsible information ecosystem" - Jake Dubbins
"Lies about climate distort reality, delays urgent action, and is bad for business. At the Summit, we'll dive into the global and Brazilian landscape, the fight against disinformation, and the role of advertising in building a more responsible information ecosystem"
- Harriet Kingaby | | | New CAN Members: New CAN Members: JACK RYAN & Lucky Generals | | | We are delighted to welcome two new full members to CAN this month! Meet JACK RYAN | | | JACK RYAN is a leading B Corp certified independent full-service advertising agency guided by insights, energised by technology, and inspired by individuals. At their core, they have three guiding principles of Performance, People and Planet that drive everything they do as an organisation for their clients, people, and our planet.
On joining CAN, Jack Ryan's Media Partner, Jon Hill has said: "We're delighted to be joining CAN as proud advocates of responsible advertising with social impact, and we look forward to collaborating with like-minded organisations to promote ethical standards in the industry. At a time when transparency, inclusivity, and accountability in advertising are more critical than ever, we are committed to ensuring that our campaigns align with CAN's core principles. By working together, we can help drive meaningful change, challenge harmful narratives, and create a more conscious, consumer-respectful media landscape that benefits both businesses and society as a whole."
Meet Lucky Generals | | | Lucky Generals is an Emmy-nominated, multi-award-winning agency, with creativity at its core, and who believes in making work that makes a difference. Founded in 2013, Lucky Generals is now an international agency with offices in London and New York. Clients include The Guardian, Yorkshire Tea, Make My Money Matter, Heineken and TikTok.
On joining CAN, Lucky Generals' Head of Social Impact & Client Partner, Lameya Chaudhury has said: "Advertising doesn't just reflect culture - it shapes it. So, we can either step up or pretend it's not our problem. Lucky Generals has never been one for sitting on the sidelines, and joining the Conscious Advertising Network is just another way of proving it. This isn't about box-ticking for us—it's about using our creative muscle to make an impact without causing collateral damage. Creativity as a force of good isn't a nice-to-have. It's the only way forward."
We look forward to the positive work we will do with both new members whose contribution will be crucial in building an industry where advertising works for everyone. | | | CAN Member Initiative
UKSAFC - 'Know Your Customer' | | | CAN supporter member UK Stop Ad Fraud Coalition (UKSAFC) have launched UKSAFC's latest initiative: 'Know Your Customer'. The initiative is in response to the big problem advertisers face with ad fraud, which is currently estimated to be costing them up to $100 billion.
The Know Your Customer (KYC) initiative invites members of the programmatic advertising supply chain to carry out due diligence checks to encourage transparency and accountability. This initiative will not only encourage a healthier advertising landscape, but it will also help increase profitability through building further trust from brands.
To learn more about the initiative and become part of the change towards a healthier supply chain, read the article below. | | | New Campaign
The Progress Check: Disability - Lions 'The Work' | | | At Cannes Lions 2024, CEO of Tilting The Lens, Sinéad Burke asked: "When do we move from disabled people merely existing to disabled people thriving?"
Lions' resource The Work, gives us some shining examples of adverts that have represented real versions of disabled people living their lives like everyone else. Not only did they have impact – they saw results. For instance, Maltesers' campaign 'Light Side of Disability' reached 80% of the UK population. Apple's 'The Greatest' campaign gained over 17m YouTube views in its first week.
Other than their results, what makes these ads special? They are showing disabled people living their everyday lives. Instead of overcoming struggles and adversity – they depict authentic portrayals of daily joys and successes. It is a step in the right direction for repositioning how disabled people are represented in advertising.
Visit the full piece below to learn how other disability-inclusive campaigns and achieved both social and commercial success. | | | What We Are Listening To
Unpacking flaws in current brand safety efforts – The Media Leader Podcast | | | This podcast episode discusses the Adalytics report which found that big named brands have been accidentally placing ads on a website that hosts child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Host Jack Benjamin and guest Emily Roberts (Head of Digital at Responsible Marketing Advisory, a CAN supporter member) discuss how this happened and what brands can do to avoid this happening.
During their conversation, Emily explains that CSAM content is getting worse because of generative AI. She shares the shocking fact that Facebook alone had to remove 25 million pieces of this kind of content in just Q4 of 2022.
Whilst the tools that are scanning for this content are finding it harder because of AI, Emily states they are still worth using. On what more brands can do to avoid their ads being placed alongside CSAM, she advises that advertisers only run on premium content, use third party verification, along with using inclusion lists to help with ad fraud and viewability. | | | New Report
More Transparency and Less Spin – Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) | | | In response to the changes Meta announced in January 2025, CCDH have created a report to examine what the changes are and what they could mean for online safety. It also raises a series of serious questions we should be asking Meta.
The report reveals that content enforcement could be halted in 97% of key areas including hate speech, bullying and harassment, and violence or incitement of violence. This means that users will be open to an increased level of misinformation and hate speech.
It also reveals training content provided to Meta's content moderators which allows disturbing statements about gender, racial groups, and migrants. On the replacement of independent fact-checking with Community Notes, CCDH research has found the following previous failings:
"Our analysis shows that the company's plans could affect 97% of its enforcement, which would result in a tidal wave of nearly 277 million pieces of hate speech and other harmful content flooding unabated onto the platform each year, threatening public safety, the integrity of our elections and democracy, as well as public health and the mental health of our children." - Imran Ahmed ; CEO, Center for Countering Digital Hate | | | What We Are Reading
Social media is this generation's smoking – Creativebrief | | | In this article from Creativebrief, we hear from Ad industry leaders and their thoughts on the industry's responsibility for the impact social media has on children's health and whether it is being ignored.
What most contributors appear to agree on is that whilst it is not just down to advertisers, we do have a responsibility to be part of the solution when it comes to potential harms caused by social media.
It is agreed by most of the experts that the industry is not ignoring the problem, but more could be done. Katie Gilbert, Managing Director for Global & Social Issues at M&C Saatchi shares: "Agencies cannot tackle this issue alone, and boycotting is little more than a sticking plaster. We need some of the largest advertisers, particularly those with a strong consumer base among parents and young people, to make greater demands of the platforms, and we need agencies to rally behind them, making a virtue of this stance to increase affinity from the parents and young people who buy from them. We must demonstrate that taking a stand isn't just the right thing to do, but good for business too."
What is clear from the article is that the industry certainly cares about the potential harms caused by social media. What is not yet clear is an agreed solution between everybody – and it is this collective solution that seems to be the missing piece. | | | New Resource
Trans+ History Week Workbook – QUEERAF | | | Ahead of Trans+ History Week in May, QUEERAF have launched their new Trans+ History Week Workbook.
The Workbook, subtitled: "For the history lesson with we never had" covers the rich history of the trans community, an exploration of ballroom culture, a trans history timeline, trans stories, and tips on how you can support Trans+ History Week.
"Education and knowledge is liberation. Simply learning that Trans+ people have always been here shuts down the pernicious lie that we're a "trend", "modern fashion" or "social contagion"." - Marty Davies (they/she); Founder & CEO of Trans+ History Week CIC
The workbook has been designed for anyone who would like to create their own content and events. | | | New Resource
ISBA Media Services Framework 2025 | | | This month ISBA have published their latest resource for their members, the Media Services Framework 2025. The Framework has been created to focus on transparency and address agency non-compliance in propriety media.
This is an agreement that aims to create clarity and understanding between advertisers and media agencies. If you are already a member, you can access the resource in either Word of PDF format using the link below. If you are not yet an ISBA member, you can find out more here. | | | What We Are Listening To
'The Only Way is Ethics with Harriet Kingaby' - Politics for Drummies | | | In The Drum's latest 'Politics for Drummies' podcast, CAN Co-Founder, Harriet Kingaby discusses the commercial value of ethical communications for brands and how to make it happen. During the episode, Harriet and Alistair cover where the responsibility sits within the advertising supply chain and why we need to push for transparency.
On DEI, Harriet makes the point that advertisers need to separate the current political discourse from audience insights and good commercial business decision-making. She reminds us that by ignoring diverse communities, we are leaving money on the table. During the conversation, she states: "Inclusion makes sense and that's not going to go away".
Further on the business case for ethical advertising, Harriet reiterates that consumers but from brands they trust, and they still trust sustainable brands over others. She continues to point out that sustainable and ethical advertising is no longer just a 'nice to have' - it is how we can save money and make advertising more effective.
To hear more about Harriet's thoughts on ethical advertising and what brands and advertisers can do, listen to the full episode below. | | | March Awareness Days & Looking Ahead to April
| | | > Women's History Month & International Women's Day
March marked Women's History Month and International Women's Day on 8 March. The theme for this year's International Women's Day has been "Accelerate Action" which calls on us to address systemic barriers and biases that women face, both in personal and professional spheres.
As part of this month, Marketing Beat has featured of the best International Women's Day marketing campaigns of this year. The article features campaigns from SheSays, B&Q, Refuge, WPP, and Beyond Equality x Forsman Bodenfors.
> Neurodiversity Celebration Week
Founded in 2018 by Siena Castellon, this week in March is to challenge stereotypes and misconceptions. The week encouraged organisations and educational institutions to create more inclusive and equitable environments, whilst recognising the talents of neurodivergent individuals.
Late last year, Neurodiversity in Media (NDIM) launched their new resource, the 4S Manifesto, which aims to help Neurodiverse talent thrive, along with suggested organisational changes. The manifesto is and actionable checklist that focuses on Systems, Safety, Spaces & Support.
> Trans Day of Visibility
March will end with Trans Day of Visibility on the 31st, which both celebrates and raises awareness for the trans and non-binary community.
> World Health Day
World Heath Day will be celebrated on 7 April, and this year's theme is 'Healthy beginnings, hopeful futures'. This is the start of a year-round campaign to urge governments and the health community to ramp up efforts to end preventable maternal and newborn deaths. The World Health Organisation's latest article reveals the major causes of maternal deaths and highlights the need for improved maternity care across the world.
> Stephen Lawrence Day Held on 22 April each year, Stephen Lawrence Day is in remembrance of a young Black man who was stabbed to death in a racially aggravated attack in South East London. The Stephen Lawrence Day Foundation work throughout the year in classrooms, communities, and workspaces. They are committed to creating a fairer society in which all young people, regardless of their background, have the opportunity to flourish. There are many awareness days and months to mark in the next few months. Celebrating diversity and promoting inclusion is important year-round; however, inclusion events and awareness days are great opportunities to celebrate and support. To find out more about awareness days and events over the next year, head to the link below. | | | Watch out for more news on all things CAN related via LinkedIn. For any other questions or concerns, or if you would like to know more about joining, please feel free to contact us at hello@consciousadnetwork.org.
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Thank you for your ongoing support, The Conscious Advertising Network | | | | |
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