Entered by: BRAND UKRAINE NGO

Ukraine is a brave country fighting for freedom in the heart of Europe. Whilst the nation has been fighting since 2014 to restore its internationally recognised borders, they want to remind people that each square metre of Ukrainian land is not just territory – its home, school, workplace for Ukrainians, but that it is also a place of memories, happy life events and opportunities, its unique history, culture, traditions.

They fight not only for territory, but also for people who lived there before Russia invaded Ukraine, for people who still have to suffer from repressions, crimes, and tortures of Russian occupation. They fight for their rights to have a life of dignity and equality, and for nature and animals, unique historical and cultural locations, businesses, innovations, local traditions.

In a #WhatWeAreFightingFor campaign, the team showed 603,628 reasons to fight. In an interactive multimedia map of Ukraine, they presented each region of Ukraine to the world and explained why each square kilometre of our land is essential.

The creative solution is to explain complex historical, socio-economical, cultural events of each Ukrainian region through understandable, interactive, multimedia storytelling. The value of land was presented through the eyes of locals and their aspiration to fight for it. By this approach, the notion of territorial integrity (which is more of an international law term) is “humanised”, and the fight is presented as a cause that unites all the people of Ukraine.

It is important to highlight that freedom & peace cannot be compromised. The team chose to present the information in two formats – on the special landing page and social media. The longer version of the prepared materials was published on the website to use and boost SEO potential, but it was also adapted for social media to reach more people and motivate them to visit the website and learn more.

The team presented Ukraine through a clickable map with regions. Each region has its page with a unique collage of outstanding local phenomena, people, locations, and a text about major cultural events and innovations, famous individuals, and outstanding nature. The texts were written and checked by experts and historians. The design of each page, with its clear sections, videos, photos, and illustrations, benefits navigation and makes information easy to read and understand.

The information from the website was also used for social media publications in the format of explainers. The project was announced in October 2022 with a joint publication with the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy. It was used not only to spread the message and work on awareness but also to gather the feedback of Ukrainians which later was used in the campaign. Followers were encouraged to share on social media the reasons they fight using the hashtag #WhatWeAreFighting For.

As an additional teaser, the team collected followers’ insightful answers in a visual explainer. The campaign was launched on February 24, 2023, one year after Russia started its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The campaign reached over 15 million unique users on social platforms, the project's website, and media. As a result, millions of people worldwide learned that Ukrainian territorial integrity is not a point for discussion. The project became a success among foreign audiences who learned fascinating facts about diverse and unique Ukrainian history, culture, land, and people. The website became a useful and effective tool for various organisations, bloggers, and media to use as a verified and trusted source of information about different Ukrainian regions.