Many ad creatives have passion projects. Andy Fackrell’s has been published by the UN for a David Attenborough-backed charity. That’s quite an undertaking, and quite an achievement
The product of five years of work, Fackrell’s first book, Group Hug! A Collective Noun Safari, Is both written and illustrated by Fackrell and is now published by Ford Street, Melbourne, in conjunction with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The book will launch officially on International Day for Biological Diversity, May 22.
Fackrell, who was chief creative officer of 180Amsterdam for nearly nine years, followed by stints at DDB and R/GA is now freelance. He was the creative behind the Cannes Grand Prix-winning tag for Nike, and writer of the recently D&AD shortlisted, Untethered documentary for Swiss sports brand, On.
Group Hug! A Collective Noun Safari educates kids about animals and their collective nouns, in order to highlight decreasing animal numbers. To write it, Fackrell became a world expert on collective nouns and accumulated countless rhymes over many years, what he calls a “metafaunaverse”.
“To mark World Biodiversity Day, where all the numbers of animals are counted, I wanted to talk about changes in the environment for all animal groups by telling the story of collective nouns for animals,” Fackrell stated. “My idea was that by discovering the beauty and wonder of these nouns, like a flamboyance of flamingos or a bloat of hippos, alongside subtle hints about the problems that animals are now facing, that kids and their parents could then go further into the topic, and also as an extra bonus, to discover the beauty of the English language.”
With subtle references to climate change and threats to biodiversity, the book also aims to raise awareness for The Lion’s Share, an initiative helping brands redirect their profits to conservation and animal welfare projects, an organisation led by Sir David Attenborough. As Fackrell and The Lion’s Share argue, if we use animals in our stories, our movies and advertising, we should also contribute to their survival.
Its Dr Seussian rhymes feature many extravagantly-named collective nouns for animals, often with references to habitats changed by the warming climate, or other human-caused threats to species. Meanwhile, the lavishly drawn landscapes reflect the work done by The Lion’s Share Fund in protecting and regenerating wild habitats – in an Indonesian jungle, the book’s young protagonist, Wilbur and his zoo keeper friend are seen cavorting with their orangutan cousins, while warning them of a distant forest fire. The scene mirrors the UNDP’s work in the huge Leuser ecosystem, training women’s ranger groups.
“This book has been a long time in the making,” Fackrell noted. “Initially, publishers baulked at the climate change references, something I refused to compromise on. I believe that parents want to find a way to teach their kids about conservation. These days, kids at 4 or 5 already know what’s going on, so why not help them understand?
“It’s tricky to tell a kid about all the bad things we humans do to our planet – you have to tread lightly. So this book was the perfect way to marry my creative desire to make an engaging children’s book about animals, and at the same time send an important message: for kids and parents, but also to brands and publishers. To convey the ethos of The Lion’s Share – that if we use animals in our advertising campaigns and movies, we should contribute to their survival – is a concept The UNDP hopes will one day extend to literature. Stories about animals must also protect them.”
Ultimately, the project hopes to bring more brands and publishers onside, to spread the UNDP’s mission and generally help parents and children to understand more about the natural world and what threatens it. But it also aims to enchant children with the richness of both language and wildlife: a joyful ode to the wild world of words.
Group Hug! is published by Ford Street Publishing, Melbourne, and will be available to buy direct, here or in the UK, here.
