Athletes with disabilities still struggle to get even a fraction of the societal support and attention that their non-disabled counterparts get, and that’s something Toyota and The&Partnership Nordics want to start correcting with their newest Beyond Zero campaign, featuring multiple Paralympic gold-medal winner Leo-Pekka Tähti.

Children with disabilities and even professional para-athletes often have to depend solely on the support of their families and sometimes their elderly parents, to be able to compete at the most professional levels of paralympic sports.

To bring awareness to the career long hardships of athletes with disabilities, Toyota Finland has launched a campaign featuring a touching letter from 1996 written by a then 13-year-old disabled high school boy. In this letter the boy asks for a grant for his family to be able to afford the high transportation costs related to his sport. This boy, Leo-Pekka Tähti, would after receiving this grant then go on to become a multiple time Paralympic gold medal winner, and a long-time brand ambassador for Toyota Finland.

“We at Toyota want to build a world where everyone has an equal opportunity to move, says Mikko Kekäläinen, General Manager at Toyota Auto Finland.”

In the campaign, spearheaded by a brand film created by The&Partnership Nordics and produced by Skål Helsinki, Toyota urges young athletes with disabilities to tell their own story and to apply for a similar grant, funded by Toyota Finland.

In the film, we see a number of kids with special needs recite Leo-Pekka’s original letter, highlighting the fact that disabled athletes still have a very hard time affording a career in professional sports. The film shows Leo-Pekka Tähti, one of the most successful athletes in Finnish sporting history, doing laps on an empty track at the iconic grounds of the Olympic Stadium in Helsinki, only to be joined and passed by the next generation of paralympic stars.

There’s definitely a strong emotional element in Leo-Pekka’s original letter. A young child’s determination to get support for his family to be able to practice a sport he loves, is touching and a great building block to build a campaign around, says Dan Rönnqvist, Strategy & Business Development Director at The&Partnership Nordics.

Rönnqvist adds that there is a growing need for inclusivity in today’s world. In Finland alone, there are over 700 000 people with either a temporary or permanent disability, which is about 15% of the entire population. The opportunities and support young para-athletes get are also far from equal to those that their non-disabled peers get.

Toyota Finland has been a sponsor of the Finnish Olympic and Paralympic Committee since 2017, as their long-term vision is to provide ever better mobility for all. With their brand platform, Beyond Zero, Toyota’s mission is to make sure that everyone in society gets to move forward with no one left behind, which is also what this campaign intends to do.

Credits
Brand (Toyota Auto Finland):
Mikko Kekäläinen – General Manager
Satu Krökki – Marketing Communications Manager
Heikki Laukkanen – Senior Manager, Marketing Communications
Mia Meinander – Digital Marketing Senior Specialist
Henna Kukkamäki – Marketing Communications Planning Specialist
Maria Mäntylä – Marketing Communications Planning Specialist

Agency (The&Partnership Helsinki)
Sirkku Söderman – Business Director
Timo Orre – Creative Director Nordics
Ben Alasuvanto – Creative Lead & Art Director
Dan Rönnqvist – Strategy & Business Development Director
Elina Oksa – Account Manager
Waltteri Nironen – Copywriter
Julio Giuseppi – Art Director & Photography
Elina Ulmanen – PR and Content Planner
Liisa Pulkkinen – Media Lead
Kari Mikkonen – Graphic Designer
Anu Luoto – Graphic Designer
Riitta Lemberg – Creative

Production Company (Skål Helsinki)
Tobias Andersson – Director
Anton Tevajärvi – DoP
Cyrila Cibulka – Producer
Otto Metsämäki – First assistant director
Juhani Vuorisalo/Grade One – Color correction

Music Production
Cosme Liccardo – Music Production

The HY Project is devoted to solving problems caused due to the increase of electric and hybrid cars in cities around the world. There is a requirement that will enter into effect in the European Union as of 2020 (and later in the United States), which requires that these vehicles emit sound as a safety standard, both for pedestrians and other vehicles.

The HY Project takes on this issue from a different perspective: through the creation of a sound that not only alerts of the presence of a vehicle in the public road but also generates a positive effect on the Environment.

But how?
Investigations carried out in different universities worldwide have revealed that plants react to the vibrations created by specific frequencies: either by absorbing nutrients, by growing or through the assimilation of solar light. The study of such frequencies has enabled the discovery of a range in which the experiments coincide. After such discovery, our team began working in the creation of the first sound for electric cars that benefits the Environment.

The Electric Factory, an innovation group in charge of the project, worked together with Ayax Toyota in both the creation and design of the sound and in devising the necessary technology for its implementation in vehicles. The concept behind the project was that “vehicles, environment polluters since their very origin, may, through The HY Project, be the ones in charge of slowly reversing this trend”.

Tags:
Toyota, Electric Car, Technology, Plants, Innovation, Sound, Ayax Toyota, Best Automotive Campaign, Technology Update

Menna Fitzpatrick a Welsh alpine skier. She was born with congenital retinal folds. She has no vision in her left eye and limited vision in her right eye. She started skiing at the age of 5. #StartYourImpossible

The Approach: Toyota has started a SeeLikeMenna digital campaign. Menna’s Instagram account was created in collaboration with Toyota. A visual impairment filter was created with the help of the Royal National Institute for the Blind in London so that the world experiences what Paralympic athletes see while skiing.

The Instagram account has 53 posts till now with around 6000 followers. There are varied photographs and videos on the account. The videos give us a glimpse of how athletes with 3% vision ski at 100km/hr. Menna’s guide Jennifer can be seen speaking instructions to help her ski across the gates.

A further 360 video was created by Toyota with athletes like Marek Kubacka from Slovenia and Maciej Krezel from Poland. It shows how athletes are categorised by different levels of visual impairment – B1 (no light perception) B2 (1-3% vision) and B3 (4-10% vision).

The Impact: Part of Toyota’s “Start Your Impossible” initiative, this Campaign packs the right amount of inspiration. With thousands of followers and views across different platforms, the Campaign has received much adulation. This Campaign clearly shows how lucky we are as individuals. It also puts light on how people can grow out of their own physical limitations.

Menna Fitzpatrick has shown fans what it’s really like being a visually-impaired skier, by sharing a series of photos and videos on Instagram to mimic her view.

There are good days. And then there are awesome ones. Since I’m visually impaired, my guide Jen is always close by. Come with us and Toyota on our journey to the Paralympics! #seewhatisee #skiingvisuallyimpaired #StartYourImpossible

A post shared by Menna Fitzpatrick + Toyota (@seelikemenna) on Mar 7, 2018 at 4:23pm PST

Winter never felt so good. #gold #silver #silver #bronze #Paralympics #wintergames #whatisee #skiingvisuallyimpaired #StartYourImpossible

A post shared by Menna Fitzpatrick + Toyota (@seelikemenna) on Mar 25, 2018 at 5:24pm PDT

Campaigns of the world salutes the pure courage that these athletes possess. We bow down to their indomitable spirit. We recognises how technology can help people increase their capabilities and succeed. We share Toyota’s vision of sharing empowering stories and helping people achieve their dreams.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman issued the decree and said that this is the right time for the right thing and his government considered driving by women as a social matter and not a religious issue. This order will be effective as on June 2018.

The Gulf Region is one of the largest markets for Automobiles and will see a significant rise of potential buyers after this historic announcement. Now, the US car companies like Ford and Jaguar can also jostle the market with Toyota and Hyundai, the current best sellers in Saudi.

Welcome to the driver’s seat | Ford. #SaudiWomenMove #SaudiWomenCanDrive

#Myway | Volkswagen

“2018 GRL” | Nissan Middle East

“The road is yours” | Jaguar

انطلقي، فالطريق لكِ. #السماح_بقيادة_المرأة_للسيارة pic.twitter.com/FPuh8WMy73

— Jaguar MENA (@JaguarMENA) September 27, 2017

See What happens when 99 women from varying walks of life come together to send out one powerful message?

“My Choice” – It starts with you.

Also Read: A Saudi Woman Who Got Behind the Wheel and Never Looked Back

The Article related to:
Saudi Arabia, women, Driver, Salman Bin Abdul-Aziz, women’s rights, Khaled Bin Salman, social, religious, Automobiles, creative Automobiles ads, Best Automobiles campaign, Toyota, Hyundai, Jaguar, Arab, Feminists‏, Creative print ads, latest ads, Muslims, Women’s rights in Saudi Arabia, Ford, car

Brand: Toyota
Product: Toyota Camry
Agency: Saatchi & Saatchi/Los Angeles
Source: One Show, Youtube Channel